Meet & greet: Upon arrival at Saigon airport, you will be welcomed to Vietnam by your private English-speaking guide, and then transferred to your hotel. After checking into your hotel, the rest of the day will be free at leisure for you to relax after your journey and begin exploring the exciting city of Saigon independently.

Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Renaissance Riverside Hotel (Deluxe City View Room)

Morning tour of the Cu Chi Tunnels: After breakfast, travel out of the city to the Cu Chi Tunnels. This vast network of tunnels, stretching for over 150 kilometres, was built by the Viet Cong in the battles for the South. The tunnels are a sobering insight into the dedication of the Viet Cong who virtually lived in the narrow and claustrophobic tunnels whilst the war raged. Nearby, a chilling demonstration of the traps and weapons that were used against the Americans is given. The Cu Chi tunnels have been widened in places for visitors, however they can still be dark, hot and claustrophobic inside so please bear this in mind if you do not like enclosed spaces.

Afternoon tour of Saigon: This afternoon, visit some of Saigon's historic landmarks, including the 1880's General Post Office and the former Presidential Palace which was once headquarters for the Saigon Government during the "American War". Next visit the late 19th century Notre Dame Cathedral, located in a peaceful part of the city, and finally the War Remnants Museum.

Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Renaissance Riverside Hotel (Deluxe City View Room)

Meals: Breakfast

Private transfer to your cruise boat: This morning, you will be transferred to the Jayavarman cruise boat for the 7 night cruise from Saigon to Siem Reap.

River Journey: Bid farewell to the hustle and bustle of Saigon as you set off on your cruise down the Mekong River. While settling into your cabin, the ship will begin by meandering along the busy waterways of the Mekong Delta. The scenery soon changes as the boat enters the UNESCO listed Mangrove Biosphere Reserve of Can Gio, which had been destroyed during the Vietnam War by toxic chemicals. Amazingly, the 75 hectares of forest has come back to life through a reforestation programme. Enjoy a cocktail reception at the Funnel Bar and Lounge followed by a welcome dinner on the sun deck. The Jayavarman drops anchor just outside Cai Be for the night.

Accommodation: Stay tonight on board the MV Jayavarman (Superior Cabin)

Inspired by the golden age cruise liner Normandie, the ‘Jayavarman' is a 20th century boutique style vessel that marries avant-garde French colonial design with enchanting Indochine architecture. The ‘Jayavarman' is Indochina's first boutique style river cruise liner and offers uncompromising luxury on 800 m² of public space including 4 decks. The guest accommodation consists of 27 expansive and carefully designed staterooms and junior suites with floor to ceiling panoramic sliding glass doors leading onto a private balcony.

Meals: Breakfast & Dinner

River Journey: Start each day on board with an optional gentle Tai Chi lesson on the sundeck, just as the sun begins to rise, followed by coffee or tea. After breakfast, today's tour starts with a visit to Cai Be's colourful floating market on board a traditional sampan (a flat-bottomed wooden boat). Cruise among local sampans, which arrive from all corners of the Delta full of fruits and vegetables.. Shore excursions include visits to handicraft workshops to see how rice paste, rice cookies and coconut candies are made before returning to the ship for lunch. In the afternoon the ship cruises to Sa Dec, one of the settings for Marguerite Dumas’ famed Indochina-era novel, “The Lover”. Here you will transfer to a traditional sampan to tour Binh Thanh Island and its man-made canals. The area is known for growing water hyacinths to make beautiful natural fibre mats and rattan baskets. Back on board the ship, set off on a tranquil evening cruise towards Tan Chau where the ship will moor midstream overnight.

Accommodation: Stay tonight on board the MV Jayavarman (Superior Cabin)

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

River Journey: Enjoy a hearty breakfast in the Dining Hall or in the quiet sanctuary of your balcony before visiting the border town of Tan Chau which is home to a sizeable Chinese, Kinh and Khmer community. You will visit a local market, floating villages and fish farms, making use of two forms of local transportation: boat and three-wheeled “xe loi”. After lunch on the ship, the Jayavarman cruises towards Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital city, to begin new adventures in the Kingdom of Cambodia. You may choose to use this time to relax on board, participate in a hands-on cooking class, or tour the ship with the Cruise Director, or better yet - do all three!

