We have just returned from a holiday of a life time thanks to AmaWaterways. We travelled on the AmaDara a beautiful ship. We sailed the Mekong through Vietnam and Cambodia, a most beautiful part of the world with such friendly people. This was our first river cruise so we were not sure what to expect, but we were made to feel special throughout.
The welcome we had at Saigon airport when we ...
Dear greenfinch,
Thank you for your kind words and positive feedback, and welcome home! We are delighted to hear you had such a wonderful time on your first river cruise and that you truly...
We wanted to see a part of the world that was completely new to us and we had never been to Asia. Previous reviews and my desire to visit where my brother served during the Vietnam War led us to choose the Charms of the Mekong on the AmaDara. We did the complete program with pre-cruise in Saigon and post-cruise in Siem Reap, Hanoi and HaLong Bay. It was first class all the way.
I loved that ...
Dear Buffyr,
Thank you fo much for your lovely, thoughtful review of your Mekong cruise on our AmaDara. We want to start by saying your review truly brought a smile to our face. We were...
We wanted to go to Vietnam for a long time and we had traveled with Amawaterways before. We knew the quality of the product. After a few days on our own in Hanoi we joined a group of 19 for the pre-cruise, cruise and post-cruise with wonderful cruise manager Mr Thoai. From the minute we met him, he was totally dedicated and on top of everything because of his continuous hard work. The 3 ...
If you want spectacular scenery and attractions you will need to book the land package that includes Angkor Wat and Harlong Bay. The cruise down the Mekong is more a cultural expose and explanation of historical events in the region. The boat and scenery on the river are still interesting but not spectacular. The cabins are excellent with a small balcony and French doors and the bathroom is clean ...
I completed this cruise a week or so ago. The cruise itself in very nice and relaxing. The stops along the river are interesting but this is so very different from one of the European sailings. You really can't explore on your own. You are assigned group color and a guide for Vietnam and a different one for Cambodia. Our guide in Vietnam, Sonny, was not good. It was almost impossible to ...
The cruise only package we book ie: not taking the add on's from AMAWATERWAYS as in pre and post cruise . However we had booked online direct with both the Sofitel hotels for 2 days prior and post cruise and still coming out more cost effective than the add on prices.
The pre cruise set up was perfect and cruise manager Thaui was excellent from the first minute we met. Effortless pre cruise ...
If I could give this cruise more than 5 stars I would. Everything, and I mean everything was fabulous. The crew is extremely service oriented, the ship was gorgeous and the food was wonderful. I have travelled with AMA before which was great but this was truly the best trip I have ever been on and my 2 travel companions agree!
The guides are local to the areas you visit (Saigon, Angkor ...
My family and I do a big adventure trip every year and we had been wanting to do SE Asia for a couple of year and just couldn't find anything escorted that lined up with school holiday breaks. We booked about 9 months in advance for myself, my active but older parents and my 16 yr old daughter. We have previously done only land packages with Tauck tours and were looking for something close to that ...
Pros:
very clean and well maintained ship
Internet, when in port, works very well - no streaming
Good organization for departure
More things are included than on some cruises - most alcohol, for example, is included.
Variety of shore excursions was great and it is included in the price.
Food is very good. Well presented, healthy and small size portions meant less waste. ...
We were looking for an interesting trip and hadn't been to Cambodia. AMA very organized at embarkation and throughout the cruise. Sofitel in Saigon lovely with a staggering breakfast and dinner buffet!!!
Ship is beautifully maintained. Mekong is a very lively river with much small commerce. Floating markets, fishing boats of all sizes, and more stilt houses than you could ever imagine. ...