5th - 12th February 2025
Battambang, Cambodia
We are excited to announce an ethical travel experience to raise funds for our Village Hives.
For eight magical days, we will be uncovering secret recipes to savour the finest delicacies of Khmer cuisine, experiencing the power of meditation with monks Buddhist monks, exploring an ancient temple and sacred cave, and engaging in proactive community empowerment.
The experiences on this trip are so unique they are only available to this intimate group. This once-in-a-lifetime ethical travel opportunity will raise funds for the Village Hive projects you will be visiting, as well as support the local economy by only using local providers.
With spots limited to just 20 people, make sure you secure your place for the Eat, Pray, Love Cambodian adventure!
Battambang has always been the ‘rice bowl’ of Cambodia and is the first Cambodian city to be designated by UNESCO as a creative city of gastronomy.
The first part of the Eat, Pray, Love adventure involves exploring winding countryside roads and tasting the country’s most delicious dishes, flavourful fruit and vegetables, award-winning rice, artisanal products such as fresh traditional rice noodles and rice paper, and tasty street food sold at markets, roadside stalls, and rustic eateries.
You will be given cooking lessons in traditional Khmer cuisine and learn how to cook Jaan Bai restaurant's secret recipes, and then indulge in a delicious Jaan Bai feast.
Battambang’s history stretches back over a thousand years, with its origins rooted in the 9th-century Khmer Empire. Buddhism has played a crucial role in shaping the culture and society.
The second part of the Eat, Pray, Love adventure involves insightful teachings from monks on self-enlightenment and meditation at a tranquil monastery on the outskirts of town. The monks will invite you to unwind and find an inner calm with meditative chanting and guided meditation.
You will also visit an ancient temple built in the 11th century, before Angkor Wat, and explore a limestone cave that cradles a large stalactite with sacred sparkling water dripping from it, which legend says brings knowledge of the past, present, and future.
The last part of the trip involves witnessing the Village Hive's proactive community empowerment to lift families out of poverty. You will learn about the value of your support through interactive visits to CCT’s Village Hive communities. You will gain a deep understanding of the impact of the Village Hive on the wider community, frequent the small business enterprises set up by Village Hive families, assist the community in building a garden to promote food security, and learn from them about the power of community-driven change.
Get ready for days full of tasting the unique flavours of Cambodian cuisine, learning the art of meditation with monks and gaining lessons in self-enlightenment, rejuvenating massage and connecting with the communities in CCT's groundbreaking Village Hives!
This adventure in Battambang will provide you with opportunities that are only available to 20 people on this trip. Take a peek at the itinerary (subject to change) to give you a better sense of what to expect.
Fly into Siem Reap, and we will arrange your transport to Battambang, a charming riverside town nestled in the northwest corner of Cambodia.
The Battambang is the artistic and cultural heart of Cambodia. The dreamy, peaceful Sankae River snakes through the centre of town with rice fields, leafy villages, and glittering pagodas around its edges.
Get settled in your bright, spacious room at the Bambu boutique hotel, go for a dip in the pool and explore the vibrant Battambang riverside.
Jump on a bicycle or in a tuk-tuk and explore the beautiful countryside to the north of Battambang. Visit Cambodian families and learn how they produce traditional products, such as rice paper, dried banana, bamboo sticky rice, fish paste and rice wine, made in the same way they have been for generations. Taste and experience the pleasures of these products fresh off the fire. Then, enjoy a traditional lunch with a Khmer family.
After exploring the countryside and villages, we’ll head to the air-conditioning comfort of Jaan Bai, which means ‘rice bowl’ in Khmer. Jaan Bai is CCT’s sleek eatery for a feast of sharing plates, cocktails and good wines by the glass.
The Jaan Bai menu features dishes by celebrity chefs Christine Manfield and David Thompson, made with seasonal produce.
You’ll be the first people in the world to be let in on a secret as the Jaan Bai chefs teach you how to make the four secret sauces and the national dish, amok, a steamed curry. You’ll then indulge in a delicious dinner feast.
Your cooking class begins at 9 a.m. with a market tour at Battambang’s Central Market Psar Nat. There, you will buy fresh ingredients for the class and taste various native Cambodian herbs, fruits, and vegetables.
