Phnompenh to Saigon or back on Toum Tiou Cruise

With the 4 days cruise trip on Deluxe Toum Tiou Cruise will give you a sight of the huge beauty on Mekong River, time for enjoy a sightseeing at Great Tonle Sap lake, handicraft villages, pagoda and daily lives of fisher ...

ITINERARY: Phnom Penh - Chau Doc - Vinh Long - Cai Be - My Tho - Saigon
Day 01:		Phnom Penh - Chau Doc
06:30: Toum Tiou is opened for embarkation at the International Port of Phnom Penh. 07:30: Customs formalities. Toum Tiou leaves Phnom Penh for Koh Dek Chau island, breakfast during navigation. 09:00: Arrival at Koh Dek Chau island, A short break along the way, it allows to get a fascinating, close-up look at daily life in Cambodia. On the fringes of civilization, the 600 people who live on Koh Dek Chau will receive your visit with some surprise. School children will escort you along your way. You will go through the village that occupies the full length of the island, walking along a trail shaded by date palms. 10:30: Re-embarking, departure for Kaam Samnaar (Cambodian border). 14:00: Toum Tiou arrives at Immigration check point in Kaam Samnaar. Clearance of departure formalities. 16:30: Departure for Chau Doc. 19:00: Toum Tiou drops anchor before the canal of Chau Doc. Dinner and overnight on board .
Day 02:		Chau Doc - Vinh Long
08:00 Arrival at Victoria Hotel Chau Doc jetty. Located to the north at the beginning of Mekong's famous delta, Chau Doc straddles both banks of the Mekong which fans out to the dimensions of a river mouth here. Floating fish farms have sprung up everywhere. Bamboo fish drying racks are set up a meter above the water's surface. The bourgeoning downtown area features some charmingly rustic colonial buildings, squeezed in by the marketplace - the colorful, vibrant heart of the city. As always, these busy parts of town, despite their sometimes strong odors, offer wonderful photo opportunities... Short panoramic tour of the city. This is the perfect timing to discover the effervescence of the local market. Back to the pier, departure for fish raising rafts and Cham minority village by local boat. 10:00 : Toum Tiou leaves Chau Doc for Sa Dec. Lunch during navigation. 17:00: Arrival at Sa Dec - Short panoramic tour of Sa Dec and transfer by bus to Trung Vuong primary school. Continuing to Kien An Cung Pagoda. Stroll around Sa Dec Market along Sa Dec River bank. This small city of 30,000 inhabitants is fascinating in its unspoiled authenticity and undisturbed by tourists. It provides a glimpse of the delta where a few colonial houses still remain, including the "Chinaman's house" (from Duras' novel "The Lover", also made into a movie). 19:00: Return to the boat, departure for Vinh Long. Dinner during navigation. Toum Tiou drops anchor few miles before Vinh Long. Overnight on board.
Day 03:		Cai Be - My Tho
07:30 Breakfast. 08:30 Arrival at Vinh Long, local boats pick up passengers for visiting a brick and pottery factory, the Binh Hoa Phuoc Islet Nursery of Fruit Trees as well a typical house and a show room of traditional farming tools. Vinh Long, which translates as "Majestic Dragon", is right in the middle of the delta, between two arms of the Mekong. The soil of Vinh Long is enriched by silt deposits, making it ideal for growing mandarins and other citrus fruits. Life is organized around the water. Houses on stilts, hawkers in boats, hundreds of small craft crisscross in all directions. The hospitality of the locals makes it a tourist destination par excellence. Departure for Cai Be Floating Market - going across the Mekong River en route. 11:30 Passengers re-embark at Cai Be, Toum Tiou leaves Cai Be for My Tho, lunch during navigation. 15:30 Arrival at My Tho - Toum Tiou drops anchor on river in the proximity of Thoi Son Island Local boats come alongside Toum Tiou to pick up passengers and transfer to the mainland. Departure for short panoramic tour of My Tho town on the way. On the banks of a northern arm of the Mekong, My Tho, which translates as "fragrant herb", where tourists come to discover the beauty of the delta. It's a quiet, prosperous city of about 100,000 inhabitants, famous for its many fruit orchards, gardens and the huge rice fields that surround it. The climate is warm and pleasant year round. The surrounding countryside is home to one of the most luxuriant gardens of Vietnam, with its coconut palms, banana and mango trees. 15:30 Return at the pier - you will cruise on the river to Dragon Island by local boat to visit the island. 16:30 Re-embarking the Toum Tiou that leaves My Tho for Saigon Time to navigate on the marvelous canal of Cho Gao. 19:00 Farewell cocktail (1 glass of local liquor or juice) with Master of Ship & Cruise Manager. Captain's farewell dinner (Enriched menu + 1 glass of wine). Toum Tiou drops anchor on river en route. Overnight on board.
Day 04:		My Tho - Saigon
07:00 Departure for Saigon, breakfast and leisure on board. 11:00 Toum Tiou arrives at Saigon port - customs formalities clearance. End of services.
