Myanmar/Burma River Cruises - Help please

Hi - couple of Senior Citizens, recently back from Antarctica, now interested in River Cruising in Myanmar. Not too physical, passed the age for adventurous trekking, like a little more luxury!

From looking at the weather there, over Christmas 2016 period looks ideal. Possibly Mandalay - Prome(Pyay) - Yangon, with maybe adding Inle Lake.

Any advice re must see/must do places and experiences of cruises available to book from Australia would be appreciated. :confused:

:)

We went on this adventure with Vantage...not sure the company is available to Aussies.

However many of the Irrawaddy cruises are quite similar.

I would encourage you to read the discussions on this board about the cruise.

It is strenuous. We went in December...days can be very hot. Many times the ship does not dock at a traditional dock....they lower a gangplank and the crew is very helpful assisting up the bank of the river....but you do need to be sure footed. Some of 'excursions' involve a tri-shaw...think bike with a side car, an OX cart etc. Again everyone is very helpful but you need to be able to be pretty mobile.

Many pagoda visits will entail taking shoes and socks off! Our beautiful ship did not have an elevator. Medical care is not always easily available.

This is a great trip but be prepared and take a honest evaluation of your current health and mobility!!! We had 80 year olds that often did not go on an excursion...some that did and were fine some that should have not gone and slowed the group down and some mid 60's who could not keep up!!! Only you assess what your limitations might be.

DeeDC just returned and recommended Myanmar and said they are working on a review, many photos! I hope we see one soon!

Pictures are still in the "trying to pick the best " stage. We are leaving for 2 weeks in Mexico now so maybe when we get back....also have the 2014 fall Budapest to Amsterdam to sort through. My husband needs to retire!!!

This trip was a spur of the moment decision and we are so happy to have been able to have the opportunity to spend time discovering this incredibly interesting country and in the comfort of the beautiful well appointed new ship. Vantage charters the boat and it is managed by haimark who do an excellent job. Pictures don't exaggerate...we had a french balcony room and did not miss having a full balcony and enjoyed the added room in the cabin. Having inside hallways keeps the bugs out of the cabins. The staff is eager to please. The food was varied and good and the kitchen was able to make dietary considerations as needed.

The pace of this trip is very active. Most of us were so tired by dinner's conclusion that there were very few enjoying the pleasant evening in the lounge or on the lovely comfortable sun deck. Please believe Vantage's warning that it is not a cruise for those with mobility issues. The crew is happy to help but it is not fair to other passengers when they have to constantly wait for stragglers. You will be required to put your shoes on/off frequently. There are rides on trishaws, ox carts and horse carts that were challenging for some of our group. The bus ride between Prome and Yangon is brutal. Those at the back of the bus described it as a amusement park "crack the whip", the road is narrow, lots of horn honking and jerky stop and go. The rest stops were dismal.

The excursions were very well thought out and gave us a perfect insight into life along the Irrawaddy. Our local guide was an absolutely incredible teacher; building on our knowledge each day. The people of Myanmar are friendly and open. The tours of gold leaf, lacquer ware, silk weaving workshops were very good.

My best memory.....waiting for our tour group to gather I approached a familly sitting at the side of the road....grmother, mother, grfather a preschooler and small infant. I smiled at the baby, the grandmother took the baby from the mom and grmother told me that she was the mother of the baby's mother....I explained to her that I too was a grandmother.. (this was all done in very halting English and sign language)....the grandmother then handed me the swaddled infant!!!! Impossible to create a connection this real and human....I will never forget it!!!

We were disappointed in the use of the limited time in Bangkok.One Lunch was almost 2 hrs and then overpriced shopping .Vantage needs to have an option. The hotels in both Bangkok and Yangon were comfortable.

If you are thinking about this trip do it now well worth it!

I have to agree with most of deec's post but do have a slightly different viewpoints as to how difficult the trip may be.

I, too, am a senior citizen, but didn't have any trouble on this trip, although there were a few younger travelers who did-experiencing some breathlessness as well as walking problems. We were on Viking and on a slightly smaller ship-smaller cabins ,but lovely, nevertheless. The most trouble we had was with the lack of elavators and steep stairs going up and down the 3 decks. When we docked at a "make shift" stop, there was a series of crew members helping everyone off, handing people from one to the other with no spaces in between. There weren't many long walks, but there were some steep climbs. I was really impressed in the help given by the crew all during our trip. (there were 32 in crew for 30 passengers).

The initial bus ride was long but very interesting. It was not as bad as I had been given to expect, so maybe I was forewarned. Net year Viking is changing the itinerary and will not do this bus ride.