You’ll then be taught how to cook each of your dishes before sitting down to eat your creations for lunch.
Later that afternoon, you will cycle or tuk-tuk through the southern countryside on the opposite side of town to graze at half a dozen food stalls and small family-owned eateries along the winding riverside road.
You will taste fried coconut and rice flour cakes made in a cast-iron pan with moulds over a charcoal fire, served with a sweet, light, vinegary syrup of palm sugar and fish sauce. You can sample son vac fish paste grilled in banana leaves wrapped in lettuce and eaten with noodles, basil, saw-tooth coriander and tangy sauce provided and served with pong tia koun, boiled baby duck eggs. Further down the road, you will sample hand-crafted Khmer desserts – things like heavenly banh ja’neuk, glutinous rice-flour balls stuffed with mung bean paste, drowned in coconut milk and tapioca, doused with some ginger syrup, and sprinkled with sesame seeds. If you still have room, you will try Battambang’s best sach ko ang – marinated beef skewers grilled over a barbecue.
You will arrive in the morning at a tranquil monastery on the outskirts of town for insightful teachings from monks on self-enlightenment and meditation. You will have the opportunity to engage in a Q&A session with the monks. The monks will invite you to embrace inner calm with a meditative chanting and guided meditation session. Whether you are a novice or an advanced meditator, meditating in a group with experienced monks will amplify your meditation for a deeply transformative experience. This ancient practice offers a powerful way to cope with the stress of modern life.
After the monastery, you will head out to Wat Banan, a mountaintop temple built before Angkor Wat, overlooking the countryside and rural villages. Before ascending the stairs to visit the ruin, you will enjoy a tasty traditional Khmer lunch in the alfresco bamboo pavilions that overlook the lake for a quintessentially Battambang experience.
After lunch, you’ll explore the temple of Banan, which was originally built in the 11th century and boasts magnificent panoramic views of Sangker River amid sugar palm trees and the breathtaking view of the surrounding countryside, with small villages dotting the endless rice paddies. To the south, you will admire a mountain range.
On the far side of the mountain are some limestone caves. Inside a cave called L’Ang But Meas is a large stalactite hanging from the ceiling with sacred sparkling water dripping from it into a bowl below. Legend has it that drinking this water brings knowledge of the past, present, and future.
Return to the monastery for an additional lesson from the monks in self-enlightenment. Following the Q&A session, you will drop into a guided meditation with meditative chanting.
After lunch at the monastery, you will experience a 90 minute traditional Seeing Hands massage by blind masseuses who have a heightened sense of touch and can intuitively feel out and relieve deep tension.
Then, we will head to Phnom Sampeau mountain to witness the sun sinking into the horizon as millions of bats pour from caves and zoom into the sky.
In the morning, you will head out to the CCT headquarters. Senior leadership and local leaders will give you an in depth presentation on the Village Hive. You will have the opportunity to ask questions and gain a deeper understanding of the decolonial upstream philosophy that underpins the Village Hive Project.
Following the presentation, you will attend a community meeting in the first Village Hive commune in Ou Char. You will have an opportunity to hear the community talk about the Village Hive’s impact on their lives and ask them questions.
After lunch, you will visit the Village Hive public schools and health clinics and meet the Village Hive social workers who implement the first-of-its-kind early intervention journey that successfully transforms families from poverty to empowered self-reliance.
In the morning, you will head out to the second Village Hive commune, Rottanak, to attend a community meeting focus group and ask questions on how the Village Hive is impacting the community. You will hear families tell their stories of transformation. You will also visit the ICT in High School, where you will hear the story of how this project inspired the Village Hive.
You will then go on a tour to visit the small business enterprises set up by families that have completed the Village Hive early intervention journey. You will have the opportunity to frequent the small business enterprises set up by Village Hive families to try fresh sugarcane and snacks, and purchase gifts for friends and family made by these proud families.
You will assist the community in building a garden to create community-driven food security.
After a life-changing week, we will transport you back to Siem Reap. You may decide to stay on another day to tour the Angkor Wat temples, one of the most magnificent architectural achievements in the world.
