I will be in SIN in Jan 2010. I will have 7 days to do a tour - I am thinking of Angkor Wat for sure and maybe some other places.

Any recommendations on how to spend the 7 days - ie how many days in Angkor Wat and what area/places to visit?

Also, any recommendations on where to book the tours from?

A lot of people say that 4 nights and 3 days is good for Angkor Wat. I've heard good things about Journeys Within tours.

Thx.

Last year I took MomDad to REP,
flew SIN-REP on SilkAir, not cheapest but OK.

We stayed at Le Meridien Angkor on Cash+Points for 5 nights,
organized our own tour each day at the hotel desk,
typically just had a car/driver for half day, $25 or so
spent the hot afternoon at the great pool.

You can do it independently this way, and be more "flex" .

I like the idea of doing it independently but all I heard so far was to "do it as a tour" - so thanks for your feedback.

Did you you arrange something in advance for airport-hotel transfer?

With all the tour groups in Siem Reap you'll be quite happy with a flexible itinerary offered by traveling as an independent. It can be rather brutal at times.

Arranging transportation is ridiculously easy.

I would recommend doing it on your own too. If you are solo, you can do it on a tuk tuk too. I think it's easier doing it in a tuuk tuk than in an airconditioned car. If you are into bicycling, you can even do it on a bicycle at your opwn pace.

I would also advise against doing a tour. The thing I enjoyed most about Siem Reap was getting up close and personal with the people and the place. You can easily find a tuk tuk driver to take you where YOU want to go. The hotel I stayed at had 2 drivers that we could hire by the day, half day, whatever we wanted.
By doing it yourself, you can go back to the temples you enjoyed the most and get a second look or see it at a different time of day, in a different light. I spent 9 days there - rented a bike for a couple of days and just cycled round after I'd hit the main temples with my tuk tuk driver. It's a totally different experience. At Bayon for example, I could just wait until the tours groups had passed through and almost had the place to myself (well at least the part that I was hanging out in) for a few minutes before the next group came through. I loved the place.

Thx DS37, Yaatri & UDJunkie for your advise. I am travelling solo and don't mind the tuk tuks so I will do it on my own.

Any advise on hotels?

Depends what you're looking for and what your budget is. If you enjoy being in the thick of the "action", there are plenty of hotels in the old market area but it can be noisy with all the bars & restaurants.

Alternatively, you can stay further north - closer to Angkor Wat but within walking distance of the bars & restaurants

Like Bangkok, Siem Reap is one of those places where you can stay at a fabulous hotel for a fraction of where it might cost elsewhere. All depends on what you're looking for in a hotel (e.g., bar scene, spa, etc.). Can you share more details of what you're looking for?

I am looking for something nice (3* or better) and something that is close to bars/restaurants and spas. Don't mind a bit of a walk to bars etc but I don't want to be too far away in the outskirts.

Jetstar can be a cheap option to fly SIN REP, and once you arrive you can book a taxi (and even pay) at a specific desk in the airport.
Cheapest and most convenient way is to use a TUK TUK

For some nice food and nice a place (although mainly some tourists there), go and eat at Mrs Butterfly restaurant.

Hope you will enjoy your stay in this incredible area.

We stayed at Viroth's (of Viroth's restaurant nearby) for something like $US80 per night, which included breakfast at the rooftop lounge:

http://www.viroth-hotel.com/

Only nine rooms IIRC. Modern, clean, walking distance to Psar Chas (the old market), bar street, etc.

Sorry, I can't help you there. I am Lonely Planet kind of guy, when I am travelling solo. Unless, I am travelling with my wife and children, or for work, I go for something basic and reasonably clean. I think my tolerance level for third world standard is little higher than yours. I suspect you will be disappointed with my advice. I stayed in a place that was listed for $15, the asking price was $13 when I landed up there, I offered $11. The hotel recommended by Chapel Hill Guy looks much nicer than where I stayed.

For the sake of FTers, I thought I should pass this along. I stayed in Angkor Voyage Villa on a side street off SIvaah Road, the main road with lots of restaurants, cafes etc. I had no problems thee. The only problem was that there was no shower curtain. I went to the reception to ask about it. I told him without the curtain the water will go everywhere on the floor. He looked puzzled. He said "You take a shower in the tub". I have up then. There were lots of westerners staying there. ONe guy was yelling at the receptionist because he had no hot water. There is a switch for the water heater. He did not know that there was a switch which you have to turn on to get hot water. I just looked at the reviews for the hotel, every single review on trip advisor is negative. Two reviewers on travel fish have compalined of theft. I had a laptop cell phones two camera, nothing was stolen. Maybe I was lucky, or maybe something has changed. It's location was great though.