8 Days Upstream Saigon Phnom Penh on RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise: Visit the bird sanctuary at Gao Giong, take the Xe Loi route around the island to see how baskets are made, and stop by a 100-year-old Catholic Church. Explore the maze-like network of canals near Tan Chau to visit a Taoist temple.
Table of Contents
Day 1: Saigon – My Tho
Activities: The cruise gets picked up at the Saigon Meeting Point.
Transfer to My Tho Port from the meeting location in Saigon. We board your Pandaw and then head downstream to Ben Tre, where we drop an anchor. A presentation about Vietnamese living in the Mekong Delta is given in the afternoon. Passengers may enjoy an indigenous dancing ensemble during cocktail hour and get to know your essential crew members.
Meals: Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise
Day 2: Ben Tre
Activities: Travel by sampan through bamboo and mangrove gardens to Ben Tre’s fruit farms.
Travel by sampan through bamboo and mangrove gardens to the Ben Tre fruit farms. These neighborhood craftspeople welcome guests into their houses for tea, fruit, and items produced with their own honey while they are at work. On the way back, a horse-drawn carriage takes us through the verdant countryside and through a region rich in birdlife. Following lunch, the ship moors off the island of Cho Lach for pot-making demonstrations, more insights into Delta life, agriculture, and native Viet hospitality, including a cooking instruction on how to prepare traditional Banh Xeo.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise
Day 3: Con Phuoc Island
Activities: Visit the bird sanctuary at Gao Giong, take the Xi Loi route around the island to see how baskets are made, and stop by a 100-year-old Catholic Church.
The short coach ride to the Gao Giong “green oasis” and its bird sanctuary takes place after breakfast. The Duong Tharp Muoi, also known as the “Plain of Reeds,” is home to a wide variety of water and egrets that flock in their tens of thousands. To transport us to the main nesting locations, rowing boats travel the canals. Once back on board, we sail upstream to Con Phuoc Island. We anchor in a little canal off Con Phuoc Island and disembark to explore the island using the Xi Loi method, stopping to meet local woodworkers and observe basket makers as well as a century-old Catholic church.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise
Day 4: Tan Chau – Cambodia Border
Activities: Explore the maze-like network of canals near Tan Chau to visit a Taoist temple.
Visit a Taoist temple in the afternoon where the monks will interpret your future by navigating the maze-like network of canals surrounding Tan Chau. After pausing to assist people in tending their farms, continue through the nearby villages of Xi Loi. Next, stop at a fish farm to tour and gain merit by releasing fish back into the Mekong. An optional tour of the functioning ship and fruit carving lessons on deck are available during the afternoon’s lengthy border crossing procedures.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise
Day 5: Phnom Penh
Activities: Highlights of a visit to Cambodia’s capital
Following a cyclo tour of Phnom Penh’s Royal Palace and Silver Pagoda, visitors may then visit the National Museum, which has an amazing collection of Angkorian statues. Optional afternoon activities include a trip to the Killing Fields and Genocide Museum, a tuk-tuk tour of the riverbank, and High Tea at the Raffles Hotel. Spend the night in the bustling bars, restaurants, and nightlife of Phnom Penh’s downtown harbor.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise
Day 6: Koh Oknha Tey
Activities:
Visit Koh Okhna Tey, or “silk island,” to learn about the entire silk production process from worms to weavers, then sail up the Tonle River to board our expedition vessel.
Sail up the Tonle River to board our expedition ship, the Pandaw Explorer, and travel to Koh Okhna Tey, also known as the “island of silk,” where you can learn about the entire process of making silk, from worms to weavers. The ancient Khmer martial technique of Bokator will be shown. Return to your ship and go back up the Tonle River until the junction, where you will turn up the Mekong. Evening lecture about Khmer culture and Angkor.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise
Day 7: Wat Hanchey – OBT Chiro Village – Wat Nokor Bachey
Activities: Visit Koh Trong Island, a little village on the Mekong River; anchor near Kratie; then proceed by small boat to the dolphin breeding areas.
Wat Hanchey, a significant place of worship during the Chenla period, is perched on top of a hill above the powerful Mekong River with some of the greatest Mekong views in Cambodia. Wat Hanchey is accessible via sunrise cruise. Visit buildings from the 8th century, some of which were devastated by American bombs during the Vietnam War. renowned for its strange figurines of fruits and animals.
After lunch, we take a bus to the nearby OBT Chiro Village, where the education of the neighborhood’s children is a top priority. From there, we sail back downstream to Kampong Cham. Pre-Hospitality training programs, plastic recycling programs, beekeeping programs, farming programs, and handicraft skill projects are all put up to help local kids develop their skill sets. Next, we go to Wat Nokor Bachey, which dates back to the reign of Jayarvaman VII. It stands out from other temples constructed at this time because it is entirely made of black sandstone. There are several traditions surrounding this complex, one of which is that, according to Greek mythology, a monarch who erected it accidentally killed his father and subsequently wed his mother. In retaliation for his wrongdoing, this shrine was constructed.
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Overnight: RV Mekong Pandaw Cruise
Day 8: Kampong Cham – Siem Reap
Activities: Transfer by coach to Siem Reap
Sailing downstream will bring you to Kampong Cham, where you can moor and get on a road to Siem Reap.
Meals: Breakfast
