Burma/Myanmar river cruises

[marama]

We did a 2 Week cruise on Pandaw II in January. I have never had such good service in all my life. The crew were fantastic. Unless you are on one of the boats recently re-fitted, cabins can be dark, though perfectly comfortable - take a reading light. Note that our cabin did not have the sliding glass door to deck mentioned earlier, but may do by the end of the year.

 

Lower deck - these cabins are identical to upper deck. The only problem with this deck can be that when tied up you are on the deck closest to the water level and therefore often step out to find you are just feet away from the locals doing their washing, cleaning their teeth, etc., so not very private! Its also a long climb to the bar on the observation deck (and the endless supply of home made biscuits to have with your tea/coffee). In addition, if travelling late Nov-onwards, the river level drops considerably - you will find yourself way below the riverbank - and the view.

 

If travelling on a Pandaw cruise, please take some books, DVDs, school textbooks to give to the Purser. He passes these on to the Pandaw school. I think that those blow up globes of the world are also popular.

 

I was frequently asked for small items of makeup by village women - lipstick, mascara etc - these are unavailable outside the larger towns and cities.

 

Finally - every 2nd or 3rd year the boats go in for a refit/refurb - those years you can book the Irrawaddy cruise from Rangoon instead of having to bus 4-6 hours to Prome. I think we were told that Pandaw II was due for its refit this September.

[atlgators]

I sure wish this thread had been available last year... That being said, we took Vantage's charter tour of a Pandaw cruise on the Irrawaddy River in October, 2012. We also took the pre-cruise option of 4 days in Bangkok and the post-cruise option to Angkor Wat, Cambodia. A Fabulous Trip!!!!!! Vantage did a good job of organizing all travel details, from flights to and from Bangkok, as well as in-country. Hotel accommodations in addition to the Pandaw boat were quite nice. All in all, a great trip.

 

Now to answer the questions I had prior to our trip: Yes, there are hair driers on board. Yes, casual dress is all you need. Yes, laundry service is provided for a nominal fee. both sandals and closed toe shoes were fine.

Other observations; The beds were comfortable. The cabin air conditioner worked well. Bottled water was provided. The staff worked extremely hard to provide for our comfort. We had several older folks (80 plus years in age) who needed extra help. On that note. I would not recommend this trip to anyone who has mobility issues. Climbing up banks to the shore, walking many steps through villages and up steps of temples was a challenge for these ladies.

 

As to the medical questions: We chose to take the Hep A and B vaccinations prior to our trip . We also took the Malaria tablet series, even though we saw no mosquitoes while there. As another preventive, we each took a prescription for Cipro. We did not need it, but just having it was comforting.

 

Myanmar is an enthralling destination. We had a wonderful time, felt very safe, and include it as one of the most memorable trips we've ever taken.

 

Good luck in your search!! We'll be glad to answer any other questions you may have.

[EKML]

I sure wish this thread had been available last year... That being said, we took Vantage's charter tour of a Pandaw cruise on the Irrawaddy River in October, 2012. We also took the pre-cruise option of 4 days in Bangkok and the post-cruise option to Angkor Wat, Cambodia. A Fabulous Trip!!!!!! Vantage did a good job of organizing all travel details, from flights to and from Bangkok, as well as in-country. Hotel accommodations in addition to the Pandaw boat were quite nice. All in all, a great trip.

 

Now to answer the questions I had prior to our trip: Yes, there are hair driers on board. Yes, casual dress is all you need. Yes, laundry service is provided for a nominal fee. both sandals and closed toe shoes were fine.

Other observations; The beds were comfortable. The cabin air conditioner worked well. Bottled water was provided. The staff worked extremely hard to provide for our comfort. We had several older folks (80 plus years in age) who needed extra help. On that note. I would not recommend this trip to anyone who has mobility issues. Climbing up banks to the shore, walking many steps through villages and up steps of temples was a challenge for these ladies.

 

As to the medical questions: We chose to take the Hep A and B vaccinations prior to our trip . We also took the Malaria tablet series, even though we saw no mosquitoes while there. As another preventive, we each took a prescription for Cipro. We did not need it, but just having it was comforting.

 

Myanmar is an enthralling destination. We had a wonderful time, felt very safe, and include it as one of the most memorable trips we've ever taken.

 

Good luck in your search!! We'll be glad to answer any other questions you may have.

