Community First: Kompong Khleang Floating Village Tours

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Community First: Kompong Khleang Floating Village Tours

Community First: Kompong Khleang Floating Village Tours connects tourists to the floating village in
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Community First: Kompong Khleang Floating Village Tours is a social enterprise benefitting Bridge of Life School, a non-profit organization operating in Siem Reap and Kompong Thom Province. Our mission is to connect tourists to Kompong Khleang, a floating village on the Tonle Sap, in a responsible and meaningful way by both seeing the sites and learning about the community. Our tours are unique be

cause we are based in the community, run by local residents, and all profits are reinvested in the community based educational programming - hence the name "Community First"

The village we visit is on the Tonle Sap, a fresh water lake the extends throughout Cambodia. It is approixmately 55km outside of Siem Reap city and is home to over 200 families (with more than 5000 living in the area). The economy is dominated by fishing and due to seasonal flooding all homes are on stilts and appear to literally float for part of the year (September - January). Water levels drop several meters beginning in February and a sand bank forms during the later part of the season (April - August). Because our staff comes from the village and our non-profit works in the community we enjoy a particularly close relationship with the villages and their community members. Rather than visiting as outside tourists you are welcomed friends. During the trip (and depending on the season) you will be introduced to locals, visit staff homes, try sticky rice and Khmer donuts, check out at a local market and tour the village's pagoda. Please keep in mind everyday is different and, depending on weather and season, the tour is subject to change.

03/02/2024

We are very excited that our co-founder, Paren, Community First: Kompong Khleang Floating Village Tours, and other amazing NGOs working on the lake were featured in a new documentary by Rivers Are Life. You can watch it here:

Imagine, for a moment, that you live in a floating home on a lake. You rely on the lake for personal and professional needs–water for gardening, drinking, an...

19/12/2023

We had a lovely day yesterday visiting Kompong Khleang and seeing the Tonle Sap, the largest lake in Asia.

Thank you for joining us and supporting Bridge of Life's initiatives in Outaput Village.

Are you visiting Siem Reap? Consider experiencing the floating villages with us on our join-in group tour. We also have private tour options. You can learn more about Kompong Khleang, the Tonle Sap, and our community-based experiences at www.kompongkhleang.org

22/11/2023

One of our favorite and unique tours is our fishing tour. As you may know, the Tonle Sap is home to more than 200 hundred types of fish (including the largest freshwater fish ever recorded discovered in 2023!). During the trip we learn about and witness different traditional methods used to catch fish. You can even bring what you catch home for a barbecue!

Learn more about different tour options here: www.kompongkhleang.org

Learn more about the largest freshwater fish ever recorded here: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jun/20/largest-freshwater-fish-ever-recorded-caught-in-cambodia

07/10/2023

Kompong Khleang is blessed with a magnificent standing Buddha. We call it the glimmering Buddha because of the way the tiles reflect in the sun. Join us today to learn more about the role of Buddhism and Animism in the community.

03/10/2023

Thank you for joining us on a visit of Kompong Khleang! We loved hosting you and sharing first hand experiences of life in the village.

The water is very high so its a great time of year to witness life on the lake. While it has been raining more than usual but it has afforded us some unique sunsets in the covered community tourism boats.

Learn more about www.kompongkhleang.org

31/08/2023

Hello all! We are migrating our website to a new host. So it will be offline for a few days. Please feel free to send us a message on Facebook for now. We hope to have an update soon. Thank you so much!

27/07/2023

Experienced a lovely sunset yesterday on the Tonle Sap! Explore the UNESCO Biosphere and its largest community with us. Visit www.KompongKhleang.org for more information.

13/03/2023

Congratulations to Saro, our guide, who graduated with his Bachelor's Degree in Management & Tourism today. We are very proud of you!

23/12/2022

We enjoyed a beautiful sunset on the Tonle Sap which lasted until our return to port in Kompong Khleang.