RETURN CRUISE TRIP
ITINERARY: Saigon – My Tho - Cai Be - Vinh Long - Sa Dec - Chau Doc - Vinh Xuyen - Phnom Penh
Day 01:		Saigon - My Tho
06:30: Toum Tiou is opened for embarkation at the International Port of Saigon, terminal of Nha Rong, next to Ho Chi Minh museum 07:30: Breakfast, customs formalities, departure for My Tho. Safety briefing. Morning relaxation, lunch during the crossing of the splendid channel of Cho Gao. 16:30: Arrival to My Tho. Toum Tiou drops anchor in proximity of the Island Thoi Son. My Tho, "Good Grass Scented" according to the translation is a quiet and prosperous city, approximately 100 000 inhabitants, known for its many orchards rice plantations. The climate is hot and pleasant all the year. This countryside-site has the most variable fruit collection of Vietnam (coconuts, banana trees, mango trees). Local boats take the passengers from the boat to onshore, departure for the Vinh Trang pagoda by bus, on the way short visit of the city and the local market of My Tho. Visit of the local zoo. Later passengers come back to the small boats, navigation to the Island Thoi. Walking on the island, exploration of the everyday life, tasting of the seasonal fruits, lessoning the local musician band, visit of the candy factory, shopping of the local products. (The visit of My Tho is depend of the level of the traffic on the channel of Cho Gao which can cause considerably delay (+ 2 hours) the arrival to My Tho.) ** Visiting My Tho is depended on the traffic level of the Cho Gao canal. It may be late +/- 2 hours to arrive My Tho. 19:00: Embarking, welcome cocktail, presentation of the crew. Toum Tiou leaves to Cai Be Welcome dinner and night onboard.
Day 02:		Cai Be - Vinh Long - Sa Dec
07:00: Breakfast on board 08:00: Toum Tiou drops anchor on the river near Cai Be. Local boats take the passengers to visit the floating market, discover the brick manufacturers and pottery, the seedbed of fruit trees of the Island Binh Hoa Phuoc while passing by and visiting a traditional house of a local farmer. Vinh Long, the "Majestic Dragon" according to the translation, is located at the center of the areas of the delta, embraced by two arms of Mekong. The life was organized around and with water. Houses on pile, trade in boat, hundreds boats which pass each other in all the directions. The hospitality of the inhabitants makes this place unique tourist site. 12:30: Return to Toum Tiou, departure for Sa Dec. Lunch during navigation. 15:00: Arrival to Sa Dec, panoramic tour of the city. Visit the market then turn to the city by bus. On the way visit the primary school Trung Vuong and the pagoda Kien Year Cung. In this authentic town of 30.000 inhabitants, passengers can experience the environment of a small city of the delta where still can be felt the colonial atmosphere along with the "House of the Chinese" (of the novel The Lover of Marguerite Duras, also adapted to a movie). 17:00: Return to the boat after a stop in a seedbed of bonsai. Famous for its horticulture (large variety of exotic flowers) Sa Dec was called at the colonial time "the garden of Cochinchine". 18:30: Toum Tiou leaves Sa Dec, night navigation to Chau Doc. Dinner and night onboard.
Day 03:		Chau Doc - Vinh Xuyen
04:30: Departure of the boat early the morning towards Chau Doc. 07:00: Arrival to the pier of the hotel Victoria Chau Doc, breakfast in the restaurant of the hotel. 08:30: Chau Doc is located in the middle of a gigantic squaring of rice plantations, while the city itself is prosperous, developing, over-populated with some amazing colonial buildings. Departure in local boats to visit the village of the Cham minority, with its fish farm. After that bus tour to the downtown and visit the colorful local market. With a few kilometers away, the hill of Harmed Sam "climbs up" to 237 m and offers its famous Buddhist sanctuaries with an unspoiled view of the rice plantations. On the way visit the temple of Chua Xu and the pagoda Tay An. 12:00: Departure for the border, Vinh Xuen, lunch on board 14:30: Toum Tiou arrives at the border, formalities 17:30: The boat leaves the border towards to Phnom Penh. 19:00: Toum Tiou remains moored for the night in the island Koh Dek Chau. Dinner and night on board.
Day 04:		Phnom Penh
Morning departure for Phnom Penh, breakfast. Packing, rest on board. 11:00: Toum Tiou arrives at Phnom Penh, custom formalities, disembarkation. End of services.
Tour Cost		In USD based on the category as below:
CABIN TYPE CRUISE COST Single cabin 1,445.00 Double/ Twin cabin 1,741.00 Charter Cruise 14,798.00 Promotion for 2011: Discount 35% for cruise route: Phnom Penh - Saigon (Depart 28 Sep - 01 Oct 2011)
Included:
+ English / French speaking guide Deluxe double/ twin cabin Fullboard ( Meal, teas, coffee) Admission fees and permits where applicable
Excluded:
+ Airfares & airport taxes Pre/post trip arrangement Visa and visa arrangement Travel insurance Other personal expenses
Note:
+ Due to the low level of the water in the lake from March to July, the boat may not be able to cross the lake to reach Siem Reap. During this period, the visit of the floating village of Chnol Tru will be done, instead of the floating village of Kompong Luong and the passenger will cross the lake by small speed boats, the timing remains unchanged.