Banteay Chhmar

The Banteay Chhmar Community Based Tourism Project was established in 2007 in order to educate and train the poor local villagers in how to use the tourism potential of the wonderful Banteay Chhmar Angkorian temple ruins on their doorstep as a catalyst to earn a supplementary and sustainable income.

Banteay Chhmar is a very typical Cambodian village in the remote north-west of the country close to the Thai border. However, as a result of the violent turmoil Cambodia suffered from the 1960s up until the late 1990s this region was almost forgotten. Most of the villagers are rice farmers in an area which produces some of the lowest rice yields in the country, thus they lived a basic and subsistence lifestyle.

It is thought that Banteay Chhmar temple was built by Jayavarman VII as a memorial to soldiers killed while defending his son in battle against the Chams (Vietnamese) in the 12th century and there are carvings on the walls depicting scenes of this fierce battle. In its hey-day Banteay Chhmar was a large city surrounded by a moat and a high defensive wall. It was not only a place of worship but also a capital city to rival the mighty Angkor Wat. Similar to the Bayon in the Royal City of Angkor Thom, Banteay Chhmar’s temples featured the beguiling smile of the four faced Avalokiteshvara, as well as fine bas-reliefs showing scenes of everyday life.

Today, this seldom visited temple is a mass of sprawling fallen stone blocks with the surrounding jungle pushing up, creating a delightful shady ‘lost world’ atmosphere. As you explore the remains you will still discover some of the four-faced towers as well as many stretches of fine bas-reliefs including excellent carvings of the 32 armed god Avalokiteshvara. Experiencing an almost ‘private’ sunset as the sun drops down beyond the temple’s baray is idyllic.

Using the Banteay Chhmar temple ruins as a focal point the villagers offer activities such as: home-stays in traditional Khmer houses, torch-lit Khmer dinner in the grounds of the temple, oxcart rides to explore the village, bicycle rides to the nearby large lake, guided tours to other nearby temple remains, traditional music performances, watch local women weaving silk, help out with rice planting or the harvest and much more.