Vietnam & Cambodia Explorer & Mekong Cruise

Hello folks,

We're thinking of going on a 7 day Mekong River cruise sandwiched between a 12 day Vietnam & Cambodia land tour in April/18, by Emerald Waterways. Anybody out there been & any tips welcome.

I have not yet taken a Mekong river cruise, but I visited Vietnam via ocean cruises a few times and took a private, 1.5- day Ha Long Bay excursion. This time, I have booked a short river cruise that covers only the Mekong River.

Per my previous experience, if I had not visited Vietnam and done Ha Long Bay, I would choose an itinerary that includes a 2-day luxury cruise with an overnight stay on the cruiseship (not the one that has a one-night, 4-star, land hotel and a short boat cruise) so I can fully and comfortably enjoy the beautiful bay. In addition, I would take the cruise in December to January timeframe when the weather is the least uncomfortable.

Hello folks,

 

We're thinking of going on a 7 day Mekong River cruise sandwiched between a 12 day Vietnam & Cambodia land tour in April/18, by Emerald Waterways. Anybody out there been & any tips welcome.

Hi Food Police.

Yes, I have but smile with APT onboard the Amalotus...

You can read a full review with over 60 photographs here...

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2015/01/05/amalotus-mekong-river-cruise/

For areas other than along the Mekong, including a visit to Hanoi, I wrote a separate review, again with many photographs...

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2014/12/29/far-eastern-trilogy-part-2-good-morning-vietnam/

I hope this is of use to you. Same river just different cruise line.

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2014/12/29/far-eastern-trilogy-part-2-good-morning-vietnam/

Further to the above, and especially if you are heading to Siem Reap, there is a further review...

https://solentrichardscruiseblog.com/2015/03/09/siem-reap-one-way-to-do/

This covers Angkor Wat...

and Angkor Thom...

I just checked both Emerald and Scenic websites. I notice that your 12-day tour does not include Ha Long Bay. If you include this place, the tour will be 16-17 day long. You need to decide if the longer tour is acceptable to you. For myself, I would definitely include Ha Long Bay, because I think it is the best highlight of Vietnam. Both Emerald and Scenic itineraries have the 2-day luxuary Ha Long Bay cruise that I like.

My upcoming river cruise is 11-day long with a few days in Siem Reap, Cambodia. By the way, Scenic has free air promotion for 2018 and 2019 Asia bookings.

Dear Solent Richard,

I love your photos and trip report. If I had not booked my cruise, I would be much tempted to repeat your trip.

Placed the link in my Favorites Folder for future reference. Thanks.

Thank you both for replying. Great pictures & blogs/trip reports Solent Richard. Thanks Dreamercruise for looking at the Emerald & Scenic websites respecting subject matter.

I should add that like you, Dreamercruise, we were in Vietnam in 2013 on a cruise, when the Azamara Journey over nite in Halong Bay. As such, we did a day cruise of the bay, but the trip we're looking at includes among other things, an over nighter on the bay. As you may seen on the Emerald site, it's the 19 day land tour/cruise that we are looking at. We enjoyed our time in Vietnam, albeit short, thus we're looking into this opportunity to visit places, such as Hanoi which we didn't get to.

We also did a very short ride on the Mekong when there, but am intrique with the 7 day cruise from My Tho to Siem Reap, visiting villages enroute to among other places, Angkor Wat.

We've booked & can't wait.

Regards.