Kompong Phluk Floating Village: Private Boat & Stilt Houses

Stilt Houses Rising 8 Meters Above Water: Inside Cambodia's Floating Village

You're picked up from your hotel and driven to the Tonlé Sap lake pier, then taken by private boat through Kompong Phluk's stilt houses, flooded mangrove forest, and fishing grounds. The boat ride lasts 90 minutes to two hours depending on the season, with an English guide narrating the traditional Khmer life around you. Hotel return is included, and the whole half-day fits between morning and lunch.

Step-by-step itinerary

Visit Kompong Phluk floating village

• Pick up from hotel in Siem Reap
• Drive 40 minutes to boat pier
• Board private boat to Kompong Phluk
• Explore stilt houses and floating hospital
• Discover fishery and flooded mangrove forest
• Enjoy boat ride for 1.5 to 2 hours
• Admire view over TonLe Sap lake

The experience

The houses don't sit on the water. They tower above it. Stilt posts rise up to eight meters in the dry season, and when the rains come, the water climbs to within a meter of the floors, swallowing the forest around them. Kompong Phluk is a permanent Khmer fishing community on Tonlé Sap lake, 30 kilometers from Siem Reap, and it's one of those places where the landscape forces you to rethink how people live. Your guide picks you up from your hotel and drives about 40 minutes to the boat pier, then you board a private boat for the main event: a 90-minute to two-hour ride through the village itself.

The boat moves slowly through the stilted houses, past a floating hospital, fishing nets, and the mangrove forest that floods and recedes with the season. You're not rushing. The pace lets you actually look at how people move through their day: kids playing on wooden platforms, fishermen checking traps, the ordinary texture of a life most visitors never see. Your English-speaking guide points out the details and answers questions, and the boat is yours alone, not shared with a group of twenty. It's the kind of half-day tour that doesn't feel thin or rushed. You get the main sights and the breathing room to absorb them.

The drive back to Siem Reap takes the same 40 minutes, and by then you've seen the biggest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia and the way a community has built itself around it. The whole thing (pickup, boat, guide, cold water and a towel) is included. You don't arrange transport separately or negotiate with a boatman at the pier. It's already decided.

What’s included

Your half-day includes hotel pickup and return in an air-conditioned minivan, an English-speaking local guide for the full duration, a private boat ride through Kompong Phluk lasting 90 minutes to two hours, cold water and a cold towel during the tour, and access to see the stilt houses, floating hospital, fishing grounds, and flooded mangrove forest.

Information

Lasts 4h, runs every day at 09:00 and 14:30, from US$ 39 per person, with a live guide in English, as a private tour and with free cancellation up to 24 h before.

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 09:00 and 14:30

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.

Book up to3h before

AgesAdult (13 and older) · Child (2 to 12 years): free

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

Prices and times updated 4 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Angkor Wat Travel Tour

Is this one for you?Choose this tour if you want to see a working Khmer floating village without arranging your own transport or negotiating with boatmen: the private boat and fixed schedule mean you move at a pace that lets the place settle in, and you're back in Siem Reap by early afternoon.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (2 to 12 years): free.

How long is the drive from Siem Reap to the boat pier?

Around 40 minutes by air-conditioned minivan.

What's the difference between dry and wet season at Kompong Phluk?

In the dry season, stilt houses rise up to 8 meters above the ground. In the wet season, water rises to within one meter of the houses, flooding the surrounding forest.

How long is the boat ride through the village?

The boat ride lasts approximately 90 minutes to two hours, depending on the season and water levels.

Is the tour private or shared with other groups?

It's a private tour. You have your own boat and guide.

What's included in the tour?

Hotel pickup and return, English-speaking guide, private boat ride, air-conditioned vehicle, cold water, and a cold towel.

Can infants come on this tour?

Yes, infants can come but must sit on an adult's lap. Infant meals are not included.

How far is Kompong Phluk from Siem Reap?

The floating village is located 30 kilometers from Siem Reap.

Is this tour suitable for people with limited mobility?

The tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels, though it involves getting in and out of a boat and sitting for the duration of the ride.