Pandaw Asia River Cruises Irriwaddy and Chidwin Rivers
River Cruises Asia, Pandaw River Cruises, Myanmar, Irriwaddy and Chidwin River Cruises in Burma.
Mekong River in Cambodia Laos Thailand and Vietnam.
Pandaw - Irriwaddy Flotilla Company
River Cruises Asia
River Cruises Asia, Pandaw River Cruises, Myanmar: Irriwaddy and Chidwin River Cruises in Burma.
Mekong River in Cambodia Laos Thailand and Vietnam.
Irriwaddy Flotilla Company
Chindwin & Upper Irrawaddy: 20 nights in remotest Burma
Departure Dates Deck Plan Prices Itinerary
Early Bird Discounted 10% through 8-Nov-2013.
Delightful walk through some of the oldest wooden village houses in Burma.Delightful walk through some of the oldest wooden village houses in Burma.Delightful walk through some of the oldest wooden village houses in BurmaThe scenery on this cruise is spectacular and we are welcomed with astonishment by the many remote communities through which we passed. Achieving our goal of Homalin over 600 miles from the Chindwin’s confluence with the Irrawaddy we return downstream all the way to the ancient city of Pagan just below the confluence. Then we continued a further 700 miles up the Irrawaddy past Mandalay to the great 2nd Defile, just short of the out of bounds city of Bhamo. This is the most northerly navigable point on the Irrawaddy and gateway to China.
Twenty nights on a river cruise may seem a long time, but the majority of our passengers on these expeditions are regular Pandaw passengers, and happy to spend so long in the convivial atmosphere of a Pandaw. No two days are the same with varied scenery and diverse cultural sites. This expedition is the most popular of all our cruises and as we only run one a year tends to book out quite early.
Note this expedition takes place during the Southeast Asia monsoon season which is the only time we have sufficient water levels to attempt these remote rivers. It may rain but not continuously. River banks may be muddy and slippery. This is a real expedition and the itinerary subject to sudden changes due to water levels or other local conditions.
Rangoon (with 4 star Chatrium Hotel)
3 September 2014: ARRIVAL IN YANGON
Transfer to hotel in Rangoon. Afternoon excursion to Shwedagon Pagoda.
4 September 2014: DEPARTURE
Breakfast
Rates include:
One night at the Chatrium Hotel including breakfast, service and taxes; transfers to / from airport and a guide-led excursion to Shwedagon Pagoda; transfer by coach to ship
Rates exclude:
Lunch and dinner which are at your own arrangement in the hotel or in one of the many nearby restaurants.
Note:
- Please advice arrival flight details in order to arrange the transfer accordingly
- Check in time to hotel at 1400hrs
- Check out time from hotel at 1200hrs
- Early check in and late check out are subject to hotel room availability
CHATRIUM HOTEL YANGON
40 Natmauk Road,
Tamwe Township,
Yangon, Union of Myanmar
Tel: (+95-1) 544 500 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 
(+95-1) 544 500 FREE end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Fax: (+95-1) 544 400
Website: http://www.chatriumhotelyangon.com
Twenty nights on board RV Pandaw II
If you would like to know more information about the river stops in this itinerary, please click on the underlined destinations.
4 September 2014: Yangon / Kalemyo
Morning flight to Kalemyo, the gateway town for the Chin State. We explore Kalewa with its markets and quaint wooden architecture.
5 September 2014: Kalewa / Kindat
Stop for morning walk at Balet, a charming and typical river community.
6 September 2014: Kindat / Paungbyin
Kindat was as far as the old IFC steamers ventured outside of the Monsoon season. This part of the Chindwin valley is very sparsely populated and villages are few and far between.
7 September 2014: Sithaung
We pass the mouth of the Yu River which drains the Kubu valley. Sitthaung was the final resting place of a number of IFC steamers scuppered there in 1942.
8 September 2014: Toungdoot
Toungdoot, or Hswang-hsup in Tain, is an ancient Shan enclave which in British times still had a ruling prince or sawbwa complete with palace and court.
9 September 2014: Homalin
We pass the Uyu River worked by gold washers on the way to Homalin, the furtherst navigable point on the Chindwin for vessels of our size.
10 September 2014: Mawlaik
Mawlaik replaced Kindat as the administrative capital. Like other towns of the Upper Chindwin, they can only be reached by boat so cars are few.
11 September 2014: Mingkin
Mingkin features Konbaung court style teak monasteries which are sumptuously decorated. Mingkin may be described as the Luang Prabang of the Chindwin.
12 September 2014: Monywa
Entering the Lower Chindwin where the river widens and the forested hills fall away to farmland, we pass a number of attractive villages. We will explore Monywa and time permitting make a quick trip to the Thanbodi Temple with its million Buddha images.
13 September 2014: Cruise to Pagan
Cruise all day to the great Lower Chindwin plain.
