RV Indochine Cruise

ActivitiesArrive Hochiminh City, go on a city tour and enjoy welcome dinner

MealLunch/ Dinner

IncludedAccommodation, ground transportation, tour guide, sightseeing ticket

Arrival Ho Chi Minh City. built by the French in 1859, at the beginning of the colonial area, the town has retained some of its French atmosphere which characterises it. After lunch in a local restaurant, in the afternoon have a tour of the city: Reunification palace, Notre Dame cathedral and Central Post office. Board our ship and then have a welcome cocktail and dinner. Overnight on board in Ho Chi Minh City.

ActivitiesExplore Ho Chi Minh city.

MealB/L/D

IncludedAccommodation, ground transportation, tour guide, entrance fee

After breakfast, take the morning excursion to visiting Cholon, whose name means “Great market”, a district crawling with people, where almost half the population of the city lives and where trade reigns supreme. Continue to visit the market and the Thien Hau Pagoda, dedicated to the Goddess of the Sea. Have lunch in town before our afternoon visit of the National History museum then a visit to a lacquer-ware factory. Then get back to the board and set sail for the navigation channel of Chao Gao. Dinner and drop anchor and moor for the night at Nha Be.

ActivitiesVisit My Tho, then cruise to Vinh Long and Cai Be

MealB/L/D

IncludedAccommodation, ground transportation, tour guide, sightseeing ticket

Very early this morning, continue our cruise to My Tho along the magnificent Chao Gao Canal, which passes from the Saigon River to the Mekong Delta. The Delta is made up of four main arms and thousands of canals, both large and small. Having breakfast as we arrive in My Tho. The town is named after the river My Tho which means “beautiful reed”, and it is peaceful and prosperous. Known for its many vegetable gardens, and its fruit orchards, the climate here is hot and pleasant all year long. The surrounding countryside includes one of the most luxuriant gardens in Vietnam with coconut, banana mango and longan trees. Visit My Tho islands in small boats, along the maze that makes up the network of small canals, pretty country villages appear and we see the local craftsmen at work. Return on board for lunch and continue our cruise to Vinh Long, and Caï Be. The town is located in the middle of the delta region, between two arms of the Mekong. Set off in small boats through the channels royos and gardens which lead to Cai Be’s church. Vinh Long, a land made rich by alluvium, is the country of mandarins and oranges. All of life is organised around the water and we see houses built on stilts and hundreds of small boats that criss-cross in all directions. Then set sail for Sa Dec, dinner and overnight stop at our mooring point.

ActivitiesDiscover local market in early morning and transfer to Cham village

MealB/L/D

IncludedAccommodation, ground transportation, tour guide, sightseeing ticket

Early morning excursion to visit Sa Dec, famous for its horticulture and known as the “Garden of the Cochin Chine” in colonial times. Discover the local market and visit the former dwelling place of Huynh Thuy Le, former lover of the French novelist Marguerite Duras who spent part of her childhood in Sa Dec. Then return on board for a hearty breakfast and continue our cruise to Chau Doc, a town at the border between Cambodia and Vietnam which became part of Vietnamese territory some 300 years ago. Have lunch on board and arrive in Chau Doc in the early afternoon. Situated in the heart of a gigantic grid of rice fields, the city of Chau Doc embraces both banks of the Mekong and the floating farms overspill into the waters. Chau Doc is a very prosperous town which developed around fishing and farming. Inside the town, a few colonial buildings with their old fashioned charm still remain. The market which surrounds them is the vibrant heart of the city and a multitude of colours.Transfer by small boat to visit a Cham village, a village of silk weavers and fish farms. Dinner and overnight stop in Chau Doc.

ActivitiesCross the Cambodia border and arrive Phnom Penh.

MealB/L/D

IncludedAccommodation, ground transportation, tour guide, sightseeing ticket

Spend the day afloat, first heading for the Cambodian border, where need to complete customs during the morning and continue our journey. Lunch and dinner are taken on board as we arrive towards the end of the day in Phnom Penh. After dinner we have a “tuk tuk” trip, a motorised tricycle which is the traditional mode of transport in Phnom Penh. We moor for the night in the port of Phnom Penh.

