Cambodia doubles entry fee for Angkor Wat temples

Phnom Penh, Feb 1 (IANS) Cambodia on Wednesday began to enforce new entry tariffs for the first time in 25 years for the Angkor Wat temples, which are on the Unesco's World Heritage list, a media report said.

Angkor Enterprise, the government body that manages the entrance to the temple complex, raised the ticket fee for one-day by 85 per cent, from $20 to $37, Efe news reported.

A three-day pass to the temples constructed between 9th and 14th centuries, would now cost $62, up from $40, and a weekly one $72, up from $60.

The organisation announced the new fees in August, with $2 from each ticket to go to the Kantha Bopha Children Hospitals Foundation.

The temple complex, located in Siem Reap, is Cambodia's main tourist attraction and is the biggest archaeological complex in Southeast Asia.

Long Kosal, Deputy Director of the Apsara Authority, in charge of temples conservation, defended the decision of Angkor Enterprises, saying: "The measure is a well-thought out plan where the tourists and the partners involved have been consulted."

However, several tour companies have urged the government to reduce the raised price, considering it to be too drastic and fearing that it may burn a hole in the visitors' pockets.

In 2016, 2.2 million people of the five million tourists travelling to Cambodia visited the Angkor Wat temples, resulting in ticket-sales worth more than $62.5 million, according to Angkor Enterprise.

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