The story
Siem Reap Water Festival in Siem Reap
Siem Reap's own Water Festival mirrors the national Bon Om Touk on the same full-moon dates, but scaled to the narrower Siem Reap River rather than Phnom Penh's grand riverfront. Local boat crews race provincial and district teams, moon-worship and lantern rituals take place along the banks, and celebrations concentrate near the Old Market and central bridges, drawing both residents and the large population of tourists already visiting Siem Reap for the Angkor temples.
Siem Reap holds its own version of the Cambodian Water Festival, running on the same full-moon dates as Phnom Penh's larger Bon Om Touk but staged along the far smaller and more intimate Siem Reap River rather than the confluence of three major waterways in the capital.