 

We will be taking this same cruise w/Vantage Oct 2013. Have a couple of questions. How was the weather? Any heavy rain? How were the internal flights, Bangkok to Yangon-everything taken care of by Vantage? Any recommendations for restaurants in Yangon? Did you exchange your money at the hotel in Yangon?

[travelinjudy]

Hi,

For anyone who has taken the Myanmar trip--did you have any problem getting the required visa from the Embassy in the U.S,? Did you get it yourself or have an agent get it. I am debating which way to go. Any advice would be appreciated.:)

[EKML]

Hi,

For anyone who has taken the Myanmar trip--did you have any problem getting the required visa from the Embassy in the U.S,? Did you get it yourself or have an agent get it. I am debating which way to go. Any advice would be appreciated.:)

 

Vantage recommended using Genvisa.com. There are other similar firms, and some that advertise VOA. But there has been some comments that the VOA is only for business visas. Myanmar is also working on a Evisa system, which they say may be up and running in a few months, but we don't have the time to wait. Genvisa charges $153 for 2 persons, plus shipping. If you're in Washington, DC you can do it yourself for much less. I suppose all the travel companies have their favorite company to work with.

[atlgators]

We will be taking this same cruise w/Vantage Oct 2013. Have a couple of questions. How was the weather? Any heavy rain? How were the internal flights, Bangkok to Yangon-everything taken care of by Vantage? Any recommendations for restaurants in Yangon? Did you exchange your money at the hotel in Yangon?

 

 

The weather was hot and dry in Myanmar. No rain at all. We did have a couple of afternoon showers while we were in Bangkok for the pre-cruise leg. In-country air arrangements were great. Our Program Manager stayed with us the entire time and handled all issues. The planes were nice and the service superb. All our meals in Yangon were arranged by Vantage or our Program Manager, so I can't answer that question. Yes, we did exchange our money at the Chatrium Hotel in Yangon. But, do have crisp new bills with no folds or marks on them. You will get a better rate that way. Ours were not new, but as nice as we could get at the bank, so we got about 10% less.

 

We loved our trip with Vantage. The only suggestion we have is to review the gratuities suggestions and set aside those $$. Not only will you have a Program Manager to stay with you the entire trip, there will be Tour Guides and Bus Drivers. I believe all on-board gratuities were handled by Vantage.

 

Myanmar was an absolutely amazing destination. Keep the questions coming. :D

[atlgators]

Hi,

For anyone who has taken the Myanmar trip--did you have any problem getting the required visa from the Embassy in the U.S,? Did you get it yourself or have an agent get it. I am debating which way to go. Any advice would be appreciated.:)

 

We had no trouble with the required visas. Vantage sent us the forms from Genvisa. Not free, but painless...

[EKML]

The weather was hot and dry in Myanmar. No rain at all. We did have a couple of afternoon showers while we were in Bangkok for the pre-cruise leg. In-country air arrangements were great. Our Program Manager stayed with us the entire time and handled all issues. The planes were nice and the service superb. All our meals in Yangon were arranged by Vantage or our Program Manager, so I can't answer that question. Yes, we did exchange our money at the Chatrium Hotel in Yangon. But, do have crisp new bills with no folds or marks on them. You will get a better rate that way. Ours were not new, but as nice as we could get at the bank, so we got about 10% less.

 

We loved our trip with Vantage. The only suggestion we have is to review the gratuities suggestions and set aside those $$. Not only will you have a Program Manager to stay with you the entire trip, there will be Tour Guides and Bus Drivers. I believe all on-board gratuities were handled by Vantage.

 

Myanmar was an absolutely amazing destination. Keep the questions coming. :D

 

Thanks for the info. The day-by-day itinerary noted a couple of dinners in Yangon were on our own. We'll see what happens.

 

Good suggestion about the tips-they do add up. Were you able to charge tour director and crew staff tips to your ship bill? The travel guide recommends tips for the local guides and drivers, but the next paragraph says that the tips for the crew staff includes tips for the local guides/drivers (except for the river guides). Was this clarified?

 

Did you take the optional Markets & Memories tour? Was it worthwhile?

[travelinjudy]

We had no trouble with the required visas. Vantage sent us the forms from Genvisa. Not free, but painless...

