Asia - extra day in Cambodia - Siem Reap or Phnom Penh?

I snagged a good fare to Cambodia. I think I'll end up with an 'extra' day at the end of my trip. With my itinerary, options are to spend it in Siem Reap (where I will have already spent 4 days) or Phnom Penh (where I will be flying from to return home).

Recommendations?

If I read this correctly, the choice is:

4 days Siem Reap and 1 day Phnom Penh

OR

5 days Siem Reap

For me, the choice is easy. I'd do the first. There's plenty to do in Phnom Penh to keep me interested, and it is completely different than Siem Reap

Phnom Penh is a wonderful place with a lot of great stuff to see and do. It feels much more authentically Cambodian than Siem Reap and it definitely deserves at least one day.

Thanks! this is exactly the kind of info I need. I didn't have a clear picture of Phnom Penh. Sounds like it's interesting enough to warrant coming back and spending a full day/night before coming home.

Some things to see/do in Phnom Penh:


National Museum
National Palace & Silver Pagoda
Killing Fields - profoundly sad; very moving; important to see so that we do our best to prevent man's inhumanity to man. 15km from Phnom Penh
Tuol Sleng Museum - largest center of detention and torture in country (see comment above)
Central Market
Foreign Correspondant's Club - fabulous views of Tonle Sap River. Have a drink here

Others have already replied, but I'll add a vote in favor of my adopted (for the time being, anyway) hometown, Phnom Penh.

In addition to the various sights that other have mentioned, there's also great architecture (both old French colonial and "New Khmer" from the 1960s and early 70s -- see http://www.ka-tours.org/ for info; scroll down for their do-it-yourself walking tour / map), great food (see www.phnomenon.com), and great shopping (Russian market for touristy stuff; various upscale places like Romyda Keth's Ambre for the high-end).

- Michael

Here's a half-to-one day itinerary for touring those bits of Phnom Penh that don't involve piles of skulls or bloodstained torture chambers:

http://extra.wikitravel.org/blog/jani/stroll_sisowath_quay

Splurge on a night at the Raffles Le Royal (http://extra.wikitravel.org/blog/jani/hotel_review_raffles_le_royal) if you can -- it's cheaper (~US$150 off-season) and IMHO nicer than the Grand Hotel d'Angkor in Siem Reap.

Absolutely, Phnom Penh is very interesting - and I highly recommend visiting the Tuol Sleng to get an idea of what the Khmer Rouge did to Cambodia & to understand a bit why the country is in the relative shape it is in.

I just spent 3 days in PNH and 3 in Siem Reap. I loved both places, but wish I had had an extra day in Siem Reap simply to take a break from temples for a day. Overall I prefer PNH, though, and I look forward to one more day there on my way back. Right now I'm sitting on the beach in Sihanoukville and enjoying the beautiful weather. I am definitely returning to Cambodia soon before it becomes another Thailand. (god forbid!) The Khmer people are fantastic--truly inspirational! ^