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Cruise to Angkor

Vietnam and Cambodia - Sunset on the Mekong

Click on the name of the hotel for details

13 days from £2080

excluding international flights

Cruise in luxury along the Mekong from Saigon to the astonishing temples of Angkor

DAY 1 – Depart UK.

Recommended flight from London: Thai Airways International via Bangkok from London Heathrow (see below).  If you are travelling from a country other than the UK we would be happy to give you guidance on your flight options.

DAY 2 – Arrival in Saigon.

On arrival in Ho Chi Minh City (better known as Saigon) you will be met outside customs by a representative of World Discovery and taken by private car direct to your hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure.

DAY 3 – Embark on the Mekong Explorer Cruise Ship.  My Tho to Cai Be.

The morning is free until midday, when you check in at the Jayavarman (Mekong Explorer) Desk, located in your hotel.  You will be taken by road to the riverside town of My Tho, 70 kilometres south of Saigon, to board your cruise ship and settle into your Deluxe Cabin.  You will be served a refreshing welcome drink as your ship steadily glides along the Mekong River.  The Mekong Explorer moors midstream tonight near Cai Be.
Meals included: Full breakfast, dinner.

DAY 4 - Cai Be.  Sa Dec.  Chau Doc.

Each day of the cruise starts - for those who wish - with an invigorating tai-chi lesson on the sundeck just as the run begins its gentle glow.  This morning disembark at Cai Be to explore the colourful floating market aboard a traditional sampan (flat-bottomed wooden boat).  You will stop to see how rice paste, rice cookies and coconut candies are made, before heading along the canal to visit an ancient house surrounded by fruit orchards.  Return to the Mekong Explorer for lunch.  In the afternoon cruise to Sa Dec, where you will again travel on sampans along the narrow canals to Bin Thanh Island, where the villagers are all involved in the process of growing and processing water hyacinths into natural fibre floor mats and rattan baskets.  Back to the ship to enjoy a tranquil evening cruise to Chau Doc.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch, dinner.

DAY 5 - Chau Doc.  Cross the border into Cambodia.

After breakfast (in the dining hall or on your private balcony) take a short excursion to Chau Doc with its sizeable Chinese, Kinh and Khmer communities.  Visit the colourful local market and take a boat trip to floating villages and rustic catfish farms.  In the afternoon, back on board the Mekong Explorer (pictured), cross the border into Cambodia and head for the country's capital city, Phnom Penh.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch,  dinner.

DAY 6 – Phnom Penh.

Phnom Penh was known as the 'Paris of the East' in French colonial times, and still retains much of its old charm and elegance.  This morning visit the principal highlights of Phnom Penh.  Lunch will be taken at a local restaurant in the city.  In the afternoon visit the moving Genocide Museum and the 'Killing Fields' , stark reminders of the tragedy that befell the Cambodian people under the Khmer Rouge regime.  This evening there will be a traditional Apsara dance performance aboard your cruise ship, with a barbecue dinner served on the sundeck beneath the stars.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch, dinner.

DAY 7 – Phnom Penh to Kampong Cham.

Your first shore excursion this morning is to the little known Chong Koh silk-weaving village.  Later, step ashore and take a journey back into the past, visiting the Angkor Ban village where time appears to have stood still for more than a century.  The rest of the day is spent cruising on the Mekong towards Kampong Cham.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch, dinner.

DAY 8 - Wat Hanchey Temple. Kampong Cham.

An early departure for the road journey to the striking pre-Angkorian (8th century) temple of Wat Hanchey, a hilltop pagoda overlooking the Mekong, before sailing to Kampong Cham, capital of the province of the same name.  Spend time in this charming small city including a visit to the attractive 11th century Wat Nokor temple (pictured).  On your way back to the ship visit an orphanage, and negotiate a 2 kilometre long rickety bamboo bridge!
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch, dinner.

DAY 9 - Kampong Cham to Kampong Chhnang.

