Siem Reap trades in more than temple tickets: raw Cambodian silk woven on wooden looms, sandstone carvings cut by Angkor-trained apprentices, and recycled-bomb-casing jewellery. Skip the mass-market copies and follow the artisans, from Psar Chas alleys to Kandal Village boutiques.
The 1920s riverside market packs krama scarves, kampot pepper, palm sugar and lacquerware into narrow aisles. Open roughly 06:00–20:00; the wet-produce ring at the back is cheapest. Start at a third of the asking price and settle near half.
A working craft school off Stung Thmey Street where apprentices carve sandstone, lacquer wood and gild Buddha figures. Free 20-minute guided workshop tours run 07:30–18:30, ending in a showroom of certified pieces with the maker's name attached.
Sixteen kilometres west on National Road 6, this mulberry farm shows the whole chain: silkworm rearing, golden-thread reeling, ikat tie-dyeing and hand-loom weaving. Free tours 08:00–17:00, with a free shuttle from Artisans Angkor at 09:30 and 13:30.
Cambodia's first night market, opened 2007 off Sivatha Boulevard, runs 16:00–midnight with around 240 wooden stalls of silverwork, shadow-puppet lamps and bamboo textiles. Fairy-lit lanes stay cooler than the day markets and prices soften after 21:00.
A single leafy block turned design district: Louise Loubatieres ceramics, Trunkh homeware and Sirivan couture sit shoulder to shoulder. Most doors open 10:00–19:00, closed Mondays, with tailors working to measure in three to four days.
A riverside social-enterprise café on Pokambor Avenue funding Cambodian student scholarships. The counter doubles as a shop for local honey, cashews from Kampong Thom and handmade soaps. Open 07:00–18:00 with strong Mondulkiri coffee.
Fair-trade shop on Sivatha Boulevard best known for jewellery cast from decommissioned bomb casings and bullet shells, each tagged with the artisan's workshop. Open 09:00–21:00, with a wood-carving and coconut-shell section upstairs.
A Khmer scent house blending Kampot pepper soap, lemongrass balms and beeswax candles from ingredients bought direct from village growers. The Pithnou Street shop opens 08:00–22:00; the Route 6 workshop offers free production tours.
The city's real trading market on National Road 6, two kilometres east of the centre, open 05:30–18:00. Gold dealers, dried-fish stalls, prahok paste and bolts of fabric serve locals, not tourists, so prices sit 30–50% below Psar Chas.
A Charles de Gaulle Avenue studio reviving Angkorian-era stoneware glazing lost after the 15th century. Open 08:00–20:00; two-hour wheel-throwing classes run daily and finished pieces can be fired and shipped home.
A cooperative hall near the Royal Independence Gardens where 60-plus vetted Cambodian producers sell direct — water-hyacinth baskets, palm-leaf boxes, Battambang rice paper. Open 09:00–21:00 with fixed, non-negotiable prices.
An open-air market beside the Siem Reap River gathering around 60 independent makers — leather goods, hand-printed tees, kramas and small-batch rum. Runs 15:00–22:00 daily, with live Khmer music from 18:30 in the courtyard.