My wife and I visited Siem Reap, as part of a 17day trip through Vietnam and Cambodia, where we were travelling with 10 other people. The tour was with G-Adventures and so the visit to Ta Prohm, Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom was prearranged by them, including a local guide to give us a high level of specific history and knowledge. The entire experience is, without doubt, one of the most wonderful I have ever had on my travels. This review is specifically for Ta Prohm, though our trip included Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom / Bayon Temple, which I have reviewed separately. The full site is massive, and so I would recommend a guided tour that takes in all three main places of interest. We began our visit at Angkor Wat, to catch the views of the sunrise behind the temple, and I’ve reviewed that separately.
There is little else that I could write here, which has not been written many times before, especially as this site was used in the Lara Croft movie, Tomb Raider, giving it even more coverage than the usual historical sites. So, I’ll stick to personal experience and give advice based on that.
The main points of advice I would give would be: Firstly, try to go with a guide, as the specific information they can provide is invaluable. Secondly, read as much information as you can before you visit, so you have an idea of the areas you wish to focus on. Thirdly, try, if you can, to get there well before sunrise, in order to watch the sunrise at nearby Angkor Wat. Our group set off from the hotel at 04:00am to achieve this and, much as that might sound ridiculously early, it is worth it to beat the crowds and get a good spot for taking photos. Please feel free to check the photos I’ve posted from all three sites.