Tonlé Sap

The floating villages on Tonle Sap are worth a visit, but be warned that the locals don't much like all the visiting tourists. This was the only place in Cambodia I visited where the children were not full of smiles.

The distance from Tonle Sap to Siem Reap city center is 25 km, so it takes about 30 minutes to travel by car.

Petty crime is the only safety category that matters for 99% of Siem Reap visitors — and even that is quieter here than almost anywhere else in Southeast Asia. The US State Department lists bag-snatching and market pickpocketing as common incidents country-wide, but those are primarily a Phnom Penh concern.

The Tonle Sap Great Lake is of enormous social, cultural and environmental value. It is one of the most productive and diverse fisheries systems in the world, providing key breeding grounds for fish and 60% of Cambodia's protein intake.