Private rooms at Bambu
A boutique hotel offering the ultimate accommodation experience with its luxurious bedrooms arranged in 4 traditionally inspired buildings. All rooms have en suite bathrooms, air conditioning, telephone, WiFi, cable TV, and a private terrace or balcony.
Costs
Trip Cost:
Double Occupancy: $1650
Single Occupancy: $1950
*This covers your accommodation, transport, breakfast, lunch and daily activities in Battambang.
Fundraising minimum: a tax-deductible $3000 minimum fundraising target per person covers a donation to CCT’s Village Hive Project.
NB* Flights, travel insurance, and dinners are not included. All activities are locally owned, ensuring your funds stay in Cambodia and benefit the local economy.
A $500 deposit is required to secure your place. The remaining balance is to be paid three months before the trip.
The tax-deductible $3000 fundraising target must be met before you depart.
Please be sure to read the term and conditions before booking.
The payment for your trip is not tax-deductible. However, the $3000 fundraising requirement is tax-deductible. So anyone who donates to your fundraiser will receive a tax-deductible receipt.
If you would like to stay on longer in Battambang, the Bambu hotel has told us they will try to accommodate requests to the extent they have availability. Please send an email to us at info@cambodianchildrenstrust.orgwith details of what you would like.
This adventure is designed for people of all ages, fitness levels and experience. If riding a bicycle on the cycle days is not your thing, we’ll have tuk-tuks ready. It doesn’t matter if you are an experienced meditator or a complete novice, there will still be plenty of value for you.
The only part of the trip that requires some level of mobility is the tour around Banan Temple. There are quite a few stairs.
As spots are limited, we need each person attending to reach the tax-deductible $3000 minimum fundraising target in order to power our Village Hives. So, for a couple, the fundraising target will be a minimum of $6000 tax-deductible donation.
Raising the $3000 to power the Village Hive is easy with support from us and your own personalised URL.
We will help you set up your fundraiser and develop ideas to generate support. Then you’ll just need to share it with friends and family via social media and email.
We will do everything we can to make the adventures accessible. Battambang is several hours from an international hospital, so consideration must be taken if you have a potentially life-threatening condition. Please contact us to discuss your needs at info@cambodianchildrenstrust.org
Travel insurance is compulsory and must provide adequate cover for cancellation, delays in travel, loss or damage to baggage and valuables, medical and hospital expenses for injury or illness, and emergency evacuation. We recommend purchasing your policy as soon as possible, and you will need to share these details with us before departure.
Yes, single-occupancy rooms are available. Just make sure you select that option on the booking form.
We are confident with our support you will easily raise the $3000 minimum fundraising target. By registering for the adventure, you agree to raise the minimum fundraising amount specified before departure.
In order to secure the activities and accommodation, CCT is required to enter into binding contracts with 3rd parties that do not allow for refund or cancellation in any instance except for limited instances where “acts of god” render the entire event impossible. For example, if the COVID-19 pandemic worsens. Otherwise, unfortunately, we must enforce a strict cancellation policy and there will be no refunds in any instance. Purchasing travel insurance will protect you from unforeseen issues.
You can apply for your Cambodian visa online before you travel or get it on arrival at Siem Reap international airport.
What you will need:
A passport that is valid for six months or more
Two empty pages in your passport
A completed Cambodia visa application form; supplied on the plane, or, at the airport or land border crossing
The visa fee of $36 in US dollars
One recent passport photograph (4 x 6)
CCT continues to take a strong stance against voluntourism. This is an ethical travel adventure and not voluntourism.
In line with the ethical travel ethos, we will be providing all participants on the Eat, Pray, Love Cambodian adventure with ethical tourism guidance in an exclusive webinar with ethical tourism expert Dr Freya Higgins-Desbiolles, providing advice on how they might offset their travel in responsible ways, avoid white saviourism and become allies (including becoming proactive in their home communities with the learning they have from the Village Hive).
On the ‘Love’ days of the trip, the local Cambodian team will discuss wider issues of voluntourism and how CCT is dismantling oppressive systems of development to empower entire communities out of poverty.
In addition, we’re working with all local providers to prevent economic leakage and ensure that the money spent in Cambodia remains within the community and benefits the local economy.
