Temple tickets are only available from a new ticketing centre on Apsara Rd. This also means the temples now have a new main entrance. If you’re heading to the temples independently on a bicycle, or using an old guidebook, be sure you head to the correct ticket booth (see the map).
Each day, large numbers of independent travellers arrive by bicycle at the old entrance on Charles De Gaulle Road expecting to purchase tickets and to enter the temple complex. They’re shuffled off to the new ticket office 3kms away. Not a great way to start your Angkor temples tour.
Once you have your ticket, it’s possible to enter the temple complex from Charles De Gaulle and other routes - but you must get your ticket first.
Photo: Mark Bowyer Angkor Temples ticketing centre - Apsara Road.
Angkor tickets background
When I first visited Angkor in 1994, there were very few tourists and a single day pass cost $100USD.
Prices were then reduced and the increase at the beginning of 2017 was the first in more than a decade.
While we’re supportive of efforts to raise the revenue collected from the temples (assuming it’s put to good use), travellers should be able to expect an easy and efficient ticketing system for such high prices.
The new centre’s location is not ideal for travellers, especially those heading in early for an Angkor sunrise. And it’s hard to imagine why such a centre is necessary at all. A mix of online and offline ticketing in downtown locations would improve the experience of visitors - especially those with limited time.
The newly built shopping emporium-style ticketing centre looks designed to be a business in its own right though - and that’s probably the reason that travellers are given the run-around.
We recommend longer stays at Angkor. A single day will be underwhelming as you’ll be rushed through the main temples, and you’ll miss the full beauty of the place. Many of the best experiences of Angkor will be had at the smaller lesser known temples - random stops where there are few other travellers.
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