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When schedules and deadlines lay siege to your sanity, it helps to go to a place that feels lost in time. Spanning five centuries of the Khmer Empire, Cambodia's awe-inspiring Angkor temples have a way of putting modern timetables into perspective. See the ravages of age and the jungle on the crumbling 12th century Ta Prohm temple, and suddenly that lost advertising account doesn't seem quite so important.

Even with a record half-million visitors last year, Siem Reap, the tourism boomtown nearest the temples, feels as languid as the river that trickles through it. Much of the town reflects Cambodia's history, from the grandeur of the Khmer Empire to the colonial architecture of the French. The latest trend highlights Cambodia's most recent golden age — the 1960s rule of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, when the country was known as an "oasis of peace" and traditional apsara dancers performed at swank parties attended by dignitaries such as Jacqueline Kennedy and Charles de Gaulle.

Prince Sihanouk, now Cambodia's King, was then a symbol of the era's optimism. He was youthful, suave, cosmopolitan, and he possessed a flair for the dramatic. Those same characteristics are evoked by the newly opened Amansara resort, a carefully restored re-creation of Sihanouk's former royal guesthouse. The Amansara combines retro '60s style with a Zen-like tranquility. From the chilled, lemongrass-scented towels that greet guests to the cool white decor and the lotus ponds in each room's private courtyard, the 12-room compound promises refuge from the outside world. White friezes in the serene, otherwise modernist rooms depict ancient, sacred images of a lotus or an umbrella. The centerpiece of what was once known as Villa Princiere is a zigzag-shaped pool that's been restored with iridescent black tiles. You can almost imagine the prince holding court around its edges while his guests enjoyed their martinis, bikinis and jazz. Amanresorts, which opened its first Cambodia property in December, has aimed to keep the feeling of a sumptuous private guesthouse, right down to a library with a conversation pit-style curving sofa built into the walls.

Prince Sihanouk delighted in introducing visitors to the wonders of Angkor. Though his golden era was eclipsed by decades of war and the suffering it left behind, there are now movements afoot to reintroduce the glory of Cambodian culture and to celebrate its monuments. There's always the chance that sliding through centuries in a matter of days can be unsettling. But it can also be liberating. Even world-weary travelers have emerged from Angkor awed, reflective and strangely optimistic — ready to take on the world again. Or stay another few days.

After all, in 1,000 years or so, will it really matter if you're not back to work on Monday?

Short cut
Traditional apsara dancing — nearly wiped out by the Khmer Rouge — has been revived and is performed most nights at the riverside stage outside the Raffles Grand Hotel D'Angkor

The Tab
Round-trip flights to Siem Reap from Bangkok or Singapore run about $275. A double-occupancy room at the Amansara is a kingly $675 [tel: (855-63) 760 333,] www.amanresorts.com. Daily Angkor passes cost $20 ($40 for three days) and require two passport photos

Dining
Overlooking the Siem Reap River, the 1960s-style Foreign Correspondents Club of Cambodia (FCC) on Pokambor Street is perfect for a twilight cocktail, and Madame Butterfly [tel: (855-16) 909 607] serves Cambodian dishes like amok — fish curry in banana leaves

Value Added
Some people hire a car to visit the outlying temples ($20 to $30 per day), but motorbike drivers who double as amateur guides can be found outside most hotels. These moto-dops, many of whom speak English, Japanese or Chinese, charge $5 to $10

• Kay Johnson
• Angkor's ancient and awe-inspiring temples put your daily grind into perspective