A Mekong River Cruise with Scenic Spirit

My first impression of Scenic Spirit was long before we saw the ship. On the overland journey from Siem Reap in Cambodia to Kampong Cham, our port of embarkation, the tour bus stopped for what was euphemistically called a 'happy stop'.  Lining up for the loo I got talking to a small group of other women. Passengers on the cruise before ours, they had disembarked Scenic Spirit that morning and were travelling toward Siem Reap.



With some trepidation I asked them what their cruise was like.

"Brilliant. We had a fantastic time, you'll love it." 

This was music to my ears. David is a rusted on independent traveller. Coaxing him to visit any place where he can't easily hire a car and follow his own itinerary takes a herculean effort. I have wanted to visit Vietnam and Cambodia for ever. So when he offered to go on a European river cruise - like driving really, only on water and someone else would do all the hard work - I jumped at the chance to persuade him to cruise the Mekong River instead.

Cruising the Mekong River.

We locked everything in a year in advance (See my tip below about booking early). Guide books were perused, travel blogs read, hotels booked, visas obtained and flights organised. Then six weeks before we were due to depart disaster struck - I got sick, and almost derailed the whole thing. It turns out I have a heart condition. With less than two weeks to go it was a toss up between packing or cancelling. Christmas and New Year were looming, making medical appointments nearly impossible to schedule and without the go-ahead from my doctor we would be uninsured, to say nothing of the possibility I might have a stroke in Asia. It was too big a risk. At almost the last possible moment, literally days from cancelling, we got the green light from my doctor, delivered with a warning about staying hydrated in the heat. We also managed to organise pre-existing condition travel insurance, which is not nearly as easy as it sounds and couldn't be done until all the medical tests were completed. By then I had a lot invested in this trip and it was going to be hugely disappointing if it didn't go well.

I needn't have worried. Scenic Spirit is stunning. It fulfills its promise of five-star luxury and then some.

Boarding Scenic Spirit on Day 1!

Scenic Spirit

Purpose built for cruising the Mekong, Scenic Spirit sailed its maiden voyage in January 2016.  It carries a maximum of 68 passengers (there were slightly less on our cruise), has 34 suites, 4 decks (3 of which have passenger suites), 56 crew,  a restaurant, cafe, bar, swimming pool, wellness centre, sauna, gym, library, laundry and elevator. Don't forget the elevator! Our cruise director was inordinately proud of the elevator and, for someone with a recently diagnosed heart condition, I have to say, it was very useful.

The pool.

Suites

Royal Panorama Suites

Scenic Spirit's decks are named after jewels. Diamond, Sapphire, Jewel and Gem Decks, with an open Sun Deck at the top. Diamond Deck is the highest below Sun Deck, and Gem Deck is the lowest. At the front of the ship, on Diamond Deck, there are two 80 m²/861ft² Royal Panorama Suites. They are the largest suites on the Mekong and come with a separate lounge area, walk-in dressing room, full sized bathtub with a view and, best of all, a private, forward facing outdoor terrace complete with its own Jacuzzi. 

We had the Royal Panorama Suite on the starboard side. David, who is good at this kind of thing, was convinced the ship would sail closer to the starboard bank of the river - something to do with marine navigation rules. I wouldn't be able to tell you the starboard side of a boat from its port side if my life depended on it, so I just went along with his choice - as you do! On the second day of the cruise we met a Canadian couple who were in the port side Royal Panorama Suite. In the very best of humour they accused us of stealing their cabin. They tried to reserve the starboard side but were pipped at the post by us. As it turned out, David was right, the ship did sail closer to the starboard bank!

In case, like me, you are a nautical novice, the starboard side of a boat is the right-hand side when facing forward. The port is the left.

My tip:- If you want the best, or even the second best, suite on Scenic Spirit, book early. The more expensive suites fill up first.

The terrace in our Royal Panorama Suite. You can see what a great view we had.

Our Royal Panorama Suite. The round table belongs on the terrace. David and I brought it inside. It was perfect for room service dinners.

Grand Deluxe Suites

Also on Diamond Deck, Scenic Spirit has eight 40m²/430ft² Grand Deluxe Suites. Like the Royal Panorama Suites all eight were occupied. If you want one - book early!

Deluxe Suites

The 32m²/344ft² Deluxe Suites are on Jewel and Sapphire Decks with two at the back on Diamond Deck. A few were unoccupied so I was able to get a quick peek inside one. It was lovely. I wouldn't have traded it for our Royal Panorama Suite, mainly because of our terrace, but it was still very comfortable looking five-star luxury.

