SIEM REAP: According to the Director of Tourism Development and Culture Department at the APSARA National Authority, approximately 2.6 million domestic and international tourists visited the Angkor Archeological Park in Siem Reap province in the first seven months of 2023.

Tourism Director Seng Sotheara, said that of the 2,643,000 guests welcomed at the park, 2,203,696 were domestic visitors and 439,365 were foreign tourists. This is a huge increase from the same time last year when only 83,854 international visitors went to Angkor Archeological Park.

Seng Sotheara is optimistic that the number of tourists will keep rising, especially after the Siem Reap-Angkor International Airport opens in mid-October.

According to Angkor Enterprise, 53,596 foreign tourists visited the site in July alone, generating $2,439,927 US. Over $107,000 US were donated to the Cambodia Kantha Bopha Foundation in July to support the humanitarian efforts of Kantha Bopha Children’s Hospitals.

Tickets can only be bought at the Angkor Ticket Office and are sold by number of days in the park, rather than individual temples. A one-day pass runs $37, three days for $62 or one week for $72. The passes allow access not only to the Angkor Wat complex, which spans nearly 163 acres and is the largest temple complex in the world, but also to the dozens of surrounding temples like Bayon and the famous “Tomb Raider Temple” of Ta Prohm. In late 2022, the government announced a “Free Angkor Pass” to foreigners who have been residing in Cambodia for at least 2 years, meant to increase tourism flow to the Siem Reap area.