14 September 2014: Pagan
Tour a selection of the most significant of the 3,000 Buddhist monuments found at this World Heritage Site. We will visit lacquerware manufacturers. Sail in the afternoon and evening walk in Oh Ne Kyaung village to see the local life in this typical river side community.
15 September 2014: Yandabo Village
We head upstream to the Chindwin confluence and stop in the evening at Yandabo. Here we visit the Pandaw School built with donations from past Pandaw passengers.
16 September 2014: Ava and Amarapura
In the morning we travel to Ava and explore the ruins, visiting Bagaya Kyaung, a 200 year old royal monastery made of teak with elaborate wood carvings. In the afternoon we travel to Mandalay for an orientation tour of the city area visiting the Mahamuni Pagoda and sunset at Amarapura U-Bein Bridge.
17 September 2014: Mingun Pagoda and Bell
We cast off early and stop at Mingun to see the largest working bell in the world and the unfinished pagoda that is the largest single mass of brick building in the world. We also visit the Mingun Old People's Home originally established with the assistance of the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company in the 1930s.
18 September 2014: Kyaung-Myoung Potteries
Visit the spectacular potteries near Kyauk-Myoung. We enter the Third Defile and sail upstream all day stopping at Khan-nyat village with its many Buddhist monasteries and an orphanage we support.
19 September 2014: Tagaung Ancient City
Explore by foot the ancient city of Tagaung viewing the fortifications. In the evening we climb the Pagoda Hill at Tigyang with its stunning views of the Irrawaddy.
20 September 2014: Burmese Days
We reach the enchanting colonial town of Katha, setting for George Orwell's Myanma Days. Katha was the final resting place of the old flotilla and here over a hundred ships were scuppered in 1942.
21 September 2014: Shwegu and Kyun-Daw
We continue upstream to Shwegu and Kyun-daw, a midstream island of monasteries and countless small pagodas. Cruise through the 2nd Defile, the most dramatic of the three gorges, with cliffs towering over the narrow channel.
22 September 2014: Inn-ywa
Delightful walk through some of the oldest wooden village houses in Burma.
23 September 2014: Khanyat
Visit a Buddhist orphanage and the grave of an English officer assassinated here during the Pacification of Burma (1887).
24 September 2014: Mandalay
Disembark the ship between 8.00 am - 9.00 am at Shwe Kyet Yet Jetty, Mandalay.
Cruise Price Includes: Flight from Rangoon to Kalemyo, all meals on board, beverages (water, tea and coffee), all local alcoholic beverages.
Cruise Price Excludes: International flights, flight from Mandalay to Rangoon, imported beverages.
River Conditions Warning!
The rivers you will sail on are subject to seasonal rises and falls of water level, in some places as much as 30 metres. Water levels can change dramatically overnight and a sudden rise can impede our progress upstream considerably and even prevent us from passing under certain bridges. A sudden fall can result in our being unable to get into certain places or go as far upstream as we would hope. Groundings on sandbars are not infrequent and are part of the excitement of any Pandaw expedition. Published itineraries are indicational only and subject to sudden change. In such events alternative itineraries will be provided and we do our best to ensure that if a stop is missed we make up for it with another stop. Passengers are thus forewarned and expected to be flexible and patient. River cruising in Asia can be a dramatic and adventurous experience - not like cruising the controlled waterways of Europe or America. Note also that we operate in areas with little or no developed infrastructure and subject to the strictures of local officialdom. Be prepared for this and it is all more the fun!
Rangoon (with 4 star Chatrium Hotel)
24 September 2014: ARRIVAL IN YANGON
Transfer from the jetty to the airport. Flight to Rangoon. Welcome by our representative and transfer to the hotel followed by excursion to explore the colonial 'Downtown' area if time permits.
25 September 2014: DEPARTURE
After breakfast, excursion to Downtown if there was no time on Day One. Transfer to airport for onward flights.
Rates include:
One night at the Chatrium Hotel including breakfast, service and taxes; transfers to / from airport and a guide-led excursion to Downtown; one domestic flight from Mandalay and transfers from ship.
Rates exclude:
Lunch and dinner which are at your own arrangement in the hotel or in one of the many nearby restaurants.
Note:
- Please advice departure flight details in order to arrange the transfer accordingly
- Check in time to hotel at 1400hrs
- Check out time from hotel at 1200hrs
- Early check in and late check out are subject to hotel room availability
CHATRIUM HOTEL YANGON
40 Natmauk Road,
Tamwe Township,
Yangon, Union of Myanmar
Tel: (+95-1) 544 500 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (+95-1) 544 500 FREE end_of_the_skype_highlighting
Fax: (+95-1) 544 400
Website: http://www.chatriumhotelyangon.com
For prices and schedules
1 877 256 1999
or
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