SIEM REAP: Covering an area of 401 square kilometres, the Angkor Temple Complex contains the magnificent remains of the different capitals of the Khmer Empire from the 9th to the 15th centuries. As the Cambodia tourism industry continues to bounce back from Covid-19, visitor numbers continue to climb at the kingdom’s premiere World Heritage Site.

Cambodia’s famed Angkor Archaeological Park received 498,513 foreign tourists in the first eight months of this year, earning $23 million from ticket sales, the state-owned Angkor Enterprise said on Monday.

In August alone, the park attracted 58,148 foreign visitors, about 5,000 more than it welcomed in July.

Located in northwest Siem Reap province, the Angkor Archeological Park, was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1992, and remains the most popular tourist destination in the country.

During the pre-pandemic era, in 2019, the Angkor Archaeological Park received up to 2.2 million international visitors, generating $99 million in revenue from ticket sales, according to the Angkor Enterprise.

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.