Pictured is the Glimmering Buddha of Wat Kompong Khleang, watching over the homes of residents of the villages.

Planning to visit Siem Reap? Join us on our afternoon group tour to experience Kompong Khleang, contribute to its development, and see the Tonle Sap, the largest lake in SE Asia.

Visit www.kompongkhleang.org for more information.

15/12/2022

A powerful sunset on the Tonle Sap Lake with Cambodia's flag flying valiantly in the wind. Thank you all for joining us.

To prospective guests: we would love the opportunity to host you. Please visit www.kompongkhleang.org for more information or send us a message to discuss a group or private tour.

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23/11/2022

Often times we are privileged with beautiful sunsets over the lake - the largest in SE Asia, a UNESCO biosphere reserve, and the source of life for Khmer people.

Join a tour today to learn more about the lake, its villages, and meet the residents who call it home. Do all of this while make a contribution to educational outreach in Outaput village with Bridge of Life.

Learn more at www.kompongkhleang.org

08/11/2022

Happy Bon Om Touk! We are celebrating the Water Festival today and a much-needed year of bountiful rain and river flow.

Learn more about our join-in group tours of Kompong Khleang and how they benefit Bridge of Life on our website: www.kompongkhleang.org

03/11/2022

Waters on the Tonle Sap are at multiple-year highs. It's a relief and a great time to experience first-hand life in the floating village of Kompong Khleang. During your trip you will see how communities have adjusted to life on the great lake and learn more about educational outreach in the village. Visit www.kompongkhleang.org for more information. A special thank you to all those who have joined.

10/08/2022

Something you don't see everyday! A mobile barbershop in Kompong Khleang. The barber rides his bicycle and cuts hair in front of homes. A very professional haircut a few meters from your home!

Learn more about our tours of Kompong Khleang and join one today by visiting our website

30/07/2022

We were fortunate to experience a wonderful, tranquil sunset on the Tonle Sap yesterday. It is a great way to see the lake and reflect on travels.

We are open and offer tours when we have enough participants. It has been very quiet but we are hopeful we will have more regular experiences soon. Please contact us today to learn about our tours.

04/02/2022

We conducted one of our first tours in nearly two years. It was very exciting to be able to host one again. We are beyond thrilled and appreciative of your support and what it will allow us to do for residents of Kompong Khleang.

We are currently able to host limited morning tours on the weekdays and sunset tours on the weekends if enough guests are able to participate. Please feel free to get in touch so we can arrange a time.

If you are thinking of visiting Cambodia now is your chance. There are very few tourists so you will have the temples almost to yourselves. Truly a once in a generation opportunity. Please share with your family and friends and if you need any help send us a message! We are happy to help

Thank you again and wishing you the best from Siem Reap!

Sincerely,
The Community First Team

09/09/2020

Dear Friends: We have reopened tours of Kompong Khleang. While we understand there are no tourist visas, if you have questions or are planning a trip please feel free to send us an inquiry.

We wish everyone the best and hope you continue to take care wherever you may be!

31/05/2020

Dear Friends:

We hope you are well and staying safe throughout the world.

We wanted to share a Covid-19 update from Siem Reap. We put together a brief video from one of our guides, Saro, to learn more about his situation. He is from Kompong Khleang and may have hosted you on a tour. Please take a moment to hear from him and his family.

We are very fortunate that many contributed to our partnership program. Thank you to each and everyone one of you! Most furloughed staff, including Saro, will now be receiving a minimum wage. While it is less than previous earnings, it will alleviate some of the hardships faced.

Nevertheless, the situation in Cambodia is dismal, with massive unemployment, a ballooning of unpayable, personal debt, and negative economic growth forecasted for the first time in 22 years.

Our freelance guides and drivers continue to reach out for any assistance possible. They cannot make loan payments or rent. They are not allowed to leave the country to find labor work in Thailand.

We are also concerned about Bridge of Life employees in the coming months as we became too reliant on Community First tours to fund Bridge of Life School programming.

