APT Vietnam and Cambodia Discovery River Cruise

The highlights of Cambodia and Vietnam are yours to enjoy on this gorgeous APT luxury river cruise. Discover the local way of life throughout Vietnam & Cambodia on this incredible journey with APT. Cruise along the Mekong River in luxury and marvel at the dazzling cities and sleepy villages that line its banks.

Signature Experiences Designed Exclusively for APT guests

SIGNATURE EXPERIENCE
These once-in-a-lifetime moments allow you to experience an unforgettable world of exclusive moments, incredible cultures and charming surprises

FREEDOM OF CHOICE™
Give your holiday a personal touch with a choice of included sightseeing or dining options

Vietnam & Cambodia Discovery Itinerary

Please note that this itinerary is also available in reverse (Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh City)

Day 1: UK to Vietnam

Make your way to London Heathrow for your flight to Vietnam.

Day 2: Arrive in Ho Chi Minh City

Upon arrival in Ho Chi Minh City, you will be met and transferred to your hotel where you will have time to relax and unwind. Later this evening, enjoy a delicious Welcome Dinner.

Hotel Stay: 2 nights at Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi
Meals included: Dinner

Day 3: Hanoi

This morning, a tour of Hanoi will take you to the city’s most famous historical and cultural sites. Visit Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum, Ba Dinh Square and The Temple of Literature. You’ll also take in the sights of the Old Quarter during a cyclo ride. Spend the afternoon on your selected Freedom of Choice activity.

Freedom Of Choice: Perhaps tour the 500-year-old village of Bat Trang. Or, relax and enjoy a foot massage back at your hotel. Embark on a walking tour to observe Hanoi’s French colonial architecture, and explore the interior of the Hanoi Opera House or take in a water puppet show.

Freedom Of Choice: How your evening evolves is also up to you – choose from a range of different but equally superb and delicious restaurants for dinner.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 4: Hanoi & Ha Long Bay

Travel by coach to Ha Long Bay and board your ship, the luxurious Au Co. Feel the wind in your hair as you set sail among thousands of spectacular limestone islets this afternoon, gliding slowly over the azure waters. Enjoy lunch on board as you traverse through stunning scenery towards Ba Ham Lake, where you will have the chance to go for a dip or enjoy a spot of kayaking in the emerald green waters. Enjoy dinner on board tonight.

River Cruise: Embark on your luxurious three-day cruise on World Heritage-listed Ha Long Bay.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 5: Ha Long Bay

Awake early and as the sun rises, perhaps rejuvenate your body and soul with a Tai Chi class. Enjoy breakfast as you cruise to Cat Ba Island, where you will take a guided bike tour to Viet Hai Village, nestled among the jungle-clad mountains of Cat Ba National Park. While here, you will also have the chance to visit an ancient Vietnamese house. After lunch in the village continue to Ba Trai Dao beach for a swim or relax on the beach. Upon retiring to The Au Co for the evening, relax and enjoy a barbecue dinner.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 6: Ha Long Bay, Hanoi & Ho Chi Minh City

This morning after breakfast, take to the waters around the Cua Van Floating Culture Centre by kayak or traditional rowing boat. Renowned for its natural beauty, this calm bay allows you to see traditional floating fishing villages and enjoy local life. Return onboard for a farewell Vietnamese tea ceremony and transfer to Hanoi airport for your included flight to Ho Chi Minh City. On arrival, be transferred to your hotel.

Hotel Stay: Two Nights at the Park Hyatt Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 7: Ho Chi Minh City, Long Tan or Cu Chi Tunnels

Today, choose from two Signature Experiences, and enjoy another unforgettable Signature Experience in the evening.

Signature Experience: Journey to Ba Ria and learn about the Battle of Long Tan, followed by a memorial service at Long Tan Cross, a memorial marking the site of this battle. Erected by the 6th Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, it is located in a rubber plantation. Or visit the Cu Chi Tunnels, built by Vietnamese resistance fighters during the war. This remarkable tunnel network concealed the Viet Cong and served as supply and communication routes, as well as hospitals and weapon caches.

Signature Experience: Experience dinner at Vietnam House, founded by Australia-born Vietnamese celebrity chef Luke Nguyen.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 8: Ho Chi Minh City, My Tho & Embarkation

Enjoy one of our Freedom of Choice Sightseeing activities today, then transfer to My Tho to embark your ship.

Freedom of Choice:

Perhaps jump on the back of a motorbike and tour the vibrant streets of Saigon, or rise early for some city discovery and morning Tai Chi in the park. Other options include a walking tour of the capital or some retail therapy at a bustling Vietnamese market.

