Siem Reap Countryside Bike Tour with Lunch

• Day tours by bike
• Cambodia
• Siem Reap

Cruise through scenic Cambodia

Cycle through scenic Cambodia on the Siem Reap Countryside Bike Tour. Ride out of the city and skirt the ancient site of the Angkor temples before making your way towards a weaving workshop, local house, the Angkor period West Baray Lake, and Svay Romiet Pagoda, as well as stopping for a lunch of one of the region's specialities, Num Banh Chok.

Begin your family-friendly day tour by riding through Siem Reap's winding streets, just as the city is beginning its day. Keep cycling until you reach dirt paths that will lead you around the outer parts of Angkor Archeological Park, where 72 major temples of the Khmer Empire remain preserved, along with numerous other ruins and shrines.

Continue through the countryside, passing fields of rice paddies and buffalo as you ride. Densely forested slopes form the distant horizon and add to the verdancy of this portion of the Cambodian countryside. Your route leads you to the workshop of a master weaver. Weaving has long been an important cottage industry in Cambodia, particularly for producing mats and baskets. Watch the master weaver as they dexterously transform reeds into usable works of art, and give the technique a go yourself.

Hop back in the saddle to continue to the next stop on this guided tour: an introduction to one of Cambodia's most popular dishes. You'll stop at a local noodle shop to enjoy a hearty bowl of Num Banh Chok for lunch. This dish is a staple of the Cambodian diet and is made with lightly fermented rice noodles, a fish-based green curry, and a wealth of fresh herbs and vegetables, like lemongrass, ginger, and turmeric.

With your appetite satiated, you'll be ready to continue to the next portion of your guided tour. Ride on until you reach a small house where your gracious host awaits. They'll welcome you inside their home which has been built and decorated in the traditional rural Cambodian style and will invite you to sit with them. Enjoy a drink and snacks, and listen as they talk about the rhythms and routines of life in their village, the challenges of modernization, and the enduring traditions they preserve.

For the final stop on this bicycle tour, you'll make your way to West Baray, a man-made lake dating back to Angkorian times. Construction of this reservoir began in the 11th century, and though it is thought to have originally served mainly symbolic functions, today, humans and nature make good use of the lake’s resources. Watch fishermen hauling in their nets and birds wheeling overhead as you cycle along its banks.

You'll stop to admire the Svay Romiet Pagoda, a monastery on the southern edge of the lake with an impressive golden stupa and rich ornamentation. Take a moment in its tranquil grounds to contemplate all that you have experienced on this immersive day tour into authentic rural Cambodia, before hopping back in the saddle and heading back to town. Take the Angkor Sunrise Bike Tour to witness dawn breaking over some of the world's most impressive ancient temples.

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Highlights

Weaving workshop, Local house, West Baray Lake, Svay Romiet Pagoda, Num Banh Chok lunch

What’s included

• Bike and helmet rental
• English-speaking guide
• Snacks
• Water

Meeting place & directions

Grasshopper Active - Siem Reap Day Tours by Bike - 9B Benoit St, Krong Siem Reap 17253, Cambodia