If you are able to get involved, please let us know. There is more information below in the appeal and website on how to help.

Thank you again for all your generosity and support. Please continue to take care. We hope we can host you again one day in the future in Siem Reap. Until then we wish you the best!

Sincerely,
Community First

LINK TO VIDEO ⬇️
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CrRSkglOfw

LINK TO APPEAL ⬇️
https://cli.re/Zj9YV3

LINK TO BRIDGE OF LIFE ⬇️
https://www.bridgeoflifeschool.org

LINK TO ECONOMIC FORECAST
https://cli.re/NNkXj4 ⬇️

Saro, like many other Community First staff, was laid off due to the effects of Covid-19 on the tourism industry. Please take a moment to learn more about hi...

07/03/2020

A magical while departing the Tonle Sap Lake today. Learn more about our dry season tours (there is still water) by visiting our website or sending us a message directly.

26/02/2020

Thank you for joining us on a tour of Kompong Khleang Floating Village. We enjoyed hosting you and are excited that Yani, a former Bridge of Life English Student at our site in Kompong Thom, was able to co-lead. We hope he and other Bridge of Life students can continue to take leadership roles in the future.

We have a lot of availability in the upcoming weeks on our shared group tour. We are also able to conduct private tours.

To learn more about our tours visit www.kompongkhleang.org

To learn about Bridge of Life, the NGO this tour benefits, visit www.bridgeoflifeschool.org

20/12/2019

Thank you for joining us on our tour to Kompong Khleang Floating Village and the Tonle Sap Lake, a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. We really appreciate your support and had a great time!

Are you visiting Siem Reap? Join us on a community based day tour of the largest floating village. Learn more at www.kompongkhleang.org

19/12/2019

Enjoying a Lovely Sunset on the Tonle Sap Lake near Kompong Khleang.

Join us on a group or private tour today. Learn more at www.kompongkhleang.org

10/12/2019

04/11/2019

Thank you for joining us on a tour of Kompong Khleang Floating Village. It was a fun day on the lake and a bit of an adventure on the way back while we waited for van repairs. But we were able to have some beers and conversation in the countryside while waiting...a part of what travel is all about.

We have a lot of availability on our group tour. Please visit www.kompongkhleang.org for more details. Thank you again.

25/09/2019

A nice day out on the lake with good weather. Thank you for choosing Community First. To learn more about our tours, please visit www.kompongkhleang.org

22/09/2019

A beautiful afternoon the other day in Kompong Khleang from our neighbors new home. Learn more about our tours of the village and Tonle Sap at www.kompongkhleang.org

10/08/2019

Thank you for joining us on a tour of Kompong Khleang and the Tonle Sap yesterday. We really appreciate your participation. We were lucky to have a really good sunset as well.

Next week we have a lot of availability on our afternoon group tour. If you are interested please feel free to contact us by Facebook or visit www.kompongkhleang.org

Address

0221 Mondul 3 Village
Siem Reap
17251

Telephone

+855 16 237 864

Website

http://www.kompongkhleang.org/

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Videos

We were fortunate to experience a wonderful, tranquil sunset on the Tonle Sap yesterday. It is a great way to see the lake and reflect on travels. We are open and offer tours when we have enough participants. It has been very quiet but we are hopeful we will have more regular experiences soon. Please contact us today to learn about our tours. #siemreap #sunset #cambodia #tonlesap #tonlesaptours #communitybasedtourism

Sometimes we have to dance our way through the walking tour of Outaput Village in Kompong Khleang. Happy Chinese Lunar New Year to all from Siem Reap, Cambodia. #kompongkhleang #tonlesap #chinesenewyear #siemreap

2738a3d6-9050-4883-8c8a-124b19767a1a

A short timelapse of our trip home from the Tonle Sap Lake in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Visit https://www.kompongkhleang.org or send us a message to learn more about our afternoon, sunset group tour to the floating village. #siemreap #cambodia #tonlesap #sunset #timelapse #nofilter