Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Wildlife Tours
( 095970175; wildlifetourspt@wildlifealliance.org; minimum donation US$150)
Wildlife Alliance
has created an exciting full-day interactive tour to raise funds for Phnom Tamao. Donors
get to interact with a variety of rescued animals, including elephants, macaques and gib-
bons, and get up close with tigers, crocodiles and what is possibly the world's only captive
hairy-nosed otter. Tours include walks with elephants in the forest and you get to feed
various baby animals in the sanctuary's nursery, which is normally off-limits to the public.
All proceeds go toward the rescue and care of wildlife at Phnom Tamao.
TOUR
Betelnut Jeep Tours
( 012619924;
www.betelnuttours.com
; per person US$40)
Betelnut Jeep Tours offers guided
open-top jeep trips to Phnom Tamao from Tuesday to Saturday, departing at 9.45am from
the Lazy Gecko Guesthouse (
Click here
)
in Phnom Penh. The price includes admission,
lunch and a
krama
(scarf) to protect against the elements.
TOUR
Getting There & Away
The access road to Phnom Tamao is clearly signposted on the right 6.5km south of the
turnoff to Tonlé Bati on NH2. The sanctuary is 5km from the highway on an incredibly
dusty road lined with elderly beggars. If coming by bus ask to be let off at the turnoff,
where
motos
await to whisk you to the sanctuary.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Phnom Chisor
A temple from the Angkorian era,
Phnom Chisor
(admission US$2, levied at the summit)
is set
upon a solitary hill in Takeo Province, offering superb views of the countryside. Try to get
to Phnom Chisor early in the morning or late in the afternoon, as it is an uncomfortable
climb in the heat of the midday sun.
The main temple stands on the eastern side of the hilltop. Constructed of laterite and
brick with carved sandstone lintels, the complex is surrounded by the partially ruined
walls of a 2.5m-wide gallery with windows. Inscriptions found here date from the 11th
century, when this site was known as Suryagiri.