KA Tours aims to widen the understanding of contemporary architectural design in Cambodia.

Our tours focus on buildings erected since 1953, sometimes described as 'New Khmer Architecture', while setting these in the context of the historical city of Phnom Penh.

Upcoming tours:

Sunday 06 April 08
Central Phnom Penh by cyclo

Sunday 27April 08
National Sports Complex (Olympic Stadium)

Sunday 11 May 08
Central Phnom Penh by cyclo

Saturday 24 May 08
University buildings

Sunday 8 June 08
Central Phnom Penh by cyclo

Sunday 22 June 08
1960s houses and villas in Toul Kork

Sunday 13 July 08
Central Phnom Penh by cyclo

Sunday 27 July 08
Front du Bassac and the National Theatre

Sunday 10 August 08
Central Phnom Penh by cyclo

For all tours, please email us at contact(at)ka-tours.org with your request for places; and please don't forget to include names and mobile telephone numbers and which tour you would like. We will email you back with joining details and contact numbers. All tours start at 8.30am except where noted. Thanks!

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Central Phnom Penh by cyclo
This tour explores central Phnom Penh and includes Colonial buildings as well as modern, post-independence architecture. Meant to be a brief introduction to the city, the tour includes a selection of well-known buildings as well as some less obvious examples.

Traveling by cyclo is a special way of experiencing the streets and buildings of the city; we aim to enter some buildings and see others from the pavement or the cyclo. We explore the district around the old Post Office, then go south to the area south-east of the Central Market.

We start at 8.30am and aim to return after around 2.5 - 3hrs including a short drinks stop;15 adult places. Cost is $12 per person including the cyclo hire and English speaking guides. Children are free if they share a cyclo with an adult.

PS The tour takes place normally on the second Sunday of each month, but can be arranged to run at different times on request.
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1960s houses and villas in Phnom Penh (Toul Kork)
This tour visits three locations:
• The well-known '100 Houses' development, designed by Vann Molyvann and commissioned in the 1965 by the National Bank of Cambodia for its staff; these 100 or so identical houses are a thoughtful reinterpretation of the traditional Khmer house - some are still (just) in their original state.
• A Doctors' House: A remarkable villa of the same period which has an exuberant, three-storey high entrance hall which dominates the design; now a Health Centre.
• The Double Stair House: A family villa - a rich blend of materials, form, light and air which creates a delightful residence - built to keep cool on the hottest of days.

We meet in town and travel by bus. Start at 8.30am, end around 11.30am.
Cost: $1 Cambodians, $8 Others. Children over 12 are welcome.
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National Sports Complex (Olympic Stadium)
The National Sports Complex, known as the Olympic Stadium (photos 3 and 4), was built in 1963-4 to accommodate the GANEFO games of 1964 and became the location for the reception of many visiting dignitaries and state occasions. Designed by Vann Molyvann, the remarkable and heroic complex has been renovated and brought back into popular use by sporty Cambodians. We will visit the stadium which seats 84,000, the sports-hall with its amazing concrete 'mushroom' roof, and the Olympic-size swimming/diving pools.

We meet at the NSC. Start at 8.30am, end around 10.30am.
Cost: Cambodians: $1. Others: $5. Children over 12 are welcome. ....................................................................................................................
University Buildings in Phnom Penh
We visit (photos 5-10) three remarkable, 1960s campuses on the Russian Boulevard: the Institute of Technology of Cambodia (Soviet designers), the 'modern baroque' Institute of Foreign Languages (a group of three buildings by Vann Molyvann, his last work of the 1970s) and the Royal University of Phnom Penh by Leroy and Mondet.

We meet in town and travel by bus. Start at 8.30am, end around 11.30am.
Cost: $1 Cambodians, $8 Others. Children over 12 are welcome.
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The Front du Bassac and the Chaktomuk Conference Hall
Following the demolition of the National Theatre building (photo 1), this tour now takes in another nearby public building designed by Vann Molyvann, the Chaktomuk Conference Hall. Opened in 1961, it was refurbished and reopened in 2000, principally as a conference hall but is regularly used as a theatre venue for special events.

The tour will first take a short walk around the area known as the Front du Bassac, planned in the 1960s to be a 'civic and cultural centre', and look briefly at Van Molyvann's White and Grey Buildings, before visiting the theatre.

We meet near the White Building. Start at 8.30am and end around 10.30am. Children over 12 are welcome. Cost is $1 Cambodians, $5 Others.

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Walking Map:
Do your own tour of central Phnom Penh

Map 1 is available for you to download and try out. All comments/suggestions gratefully received. This updated version includes the sites of 2 buildings on the earlier version which have been demolished...

To download, click here for the new front page (790kb), and here for the new back page (312kb), print them back-to-back to save paper, then fold in three for a handy, full-of-info guide to some of the most interesting streets in central Phnom Penh. The map is free for personal use; copying for commercial use only with our permission.

Thanks to Tobias Olsson for all the foot-slogging and pedal-turning research. Below is some feed-back we received...

