23 Days Irrawaddy & Chindwin Vacation Package

Duration: 23 Days / 22 Nights
Priced From: Call Travelwizard
Dates: Sep

Day 1. Arrival Yangon. Yangon is the main gateway and capital city of Myanmar. Although the population hovers around five million, the city gives a different impression from other Asian capitals of similar size. It seems full of trees and shade, even old teak growth, with some outlying neighborhoods refreshingly overgrown, taking on a more provincial feel rather than that of an international city. D

Upon arrival Yangon, Your Guide will take care of your baggage and guide you to your private air-conditioned coach for transfer to your hotel.

Undoubtedly the best time to visit the Shwedagon Pagoda is in the early evening as the sun begins to fall over the city of Yangon.

The historic Shwedagon pagoda towers almost 98 metres (326 feet) above the green cityscape of Yangon. One of the wonders of the religious world, the Shwedagon Pagoda is believed to have built more than 2500 years ago. Testament to the faith of the Burmese, the Shwedagon is covered with hundreds of gold plates; the top of the Stupa is encrusted with 4531 diamonds; the largest of which is a single 76 carat Diamond. Dinner will be at local restaurant. Overnight at Dusit Inya Lake Hotel or similar in Yangon.

Day 2. Yangon/Kalemyo. After early breakfast at hotel, transfer to Yangon airport for flight to Kalemyo, the gateway town for the Chin State.

Kalewa is the trading post between Myanmar and India, and this town rests at the point where the Myit Tha River with its source in India joins with the Chindwin.

Arrive Kalemyo, transfer to the jetty to join Pandaw Cruise.

The Irrawaddy Flotilla has recreated the Pandaw legend and offer luxury long cruises between Chindwin and Irrawaddy River for 5 years until 2003. In the second half of the 2003 Interconnection Co. Ltd signed the charter agreement. The boat is finished in teak wood and each cabin has its own veranda area.

This combined with the luxury dining room, bar and viewing areas make the Pandaw a great way to travel along the Chindwin and Irrawaddy Rivers. The Pandaw also has the ability to dock anywhere along the journey enabling guests to explore villages well off the beaten track.

After that, you will be able to explore around Kalewa. Visit its colourful markets to see, gain an insight into the bustling market atmosphere in Kalewa and quaint wooden architecture workshop.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 3. Kakemyo/Kindat. This morning Pandaw Cruise stops for a morning walk at Balet, a charming and typical river community.

The rest of the day is for exploration on the River Chindwin. You will be able to observe the way of life of the typical villages along the Chindwin River.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 4. Kindat/Paungbyin. Kindat was as far as the old IFC steamers ventured outside of the Monsoon season.

This part of the Chindwin valley is very sparsely populated and villages are few and far between.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. LD

Day 5. Paungbyin/Sithaung. Today you will pass the mouth of the Yu River which drains the Kubu valley.

Sitthaung was the final resting place of a number of IFC steamers scuppered there in 1942.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 6. Sitthaung/Toungdoot. Toungdoot or Hsawng-hsup in Tai, is an ancient Shan enclave which in British times still had a ruling prince or sawbwa complete with palace and court.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 7. Toungdoot/Holmalin. We pass the Uyu River worked by gold washers on the way to Homalin, the furthest navigable point on the Chindwin for vessels of this size.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 8. Homalin/Mawlike. The town of Mawlaik was once a centre of administration for the British government. Set on a hill, it is a pretty spot with old colonial style buildings and pretty houses.

The cool weather must have been reminiscent of English springtime, and although undiscovered by the general public, it is a wonderful spot to get away from everything stressful.

It was also a trading post for the colonial era enterprise - the Bombay Burma Company that dealt in teak, abundantly found in the area. It is said that timber elephants of this region to this day only understand commands spoken in English.

Mawlaik replaced Kindat as the administrative capital. Like other towns of the Upper Chindwin, they can only be reached by boat so cars are few.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 9. Mawlike/Mingkin. Mingkin with its Konbaung court style teak monasteries are sumptuously decorated. Mingkin may be described as the Luang Prabang of the Chindwin.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 10. Mingkin/Monywa. Entering the Lower Chindwin where the river widens and the forested hills fall away to farmland you will pass a number of attractive villages.

Monywa is a city in central Myanmar and situated on the eastern bank of the Chindwin Rive, Mandalay Division. It lies 136 km north-west of Mandalay along the Mandalay-Budalin branch railway line. Monywa serves as a major trade center for India and Burma through Kalay Myo road and Chindwin River.

Explore around Monywa town and if time permits, make a quick trip to the Thanbodi Temple with its million Buddha images and the most unusual Buddhist temple complex on 37 acres of land which is part of the Mohnyin Forest Monastery retreat.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 11. Monywa/Bagan. Cruise all day through the great Lower Chindwin plain. Much of Chindwin's course lies within mountain ranges and forests. Due to the difficulty of access, much of it remains unspoiled.

The whole day is spent relaxing on board observing the local river life from the top deck, the natural and unspoiled beauty of nature along the Chindwin River.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 12. Bagan. Tour a selection of the most significant of the 3,000 Buddhist monuments found at this World Heritage Site. Known as the city of four million pagodas, Bagan is one of the richest archaeological sites in Asia. There, one can find over 2,000 pagodas, temples and monasteries built during the Bagan Dynasty founded by King Anawrahta in1044A.D.