 

Hi again,

Grand Circle has also recommended an agent, but I would prefer to get it myself if it's not a problem. I'm also going to Ankor Wat prior to Burma, but the Cambodian Visa can be gotten on-line, so the only one I need to send my passport in for is the Burma visa. I hate to spend the extra money if it's doable by me. I have gotten some visa's on my own before--some easy, some not so easy.:D

Judy

[atlgators]

Thanks for the info. The day-by-day itinerary noted a couple of dinners in Yangon were on our own. We'll see what happens.

 

Good suggestion about the tips-they do add up. Were you able to charge tour director and crew staff tips to your ship bill? The travel guide recommends tips for the local guides and drivers, but the next paragraph says that the tips for the crew staff includes tips for the local guides/drivers (except for the river guides). Was this clarified?

 

Did you take the optional Markets & Memories tour? Was it worthwhile?

 

Tom and I are trying to remember meals in Yangon. We never went on our own anywhere, but may have gone with the group and with the cost not included. But, they do change the itinerary from trip to trip.

 

The only things we could charge to our ship account were on board expenses. Tips for the crew were included as part of the trip cost. Gratuities for the scheduled events that were not bus related, such as the trishaw ride through town, the horse cart ride out to a temple complex, the jeep ride up the mountain, and the canoe ride were also included in the trip cost. We were asked specifically not to tip these drivers as this was taken care of for us. The ones we needed to tip were the Program Manager, Nu, who was with us the whole trip, the Tour Guide, Robin who also stayed with us while we were in Myanmar, and Dorothy, the Tour Guide who was with us in Yangon and Mandalay. Nu stayed in the background during the Myanmar leg and let Robin do most of the informational talks. Robin, we believe, has been promoted to Program Manager, so you may see him on your trip. These were the folks we needed to tip.

 

Yes, the optional Night Market Tour was worth it, if nothing else for the trishaw ride through town where we were the entertainment for the locals.

 

Hope this helps,

Tom and Barb

[EKML]

Tom and I are trying to remember meals in Yangon. We never went on our own anywhere, but may have gone with the group and with the cost not included. But, they do change the itinerary from trip to trip.

 

The only things we could charge to our ship account were on board expenses. Tips for the crew were included as part of the trip cost. Gratuities for the scheduled events that were not bus related, such as the trishaw ride through town, the horse cart ride out to a temple complex, the jeep ride up the mountain, and the canoe ride were also included in the trip cost. We were asked specifically not to tip these drivers as this was taken care of for us. The ones we needed to tip were the Program Manager, Nu, who was with us the whole trip, the Tour Guide, Robin who also stayed with us while we were in Myanmar, and Dorothy, the Tour Guide who was with us in Yangon and Mandalay. Nu stayed in the background during the Myanmar leg and let Robin do most of the informational talks. Robin, we believe, has been promoted to Program Manager, so you may see him on your trip. These were the folks we needed to tip.

 

Yes, the optional Night Market Tour was worth it, if nothing else for the trishaw ride through town where we were the entertainment for the locals.

 

Hope this helps,

Tom and Barb

 

Good info. Looks like we'll have to take enough cash to cover the tips.

[EKML]

Found an excellent trip report about a Pandaw II Myanmar cruise. Although we are going on Vantage, they do charter the Pandaw II, and it looks like we will be doing this tour in the opposite direction. Check out:

 

http://www.hannostamm.com/MyanmarNovember2012.htm.

[vada_9]

Have just returned from the 14 night repositioning cruise Yangon to Mandalay on Pandaw 2 - July/August. I apologise I was wrong about sliding glass doors as mentioned before. Teak door to outside prominade deck - double opening windows with insect screens (some people chose to sleep with windows open) - we had the air pumping. 2 bunks ample storage under bunks. Wonderful service - variety of meals buffet breakfast, either buffet lunch or 3 course (order main at breakfast + soup and salads and fruit/dessert), 4 course dinner order main at lunch. Informal seating /casual dress. In the delta area we had the 3.00pm downpour for an hour most days. Mostly fine otherwise. we took Doxy for Malaria but saw very few mosquitos. Happy to answer any questions. We loved being in the towns/villages that only see a tourist boat every other year - think this will eventually change. To the person enquiring about money we changed crisp Us dollars and also used the ATM machine. they were sprouting upeverywhere in Yangon (at least 20 at Shwedagon Pagoda):)

[amyr]

EKML -

 

I will be very, very interested to hear about your Vantage experiences. I remember the terrific advice you offered after taking the AMALotus (we took it a year after you) and I tried to pass along good info after we went as well.

