Gangies voyager 11 I will try to cover the whole time and be as honest in my experience The boat is spotlessly clean, the floors polished and the furnishings of a high and comfortable quality. There is ample room in the sun deck or lounge for everyone so it never feels busy or full. The dining hall was light airy and the range of food was of a high standard. The chef was a really great guy. He walked around the tables, offering his advice and offered to personally cook what ever you fancied. There was a full breakfast. The obligatory egg station, along with the continental style cuisine of cheese, meats and pastries and one part that I personally loved which was the healthy station. Here were local smoothies, juices and yogurt. The coffee was sublime, proper coffee and great sized cups to. English breakfast tea along with all the India teas were also on offer. Lunch was a buffet, many hot local dishes and by hot I mean cooked. The curries were all mild and the wok fried vegetables were one of my favourite. The India people love sweet things so the deserts were rich in cream and sugar. Free flowing wine, red or white, or beers and the staff always knew when your glass was nearly empty. You really never needed to ask. Afternoon tea was almost another meal with sandwiches and cake. Evening dinner was wonderful. Lots of choices from several starters, several mains too. We had scallops, lobster and the chef did us proud in his recommendations. Again the free flowing wine or beer. The wine was local to India but palatable and if you really wanted a premium bottle they were available to purchase. But personally I don’t think you needed to. The bar staff were very quick to make sure your glass was never empty, and each day was a Uniworld cocktail to try. The waiting on staff were cheerful and happy. When I spoke to them I asked if they were looked after and they all loved working for Uniworld which was a comfort. We had a suite mentioned separately. The other rooms were still very spacious, this were the colonial or the signature rooms. These still had the wonderful sliding windows and a walk in shower. On board activities ranged from yoga which was twice a day, cookng classes, history of the Ganges river and sari wearing. Then we were all given henna tattoos, I chose simple design on my leg and hand I loved the thought I could be daring even if just for a few days. Most days began early with yoga, then breakfast and we were split into two or three groups to visit temples and walk around the local markets. This splitting us up meant we had a large bus to 12 of us. All could have the window seat and easily to keep together. We were given small walk handsets so we could listen to our guide without disturbing other holiday makers. Our first 5 nights Were in the tune of the infamous golden Triangle of India New Delhi, Agra and Jaipur. were on land so we visited the Taj Mahal and New Delhi with it’s bustling streets and chaotic road system then off to see the Agra fort. I loved seeing the Taj Mahal so awe inspiring and definitely a catch at the back of your throat moment. We had ample time to explore on our own. But if I’m honest the hotels were a treat in themselves so we chose to stay in the grounds, lie by the pools and enjoy the rest bite before the cruise. We were on this cruise the only British. But never let this be a negative, often there are more British, It had Canadians, Americans and Australians. All over 50 years as far as I could tell. Mostly couples but mums & daughters and 2 solo travellers. We all mixed well after the welcome dinner. Which gave us a chance to chat and start our new friendships. Which we did, and hoping we continue our new friendship in more years to come. People ask me did I enjoy India. I totally fell in love with the people and the place. Uniworld river cruise Ganges 2 was the icing on the cake. The staff bought the experience on board with turban and sari lessons, cooking lessons and talks about life on the Ganges. Jane Mac Donald came on board so I knew it was going to be on the TV....and I watched the episode with pride and fond smiles of my perfect holiday. Read Less

This is my first review...I have to share this so others will not hesitate to go. Our cruise/tour actually started with 5 nights land based, first in Delhi. You are met at the airport by your Oberoi Hotel Mercedes driver. 4 of us were travelling so there were 2 cars for our us!. The Oberoi Delhi is very nice hotel, clean and the service is absolutely wonderful for our 2 night stay. This is consistent with each of the amazing Oberoi Hotels that are used on this trip. You will get a briefing and meet your Tour Manager. (ours was Vishal..fantastic and totally organized and on top of everything for the entire journey). Our land based Guide (Rishi) was excellent too! We boarded a very clean comfortable bus (there were 2 buses for our group of 27 and never felt crowded) and did a sight see around Delhi and fortunately due to a Political rally that would of had us caught up in traffic, we altered the Gandhi Tomb portion and went to the place he spent his last days. This we recommended to be in the tour in the future instead of the tomb, it is so worth while to see. Agra and the Taj Mahal were the next stop. From the Oberoi hotel, every room has a view of the Taj! It is a short golf cart ride to the main gate. You get to visit twice, once in the afternoon for sunset and then again for sunrise. Do both visits! Next was Jaipur. Here you get to view a place where they make inlaid marble items. (a bit of a tourist stop, no one purchased anything and we never felt pressure to do so). Next was a carpet stop, you get the presentation etc..prices are good. (we actually bought one after we had a super lunch around the corner.) There were lots of other stops too during our stays in Dehli, Agra & Jaipur, this