Hotels near Banteay Srei

Banteay Srei repays the drive. Consecrated in 967 and built not by a king but by a Brahmin counsellor named Yajnavaraha, it is cut from fine-grained red sandstone that holds detail no other Angkor temple matches. The carvings stand several centimetres proud of the wall and remain crisp after more than a thousand years of monsoon.

The temple is small, and you can walk the whole enclosure in 40 minutes. The pediments are the reason to come: look for Shiva and Uma seated on the bull Nandi, and the scene of Kama firing his arrow at Shiva. Entry is included in the standard Angkor Pass. The road out passes rice paddies and palm-sugar stalls, and most drivers will fold in Banteay Samre or the Cambodia Landmine Museum on the way back.

Pro Tip: Go at 07:00 or after 15:30. The red stone reads deepest in low sun, and midday tour groups fill the narrow inner courtyard where the best carvings are. Agree 30 to 35 dollars for the return tuk-tuk before you set off.