 

I've been trying to work out a trip to Burma as well. I was initially going to go with Orient Express and The Road to Mandalay (for sentimental reasons), then I went to a Viking presentation and had a look at their offering. It looks fine, but they don't offer an extension to Lake Inle, which is important to us. That somehow led me to Vantage, and a new ship they're using starting in September 2014, the r/v Irrawaddy Explorer, which looks fantastic, and is being built by a couple of fellows that used to work for Pandaw and have now branched out on their own.

 

At any rate, I'm very, very anxious to hear about your trip and Vantage. Did I read somewhere else that you've had some struggles with internal flights? I expect we'll have a few, though I think the direction we travel will help with that somewhat.

[EKML]

EKML -

 

I will be very, very interested to hear about your Vantage experiences. I remember the terrific advice you offered after taking the AMALotus (we took it a year after you) and I tried to pass along good info after we went as well.

 

I've been trying to work out a trip to Burma as well. I was initially going to go with Orient Express and The Road to Mandalay (for sentimental reasons), then I went to a Viking presentation and had a look at their offering. It looks fine, but they don't offer an extension to Lake Inle, which is important to us. That somehow led me to Vantage, and a new ship they're using starting in September 2014, the r/v Irrawaddy Explorer, which looks fantastic, and is being built by a couple of fellows that used to work for Pandaw and have now branched out on their own.

 

At any rate, I'm very, very anxious to hear about your trip and Vantage. Did I read somewhere else that you've had some struggles with internal flights? I expect we'll have a few, though I think the direction we travel will help with that somewhat.

 

Next year there will be several new ships in Burma. AMA is also adding a cruise. The new ships are bigger and will carry more passengers. Hopefully the number and size of the new ships won't overwhelm the small towns. Another disadvantage of the bigger ships is the greater draft, which may make it difficult to accommodate low water levels. Have to balance these problems w/the advantage of newer and more luxurious ships. Also, the longer you wait the more crowded the area will get!

 

Had a problem w/Vantage regarding the internal flights. When I contacted them about doing my flights, I got no response, so I booked my own air to Bangkok. When I notified Vantage, they said I would have to pay extra for the internal flights (Bangkok/Yangon). I objected to this since their brochure clearly states that the internal flights were included, and no statement was made that it was only if you bought their flight package. After about 3 months of many emails and phone calls, I was able to get a Supervisor to read their brochure and itinerary and agree that the flights were included. Since then, their responses have been much more timely.

 

Also had a little problem w/Genvisa who is doing our visas. They are very thorough, and called or emailed about any missing information. However, they lost track of our payment, and I had to send a copy of my cancelled check to clear this up. Might help if you staple your check to the application.

[H2Otstr]

We are traveling with Grand Circle next year. You might want to look at their trips.

[amyr]

I like the looks of that little ship Grand Circle is using - the r/v Paukan 2012. Nice that it will only hold about 32 passengers and has two single cabins. I'm taking this trip with my sister, and it would be nice to try a single cabin rather than a twin share. I think that you have to be 55 to book a Grand Circle cruise though? Neither of us will be 55 when we're hoping to take the cruise.

 

I was wondering when AMA was going to join the market. When we were on AMALotus, the captain left the ship for the day when we were moored at that last stop before Saigon (Sa Dec?) and when he came back was talking about how he had been to visit the shipyard where they were building four more ships. Details were getting a bit lost in translation, but I thought that they were for AMA, and he was talking about sailing north on the Mekong, so maybe into Laos? I had thought Burma at the time, but not sure. I read that AMA's Irrawaddy River ship would hold 76 passengers, so clearly not a sister to Lotus.

 

The ship that Vantage will use starting in 2014 has a capacity of 56, so not bad at all. I can't wait to hear about your experience, EKML - I know you'll come back and share. Are you doing a post to Lake Inle?

[H2Otstr]

I like the looks of that little ship Grand Circle is using - the r/v Paukan 2012. Nice that it will only hold about 32 passengers and has two single cabins. I'm taking this trip with my sister, and it would be nice to try a single cabin rather than a twin share. I think that you have to be 55 to book a Grand Circle cruise though? Neither of us will be 55 when we're hoping to take the cruise.