"I just wanted to let you know that we've done the architecture walking tour... and WE LOVED IT!!! It's a beautiful walk, just long enough and gives you a total different perspective on PP! After that walk, we paid a lot more attention to the buildings in Phnom Penh and that was a true enrichment!" - J. O.

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Notes on the cultural context of the architecture we focus on:

For Cambodia, the late 1950s and 1960s was a period of dynamic cultural and political ambition, which resulted in an extensive programme of building.

The far-reaching cultural and social vision for Cambodia was reflected in the new architecture of the time; uniquely this focused on integrating an international style with a responsiveness to local tradition, materials and climate.

The resulting style has been called ‘New Khmer Architecture’ and is beginning to be recognised as an important artistic milestone in 20th century Cambodian culture.

Darryl Collins, Helen Grant Ross and Hok Sokol have carried out extensive original research into the architecture of the 50s and 60s; see 'Building Cambodia: New Khmer Architecture 1953-1970', listed below.

The innovative cultural scene of the late 50's and the 60s is discussed in the Reyum book 'Cultures of Independence':
"The period following independence in Cambodia seems to have been marked by a willingness to expand and incorporate new elements, looking both outside and inside the newly independent nation for available methods and materials with which to build a modern culture. An emerging urban elite undertook the task of conceiving, defining, and building a "modern Khmer culture". Whether consciously or not, most of their work took up questions of how to create forms that would be recognised as both Cambodian and modern. In other words, for example how to create a contemporary architecture which incorporated ideas of international modernism while still keeping a local specificity, or how to take forms established elsewhere - such as the novel or cinema - and produce these forms as part of Cambodian culture."

Useful reference material:

'Building Cambodia: New Khmer Architecture 1953-1970' by Helen Grant Ross and Darryl Collins, 2006, ISBN: 974934121X

'Cultures of Independence, An introduction to Cambodian Arts and Culture in the 1950s and 1960s' edited by Ly Daravuth and Ingrid Muan, published by Reyum, Phnom Penh, 2001.

'Modern Khmer Cities' by Vann Molyvann, published by Reyum, Phnom Penh, 2003.

'Phnom Penh a l'aube du XXIe siecle' by Phnom Penh Bureau des Affaires Urbaines, published by Atelier Parisienne d'Urbanisme, Paris, 2003.

'Phnom Penh developpment urbain et patrimoine' by Ministere de la Culture and Atelier Parisienne d'Urbanisme, Paris, 1997.

'Phnom Penh Then and Now' by Michel Igout, published by White Lotus, Bangkok, 1993.

'Before Kampuchea' by Milton Osborne, published by Orchid Press, Bangkok, 2004.

Links:

SangSalapak : Building Arts - organise occasional architectural events and lectures: www.sangsalapak.org.kh

Reyum Institute of Art and Culture - research and publishing on cultural issues:
www.reyum.org

Photos of buildings in Cambodia:
www.johncaserta.com/khmerarch

1 National Theatre 1968; demolished 2008.

2 National Sports Complex

3 National Sports Complex

4 Institute of Technology (ITC)

5 Inst of Foreign Languages

6 Royal Univ of Phnom Penh

7 Royal Univ of Phnom Penh

8 Royal Univ of Phnom Penh

9 100 Houses

10 Double stair house

11 Sihanoukville Station

12 Sihanoukville Station

14 April 08
News Update:

> New dates announced...

News emails ?

> If you register with us for news emails we will email advance information about the timetable of future tours, before adverts are place in the press. (Details are not passed on to any other organisation; you can unregister at any time).

register(at)ka-tours.org

More ideas?

> We welcome comments and suggestions about buildings, tours etc. Spotted any architectural gems which might be worth visiting? We are always looking for new tours.

What are we?

Khmer Architecture Tours is an independent, not-for-profit organisation established in 2003 in Phnom Penh to promote the understanding of modern architecture in Cambodia.

> We research buildings and provide training in preparing building data, arranging tours and guiding.

> Director: Stefanie IRMER
Guides: SUON Ratana, SIM Sitho, VONG Sovanda and YAM Sokly.

Our patrons:

> We are honoured to have as our Patron:
HE VANN MOLYVANN

Funding

> We are a not-for-profit organisation: funds raised by donations or tour fees are directly channeled into covering costs of the tours, which includes student research expenses, as well as sponsoring other educational activities such as lectures.

> Sponsors (donators of $100 or more) receive free tours for life, as well as preferential advance booking.

Collaborators:

> Khmer Architecture Tours relies on the enthusiasm and efforts of our team of collaborators. These have included architecture students from Norton University and RUFA. Thanks to researchers/guides HANN Lina, CHEAM Phanin, HOU Sarith, SIM Sitho, HOK Vichet, SOUN Ratana and SOTH Sothea; and map-maker Tobias OLSSON.

> If you are interested in assisting with research or guiding please contact us.

Contact us:

Khmer Architecture Tours
Tours of Modern Architecture in Cambodia

Phnom Penh
Kingdom of Cambodia
contact(at)ka-tours.org