I don't know your physical limitations and I'm not sure what cruise lines are available from Australia, but we had people from Canada, Germany, and the UK as well as the US, so I don't see why Australia would be left out. In addition to Viking and Vantage, Scenic has a river cruise. You might check out their website as well.

If you can do the trip physically, I urge you to go. It was one of the best trips my friend and I have done and we have traveled to all 7 continents, including many 3rd world countries.

Doris Betty

If you managed the zodiac landings, walking on ice and rocks in Antarctica, the Irrawaddy river banks won't be a problem.

We cruised with Pandaw and loved it. My report is somewhere on this board. If you put "HDS" and "Irrawaddy" into the search box it will show up.

We did this trip with GCT and it was amazing. For you in Australia. look into APT the partner of AMAwaterways--now doing its first season in Myanmar. It should give you the luxury you are looking for on a brand new boat. Goodluck--go before it gets crowded. Pat

Did not intend to be negative or discouraging about taking this trip. It was a wonderful trip but just wanted the OP to know to be prepared....but it was probably easier than clamoring in/out of zodiacs with layers of bulky clothing....I hope to be taking/enjoying these adventures when I am 85!

Booked on a December Mandalay to Bagan. Is there. Particular side of the boat which has better viewing?

Cruised the Irawaddy in 2013 on Pandaw II from Yangon to Mandalay (14 nights) . either side is fine - spent most of our on board time either on the open sundeck or in the air conditioned lounge so can see both sides of the river. Depending on season river can be very wide. If you miss one stupa there is always another just around the next river bend. Staff were brilliant - we had a couple of people with mobility issues - an alternative was often offered to them along with a dedicated helper. This is a very relaxed cruise - you could do as much or as little as you liked - there were several people that rarely left the boat (they had cruised the area before). Local villages were charming - I bought a local hat for 30 cents and my biggest mistake was procrastinating over a pair of sparkly thongs(shoes) only bought 1 pair instead of 2 - $2 and the stall holder then gave me a discount.

Many thanks to all for your help and info. We have found info here in Oz from Viking, APT, Scenic and Cruiseco. Now a matter of comparing itineraries and prices.

On our recent South America/Antarctica trip we did the Iguazu Falls jetboat trip, and my 70 year old DH with a heart problem and two knee replacements managed the climb back up to the top much better than many people 20 to 30 years younger, so I reckon we'll be ok.

So thanks again, I've spent a lot of time following various threads and it sounds like a goer:)

Hi, I have booked AMA Waterways for Nov 21-Dec 4/15. I am also a solo traveler.

I have paid in full for the trip as there was a 10% discount offered to Canadians, with the $$ being down this helped. My flight is also booked and paid for. With the discount on trip that helped pay for more then half of the flight!!

I will be watching for any postings and if you can give advice I would really appreciate it.

Thanks

Hi, We have done a river cruise some years ago with the Road to Mandalay (this is a ship that belongs to the Orient Express company. Now this company has changed the name to Belmond). It was so nice, that we have decided to do it again in September this year. We are going now to Bhamo also.

If you have interest, have a look at the web page from Belmond. They have two ships there. In this month they are offering a discount on new bookings I believe.

Hi, I have booked AMA Waterways for Nov 21-Dec 4/15. I am also a solo traveler.

 

I have paid in full for the trip as there was a 10% discount offered to Canadians, with the $$ being down this helped. My flight is also booked and paid for. With the discount on trip that helped pay for more then half of the flight!!

 

I will be watching for any postings and if you can give advice I would really appreciate it.

 

Thanks

May I ask which itinerary with AMA? there are 2, and am undecided as to which one for 2016. We enjoyed our AMA Vietnam and Cambodia river cruise with add-on land, also with AMA

thanks

Carol

I am doing the Golden Treasures of Myanmar.

May I ask which itinerary with AMA? there are 2, and am undecided as to which one for 2016. We enjoyed our AMA Vietnam and Cambodia river cruise with add-on land, also with AMA

 

thanks

Carol

We are booked on AMA Feb 9, 2016. It is the longer itinerary.

We took Pandaw river cruises. Unbelievable experience. Replicas of the original steam boats that sailed the Irrawaddy. Very boutique. We cruise with Seabourn and have booked river cruises with Uniworld so we like luxury and the Pandaw delivers this. Check them out as an option from the larger cruise companies.

My third Pandaw cruise was Burma - totally awesome. Fourth Pandaw trip coming up later this year. Don't miss Lake Inle.