 

I was wondering when AMA was going to join the market. When we were on AMALotus, the captain left the ship for the day when we were moored at that last stop before Saigon (Sa Dec?) and when he came back was talking about how he had been to visit the shipyard where they were building four more ships. Details were getting a bit lost in translation, but I thought that they were for AMA, and he was talking about sailing north on the Mekong, so maybe into Laos? I had thought Burma at the time, but not sure. I read that AMA's Irrawaddy River ship would hold 76 passengers, so clearly not a sister to Lotus.

 

The ship that Vantage will use starting in 2014 has a capacity of 56, so not bad at all. I can't wait to hear about your experience, EKML - I know you'll come back and share. Are you doing a post to Lake Inle?

 

 

You do not have to be 55 or over to travel with GC. They do cater to older people, though. If you decide that you want to travel with them you can use my name and customer number and we both get discounts.

[EKML]

H20tstr is absolutely correct-no 55 age limit, although it may seem that way on their river cruises. We have sailed w/GCT before, and did consider their Burma cruise, but selected Vantage because it had less time in Bangkok, and more time in Burma (since we have already been to Bangkok a few times).

 

We have sailed with several river cruise lines-GCT, AMA, Uniworld, Viking, and have found that there are more similarities than differences. Think that AMA accommodates the younger group (like below 55's) best. On our last cruise w/them, they had bike tours as one of the options for the included tours (although we are way past that age group!).

 

We will not be doing the Inle Lake option. Although it is highly recommended, 2 weeks away will be more than enough for us.

[Arizonasunshine]

Next year there will be several new ships in Burma. AMA is also adding a cruise. The new ships are bigger and will carry more passengers. Hopefully the number and size of the new ships won't overwhelm the small towns. Another disadvantage of the bigger ships is the greater draft, which may make it difficult to accommodate low water levels. Have to balance these problems w/the advantage of newer and more luxurious ships. Also, the longer you wait the more crowded the area will get!

 

I hope that what is happening in Europe won't happen in Asia. We have just finished a European river cruise with Uniworld and were amazed at the increase in ships and tourists. We did a similar trip in 2010 and were only rafted with another ship once on that cruise, and only for a few hours. On our last trip we were rafted in virtually every town (you can kiss that French Balcony good by). The towns were considerably more crowded and the experience less rewarding. Viking put ten 200 passenger ships on the river this year and is planning more. I think that other river cruse companies are also adding to their fleet. If this trend continues they will surely kill the goose that laid the golden egg.

[amyr]

Arizona, we last did a European river cruise in 2005, and it was lovely. I'd be sad to see it so jammed up. I'm sure it will get that way in Asia eventually. When we were on the Mekong last year there was only us (AMA) and a Viking ship with Europeans and North Americans, and we'd see the odd Pandaw ship here and there, but no idea who was on board those.

 

I think the Grand Circle cruise will use the Paukan 2012, and I found this very nice slide show on Picasa of the ship. Many more photos than you see on the agent websites. Hopefully I'll be able to link: Paukan 2012https://picasaweb.google.com/113867883035933841586/03Paukan2012#

[EKML]

Just got our final documents from Vantage for our Oct. 15 Burma cruise. Will be on the chartered RV Pandaw II. Also received our visas a few days ago, so we're all set and ready to go!

[amyr]

I can't wait to hear all about it. Please check back in to this thread and let us know how it was. Have a great time!

[Arizonasunshine]

Just got our final documents from Vantage for our Oct. 15 Burma cruise. Will be on the chartered RV Pandaw II. Also received our visas a few days ago, so we're all set and ready to go!

 

EKML : Are you from the USA and if so how long did it take to get your visas?

Did you get them yourself or use a service. We are going in January.

 

Thanks

[EKML]

EKML : Are you from the USA and if so how long did it take to get your visas?

Did you get them yourself or use a service. We are going in January.

 

Thanks

 

Yes, I'm in the USA. Visas took about 3 weeks. Used Vantage recommended service at genvisa.com. They were very thorough, and called/emailed a couple of times for further info (except they misplaced my application check). Wanted exact info on flights in and out of Myanmar. Should not apply for visas more than 3 months in advance, need extra pages in your passport, and must be valid for 6 months after trip. The website has the necessary forms and instructions.

 

Some people have applied directly to the Myanmar Embassy, which would be less expensive, but then nobody to review/check application before filing. There will also be VOA and evisa systems available soon, but would not use them until all the bugs get worked out.