20 places
Phnom Penh in one day
The twenty places a first-time visitor is actually looking for — palaces, markets, memorials and the riverfront.
Royal Palace
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhGo for the afternoon session and check it is open — it closes for state occasions.
📍 Samdach Sothearos Blvd, Daun Penh
Silver Pagoda (Wat Preah Keo)
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhIncluded with the palace ticket. Do not skip it to save time.
📍 Royal Palace complex, Samdach Sothearos Blvd
National Museum of Cambodia
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhTwo hours. The courtyard alone is worth the ticket.
📍 Street 13, Daun Penh
Wat Phnom
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhHigher than it looks, and still a working pagoda.
📍 Wat Phnom hill, Daun Penh
Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21)
Attractions & landmarks · Russian MarketTake the audio guide. Leave the rest of the day light.
📍 Street 113, Boeung Keng Kang III
Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre
Attractions & landmarks · Russian MarketAfter Tuol Sleng, not before. The order changes what you understand.
📍 Choeung Ek, Dangkao district
Independence Monument
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhBest after dark, when it is lit.
📍 Norodom Blvd at Sihanouk Blvd
Sisowath Quay riverfront
Attractions & landmarks · RiversideFree, and where the city actually goes. Dawn or dusk.
📍 Sisowath Quay
Chaktomuk — the four rivers
Attractions & landmarks · RiversideFour rivers meeting. The city's geography in one view.
📍 Riverfront near the Royal Palace
Central Market (Phsar Thmey)
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhGo for the 1937 dome, not the shopping.
📍 Phsar Thmey, Daun Penh
Russian Market (Phsar Tuol Tom Poung)
Attractions & landmarks · Russian MarketTailors at the back, food court behind them. Avoid midday.
📍 Street 155 at Street 444
Wat Ounalom
Attractions & landmarks · RiversideThe seat of Cambodian Buddhism, and quiet with it.
📍 Sisowath Quay at Street 154
Wat Botum Park
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhWhere the city exercises at 5pm.
📍 Sothearos Blvd
Koh Pich (Diamond Island)
Attractions & landmarks · Koh PichEvening only. Pointless in the afternoon heat.
📍 Koh Pich
Chroy Changvar peninsula
Attractions & landmarks · Chroy ChangvarTake the 500-riel ferry rather than the bridge.
📍 Chroy Changvar
National Library of Cambodia
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhNobody goes. That is rather the point.
📍 Street 92, near Wat Phnom
Street 240
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhAn hour of browsing, and the best coffee density downtown.
📍 Street 240, Daun Penh
Bassac Lane
Attractions & landmarks · BKK1A visitor's first evening, sorted.
📍 Off Street 308, BKK1
Bophana Audiovisual Resource Center
Attractions & landmarks · Daun PenhFree, air-conditioned, and genuinely remarkable.
📍 64 Street 200, Daun Penh
Phnom Penh Night Market
Attractions & landmarks · RiversideWeekends. Eat first, shop second.
📍 Sisowath Quay at Street 106