Beng Mealea

Yet its remote location and its crumbling walls and chambers make it an exciting temple to explore. Once only for the most adventurous travelers, Beng Mealea is now much easier to access, allowing greater numbers of visitors to experience its overgrown splendor.

Description: The mysterious temple of Beng Mealea was one of the largest temple complexes of the Angkor-era, built along the ancient road connecting Angkor, Phnom Kulen, and Koh Ker). Lost to the jungle for centuries, Beng Mealea was first discovered by western archaeologists around the turn of the 20th century, only to be forgotten again after the region was littered with land mines during the Cambodian civil war. The temple was later reopened to visitors in 2003, after the surrounding areas were cleared of land mines, but it was not until more recently that a new road was built, making the temple easy to most tourists to visit.

Hidden in the jungle some 70kms from Siem Reap, Beng Mealea appears to have been built during the reign of Suryavarman II, as the temple shares many similarities with Angkor Wat. The approach to the temple is across the moat from the east, though there are causeways in each of the cardinal directions with magnificent seven-headed naga balustrades. The temple has a rectangular layout consisting of three enclosures, connected by cruciform cloisters that lead to an inner sanctuary. The massive sandstone blocks used for the high walls and buildings feature some intricately carved scenes from Hindu mythology, and the spectacular West Tower still stands, glowing in the dappled sunlight that filters through the jungle canopy.

Access to the complex is by way of a relatively easy 90 minute drive, as the 2003 access road to Koh Ker has been upgraded in recent years. While it is less likely that you will have the temple to yourself, its somewhat remote location means it is still far less visited than the major temples of Angkor and its size allows you to get away from other visitors if you feel like exploring the complex.

Sensible shoes and clothing are recommended as visitors will need to climb over huge piles of rubble and collapsed walls to explore the entire site. For visitors unfit for such effort, a boardwalk and wooden stairs have been built to allow access to several scenic areas within the temple. A circuit of the vegetation-covered ruins with a local guide will take around two hours.