An early departure along the narrow Tonle Sap River to Kampong Chhnang.  Take a short trip by road to Aundaung Russey village, famous for its pottery, before returning to the river for a thrilling motorboat excursion to the wetlands, with its floating houses and fish farms.
Meals included: Full breakfast, lunch, dinner.

DAY 10 - Tonle Sap Lake.  Disembark.  The Roluos group of temples.  Angkor Wat.

Tonle Sap Lake is the largest freshwater lake in Asia and has an abundant and varied birdlife.  Disembark at Siem Reap Port in the morning.  During the next three days, from your base in Siem Reap, you will enjoy a comprehensive exploration of this exceptional area, visiting the major temple groups, beginning with the earliest temples in the Roluos area.  In the afternoon drive to Angkor Wat, the best known of the Angkor sites.
Meals included: Full breakfast.

DAY 11 - Angkor Thom, Ta Prohm.

Today you will visit the extensive Royal City of Angkor Thom , at whose centre stands the awesome temple-pyramid of the Bayon. In the afternoon you will also explore the tangled 12th century ruins of Ta Prohm (pictured left), whose ancient stones have been engulfed by roots and tree trunks, revealing the power of nature yet providing an atmospheric and unforgettable spectacle.
Meals included: Full breakfast.

DAY 12 - Siem Reap.  Depart for home.

Your last day in Siem Reap is at leisure.  If you are still keen on visiting more temples, there is certainly no shortage of them!  We would recommend Preah Khan, a vast temple around whose outer walls, 40 metres apart, are giant carvings of the Hindu deity Garuda, and Neak Prean, which consists of a central pool and four peripheral pools once used for purification rites.  If you wish to do some last minute shopping we highly recommend the excellent Artisans Angkor, whose profits are channelled into local education and welfare projects.  We have arranged for you to keep your room for a late check out at 18.00.  In the evening transfer to the airport for your included flight by Bangkok Airways to Bangkok.
Meals included: Full breakfast.

DAY 13 – Arrive London.

Connect with the early morning flight from Bangkok to London.

International Flights

We recommend the services of Thai Airways International from London Heathrow via Bangkok. Flights are daily throughout the year. Current timings (subject to possible change) are as follows:
Heathrow/Bangkok. Depart at 11.50; arrive Bangkok at 06.10 (next day)
Bangkok/Saigon. Depart at 08.50; arrive Saigon at 10.20
Bangkok/Heathrow. Depart at 01.10; arrive Heathrow at 07.15

Vietnam and Cambodia: Cruise to Angkor (Tour Reference: WDVT004)
2013 Departures
Price per person based on a minimum of two persons travelling together:

Single Room Supplements on request.

The price includes:

• Hotel and cruise ship accommodation as listed above in twin-bedded rooms/cabins with private faciliites.
• 10 full breakfasts, 7 lunches and 7 dinners as shown in the itinerary.
• Scheduled flight between Siem Reap and Bangkok, including taxes.
• Private transfers in Saigon and Siem Reap.  Transportation during the cruise will be shared with other passengers
  
• All sightseeing as shown (unless indicated as ‘optional’), including entrance fees.
• Your own private guide for the included sightseeing in Siem Reap.  During the cruise you will share the guide with other passengers.
  

Not included in the price:

• International flights (see our recommendation above). We are happy to discuss the flights with you and give you further guidance.
• Optional sightseeing. The World Discovery representatives in each city will be pleased to organise any sightseeing you may wish to include during your stay.
• International airport taxes.
• Tipping. We will be pleased to give guidance in this often sensitive matter.
• Visas for Vietnam and Cambodia. The Vietnam visa must be obtained before departure from the United Kingdom and we recommend that you do this through CIBT in London - www.uk.cibt.com.  You can also obtain your Cambodia visa through CIBT or you may obtain the visa on arrival in Phnom Penh (recommended).  The current cost is US$20 (2 passport photos are required).
  

A deposit of £500 per person is required at the time of booking. The balance of the price for your travel arrangements must be paid at least 8 weeks before your departure date.