All You Need To Know About S21 Prison & The Killing Fields Of Phnom Penh
Last Updated: November 26 2020
Phnom Penh is Cambodia’s Capital City and is a place that people either love or hate! It can be very busy, some of the tourists attractions are expensive and in some areas it can be quite dirty! Phnom Penh wasn’t one of our favourite places in Cambodia, but it is somewhere we are very glad we went. It is somewhere you definitely need to visit at least once to fully understand the history of this area and the Khmer Rouge. When travelling through Cambodia it is important to visit S21 Prison & the Killing Fields of Phnom Penh.
The history of Cambodia:Â
Cambodia has a really awful history, and it can be a very powerful but upsetting country to visit. For anybody who doesn’t know Cambodia was under the rule of the Khmer Rouge between the years of 1975-1979. Led by their leader Pol Pots they tortured and killed anybody that didn’t agree with their agenda including children.
Up to 1.7 million people are estimated to have been killed during the Khmer Rouge. When including starvation and disease; the death toll is much higher. That is nearly a 1/3 of Cambodia’s population. People were forced to work under horrific conditions during the years of 1975-1979. This led to detrimental health conditions. The country is still recovering from these awful times, and poverty is very high in some places.
Why should you visit S21 Prison & The Killing Fields?
S21 Prison & The Killing fields in Phnom Penh should be a must on anybody’s Cambodia Itinerary. Although they may not be the most pleasant of places, and it definitely isn’t a fun day out, it helps you understand the history of Cambodia. People who love to travel, usually want to get to know the countries they are travelling through. Understanding a countries history is the best way to do this!
S21 Prison (Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum)
S21 Prison is now used as a museum to educate the public, and to commemorate the vicitms. The prison used to be a high school in Phnom Penh, until the Khmer Rouge took charge and turned it into a prison. The Prison’s main uses were to torture and interrogate people; often to the point of them giving false confessions. The estimated number of people imprisoned here was up to 20,000 people; with only a few known to have survived.
Nowadays the S21 Prison is a place where people can come and learn about the horrific rule of the Khmer rouge. It is not a tourist attraction by any means in the sense that it is enjoyable. It definitely isn’t. However, it is very interesting and a must if you are travelling through Cambodia in order to understand the brutal and fairly recent terrors that happened here.
The cells at S21 Prison are open for visitors, and they still have the same beds in place. Photographs are found within the cells; some of which can be very hard to look at. They are shocking to see, and even harder to make sense of what happened here! Make sure you don’t take photographs inside of the cells. It is prohibited.
Entry fee: $5 without an audio guide, and 8$ with an audio guide.
The Killing Fields (Choeung Ek Genocidal Centre)
Cambodia has multiple killing fields located all over the country. The most well known is probably Choeung Ek. In the middle of the night, prisoners would be transported to Choeung Ek after being told stories of a ‘better place’. Sadly this was never the case. Only prisoners who were to be executed, were taken here; which included children.
The Khmer Rouge didn’t want to ‘waste’ bullets as they were very expensive. Therefore other brutal methods of execution took place. Horns and loud music would be played to mask the noises, so nobody knew what the Khmer Rouge were really up to.
Now it is a memorial site, paying respect to all the Cambodian people who lost their lives here. In the middle of Choeung Ek, there is a memorial Stupa; which contains thousands of skulls. Each year, a memorial is held here during the month of May.
Entry fee: $8 with an audiotape
How to get there?
S21 Prison & the Killing Fields are about a 30 minute drive from each other, with the killing fields being found just outside the city centre. Both places are very easily accessible!
S21 Prison is located in the city centre, and is easy enough to walk to. It can get very hot though, so make sure you take plenty of water! We walked to S21 and then took a Tuk Tuk to the Killing Fields the next day. A return trip cost us about $13 with our tuk tuk driving waiting for us.
Many people chose to hire a Tuk Tuk driver, and visit both of the sites in one day. They will drive you to both spots and wait whilst you visit both places. Make sure to negotiate with prices, as some drivers may try to rip you off. We found that many people paid around $20 to hire a driver that would take them to both sites. We decided to do the two sites on two different days and we are glad we did. Visiting S21 Prison & the Killing Fields can be a very emotional experience. If we had done both sites in one day, I feel like it would have been to much for us.
Is S21 Prison & The Killing Fields suitable for families?
Honestly we would say not! There are plenty of graphic images in these sites. We don’t think they should be for children’s eyes. There are also audio tapes you can listen to whilst visiting these two places. The audiotapes have some graphic stories, which even we found hard to listen to! We did see parents take in their children, but honestly I don’t think we would do the same until our children were old enough to understand.
What to remember when visiting S21 Prison & the Killing Fields:
- Be respectful when visiting. People lost their lives here so it’s not the place to be taking selfies, and wearing revealing clothing.
- Bring plenty of water as walking around these two spots can be pretty tiring.
- In the Killing Fields, often pieces of clothing and bone can arise to the ground from the mass graves. This may be due to heavy rainfall, so make sure you are aware of where you are stepping.
- Listen in detail to the audiotapes, it is the best way to learn about what happened at these sights.
Thank you so much for reading this post. We hope it has encouraged you to visit S21 and the Killing Fields if you are heading to Cambodia! Visiting S21 & The Killing fields in Phnom Penh may not be on every travellers list but we highly recommend you go. It is the best way to understand what this country has been through, and is a very educational experience!
If you are wanting to know more about Cambodia, why not read our ’10 things you should know before you go to Cambodia’ post here.
P.S if you want to follow along with our journey, you can follow our Instagram here.
Thanks, Jack & Abbie.
I’m one half of Acouplescalling. I'm passionate about all things travel and photography and I love sharing my experiences with others. I've seen a lot of the world already and I want to help as many people as I can do the same thing!
