Museums and galleries in Phnom Penh

Museums and galleries in Phnom Penh

1. Eat

   Java Creative Cafe Toul Tom Poung

   Soups, salads and sandwiches in a cosy setting overlooking the Independence Monument. Good vegetarian options. Has a rotating art exhibition.

2. See

   Sosoro Museum

   Opened 2019, this is a modern museum about money. 2,000 years of Cambodia’s monetary history through display cases and panels enhanced by multimedia presentations, and interactive exhibits. Even if you are not generally interested in economics, the museum tells the story of the Cambodian economy in an engrossing enough way that it's not to be missed.

   Tue-Sun 09:00-18:00·Adult 20,000 riel, 32,000 riel with audioguide; child 2,000 riel, 14,000 riel with audioguide

3. See

   The Killing Fields of Choeung Ek

   This is where the Khmer Rouge killed many thousands of their victims during their four-year reign of terror. Today the site is marked by a Buddhist stupa packed full of over 8,000 human skulls. The sides are made of glass so the visitors can see them up close. There are also pits in the area where mass graves were unearthed. However, there is not much to see otherwise since all buildings and materials were removed shortly after the Khmer Rouge dictatorship. Regularly throughout the day, a small museum screens a documentary with gruesome video images of human remains that were unearthed when the mass graves were found in 1979. As millions were killed during the traumatic genocidal regime of Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge, as a sign of respect, wear respectable clothing such as long pants and no sleeveless shirts or tops. Flowers and incense can be bought in front of the stupa. In 2005 the memorial site was sold to a for-profit private company, JC Royal Co., to develop the memorial. A tuk-tuk from the center to the site costs about US$7 one way. A tour bus to the site that also stops at the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum will cost US$16 or US$28 for 2 people.

   Closed · opens 7:30 am·US$6, including audio tour (not sold separately)

4. See

   The National Museum of Cambodia

   Contains an excellent collection of art from Cambodia's "golden age" of Angkor, and a lovely courtyard at the centre. A main attraction is the statue of King Jayavarman VII (1181-1219) in a meditative pose. Other exhibits worth seeing include graceful statues of Hindu gods, ancient stelae (tablets) inscribed in Sanskrit and old Khmer, and artefacts from a prehistoric burial site. In the middle of the courtyard is the original statue of the "Leper King" (actually Yama, the Hindu god of death) from the terrace of the Leper King in Angkor Archaeological Park. The building is of some historic interest, designed in the early 20th century by a French scholar of Khmer culture to evoke traditional Khmer architecture. The pleasant little park in front of the museum is the site of the annual Royal Ploughing Ceremony, at which the success or failure of the coming harvest is determined. The gift shop has a small selection of books on Cambodian archaeology, art, culture, and history.

   Daily 08:00-17:00, last admission 16:30·US$10, youth US$5

5. See

   Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum (S-21 Prison)

   A school converted into Cambodia's most important prison in 1975. More than 14,000 people were tortured here before being killed at the killing fields; only 8 prisoners made it out alive. The museum is easily accessible and a must-see for everyone interested in Cambodia's horrific history. The beautiful courtyard with palm trees makes for an unsettling contrast with the horrors remembered in the museum: concrete cells, skulls stacked in cabinets, implements of torture and disturbing photographs of people dying. For an introduction and further reading, try David Chandler's Voices from S-21 . Documentary movie S-21 can be purchased in Phnom Penh for US$1.50-2. There is also a short movie screening featuring some survivors that plays at 09:30 upstairs in the far building. An audio tour (available in several languages) is enough to understand the place and lets you go at your own pace. Plan to spend about three hours at the museum if you do the audio tour. There are survivors of the camp who sell their memoirs on site. Across from the museum (No 54 & 56, St 113, is a little shop called CHA (http://www3.online.com.kh/users/wthanchashop) that sells inexpensive handmade goods that are made by women disabled from polio and land mines. If you ask, you will also be able to tour the shop, meet the female workers and see where they study English.

   Closed · opens 8 am·US$5 entrance, US$5 for audio tour or guided tour

6. Do Not mapped

   Meta House

   A German-Cambodian cultural center that's an outgrowth of Germany's Goethe Institute. Art gallery, bar, mini-cinema and production house. Shows free, high quality foreign and Cambodian films Tu-Su nights at 19:00 in the bar-lounge in the front yard.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Phnom Penh (CC BY-SA 4.0).