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The Angkor Sunrise and Apsara Dinner Combo with Hotel Break fits the two best loved things to do in Siem Reap into one day, without the crash in the middle. A licensed guide collects you between 4:15 and 4:35 am and walks you into Angkor Wat while it is still dark. Ta Prohm, Angkor Thom and Bayon come next, and you are back at your hotel between 12:30 and 1:30 pm. That is when the good part starts. Your room, your shower, your pool and a sit down lunch carry you through the hottest hours, and at 7:30 pm a tuk tuk takes you to a Khmer buffet dinner with a live Apsara dance show. The Angkor Sunrise and Apsara Dinner Combo with Hotel Break starts at US$41 per person before hotel and temple pass, and every line of that price is broken down further down this page.
Book the Angkor Sunrise and Apsara Dinner Combo with Hotel Break and you skip the seven hour hole that wrecks most Siem Reap days. It is a proven pattern for a day, and the Angkor Sunrise and Apsara Dinner Combo with Hotel Break page below lays out the timing, the costs and the buffet details to the last dollar.
Your driver knocks between 4:15 and 4:35 am. There is cold water and a cool towel on the seat. Nobody talks much on the way in, and that is fine.
At Angkor Wat you go in through the eastern entrance. Most groups use the west gate and queue for it. Yours does not.
Inside, your guide leads with a torch along the longest stretch of bas relief carvings on earth. At 6 am you stop at the library pool. The sun comes up behind the towers and lands in the water. Two hours inside the temple follow, and your guide reads the walls for you.
This is where the Angkor Sunrise and Apsara Dinner Combo with Hotel Break earns its keep. You are back at your hotel between 12:30 and 1:30 pm. Your room is ready. Not a lobby sofa. A room.
Shower. Air conditioning. Blackout curtains. Lunch at the hotel, on us. Then swim, nap or book a Khmer massage, and nobody rushes you.
A tuk tuk collects you from the hotel around 6:15 pm. The restaurant seats you at your table, the buffet opens, and the show starts around 7:30 pm. Classical Apsara pieces come first, then folk dances from the countryside, all of it live. You eat between numbers. Drinks are ordered at the table and paid separately. The tuk tuk waits and takes you back to your hotel when the show ends.
4:15 to 4:35 am. Hotel pickup, Siem Reap. Your driver waits at the lobby with the air conditioning already running. There is a cold bottle of water and a cool towel on your seat. The pickup zone takes in the whole central Siem Reap area, from the riverside hotels near the Old Market across to the quieter lanes behind Sivatha Boulevard. Bring a torch or a charged phone, because the first part of the morning is dark.
4:50 am. Ticket checkpoint, Angkor Archaeological Park. Your guide shows your one day pass at the gate and the vehicle rolls into the park before the tour buses stack up. This is the US$37 pass you buy yourself from Angkor Enterprise. Get it online before you fly and you skip the counter queue at dawn.
5:30 am. Angkor Wat, eastern gate. You go in through the east gopura, not the crowded west causeway. Torch on, and your guide leads you along the cloistered galleries past the longest stretch of bas relief carvings anywhere in the world. Nobody speaks much in here. The walls do the talking.
6:00 am. The library pool, Angkor Wat. You stop at the edge of the ancient pool beside the two libraries, north and south of the main axis. The sun comes up behind the five towers and lands flat in the water. This is the photo everyone asks about later. Your guide knows where to stand so the crowd is not in your frame.
6:30 to 8:30 am. Inside Angkor Wat. Two full hours in the temple. Corridors, central chambers and the upper terraces that rushed groups never reach. Your guide reads the walls for you: the Churning of the Ocean of Milk in the east gallery, the army of Suryavarman II marching along the south, the heavens and the hells carved below them. Eight hundred years of Khmer Empire history, decoded out loud.
9:00 am. Breakfast stop outside the park. Sit down at a local restaurant just beyond the temple grounds, or eat the takeaway pack your hotel made for you. Either way, eat something. The next stretch is hot and busy.
9:30 am. Ta Prohm. The jungle temple, and the one people remember longest. Silk cotton trees and strangler figs grow straight through the stone walls. It looks much as the French explorer Henri Mouhot found it in the 1850s. Your guide will point out the doorways used in the Tomb Raider film.
10:30 am. Angkor Thom. Into the last great city of the Khmer Empire. You pass the Terrace of the Leper King and the Terrace of the Elephants on the way, both carved with processions of elephants and guards. Most minibuses go straight past these. You get out and walk them.
11:00 am. Bayon Temple. More than 200 huge stone faces stare down from the towers, and every single one is different. Historians still argue whether the faces show King Jayavarman VII himself or the Buddha of compassion. Your guide has a view, and you will want to hear it.
11:30 am. Southern Gate of Angkor Thom. The last stop of the temple morning. A causeway flanked by 54 gods on the left and 54 demons on the right, all of them pulling a giant serpent in stone. Most visitors take one photo from the bus window. You walk the whole causeway.
12:30 to 1:30 pm. Back at your hotel, Siem Reap. Your room is made up and waiting. Shower, get dressed, eat lunch at the hotel, then swim or sleep until you feel human again. This is the part that saves the evening.
1:30 to 5:15 pm. Day use room, Siem Reap. Four hours of air conditioning, a pool and a proper bed. Set an alarm for 5 pm if you nap, because the tuk tuk will not wait forever.
