Royal Empire Hotel

The temples at Angkor are spread out over some 40 miles around the village of Siem Reap, about 192 miles from the Cambodian capital, Phnom Penh. They were built between the eighth and 13th centuries and range from single towers made of bricks to vast stone temple complexes. There are two main sites where the Khmer temples are located. The first is at Roluos which is about 10 miles south east of today's village of Siem Reap, where only a few of the earlier temples were built. This was the first Khmer capital in the Angkor area. In the late ninth century, Yasovarman I moved the capital to the immediate vicinity of Siem Reap. This is a much larger site, where the majority of the Khmer temples are located. It is officially known as the City of Angkor. There are other temples located in the area, some up to 20 miles away from Siem Reap.

Today, a great deal of restoration work has been done on many of the temples. The major temples as listed below are famous to all tourists.

ANGKOR WAT

Regarded as the supreme masterpiece of Khmer architecture, it is a huge pyramid temple built by Suryavarman II between 1113 and 1150. It is surrounded by a moat 570 feet wide and about four miles long. The mass of bas-relief carving is of the highest quality and the most beautifully executed in Angkor.

BAKONG TEMPLE

The central temple in Indravarman I's city of Hariharalaya. It is a large pyramid temple, measuring 180 feet square at the base. It was built towards the end of the ninth century.

BANTEAY SREI TEMPLE

A delicate and small temple around 15 miles from the village of Siem Reap. It was built by Jayavarman V and finished in AD968. It is an example of the idea of making a temple complex comprised of several buildings, and features some very fine carvings in pink sandstone.

BAPHUON TEMPLE

A large pyramid temple built by Udayadityavarman II between 1050 and 1066. It features beautiful carvings including a 131-foot reclining Buddha.

BAYON TEMPLE

A massive temple complex built by Jayavarman VII between 1181 and 1220. It features 3,936 feet of superb bas-relief carving and mysterious Buddha faces carved on the towers of the third level.

** MARKET, SUPER MARKET AND ANGKOR SHOPPING ARCADE NIGHT MARKET ARE ONLY A MINUTE WALK FROM THE HOTEL.

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