My tip:- If you love to socialise and want to hang about the pool, bar, lounges or sundeck go for a Deluxe or Grand Deluxe Suite. There is no point in paying for a Royal Panorama Suite unless you plan to spend a fair bit of time in your cabin.  David and I are natural hermits, most comfortable with our own company. For us the Royal Panorama Suite was a perfect fit.

Life on the Mekong River.

Pool, Lounges, Bar and Cafe

The swimming pool was stunning, particularly with the lights on at night. I would love to tell you I swam in it. I packed my swimmers specially so I could but somehow I just didn't get around to it. Maybe it looked a bit too perfect to disturb.

When we wanted to socialise there was no shortage of places to eat, drink, relax and otherwise hang out with our fellow passengers.  I confess though that I found it hard to tear myself away from our terrace. Watching the rhythms of life along the river banks was endlessly fascinating. 

The Sun Deck.

The bar.

Itinerary

Scenic Spirit's Luxury Mekong River Cruise travels from Kampong Cham in Cambodia to My Tho in Vietnam. If you have never heard of either of these, don't panic! Kampong Cham is four and a half hour's drive from Siem Reap, where Angkor Watt is, and My Tho is one hour and twenty minutes from Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). Scenic's staff met us at Siem Reap and left us at Ho Chi Minh City. Scenic Spirit sails the Mekong River in both directions so passengers either travel from Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh City, as we did, or the other way around depending on the date of their cruise.

The cruise lasts seven nights and eight days, however we boarded the ship late (around 4.30 pm) on the first day and disembarked early on the last day so there are only six full days aboard.

The only disappointing day was the first. A note arrived at our hotel in Siem Reap the day before the cruise telling us to be at the meeting point at the Hyatt Hotel by 8.30 a.m to deposit our luggage and undergo passport formalities. These formalities took all of five minutes then we were told we had 'free time' until 10.20 a.m.  We had just spent three days in Siem Reap and had absolutely no need of 'free time'. It was too hot and humid to enjoy a walk so we sat around the hotel lounge for a couple of hours. Combined with the bus trip to the ship it made the first day long and tiring.

My tip:- Try not to get too disheartened by the first day. By Day 2 it will be a distant memory.

Tan Chau

Excursions

Most mornings and afternoons saw excursions leave the ship to explore temples, villages, markets or other sights.  Our first excursion was to the Buddhist temple at Wat Hanchey. Click on the link to read it. I will add links to each excursion as  I write them up.

I defy you to ever eat basa again after reading about our excursion to a Vietnamese fish farm - The confronting secret of Vietnamese fish farms.

My tip - Don't feel compelled to join every excursion. With an excursion most mornings and afternoons, sometimes lasting as long as four or more hours, trying to do everything would be exhausting.

We saw many beautiful pagodas. This one at Koh Chen, a small village in Cambodia where we did a walking tour, was my favourite.

Garuda guarding Wat Hanchey, Cambodia. 'Wat' means temple.

Highlights of the Cruise

• Watching the sun rise over Phnom Penh as the city came to life.

Sunrise over Phnom Penh

• Exploring as many villages and towns as we could, soaking up the feel of people's lives. 

Exotic and colourful food at Sa Dec market in Vietnam.

• Spending hours watching the river banks glide by from the private world of our deck. Whether it was fishermen casting their nets, families in floating houses or other river boats passing us by, there was always something to see.

Mekong River fishermen

• Visiting temples and pagodas - I never got tired of them.

The Royal Palace, Phnom Penh

• Watching the crew dock the ship every time we came into port. The port facilities generally consisted of nothing more than a tree or pylon to tie up to.  Several of the crew would leap from the ship's deck to the river bank and once on land catch a weighted rope thrown by their shipmates. It didn't look easy and I don't think they ever succeeded on the first try. The weighted rope was then used to pull in a heavier mooring rope. 

State of the art port facilities! You can image what fun it was watching the ship dock.

Note: David and I received a 10% media discount on the cost of our cruise. You can find more information on Scenic Cruises at Scenic.com.au. 

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Related posts: - 

• Wat Hanchey Temple, Cambodia

• Angkor Wat and the 7 must see temples of Angkor.

• Don't drink the yellow coke and 9 other life-saving tips for surviving Angkor Wat.

• Where does basa come from? The confronting secret of Vietnamese fish farms.

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