Kampong Khleang

Kampong Khleang is the biggest of the stilted settlements around the Tonle Sap, home to several thousand people in houses raised on posts along a channel, with a floating section further out that moves with the water. Because it is an hour and a half from Siem Reap rather than half an hour, it receives a fraction of the visitors that Chong Kneas does, and the village goes about its business largely regardless of them: fish drying on racks, boat building, school children paddling home, shops selling from the water. Boats run from the village out into the lake and through the flooded forest. The scale of the stilts, the height of the houses and the length of the channel are what register.

What you actually see

• Tall stilt houses - a long channel lined with raised dwellings.
• The floating section - houses further out that move with the water.
• Working village life - fish drying, boat building, shops on the water.
• Flooded forest - trees standing in water out toward the lake.

When to go

September to December for high water, when boats reach everywhere and the village is at its most striking. From March to May the channel is low or dry and access is limited.

Honest expectations

The drive is an hour and a half each way. Boat fees are charged per boat and quoted high; sharing helps. In the dry season much of the boat route is unavailable. This is a working community, and photographing houses and people warrants some restraint.

Nearby

Kampong Phluk lies west; Siem Reap is northwest.