Since 1999, the NGO Osmose has been leading a namesake project aimed at developing and protecting the ecosystem surrounding Tonlé Sap Lake, particularly in the Prek Toal zone, between Siem Reap and Battambang in Cambodia. This submerged forest is home to floating villages where environmental education has been one of the project's cornerstones, and dozens of bird species from South Asia remain in need of protection. The organization also promotes eco-tourism and offers travelers complete immersion in this lakeside and forested setting to truly understand the importance of sustainable development in the region.

Varied Itineraries

Osmose offers four eco-tourism circuits for discovering Prek Toal. Two of them take you to discover the floating villages and/or the wildlife of Tonlé Sap Lake over two days and one night, while the other two are tailored for a full day of exploration.

The first two visits allow you to stay with a local family… on the water! You depart from your hotel in early afternoon toward one of the floating villages in Prek Toal. You then begin your journey alongside a guide aboard a traditional boat for a ninety-minute excursion to learn about Osmose's work concerning hydrology, the ecosystem, and the fauna and flora of the lake's submerged forests. Back at the village, your hosts teach you the essentials of traditional Khmer cuisine, and you'll dine facing a magnificent sunset over the lake. The two circuits differ during the second day. You have the choice: either focus on the lives of local inhabitants, particularly the weaving of water hyacinths within the Saray cooperative, or navigate through the flooded forest and climb onto a platform above the trees to observe, accompanied by an ornithologist, the bird species of Prek Toal. This activity is more limited, however, and only available from September to March, during the calmer weather periods.

You can also choose to concentrate these visits into a single day, with the last two circuits (3 and 4.) This time departure is at 6:00 AM to make the most of your time. Like the previous options, these two excursions differ in their focus on the Prek Toal natural reserve, where dozens of large bird species from Southeast Asia make their home. These two circuits optimize a full day's worth of activities and allow you to focus much more on the lives of floating village inhabitants, exploring other trades and activities such as crocodile farming, fish breeding, floating schools and gardens, and more.