Battambang Tour: Bambootrain, Killing Cave & Bat Cave

Battambang's hidden corners, from colonial architecture to a mountain summit at dusk

A full-day tuk tuk tour of Battambang, Cambodia, with a live English-speaking guide covering French colonial buildings, temples, local food production, the Killing Cave at Phnom Sampou, and the Bat Cave where millions of bats emerge at sunset. Hotel pickup is included. The tour departs at 7:30am and runs roughly 12 hours, with stops for tastings, a bamboo train ride, and viewpoints across the city and surrounding villages.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time spent at each

1. Wat Samrong Knong1h 30m · entry included
2. Battambang Bat Caves1h · entry included

Battambang city and countryside tour

• Meet guide and introduction
• See historical buildings and market
• Visit Khmer rice noodle production
• Watch bamboo sticky rice cooking
• Explore Wat Samrong Knong and killing field
• Learn rice paper making and taste spring rolls
• Visit rice wine production and taste samples
• See giant Buddha and Buddhist temple
• View Angkorian Hindu temple ruins
• Return to city for lunch or rest
• Travel through villages and plantations
• Ride bamboo train and enjoy scenery
• Late lunch at local village restaurant
• Visit Phnom Sampou for rat barbecue
• See Killing Cave and Khmer Rouge history
• Explore temples, monkeys, and viewpoints
• Watch bats flying from cave at sunset
• Return to hotel or town

The experience

The day starts in central Battambang at 7:30am, moving through the city's main French structures (the provincial hall, central market, and the Ta Dambong Kran houng statue), while your guide explains Cambodian history, culture and agriculture. You'll stop at working villages to watch locals make khmer rice noodle, bamboo sticky rice prepared in hollowed bamboo, and rice paper (villagers produce around 1,500 sheets daily), with chances to taste each. The guide shares how these foods fit into daily life and how they're made, and you can talk with farmers and children about raising vegetables and working the rice fields.

After lunch and a rest hour in the city, you head south to see fruit plantations, rice fields and a suspension bridge before boarding the bamboo train: a motorized platform that runs on narrow-gauge tracks through the countryside, giving a free "butt massage" from the movement as you ride. On the way to Phnom Sampou mountain, you'll stop to taste rat barbecue (optional), then take a motor bike or pickup truck up the mountain to the Killing Cave, where over 10,000 victims died during the Khmer Rouge regime (1975–1979). The summit holds temples, monkeys, cannons and multiple viewpoints across Battambang.

The highlight comes at dusk: you wait at the Bat Cave to watch millions of wrinkle-lipped bats pour out over roughly 50 minutes. The tour ends with a return to your hotel, restaurant, bus station or into town. Throughout the day you receive cold bottled water, snacks, fruit salad, entrance fees for all sites, and a wet wipes pack.

What’s included

• Hotel pickup and drop-off.
• tuk tuk transportation throughout the day.
• live English-speaking guide.
• entrance fees for Ek Phnom temple, Banan Temple, Killing Cave and Bat Cave.
• cold bottled water.
• snacks and fruit salad.
• wet wipes.
• mountain motor taxi or shuttle service for the return from Phnom Sampou.
• bamboo train ride.
• tastings of khmer rice noodle, bamboo sticky rice, rice paper and spring rolls.
• rat barbecue (optional).
• photo opportunities at all stops.

Options for this experience

4 options

Tuk-tuk tour in the afternoonGuide in English · 12:00Shared tuk-tuk tour with sights and activities including the city, countryside, suspension bridge, paddy fields, bamboo train, tasting rat, Killing Cave, and Bat Cave. Duration: 7 hours. Pickup is included.

Tuk-tuk excursion during the morningGuide in English · 07:30Shared tuk-tuk tour with sights including the city, rice noodles, bamboo sticky rice, the oldest pagoda, the Killing Field, rice paper, rice wine, and temples. Duration: 5 hours. Pickup is included.

Full-day tuk-tuk tourGuide in English · 08:30Shared tuk-tuk tour covering the city, suspension bridge, a Buddhist temple, the original bamboo train, fruit bats, the Bannan Ancient Temples, and the killing and bat caves. Duration: 11 hours. Pickup is included.

Tour of the day by tuk-tuk, full dayGuide in English · 07:30Shared tuk-tuk tour covering the city, rice noodles, bamboo sticky rice, a temple, the Killing Field, rice paper, rice wine, Ek Phnom, the bamboo train, and the killing and bat caves. Duration: 12 hours. Pickup is included.

You'll see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates and prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 07:30, 08:30 and 12:00

AgesAdult (18 to 54 years) · Senior (55 to 80 years) · Youth (15 to 17 years) · Child (2 to 14 years) · Infant (under 2): free

GroupUp to 15

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated yesterday

Good to know

Low physical effortPublic transport nearbyNot recommended during pregnancyNot recommended with heart problemsNot recommended with back problemsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Discover Battambang with Samol Tuk-Tuk & Motorbike Tours

Is this one for you?Choose the morning departure if you want to see the city's colonial buildings and food production in daylight before heading to the mountain. The full-day option lets you cover both the Killing Cave's history and the Bat Cave's evening emergence without rushing either one, though the 12-hour span and tuk tuk travel mean you'll be moving most of the day.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Youth (15 to 17 years); Child (2 to 14 years); Infant (under 2): free.

What's the Killing Cave at Phnom Sampou, and why is it part of this tour?

Wat Samrong Knong and the Killing Cave at Phnom Sampou are two separate sites tied to the Khmer Rouge period (1975–1979). Wat Samrong Knong, built in 1707, was used to house Khmer Rouge soldiers and served as a detention area. You see the torture house and killing field where approximately 10,008 victims were killed. The Killing Cave at Phnom Sampou is a second location where over 10,000 more victims died. Both are included so you understand this history firsthand while visiting the mountain's temples, viewpoints and the bat cave at sunset.

Can I really ride the bamboo train, and what's it actually like?

Yes, you board the bamboo train after lunch, riding a motorized platform on narrow-gauge tracks through villages and countryside. The movement gives a free "butt massage" from the vibration, and you see the scenery along the way. The ride is part of the full-day itinerary and included in your tour price, though the original bamboo train (a non-motorized version) costs an extra $5 per person if you want to try that instead.

Do I get to taste the local food, or just watch it being made?

You watch and taste: at each stop (khmer rice noodle production, bamboo sticky rice, and rice paper making). You try fresh versions and fried spring rolls. Rat barbecue is optional and happens before you reach Phnom Sampou. Snacks and fruit salad are included throughout the day, and cold bottled water is provided at all stops.

What time do the bats actually come out of the cave?

The bat emergence happens in the evening and takes over 50 minutes as millions of wrinkle-lipped bats fly out from the Battambang Bat Caves. The tour is timed so you arrive before dusk and wait to see this, making it the highlight at the end of your day before returning to your hotel or into town.

Does the tour include lunch, and where do we eat?

Lunch is not included in the tour price. After the bamboo train ride, you have a late lunch at a local restaurant in the village. You can also take a one-hour rest in the city earlier in the day if you prefer. You'll need to budget separately for meals.