6:15 pm. Tuk tuk pickup at your hotel. A three wheeled ride through the early evening streets of Siem Reap, past the Old Market and along the river. Short trip, no traffic stress, and the breeze is the best part.
6:45 pm. Dinner restaurant, Siem Reap. You are seated at your table and the buffet opens. Traditional Khmer dishes, from soups and salads to curries and grilled fish, with vegetarian options on the line. Drinks are ordered at the table and paid separately.
7:30 pm. The Apsara show begins. Classical Cambodian dance first, with slow and precise movements, golden headdresses and a live music ensemble. Folk dances from the countryside follow, faster and louder, often with audience clapping along. The performance runs about two hours with breaks between numbers so you can keep eating.
9:30 pm. Tuk tuk back to your hotel. Your driver is waiting outside. Drop off at your hotel, or ask for the Old Market or Pub Street if you want to keep the night going.
Two things worth knowing about this timing. First, the sunrise window moves with the season, so your exact pickup time is confirmed the day before you travel. Second, the run above is the small group version. A private Angkor guide can stretch the temple stops, add Banteay Srei, or swap Ta Prohm for Preah Khan if you say so at booking.
Where it runs. Siem Reap town for the pickups, the hotel break and the dinner restaurant, plus Angkor Archaeological Park for the temple morning.
Total day. About 18 hours, from the 4:15 am pickup to the drop off around 9:30 pm. Yes, that is a long day. The hotel break in the middle is what makes it work.
Group size. Maximum 15 travellers in the small group version, in an air conditioned minibus. Private is available on request if you want the guide to yourself.
Guide. A licensed English speaking guide for the temple morning, the same person from your hotel door to the Southern Gate of Angkor Thom. Our team also runs tours in German, Spanish, French and Italian, so say the word at booking.
Vehicle. Air conditioned minibus for small groups, private car or minivan for private bookings. Cold water and cool towels come with both, and the reviews mention those towels more than anything else.
Hotel break, 1:30 pm to 5:15 pm. A day use room at your Siem Reap hotel, with shower, air conditioning and pool access. Lunch at the hotel is included. Book the overnight version and the room becomes yours for the night instead.
Evening transfer. Round trip by tuk tuk from your hotel, included in the Apsara leg. It is a three wheeled ride, not a bus, and it is part of the fun.
Dinner. A buffet dinner of traditional Khmer dishes at the partner restaurant in Siem Reap, included in the price. Vegetarian dishes sit on the same line. Drinks are extra and paid at the table.
The performance. Classical Apsara dance pieces and Cambodian folk dances, performed live with a music ensemble. The show starts around 7:30 pm and runs about two hours.
Children at the dinner. Children aged 5 to 11 usually pay a reduced rate and under 5 are often free, depending on the restaurant. We confirm the exact child rate when we book your table.
Children at the temples. Under 8 years old are not permitted on the Angkor Wat sunrise tour. That rule comes from the park, not from us.
Angkor temple pass. US$37 for a one day pass, US$62 for three days and US$72 for seven. Paid to Angkor Enterprise, not to Journey Cambodia. Buy it online before you fly and skip the counter queue at 4:50 am.
Package from. US$41 per person for the small group sunrise tour plus the Apsara dinner and transfers, before the hotel break and the temple pass. Private versions start higher.
Booking lead time. 48 hours gets you the best guide choice. From November to March the sunrise slots go first, so book earlier in peak season.
✅ Licensed English speaking guide for the sunrise tour.
✅ Licensed English speaking guide for the sunrise tour.
✅ Air conditioned minibus with cold water and cool towels all morning.
✅ Hotel pickup and drop off for the temple leg.
✅ Hotel day use room, shower and pool access from 1:30 pm to 5:15 pm.
✅ Lunch at the hotel.
✅ Round trip tuk tuk transfers to and from the dinner restaurant.
✅ Buffet dinner of traditional Khmer dishes.
✅ The live Apsara and folk dance performance.
✅ All government taxes and service charges.
Pack light, because you are on your feet for hours before the Angkor Sunrise and Apsara Dinner Combo with Hotel Break gives you a bed.
Leave your airline tickets, passport and the bulk of your cash at the hotel.
Terms & Conditions
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Good Reads and Helpful Resources
• Secure your temple access with our complete guide: Get Your Angkor Ticket Now
• Stay updated on the latest travel requirements: Cambodia Entry Rules
• Plan your comfort breaks and dining options: Angkor Archaeological Park facilities
• Budget smart for this spectacular jungle temple: Beng Mealea Entrance Fee
• Access pricing for the remote pyramid temple: Koh Ker Temple pass
• Waterfall and temple combo ticket information: Kulen Mountain Ticket
• Complete your digital arrival process before flying: Cambodia e arrival card
$43
The Angkor Sunrise and Apsara Dinner Combo with Hotel Break is a one day Siem Reap package from Journey Cambodia that joins a guided Angkor Wat sunrise tour with a hotel day use break and an evening of Khmer buffet dining and Apsara dance. The temple leg covers Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm, Angkor Thom and Bayon with a licensed guide and an air conditioned minibus. The break gives you a room, a shower, a pool and lunch from 1:30 pm to 5:15 pm. The evening leg includes round trip tuk tuk transfers, the buffet dinner and the live performance. Prices start at US$41 per person before the US$37 Angkor temple pass and your hotel rate. Tours run daily, small group up to 15 travellers or private, with pickup between 4:15 and 4:35 am and drop off around 9:30 pm.
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$39
