Fascinating Vietnam, Cambodia & The Mekong River with Avalon Waterways
Price: $6,082 CAD Per Person
(Price per person, based on double occupancy.)
Offer: Save Up to $5,200 CAD Per Couple on Select 2025 Avalon Waterways Europe River Cruises
Departure Date: August 11, 2025
Return Date: August 23, 2025
Photo: Avalon Saigon on the Mekong
Features:
- Complimentary Wi-Fi in the lounges (when signal available)
- Panoramic windows throughout
- Locally inspired design and décor
- Friendly, English-speaking crew and Cruise Director
- Air-conditioned Panorama Lounge
- Covered open-air observation lounge
- Bar serving premium spirits, wine and complimentary coffee, tea, soft drinks, and local beer/spirits throughout the day
Inclusions: 7-night cruise in an outside stateroom plus 3-nights in a deluxe hotel in Siem Reap and 2-nights in deluxe hotels in Ho Chi Minh City, daily included port excursions, all meals included while on ship (including Captain’s & farewell dinners), complimentary beer and wine with lunch and dinner.
Photo: Map of the itinerary
Day 1: Siem Reap, Cambodia
Temples & Traditions. Welcome to Siem Reap, home to the Temples of Angkor, considered by many to be the most spectacular architectural ruins on Earth! Hotel rooms are available for mid-afternoon check-in.
Day 2: Siem Reap
Tranquil Temples and Joyful Dances
Classic Excursion: Explore the temples by tuk-tuk. Start at the best preserved and most famous of all the temples: Angkor Wat. Featuring five trademark towers, it is the symbol of Cambodia. Then, continue your Guided Excursion to visit Angkor Thom, where you will explore Bayon Temple with its 200 striking faces carved in 54 towers and impressive bas relief sculptures.
Enjoy some time at your leisure this afternoon to explore Siem Reap’s shops for local artisan crafts.
Discovery Excursion: This evening, enjoy dinner and a private Apsara Dance Performance brings ancient Khmer culture to life through music, song, and dance.
Photo: Angkor Wat in Siem Reap
Day 3: Siem Reap
Root-Covered Ruins and Native Noodles
Classic Excursion: Continue your Sightseeing Tour of the Angkor temples at Ta Prohm. Tree roots cover the ruin walls, allowing you to experience the temple with the same wonder as early explorers. Then visit Banteay Srei, a unique temple built on a small scale from red sandstone, which can be carved like wood. En route, stop at a village famous for making Khmer noodles by hand. Be sure to sample some of the freshly prepared noodles!
Spend the afternoon at your leisure.
Day 4: Siem Reap - Phnom Penh (Embarkation)
Your Suite Ship® Awaits!
Fly to Phnom Penh and transfer to the port where your ship’s crew will be waiting to welcome you onboard. Get acquainted with the ship and relax before your welcome reception this evening.
Please note: Flight schedules are constantly changing which may require a scenic overland transfer to Phnom Penh.
Photo: Panorama Suite on the Mekong
Day 5: Wat Hanchey - Angkor Ban
Water Blessings and Back-to-School Adventures
Discovery Excursion: Visit Wat Hanchey, a hilltop temple dating back to the 8th century. Climb or be driven to the top where you will enjoy stunning views of the surrounding area and partake in a traditional water blessing given by local monks.
Discovery Excursion: After lunch, enjoy a Walking Tour through the rural village of Angkor Ban. Here, you will visit a traditional Khmer house and interact with children at a local school.
Day 6: Kampong Tralach - Konpong Louang - Phnom Penh
Calm in the Cambodian Countryside
Discovery Excursion: Your Guided Sightseeing starts in Kampong Tralach with an Ox-Cart Ride through the beautiful Cambodian countryside. Along the way, stop to meet a local farmer and learn about his daily life. At the silversmith village in Konpong Louang, see talented craftsmen use age-old techniques to turn pure silver into works of art.
Sail to the capital city of Phnom Penh this afternoon.
Phnom Penh
A Dark History or Market Dynamics
Classic Excursion: After lunch, a Visit to the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum and one of the Killing Fields provides a glimpse into the atrocities inflicted on the Cambodian people by the Khmer Rouge regime, OR:
Discovery Excursion: Visit the lively Central Market with its unique Art Deco design by tuk-tuk.
This evening, spend some free time exploring the city on your own. Perhaps follow the riverfront promenade to the historic Foreign Correspondents Club (FCC).
Day 7: Phnom Penh
The Royal Treatment
Classic Excursion: Join a Guided Tour of the city by private cyclo with visits to the Royal Palace with the spectacular Silver Pagoda, and the National Museum featuring an outstanding display of Khmer artifacts.
The remainder of the day is yours to enjoy at your leisure.
Just before dinner, children from a local orphanage will perform a show, featuring local song and dance.
Photo: Royal Palace in Phnom Penh
Day 8: Border Crossing - Chau Doc, Vietnam
Good Morning, Vietnam!
Discovery Excursion: Take a Village Walk through the Chau Doc market and absorb the atmosphere as locals are busy buying and selling fish, meat, and produce. After lunch, embark on a Guided Excursion down the backwaters of the Mekong. Along the way, see traditional floating homes, speedboat merchants, religious sites, a market selling dried goods, and more.
Day 9: Long Khanh A - Cu Lao Gieng
Cotton Weaving, Conical Hats, and Handcrafted Sampans
Discovery Excursion: This morning, a sampan brings you to the village of Long Khanh A, for a Cotton-Weaving Demonstration of this well-preserved tradition.
Discovery Excursion: This afternoon, enjoy scenes of daily life on Cu Lao Gieng Island via sampan and local motor cart. Your Guided Excursion starts with a stop at one of Vietnam’s oldest Catholic churches. Then, visit the home of a local family that makes Vietnamese conical hats, or “Non la,” from materials available to them such as palm leaves and bamboo. These iconic hats are primarily used as protection from the sun and rain, but you may also see them used as a basket to carry home goods from the market. Lastly, visit a local workshop where a skilled family hand-crafts sampan boats.
Day 10: Vinh Long
Sweets and Rice Treats
Discovery Excursion: Board a sampan this morning to Visit a Local Workshop in Vinh Long where you will see how rice paper, rice wine, and traditional candies are made.
This afternoon, enjoy time on board the ship as we sail to exciting Ho Chi Minh City.
Day 11: Ho Chi Minh City (Disembarkation)
Motorbikes, Monuments, and Mouth-watering Cuisine
Classic Excursion: Take a Walking Tour of Ho Chi Minh City’s historic landmarks, including a stop at the Rex Hotel for a refreshing drink at the rooftop bar where the U.S. Military held the infamous “Five O’clock Follies” during the war. Then, visit the War Remnants Museum and bustling Ben Thanh Market.
Discovery Excursion: For lunch, participate in a hands-on Vietnamese Cooking Class. Learn to prepare several local dishes and how to recreate them at home. Last, but not least, sample your delicious creations!
Enjoy time at your leisure this afternoon and evening for independent exploration. Maybe stop for a drink at the famous rooftop bar at the Caravelle Hotel.
Day 12: Ho Chi Minh City. Excursion to Cu Chi Tunnels
Secret Passageways and Underground Hideouts
Classic Excursion: Drive out of the city for a Guided Visit to the Cu Chi Tunnels—an extraordinary network of tunnels more than 120 miles in length—used as a hideout and secret village by the Viet Cong. Explore these tunnels and learn what life was like living in these cramped spaces.
Explore the city further during free time this afternoon.
This evening, join your traveling companions for a special dinner in a local restaurant.
Day 13: Ho Chi Minh City
Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.
