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AmaLotus Review

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Vietnam/Cambodia-

Review for Asia Cruise on AmaLotus
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mgelber
10+ Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Aug 2012

. This ship is one year old. It has been having some growing pains in both the food and the experiences, but it is certainly an amazing experience now. The changes in the staff and food are 6 Star all the way. The rooms are very spacious for a river cruise. There are three floors NO elevators. There is a large flat screen tv in the room but there is NO reception at all. So there are no television shows of any kind. The is a DVD library with supposedly over 100 titles (multiple languages), but if your clients need noise, or like to watch something before they go to sleep, they may want to bring their own DVDs. Also, there is a clock in the room, it is not digital, so if your clients like to know the time in the middle of the night they should big their own clock. The beds are queen-king size, and. Very comfortable. There are different pillow types. The first night in the hotel manager explained how to get hot water, let the sink and showe run for 3-4 minutes, and then it was hot. It worked and no problems. The air condiitoning works very well, no problems there. There are two chairs and a desk --ample closet space. When you speak to reservations they tell you there Is no Internet service in the ship. That is not true. They have three computers and in the lounge there is Internet access but the reception is so sporadic and if more than ten people are on everything shuts down. When you are going dowthe river there are long stretches with no Internet service. Forewarn your clients.

The food was excellent. As of one month ago they have brought on a new hotel manager , new dining room manager and most importantly a new head chef. The 2nd chef is Asian and does all of the local cuisine. The changes and improvements he has made have been amazing. He was very open to suggestions, and was immediate on implementing changes throughout the week. Every morning was buffet, champagne always. there is an egg station, and if you want poached eggs, or something that is not out. Just ask very willing to accommodate. Every morning they had a traditional Eastern options, the best being soup, there was a broth, different noodles and different proteins, and vegetables. By the end if the week, the line to get soup was longer than the line to get eggs.:) The spices and peppers were all in little dishes so you could spice it as you wish. Always fish fruit, salmon and and homemade breads and pastries. Lunch was a combinations of buffet/action station and menu ordering. , you told the waiter your entree and soup. The soup was always one cold and one hot (sometimes creamed and sometimes broth) There was always a display table when you came in, and it showed the entrees that were available. You could modify any of the entrees as you wish. The buffet at lunch was different salads some regional, some traditional. Always something different to taste. Dinner was strictly ala carte. There was always an option at lunch for pasta, hamburger or chicken breast, at dinner a steak, salmon, or chicken breast. There was a vegetarian option always.

The excursions. Before you left, the tour director always made sure to remind everyone to take the umbrellas and raincoats and bottles of water always provided. On a European river cruise the choice of options is a title more varied and there are different styles - active, moderate, or slow movers. Not so in Asia . The excursions here are all the same, and you are divided into 4 groups. No difference they are all dng the same thing, it is just more manageable groups. All of the excursions are physically demanding. Mostly tendering to small boats, other than Phom Pen, there are no docks, so when we arrived at a village, to walk, we exited the small boat to a dirt path, or through the weeds and grass along shore. There were also very nice buses taking us for tour off the river to different monasteries. We were there right at the beginning of the rainy season and purpose of this cruise is seeing life along the river. It is very poor, very basic, we saw the markets, the homes, the "factories". A lot of walking on uneven terrain. We also saw floating villages, floating markets, again, you had to be able to tender. The was one guest inboard, who had injured her foot the 2nd day- even before boarding the ship. She was not able to do any weight-bearing on her ankle, and I cannot believe how unbelievable the ship was, She had both crutches and a wheelchair, and whenever she had to go from one level to the next. There were 2 sailors assigned to her that basket carried here up and down, she never missed an excursion, there was a guide and sailor who went with, helped her on and off, pushed the wheel chair all through Cambodia and Vietnam. They and the ship were incredible accommodating to her needs, that being said I would seriously not recommend this to anyone who has physical limitations.

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