Tonle Sap Floating Villages

UNESCO Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve (1997). Villages Of Houses On Stilts Or Floating Rafts On South East Asia'S Largest Lake, Which Swells To Five Times Its Size In The Wet Season. Kampong Phluk, With Its Flooded Forest, Is The Better Visit; Chong Khneas Is The Busiest. Seen By Boat, And A Mix Of Real Village Life And Tourist Boat Business · Siem Reap, Siem Reap

The Tonle Sap is South-East Asia's largest lake, and in the wet season it swells to about five times its dry-season size, flooding forest and fields. Communities of Khmer, Cham and Vietnamese families live on it in houses on tall stilts or on floating rafts, and the lake is protected as a UNESCO biosphere reserve. Three villages are visited from Siem Reap, about 15 to 20 km away. Chong Khneas is the closest, busiest and most commercial. Kampong Phluk has a flooded forest you paddle through in the wet season. Kompong Khleang is farther, larger and more authentic, with the tallest stilt houses. All are visited by boat. The experience is a mix of real village life and a tourist business, and there are ethical questions about some stops, such as caged crocodiles and children who beg from boats, covered in the tips. Boat prices are quoted per person or per boat, so ask which before you pay. The Angkor pass is not needed.

Kampong Phluk and Chong Khneas on the Tonle Sap lake, about 15 to 20 km south of Siem Reap, Siem Reap, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Boats generally run daily from early morning to around sunset, and most visitors go in the morning or for the late afternoon light, so confirm the current times with your operator. The villages themselves are never CLOSED, but boat trips depend on the water. In the dry months from February to June the lake is low and some channels at Kampong Phluk cannot be used, so tours may be shortened or moved to another dock. Strong storms in the wet season can stop boats for a few hours. Walking through the village streets and looking from the road is FREE, but boat rides and the ticket booths at the docks are not.

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