is just a taste. The next day is an early rise for the flight to Kolkata. Upon arrival we are met by our two new local guides & board a bus for our transfer to the Ganges Voyager II, the bus is ok, not as nice and smooth as the ones used for the other cities. A city tour of Kolkata gets you ready for the next leg of your journey. During the travels through India, you will see lots of areas with people living amongst garbage & animals, tough to see, and the honking is constant, (Honking is a language on the road, it will be explained and then you realize how they communicate as they drive). Once you board your ship, if you thought the land portion was crazy hectic, prepare to be swept away!! The service on board is outstanding! The cruise itself is something you can't explain but have to experience! The stops on the Ganges starts with Kalna. This is were you start to realize how friendly the people are in the villages all along the river. They have very little in terms of possessions (comparing that of most westerners). They have a culture and way of life that works for them. The children come up to us to say hello and wave as they are so happy to see us. The smiles go on forever! This is the first step into the incredible life along this amazing river that is used by the people every day. Each day we traveled to a different village and each time it was a new adventure. You will see how families, and their way of life, come together. The colors along the river bank are another highlight. No one in our group suffered with any major stomach issue. A bit gassy one day by one, but didn't stop any plans. We had our vaccinations as recommended, and we all took Ducoral before arriving. There were 3 people on board who had a bit of tummy trouble, don't know if they had used anything prior to the cruise. The water on the ship is treated but we used bottled water for teeth brushing just to be sure and there is an ample supply of water. Each day when you return from the shore excursion, as you enter the ship, you remove your shoes and they clean them and return them to your door in a few minutes. On your shore excursions, the staff from the ship are always around to keep you supplied with hand sanitizers and help you with translation if you need. They are outstanding every day! The food on board was another highlight. If you are not wanting to try the local foods, there is plenty of western style options that they will have or prepare for you. Their Indian cuisine was excellent. So much variety and flavors that you want to keep eating! I will explain my ratings here: This Ganges Voyager II is not Uniworld's own ship, it is used by them but is definitely the nicest one on the Ganges. Embarkation- smooth and easy Cabin, no issue, bathroom counter is a bit small - shower is huge, bed is comfy. Dining - lots of variety of food, even for myself being probably too cautious. Enrichment activities - cooking demo, talks about the way of life of the Ganges people and Saree & turban wearing demonstration, tour of the engine room, yoga twice a day, everyone had fun. Entertainment - couple of Indian dance groups came on board, very colorful and gave you a taste of how deep their traditions are. Small gym- not a lot of time to use it but you can fit it in if you like. Spa has two ladies for facials & massages. My wife had 3 massages and I had one and they were excellent. Onboard experience- above a 5 if I could give it. The crew are your friends and gracious and always there for your every need. wifi service was good in some locations and in and out in others. Might be a few hours without but not too long as I managed ok. Public Rooms- Lounge outside and bar area both on upper deck providing views of the Ganges left and right, just don't know which way to keep looking! Shore excursions- you will get use to the sight of Water buffalo on the streets along with cows and pigs. The people and colors and smiles will stick with you! Value for Money- ABSOLUTELY, this is a great way to see a little part of India. This is a luxury cruise and you get totally immersed into it all on the Ganges. There were so many highlights on this trip, but here are some extras I wanted to add. I mentioned this one above- All the Oberoi hotels, Ghandi's last place residence, Taj Mahal, Rickshaw ride in Kalna, Craftsman in Matiari village, having a try at Cricket in Murshidabad with the crew. Read Less

Just got back from a fabulous trip to India's Golden Triangle and the Ganges River by Uniworld. On land went to Delhi, Agra and Jaipur, staying at the incredible Oberoi hotels. The hotel service, food, ambiance was the best ever. The rooms spacious and elegant. In Agra from the room's veranda you can see the Taj Mahal Embarked smoothly from Kalkuta to the river cruise ship the Ganges Explorer !!, which looks like a New Orleans paddle wheeler. The Cabins were gorgeous and huge, food very good. As someone who hates Indian food I was hesitant about taking this trip, but was able to get Thai (which I love) Chinese and Continental food both in hotels and aboard ship. The soups on the ship were especially good. In our group of 28 only 2 people got sick...they ate street food ! The only secret to staying well is drink and use for teeth brushing only bottled water! The ports all had interesting temples, towns and sights along the way. Found the Indian people to be very friendly and kind. Service at hotels and aboard ship to be wonderful. Staff was dedicated to seeing you have the best trip of your life! Hemesh, our trip leader did everything humanly possible to see that everything ran smoothly. When my husband developed an awful cold and cough an Indian doctor was called by Hemesh and the manager of the cruise who came to attend him. They took care of everything and did not bill us for the visit or medicine. Uniworld did a wonderful job with this fantastic trip. Read Less