Bagan is a truly mesmerizing destination, and often the favourite of seasoned travellers. Bagan can only be described as amazing and enchanting.

This morning you will visit the Pagodas that are the most culturally significant and best preserved in Bagan. And also visit a local Lacquer-ware store where the process of making each piece can be seen.

Sail in the afternoon and moor overnight at Thein Gone village to visit the new school and the monastery.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 13. Bagan/Yandabo Village. Today, head upstream to the Chindwin confluence and stop in the evening at Yandabo.

This is a rarely visited small village with no road access to the world. Dependant on the riverside economy this village is famous for the production of terracotta pottery made from riverbank mud. You will be able to see the pottery making process at various stages.

Visit the Pandaw School built with donations from past Pandaw passengers.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 14. Yandabo Village/Ava & Amarapura. In the morning you will travel to Ava and explore the ruins, visiting Bagaya Kyaung, a 200 year old royal monastery made of teak with elaborate wood carvings.

In the afternoon travel to Mandalay for an orientation tour of the city area visiting the Mahamuni Pagoda. This pagoda was so named after the holy image, "Maha Muni" housed therein. To the Buddhists in Myanmar, this richly gilded Maha Muni image is not a mere representation of the Lord Buddha but is an icon which is regarded as sacred itself. And the image is also considered to be the greatest in Myanmar next to the Shwedagon.

Sunset at Amarapura U Bein Bridge which is made out of teak wood crosses Taungthamen Lake

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 15. Mingun. Cast off early and stop at Mingun to see the largest working bell in the world and the unfinished pagoda that is the largest single mass of brick building in the world.

We also visit the Mingun Old Peoples Home originally established with the assistance of the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company in the 1930s.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 16. Kyang-Myaong Potteries. Visit the spectacular potteries near Kyauk-myoung. Kyaut Myaung is a huge production centre.

The glazed ware of the town is famous, sent to all ports downstream during pagoda festival season, which is from October to May of the next year. The glazes are made from by-products of silver mines, added to river silt. The traditional colours are deep dark browns, lustrous greens and creamy yellows.

Enter the Third Defile and sail upstream all day stopping at Khan-nyat village with its many Buddhist monasteries and an orphanage.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 17. Tagung Ancient City. Tagung , an ancient city, famous in legends and history is the probable capital of the earliest kingdom in Myanmar. There are many ancient ruined temples in Tagaung and stories of plentiful and harmless snakes, which are smaller cousins of dragons.

Explore by foot the ancient city of Tagaung ancient ruined city, viewing the fortifications, a famous nat or spirit shrine and the archaeological area. In the evening, climb the Pagoda Hill at Tigyang with its stunning views of the Irrawaddy.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 18. Katha (Burmese Days). Today, visit the enchanting colonial town of Katha. Katha was the final resting place of the old flotilla and here over a hundred ships were scuppered in 1942 in an Act of Denial before the advancing Japanese.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 19. Katha/Shwegu. Continue upstream to Shwegu, another centre of pot making, and Kyun-daw a midstream island of monasteries and countless small pagodas.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 20. Shwegu/Bhamo. Cruise through the 2nd Defile, the most dramatic of the three gorges with cliffs towering over the narrow channel.

Reach Bhamo in the afternoon, an important trading town close to the Chinese border.

Bhamo is a trading post that since a thousand years has been a gateway to the overland route to China. Its importance in trade has been the cause of many wars, among them the invasion of the British into Myanmar that ended with total annexing of the country in 1885.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 21. 1ST Defile Cruising Along The Irrawaddy. Chartering a smaller 'country boat' you will proceed upstream from Bhamo and attempt to reach the dramatic 1st Defile. In the evening explore Bhamos bustling markets.

Lunch, Dinner and Overnight onboard. BLD

Day 22. Bhamo/Yangon. Disembark at Bhamo, transfer to airport by local bus for fly to Yangon. Arrive Yangon, check in to Dusit Inya Lake Hotel.

Visit the famous Scots Market and if of interest the gem emporia. At the Scots market you will find a whole variety of interesting Burmese souvenirs, from lacquer ware to gems & jewellery (which are available at reasonable prices), make sure you bargain at the stores to fully experience the Burmese market atmosphere!

Lunch and Dinner will be at local restaurant.

Overnight at Dusit Inya Lake Hotel or similar in Yangon. BLD

Day 23. Yangon/Departure. Optional early morning visit the World War II cemetery at Htauk Kyant War Memorial Cemetery, where 2,700 stone-graves of Commonwealth and Allied Forces Fallen Soldiers in the Myanmar campaign of World War Two are honourably kept.

Transfer to Yangon International Airport for departure flight to your next destination. B

PRICE INCLUDES:

• Full board whilst on the Cruise
• Coffee/tea and water whilst on the cruise
• Pandaw sightseeing program/shore excursions, as mentioned in the itinerary above
• Gratuities to Cruise Crew/Staff
• Hotel Accommodation in Yangon
• Domestic flight Yangon/Kalemyo and Bhamo/Yangon
• Pandaw English Speaking guide for all sightseeing

9/08