| | | | | Arrive | Depart |
| 11th11 | AugAug | 201919 | 2 nights accommodation before your cruise, staying in Ho Chi Minh City | | |
| 13th13 | AugAug | 201919 | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, embark on the Scenic Spirit | | |
Romantically referred to by the French as the Pearl of the Orient, Ho Chi Minh City today is a super-charged city of sensory overload. Motorbikes zoom day and night along the wide boulevards, through the narrow back alleys and past vendors pushing handcarts hawking goods of all descriptions. Still called Saigon by most residents, this is Vietnam's largest city and the engine driving the country's current economic resurgence, but despite its frenetic pace, it's a friendlier place than Hanoi and locals will tell you the food—simple, tasty, and incorporating many fresh herbs—is infinitely better than in the capital.This is a city full of surprises. The madness of the city's traffic—witness the oddball things that are transported on the back of motorcycles—is countered by tranquil pagodas, peaceful parks, quirky coffee shops, and whole neighborhoods hidden down tiny alleyways, although some of these quiet spots can be difficult to track down. Life in Ho Chi Minh City is lived in public: on the back of motorcycles, on the sidewalks, and in the parks. Even when its residents are at home, they're still on display. With many living rooms opening onto the street, grandmothers napping, babies being rocked, and food being prepared, are all in full view of passersby.Icons of the past endure in the midst of the city’s headlong rush into capitalism. The Hotel Continental, immortalized in Graham Greene's The Quiet American, continues to stand on the corner of old Indochina's most famous thoroughfare, the rue Catinat, known to American G.I.s during the Vietnam War as Tu Do (Freedom) Street and renamed Dong Khoi (Uprising) Street by the Communists. The city still has its ornate opera house and its old French city hall, the Hôtel de Ville. The broad colonial boulevards leading to the Saigon River and the gracious stucco villas are other remnants of the French colonial presence. Grisly reminders of the more recent past can be seen at the city's war-related museums. Residents, however, prefer to look forward rather than back and are often perplexed by tourists' fascination with a war that ended 40 years ago.The Chinese influence on the country is still very much in evidence in the Cholon district, the city's Chinatown, but the modern office towers and international hotels that mark the skyline symbolize Vietnam's fixation on the future. Discover all about Vietnam's modern history through a visit to the Reunification Palace and War Museum. Later travel by coach to My Tho to board the luxurious Scenic Spirit. |
| 14th14 | AugAug | 201919 | Sa Déc, Vietnam | | |
Freechoice: Board a sampan to visit Cai Be before stopping at local cottage industries and a French colonial or traditional Vietnamese house. Alternatively savour morning tea at a French colonial house or choose to stay on board for your special Scenic Freechoice activity. Later, immerse yourself in the historic town of Sa Dec and explore and interact with the sellers in the lively market, then visit the home of Mr Huynh Thuy Le who inspired Marguerite Duras' novel L'Amant. |
| 15th15 | AugAug | 201919 | Tân Châu, Vietnam | | |
Freechoice: Visit the farmers on Evergreen Island and enjoy a ride in a Xe Loi. Alternatively, walk through Chau Doc market, visit a family-operated fish farm and cruise around Chau Doc waterfront or visit Tra Su Bird Sanctuary. Tonight enjoy a themed evening dinner to say farewell to Vietnam. |
| 16th16 | AugAug | 201919 | Phnom Penh, Cambodia | | |
Arrive early this morning into the capital city of Cambodia, Phnom Penh. Freechoice: Journey to the Killing Fields and tour Tuol Sleng, the former school which was converted to the Khmer Rouge's main prison, or take a guided tour of the local food market before joining a hands-on Khmer cooking demonstration. Alternatively, explore by Tuk Tuk Phnom Penh's colonial buildings and the Central Market before lunch at a local NGO restaurant teaching street kids hospitality skills. Enrich Arrive in style by Tuk Tuk and immerse yourself in the historically celebrated luxury of Raffles, Hotel Le Royal. Enjoy a guided history tour followed by an indulgent high tea prepared in front of you, all whilst sipping on the hotel's signature cocktail named in honour of Jacqueline Kennedy. Choose to retire to the Elephant Bar for happy hour before returning to the ship. Later this evening revel in our exclusive Phnom Penh by City Lights tour, giving an insight into the capital's nightlife. |
| 17th17 | AugAug | 201919 | Kho Chen, Cambodia | | |
This morning marvel at the Royal Palace, with the famous Silver Pagoda within, on your included visit to this must-see attraction. Later sail up the Tonle River to the silversmith village of Kho Chen. |
| 18th18 | AugAug | 201919 | Kampong Tralach, Cambodia | | |
Cruise to Kampong Tralach and take an ox cart ride through a local village and fields to Wat Kampong Tralach. Enrich Learn how to pray in a Buddhist pagoda and partake in a ceremony to receive a blessing from a monk, all whilst donating towards the daily meal of the resident nuns and monks. Board your coach to the ancient capital of Oudong to visit the impressive pagoda and monastery. Drive a short distance to Prek K'dam to re-board Scenic Spirit and continuing your cruise to Kampong Cham via Phnom Penh. Sundowners Enjoy a cocktail reception on the sundeck against the backdrop of Phnom Penh's lights as the ship sails past the capital at sunset. |
| 19th19 | AugAug | 201919 | Kampong Cham, Cambodia | | |
Walk (or drive) to the top of Wat Hanchey, an ancient hilltop pagoda and monastery to meet the resident novice monks. Sail downstream to Kampong Cham. Freechoice: Learn about the history behind Phnom Pros (Man Hill) and Wat Nokor. Alternatively explore the ecotourism village of Cheung Kok or visit a rubber plantation factory and betel nut village. |
| 20th20 | AugAug | 201919 | Siem Reap, Cambodia | | |
Discover the countryside of Cambodia on your drive to your hotel in Siem Reap, your stylish three night Special Stay located in the heart of the town. Enrich Take your Premium reserved seat at the colourful Cambodian Circus, Phare. |
| 21st21 | AugAug | 201919 | Siem Reap, Cambodia, disembark the Scenic Spirit | | |
Freechoice: Discover Banteay Srei and visit the Landmine Museum or admire the skills on display at Artisans D'Angkor. Alternatively, cruise on Tonle Sap (seasonal), take a tuk tuk ride to all the markets or take a tethered balloon ride above Angkor Wat (weather dependent) before visiting a Pouk Silk Farm Later in the afternoon visit the colossal Angkor Wat. Take advantage of your free night to visit the night markets. |
| 21st21 | AugAug | 201919 | 3 nights accommodation following your cruise, staying in Siem Reap | | |
| 24th24 | AugAug | 201919 | Check out of accommodation | | |