Smiley Cambodia was declared the friendliest nation in the world in 2021. While its ancient temples and ruins, such as astonishing Angkor Wat, are testaments to human achievement, natural wonders like Tonlé Sap are a life force – the largest freshwater lake in Southeast Asia, it provides water to almost half of the country’s crops.

Wedged between Thailand, Laos and Vietnam, Cambodia is the smallest country on the Indochina Peninsula, but experimental hoteliers have upped its hospitality game by marrying conservation with high thread-counts. Deep in a jungle, you can zipline over the Tmor Rung River to check into an exclusive tented camp; on the Koh Rong Archipelago, sleep in a five-star stilted villa crafted from driftwood; or in a series of pontoons on the Tatai River, you’ll find a floating lodge next to one of the largest mangrove forests in the world.