ActivitiesDiscover Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia

MealB/L/D

IncludedCabin on board, transportation, tour guide, entrance fee

Founded in 1434, the capital of Cambodia retains much of its colonial charm, thanks to the rehabilitation of part of its architectural heritage. In the morning, visit the Silver Pagoda, constructed in wood in 1892 then rebuilt in 1962, and the Royal palace, symbolic heart of the nation and one of the finest examples of Cambodian architecture in classical Khmer style. Then continue to the National museum housing the Fine Arts museum, built in 1917 by the French in traditional Khmer architectural style. Have lunch in a local restaurant and this afternoon visit the Tuol Svay Prey S21 school, former centre of detention, torture and execution used by the Khmer Rouge during the civil war. There is free time in the “Russian market” – crammed full with all types of business. This evening enjoy a Apsara dance show by student dancers and musicians. Dinner and overnight on board, in the port of Phnom Penh.

ActivitiesFounded in 1434, the capital of Cambodia retains much of its colonial charm, thanks to the rehabilitation of part of its architectural heritage. In the morning, visit the Silver Pagoda, constructed in wood in 1892 then rebuilt in 1962, and the Royal palace, symbolic heart of the nation and one of the finest examples of Cambodian architecture in classical Khmer style. Then continue to the National museum housing the Fine Arts museum, built in 1917 by the French in traditional Khmer architectural style. Have lunch in a local restaurant and this afternoon visit the Tuol Svay Prey S21 school, former centre of detention, torture and execution used by the Khmer Rouge during the civil war. There is free time in the “Russian market” - crammed full with all types of businesses. This evening enjoy a Apsara dance show by student dancers and musicians. Dinner and overnight on board, in the port of Phnom Penh.

MealB/L/D

IncludedCabin onboard, tour guide, transportation, sightseeing ticket

We set sail early morning, have breakfast on board before visit Koh Chen, a small village where the inhabitants are experts in silverwork and copper work. Here are made the ornaments and decorations used during traditional ceremonies in the pagoda or for weddings. Visit the private school of Mr. Thom Umson, a bright French teacher. Have lunch on board and arrive in Kampong Tralach to visit the beautiful Vihara of the Wat Kampong Tralach Leu Pagoda. Cross through the village of Kampong Tralach by oxcart to reach the pagoda on a small path running perpendicular to the river amidst a magnificent landscape of rice fields. The Vihara dates back to the beginning of last century and has many magnificent wall paintings which are starting to suffer from the effects of time. Completely isolated in the middle of the rice fields, the pagoda is quite unassuming and does not receive many visitors, so its isolation makes it a truly magnificent spot. Then return on board and continue our cruise to Kampong Chhnang. Dinner and overnight stop.

ActivitiesVisit Kampong Chhnang and cruise on Tonle Sap lake.

MealB/L/D

IncludedAccommodation, tour guide, transportation, sightseeing ticket

After hearty breakfast on board, we visit Kampong Chhnang. Located some 90km from Phnom Penh, the town of Kampong Chhnang is one of the largest fishing ports on the Tonle Sap. Here they also have many fish farms. The region is best known for its fine traditional pottery which is a major source of revenue for the entire country, and the region’s very name Kampong Chhnang means “the port of the pottery” in Khmer. Continue to a traditional grove of palm trees and taste some palm sugar before a visit to a traditional pottery. Next we visit a floating village using small local boats. All the buildings here are afloat – the school, the shops and so on, and life develops along the canal network. Get back on board for lunch then cruise to lake Tonle Sap, the largest freshwater lake in southeast Asia which forms the heart of the hydraulic system of the Mekong. Cocktail and gala dinner tonight. Overnight stop.

ActivitiesExplore Siem Reap

MealBreakfast/ Lunch

IncludedTransportation

We spend the morning cruising, taking breakfast on board. Depending on the water levels, we cross the Tonle Sap lake on board the RV Indochine. We arrive in the port of Siem Reap.  End of our journey.