River Cruise: Embark on your luxurious seven-day cruise on Mekong Serenity along the Mekong river

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 9: Cai Be & Sa Dec

In Cai Be, visit the French Gothic cathedral and port area. Then, at a rice paper manufacturer, learn how this Vietnamese staple is made. Continue to Sa Dec where French writer Marguerite Duras met her Vietnamese-Chinese lover, Huynh Thuy Le. Tour his former home and learn the story behind Marguerite Duras’ best-selling novel, The Lover. After, visit a traditional Cao Dai temple.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 10: Tan Chau, Evergreen Island, Border Crossing

Step ashore in Tan Chau today for a rickshaw tour. On board your rickshaw, you’ll glide past shops, rice wine rooms and friendly locals who are always eager to say hello. Stop to pay a visit to a local silk and rattan weaving workshop. Later, step back in time during a visit to an evergreen island aboard a small boat, where you’ll experience authentic rural Mekong life. The remainder of today is left free for you to relax back on board your river ship.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 11: Phnom Penh

Explore Cambodia’s past or present today with a range of Freedom of Choice experiences. After lunch back on board, more choices await. This evening is your’s to relax.

Freedom of Choice: Perhaps take a sobering excursion to the Killing Fields, before visiting the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, located on the site of the Khmer Rouge’s notorious Security Prison 21. Alternatively, see Phnom Penh on a tuk tuk ride with a stop at the Central Market, visit a number of Cambodian microbreweries and enjoy the local craft beers or enjoy a visit to the National Museum. Options also include the Royal Palace and the Silver Pagoda.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 12: Oudong, Koh Chen, Oknha Tey

Today, journey to historic Oudong, which was Cambodia’s fascinating royal capital from 1618 until 1866. During your time here, you’ll enjoy a Signature Experience. On the way back to Phnom Penh, take a leisurely stroll through the village of Koh Chen and perhaps visit some home workshops that manufacture copperware. Later, your ship glides along the lush banks of the Mekong to Oknha Tey, which is renowned for its silk manufacturing traditions, preserved over centuries. Here, gain an insight into the traditional silk weaving process. Afterwards, return to your river ship to relax before enjoying delicious onboard dining tonight.

Signature Experience: In Oudong, partake in a traditional Buddhist blessing ceremony.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 13: Angkor Ban

Join a walking discovery of Angkor Ban, one of the few villages in Cambodia that was not destroyed under the Khmer Rouge regime in the 1970s. Here, people still live in traditional wooden homes and keep ancient cultural traditions alive. Continuing cruising towards Siem Reap this afternoon, enjoy some time at leisure on board. Perhaps go for a dip in the pool, or kick back on the Sun Deck with a good book and relax as life along the Mekong passes you by.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 14: Kampong Cham & Koh Pen

If you are feeling active this morning, perhaps set out on a walk to the hilltop pagoda of Wat Hanchey. From here, enjoy views over the Mekong, making it well worth the climb. You’ll find many temples, pagodas and stupas, some dating back to the 8th century. Lunch is back on board, before taking a tuk tuk to explore the island of Koh Pen with its wooden stilt houses and local farming culture. On your ship this evening, toast the end of your cruise during a final farewell dinner on board.

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 15: Kampong Cham, Disembark Ship & Siem Reap

Disembark your ship in Kampong Cham and transfer to Siem Reap. Then, head to World Heritage-listed Angkor Archaeological Park to visit Angkor Thom and the 12th-century temple, Bayon.

Freedom of Choice: Tonight, choose where to dine in Siem Reap.

Hotel Stay: Three Nights at the Hotel Sofitel Angkor in Siem Reap

Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Day 16: Siem Reap

Rise early this morning and travel back to Angkor Archaeological Park for a Signature Experience. After experiencing the majesty of World Heritage-listed Angkor Wat, enjoy a guided exploration of what is regarded as Angkor’s best-preserved temple, said to be the world’s largest single religious monument. Relax back at your hotel after breakfast. Then this afternoon, explore the temple of Ta Prohm, a World Heritage-listed site which is famous for its intertwined trees. Later, visit ‘Opportunities of Development thru Art’ (ODA), a Siem Reap organisation that provides education opportunities for disadvantaged children. The evening is at your leisure.

Signature Experience: At Angkor Archaeological Park, enjoy a special sunrise experience at Angkor Wat.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 17: Siem Reap

Explore Siem Reap your way today, with a choice of sightseeing activities on offer. Tonight, enjoy an Apsara dance performance before a farewell dinner.

Freedom of Choice: Perhaps set out a tuk tuk ride to the Senteurs d’Angkor workshop, where you can shop for local handmade crafts. If you’re looking for something a little more adventurous, you might like to join a quadbike excursion through the Cambodian countryside. Alternatively, unwind with a soothing spa treatment.

Meals included: Breakfast, Dinner

Day 18: Depart Siem Reap

Transfer to the airport this morning for your return flight to the UK.

Meals included: Breakfast

Day 19: Arrive in the UK

Time to head home and dazzle friends and family with the incredible tales of adventure you have to share.

Your Holiday Includes:

• Return scheduled flights from the UK and home-to-airport transfers by private car*
• Unique cultural experiences in up to 14 towns, villages and cities, all accompanied by expert local guides
• Luxury dining – a total of 43 meals and a wide range of beverages onboard your Mekong River cruise
• Seven nights aboard the luxury river ship, Mekong Serenity
• Services of an APT Cruise Director and expert local guides
• Enjoy a special sunrise experience at Angkor Wat
• Dine at Vietnam House in Ho Chi Minh City, sit down to authentic cuisine with a dash of modern Australian flair
• Experience a traditional Buddhist blessing ceremony at a monastery in Oudong