The City of Udong Place guide

When visiting Cambodia, a lot of tourists prefer to follow the footsteps of the crowd and learn about the country through entering popular sites and destinations. Though taking this option does give people a certain level of delight, there is something about visiting lesser known monuments that a lot of travelers search for. Immersing themselves in the nation’s other hidden treasures, is the best way to learn about the country’s culture in their own pace. In the Kampong Speu Province, there is one place travelers must visit before heading back to the bustling streets of Cambodia’s cities, and it is the town of Oudong.

Located in the Kampong Speu Province, Oudong (a.k.a Phnom Oudong) is enveloped by thick trees and riddled with a handful of stupas, which reach above the leaves. This is an important place for the locals because it served as the country’s capital between 1618 and 1866, and was known to be where kings used to be crowned. When it was founded by King Srei Soryapor in 1601, the town experienced structural improvements such as canals, terraces, bridges, and hundreds of pagodas; but on the yeaer 1866 it was abandoned by King Norodom, and by 1977 it was extensively damaged by the Khmer Rouge.

Although a lot of its buildings have been leveled by the attack, there are a few pagodas and stupas still standing tall today. Each structure holds a different appearance, giving visitors a variety of architectural marvels, which include: an image of a golden Buddha as part of the stupa’s design, and pure white stupa located on the top of the town with a golden door serving as its portal. Hiking through the lush forests of Oudong is one of the best ways to find these gorgeous structures, but Trip Guru would like to advise potential visitors that they need to prepare themselves before they do so. It is wise to pack extra water and to visit these sites during daylight.

There are three ways to get to Oudong from Phnom Penh. You can either hire a private car or ride a tuk-tuk for convenience, but if you want to travel with the locals you can ride a bus or a shared taxi near the Central Market that are heading northbound and they will drop you off at Oudong town.