Accommodation: Stay tonight on board the MV Jayavarman (Superior Cabin)

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

River Journey: Rise early this morning to witness a truly indescribable scene while approaching Phnom Penh's river promenade. After breakfast, you will disembark in Phnom Penh for your city tour.

Morning tour of Phnom Penh: Today’s tour of the Cambodia capital includes the stunning Royal Palace complex, home to the Cambodian royal family and a symbol of the nation, the Silver Pagoda, named after the 5,000 silver tiles covering the floor, each weighing 1kg, and the National Museum, home to the world's finest collection of sculpture from the Angkor period. Today;s tour also includes a visit to Tuol Sleng, a former high school that the Khmer Rouge turned into a centre for interrogation, torture and death, and the Killing Fields of Choeung Ek, an old Chinese cemetery which was turned into an extermination camp for political prisoners. These visits are a profoundly moving experience and not everyone will want to visit. However, it is key to understanding the hell into which Cambodia descended and how far it has come in the years since.  After the tour you will return to the ship to enjoy some cocktails and dinner in front of a traditional Apsara dance performance.

Accommodation: Stay tonight on board the MV Jayavarman (Superior Cabin)

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

River Journey: Before the sun peeks over the horizon, the cruiser sets sail towards Kampong Tralach on the Tonle Sap, an amazingly narrow river which winds its way through leafy swaths of the Southeast Asian jungle. Expect to be greeted by smiling children waving enthusiastically as they bring their buffalo down to the river for a morning bath. Take an ox cart ride to visit the Heritage Line-Linblad National Geographic library project. Return to the ship for lunch as it approaches Kampong Chhnang, Cambodia’s “waterworld” where everything is on stilts balanced on water-rich soil. A shore excursion visits a Khmer pottery village at Aundaung Russey, followed by an adventurous motorboat excursion to explore the wetlands, floating houses and fish farms of the area. In the evening, the ship cruises back towards Phnom Penh.

Accommodation: Stay tonight on board the MV Jayavarman (Superior Cabin)

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

River Journey: Depart before the break of dawn from Phnom Penh with a stop at the little known Chong Koh silk weaving village. Then return to the ship to cruise past some of the Mekong's most tranquil villages, you'll see exhilarating river life and sun-hardened fishermen on their make shift boats. In the afternoon there will be a tour to rural Angkor Ban, which transports you back a hundred years into an era untouched by modern developments. The houses here are truly rustic, made by hand and without any concrete. But more than anything else, visitors feel overwhelmed by the unbridled warmth and friendliness of the villagers. Travellers can take part in the daily activities of the villagers to experience village life first hand. Return to the ship in the afternoon and continue on towards Kampong Cham.

Accommodation: Stay tonight on board the MV Jayavarman (Superior Cabin)

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Tour of Wat Hanchey & the Kampong Cham Area: Leave the ship early this morning to visit the pre-Angkorian temple of Wat Hanchey. Located at the top of a hill overlooking the river, it offers one of the most breath-taking views in Cambodia. You can either take a motor-taxi or climb the 291 steps to the top. Built in the 8th century, this ancient structure, together with a bigger and newer addition, demonstrates the superb architecture of the Chenla Empire which predates the mighty Angkor temple complex. Visitors often run into Buddhist monks at the temple who are usually keen to engage in conversation. On returning to the ship you will witness a blessing ceremony performed by the orange-clad local monks. The Jayavarman will then cruise towards Kampong Cham to visit Wat Nokor, a wat built within the ruins of an ancient temple complex. On the way back to the ship, visit an orphanage and manoeuvre a 2-kilometer bamboo bridge.