In October we took the Uniworld tour – India’s Golden Triangle and the Sacred Ganges, the river portion of which involved a stay on the Ganges Voyager II. This was our first Uniworld tour, and 3rd river cruise – Russia and Myanmar being the other two with different vendors. We arrived in New Delhi early to allow additional time to recover from jet lag and started the land portion of our tour on October 19th. We met with the Uniworld Tour Manager (Vishal Bhaskar) and two local consultants who would guide us through the New Delhi, Agra and Jaipur portions of the tour and then the Tour Manager continued with us for the river cruise/Varanasi portions of the tour where local guides assisted him. All of the Uniworld staff were excellent in their roles; knowledgeable of the different areas we were visiting and accommodating of any requests made by guests. The land portion of the tour while exceptional was exhausting and we all were looking forward to boarding the Ganges Voyager II. We were met by the captain and staff on boarding ship and escorted to our room by Mahendra Singh, the Head of Housekeeping. The ship was very clean and comfortable and we were in our room quickly, shown A/C and other controls and our luggage was delivered shortly thereafter. Our Heritage Suite 302 was excellent at the front right of the ship – affording us a view of full bow as we proceeded down the Ganges. We found the room to be compact but quite accommodating (pictures attached). The Sun deck had plenty of loungers and was covered from the sun. At the far end they had an open area which was used for on-board performances by local entertainers and for early morning and afternoon yoga classes (which Uniworld River Cruises has recently added). The instructor was awesome. There was an on-board spa that offered a variety of services that I personally used three times and was used by many other guests. Prices were very reasonable. If there is a criticism of the itinerary it was we did not know when off shores tours would occur each day – so it was difficult to schedule appointments in advance and sometimes one had to reschedule when you found you were in conflict with the off shore tours. The Ganges Voyager II has a sandpan that was used to transport us from ship to shore for excursions. Crew were very diligent ensuring we all had life jackets on for the short transfer to land and for ensuring we could safely climb to shore, as often there was not a fixed dock available. The shore excursions generally were not too long but you should be able bodied to do this tour. There are steps, uneven ground and it was hot and humid. All of the staff of the Ganges Voyager II were friendly and outgoing; working hard to ensure we had a memorable experience. They met our every request and were very gracious when showing some of the male guests how to play cricket, a fun afternoon. Staff were very diligent both on the land tour and the Ganges Voyager II that every time we returned to the bus/ship, hand sanitizer was given to every guest. On tours the security staff carried cold towels/bottled water that were available and offered a “helping hand” on navigating the uneven surfaces. The crew provided wipes for you to clean your feet when bare feet were required and shoe coverings when you were allowed to wear shoes. When you boarded the ship you placed your “off ship shoes” in a cubby with your room number, and wore slippers (or shoes of your choice) back to your room. Your “off ship shoes” are cleaned after every shore experience and returned to your room a few hours later. The post tour visit to Varanasi was excellent and quite different from everything else we had seen on the tour. The food was excellent, both local and western options offered at all meals. Breakfast and lunch were buffet style and dinner was plated service. Wine and beer flowed freely. The local sauvignon blanc was quite good. The Executive Chef (Zaved Islam) was very outgoing and “toned down” some of the spices for us, however if you wanted something more “local” he accommodated individual requests. He even changed his menu to accommodate a “favorite” dish requested by one guest as one of the dinner options. I came to India expecting to encounter poverty, smells and other uncomfortable situations. Only one day did we encounter any smells and that was limited. While most of us had at least one day with “Delhi belly”, this was more due to not being accustomed to the level of spices we were consuming (combined with taking Malaria tablets). I am unaware of anyone who had major issues that required prescription medication. The Housekeeper (Mahendra Singh) and Restaurant Manager (Sagar Chand) were great providing ginger tea or bringing meals (soup) to your room if requested to assist your speedy recovery. The sites visited combined with the exceptional service from Uniworld River Cruises and Ganges Voyager II staff made this a “trip of a lifetime”. Read Less

We chose this cruise because we had already done a Uniworld cruise in Europe and thought it may deliver the same standards. It didn't. The ship is OK. It's nothing special. The cabin (Heritage Suite) was OK. The food was OK but the complimentary Indian wines were below par. The entertainment was good. The ships crew were very good. Almost every time you turned a corner there was one of the ship's crew with a hand sanitiser. It didn't help. Of the 22 passengers all but 4 were sick for at least a day. Some 3 days. It certainly takes the shine off the enjoyment of the voyage. The crew tried very hard to make an uncomfortable situation more enjoyable. Overall I was disappointed with the cruise. Apart from an inspiring visit to Mother Teresa's Orphanage and possibly the Hari Krishna's (currently under construction) Temple there is not a lot to see along the Ganges. Read Less