Trip Prices Include :
Ground handling, which includes: 2 nights
in a 4* hotel in Rangoon, all transfers, domestic flights, entrance fees,
guide services, all main meals, coffee and tea.
Trip Prices
Do Not Include :
International flights, drinks at bar, laundry,
gratuity to crew.
US$3,550
per person; single supplement US$1,000
Duct $250 per person or $300 if single
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Day 1 : Rangoon: transfer from the airport check in to 4 star Inya Lake Hotel (or equivalent). Lunch and rest. We visit the Shwedagon for the sunset followed by a a welcome dinner at the hotel.
Day 2 : Fly to Pagan and board the Pandaw II. Tour by bus a selection of the most significant of the 3,000 Buddhist monuments found at this World Heritage Site. We will visit lacquerwear manufacturies. Sail in the afternoon and moor over night at Pakokku exploring the markets and workshops by trishaw. Puppet show on deck at night.
Day 3 : Upstream to the Chindwin confluence and stop in the evening at Yandabo where the treaty between the British and Burmese kings was signed in 1826 at the end of the first Anglo Burmese War. This is a picturesque village with small family run potteries.
Day 4 : In
the morning we travel by country boat to Ava up the Myit-nge river and
explore the ruins there by horsecart visiting the superb Bagaya Kyaung,
a 200 year old royal monastery made of teak with elaborate wood carvings.
In the
afternoon we travel to Mandalay by coach for an orientation tour of the
Mandalay city area visiting the Mahamuni Pagoda and Mandalay Hill area.
The Mandalay classical ballet troupe will perform on deck scenes from
court dramas.
Day 5 : We cast off early in the morning and stop at Mingun to see the largest working bell in the world and the unfinished pagoda that is the largest mass of brick in the world.
Day 6 : Visit the spectacular potteries near Kyauk-myoung where the famous 50 gallon water pots are hand made. We see all stages of manufacture from the throwing of the pots to the week long firing in vast kilns.
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. If free, the village orchestra and dancers will perform for us on the sun deck after dinner.
Day 7 : We explore by foot the ancient city of Tagaung viewing the fortifications, a famous nat or spirit shrine and the archaeological area. In the evening we climb the Pagoda Hill at Tigyang with its stunning views of the Irrawaddy. We explore this pleasant little wooden town.
Day 8 : We reach the enchanting colonial town of Katha, setting for George Orwell's Burmese Days, and if possible visit an elephant logging camp in the hardwood forests of the hills that surround the town.
Day 9 : We continue upstream to Shwe-gu, another centre of pot making, and Kyun-daw a mid-stream island of monasteries and countless small pagodas.
Day 10 : Cruise through the 2nd Defile, the most dramatic of the three gorges with cliffs towering over the narrow channel. Reach Bhamo in the afternoon for an evening walking tour of this important trading town set close to the Chinese border.
Day 11 : Chartering a smaller 'country boat' we will proceed upstream from Bhamo and attempt to reach the village of Singu below the dramatic 1st Defile. This area has never been visited by foreign travellers before. In the evening we will have more time to explore Bhamo's bustling markets and Chinese temples.
Day 12 : Disembark at Bhamo, transfer to airport by local bus, and fly by charter flight (private airline) to Rangoon. Check in to the Inya Lake Hotel. Coach trip to Downtown area and visit the famous Scott Market and if of interest gem emporia.
Day 13 : Optional early morning visit the War Graves at Htaukchan. International departures.