Accommodation: Stay tonight on board the MV Jayavarman (Superior Cabin)

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

River Journey: The Tonle Sap Lake dominates Cambodia and is the largest freshwater lake in Asia with abundant birdlife. The lake is so wide that one cannot see its shores from the middle of the lake. Enjoy the stillness of the water and the quiet tranquillity on the way to Siem Reap. The water level varies a great deal according to the time of the year and the amount of rainfall recorded. Thus, minor changes to the itinerary may occur during different seasons. 

High Water Program (approx. between August and middle of December): Cross the Tonle Sap Lake at dawn and at 9:00 am, disembark at the port in Siem Reap Port for your transfer into the town. 

Low Water Program (approx. between middle of December and August/September): Disembark in Kampong Cham after breakfast and board an 8.30am coach to Siem Reap. Arrive in Siem Reap in the early afternoon and transfer to your hotel.

Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Heritage Suites (Bungalow Suite)

Meals: Breakfast

Full day tour of temples around Angkor: Rise early this morning and travel to Ta Prohm in the dawn light. This fairly large temple is hugely atmospheric due to the fact that it has been left untouched rather than being restored. The jungle has reclaimed the temple, with huge tree trunks and vines snaking around the centuries-old stone work. Here you can get a feeling of how the first European explorers would have found the ruins. After soaking up the unique atmosphere of Ta Prohm, continue to the giant pyramid of Takeo, one of the highest temples in the Angkor area. Built at the end of the 10th century, it was never finished but it is said that it would have been one of the finest temples in Angkor had it been completed.

Continue on to Angkor Thom (Big Angkor) - a walled and moated royal city which was the last capital of the Angkorian Empire. After Jayavarman VII recaptured the badly damaged Angkorian capital from the Cham invaders in 1181, he began a massive building campaign across the empire, constructing Angkor Thom as his new capital city. He began with existing structures such as Baphuon and Phimeanakas and built a grand enclosed city around them, adding the outer wall and some of Angkor's greatest temples including his state-temple, Bayon, set at the centre of the city. There are five entrances (gates) to the city, one for each cardinal point, and the victory gate leading to the Royal Palace area. Each gate, as well as much of Jayavarman VII's architecture is crowned with four giant faces. The giant stone faces of Bayon have become one of the most recognizable images connected to classic Khmer art and architecture. There are 37 standing towers, most sporting four carved faces oriented toward the cardinal points. Finally you will visit Angkor Wat in the afternoon, the largest and most famous of the Angkor temples. Angkor Wat is visually, architecturally and artistically breathtaking. It is a massive three-tiered pyramid crowned by five beehive-like towers rising 65 metres from ground level. Return to your hotel in the late afternoon for an evening at leisure.

Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Heritage Suites (Bungalow Suite)

Meals: Breakfast

Guided tour of Beng Mealea and Banteay Srei: Depart this morning on a pleasant drive of about 1.5 hours through the Cambodian countryside to Beng Mealea, a sprawling jungle temple constructed in a distinctly Angkor Wat style by King Suryavarman II in the early 12th century. It preceded and may have served as a prototype for Angkor Wat. Contrary to Angkor, few carvings or bas-reliefs are evident. Today the temple is largely overrun by vegetation and the stone walls are crumbling which adds to its charm in a unique way. Accessibility has improved as elevated walkways have been set up throughout most of the temple, although to see all corners does require a sense of adventure as you will need to climb over stone blocks or walk through narrow passageways. Drive on for lunch in a traditional Cambodian restaurant. Then head to Banteay Srei temple. This red sand-stone temple is one of Angkor’s most significant structures as its walls are decorated with elaborate carvings which have been preserved remarkably well. They provide an excellent insight into the Angkor civilization and their beliefs. It was built in the 10th century and was dedicated to the Hindu god - Shiva. (It is advisable to wear sturdy, walking shoes with a decent grip).

Accommodation: Stay tonight at the Heritage Suites (Bungalow Suite)

Meals: Breakfast