A guide to Cambodia's top places, plus our lesser-known favourites

It’s the views that make Pakbeng more than just a convenient stopover: this is part of one of Asia’s most stunning river journeys, with lush and verdant mountains rising either side of the broad, coffee-coloured waters of the Mekong.

Built by French, Chinese and Vietnamese immigrants at the turn of the 20th century, the city of Pakse isn't a stunner, but it’s the jumping-off point for some of Laos’s most exciting adventures.

Palani Hills offers a slice of south Indian country life, surrounded by coffee plantations, coconut groves and forests full of tropical birds.

With a name that literally means “Beautiful Island”, it’s not hard to see the appeal of Pulau Pangkor Laut. On this tiny private island in the Strait of Malacca, luxury villas peep out of the rainforest and stand on stilts above the crystal-clear waters of the Andaman Sea.

A beautiful, little-visited national park, with open grasslands, deciduous forests, increasingly good tiger sightings and absolutely world-class bird-watching.

Pelling is all about the landscape: Tibetan and Limbu villages, sacred lakes, alpine forests and skyscraping mountains, all watched over by snowy Kanchenjunga.

World Heritage architecture, 130-million-year-old rainforest, world-class street art and a countryside peppered with spice gardens and durian groves: the island of Penang is an intoxicating medley of natural and cultural treasures.

The inspiration for Kipling’s Jungle Book, Pench’s teak forests are home to tigers, leopards, wild dogs, hyena, and a whole raft of exciting bird life.

Not just a desert-island idyll (though they’re that too), their exceptionally calm, clear and shallow waters make the Perhentian Islands the ideal place to snorkel or dive amongst damselfish, neon-bright anemones and stingrays.

Phnom Penh may no longer be the “Pearl of the Orient”, but don’t judge a book by its cover: beneath this chaotic exterior is a city alive with energy, art, and youthful verve.

Forget jostling with sharp-elbowed crowds to get that perfect sunrise snap of Angkor Wat. What if you could explore 800-year-old cave temples with only silver langur, barking deer and pileated gibbons for company?

Covering nearly 3,000 square kilometres of jungle-covered mountains, beautiful and unspoilt Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park conceals some of the most spectacular caves in the world.