Amansara Reopens Near Angkor With New Pool Suites and Hydrotherapy

Amansara, the 24-suite Aman retreat in Siem Reap, has reopened after a three-month enhancement with Kerry Hill Architects. Guests returned from 15 September 2026 to the former Villa Princière, about ten minutes from Angkor, with more private pools, a reworked dining room, and the first hydrotherapy circuit in the spa.

The project keeps the New Khmer bones of the 1960s royal guesthouse once used by King Norodom Sihanouk. Soft goods across every suite were refreshed. Five more keys now have private swimming pools. Two new categories answer multi-generational demand: a Junior Pool Suite and a Two-Bedroom Family Pool Suite with indoor and outdoor living space sized for togetherness and quiet hours.

What changed in the suites

Pool access used to define only part of the inventory. After the works, private water becomes a clearer default for guests who want to reset between temple days without sharing the main courtyard pool. The family suite gives parents a closed bedroom while children or grandparents keep their own. Soft refurbishment across all 24 keys updates textiles and finishes without rewriting Kerry Hill's calm courtyard geometry.

For travelers planning Angkor mornings, that matters more than a lobby reveal. Early starts and dusty returns reward a suite that cools down fast, holds shade, and keeps a plunge pool a few steps from the bed.

Bar, dining room and spa for the stay

Social spaces got equal attention. A new destination bar occupies the room that served as an intimate dining space for the royal family between 1962 and 1965. The cocktail list leans on Cambodia's "Kingdom of Wonder" stories rather than generic palace hotel classics. The circular Dining Room, once the villa's principal dining and screening room, gained banquette seating and a wine cellar so the culinary program can stretch beyond a fixed dinner service.

The Aman Spa kept four treatment rooms and a yoga studio, then added hot and cold plunge pools plus a sauna for the first time. Hydrotherapy facilities are due to open fully on 15 November with three packaged journeys: Restoration (60 minutes of private hydrotherapy plus a treatment), Revitalise (a half-day of contrast therapy, herbal scrub, deep-tissue massage and facial), and a standalone Private Hydrotherapy Experience.

Why this matters for Angkor travelers

Amansara has long been the quiet counterpoint to larger Siem Reap hotels: few keys, a courtyard pool, and staff who know temple circuits by heart. The refresh does not chase scale. It adds pool privacy, a proper thermal sequence, and family inventory so the same small footprint works for couples, solo wellness guests, and multi-generational trips.

New on-property experiences back that up. Upgraded Amanbala lake boats will host private dining on the water. A custom four-seater family remork makes Angkor days less cramped for groups who refuse to split across two tuk-tuks. For guests who already book Amansara for proximity to the temples, the so-what is simple: same sanctuary scale, more ways to recover, gather, and travel as a family without leaving the Aman envelope.