THE CHINDWIN – EXPLORE OF THE BEATEN TRACK ( OCT - NOV )

Itinerary

Day 1: Mandalay – Monywa

Stop At: Monywa, Monywa, Sagaing Region
• Today, you will be met between 08.00 am - 08.30 am and transferred to to the pier in Monywa. Afternoon excursion to see Thandboodi Temple, Bawdhi Tahaung statue and the night market in the evening. Overnight onboard.
Duration: 5 hours

Meals included:
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight onboard.

Day 2: Phowin Taung & Kyauk Ka Village

Stop At: Phowintaung, Village Minzu, Monywa Myanmar
• Morning Excursion by coach to Phowin Taung Hill where we visit the Phowin Taung Caves with beautiful mural paintings and Buddha statues dating back to the 14th and 18th centuries. In the afternoon, we visit the Kyauk Ka Village famous for the making of black Lacquer
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight onboard.

Day 3: Kanee

Stop At: Chindwin River, Myanmar (Burma)
• The river narrows and the forested hills fall away to farmland. Enjoy a morning culinary demonstration by our head chef on how to prepare a traditional Burmese Ginger Salad. Arrive in Kanee and take an afternoon walking tour of the village
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight onboard.

Day 4: Mingkin

Stop At: Myanmar (Burma)
• Morning cruise up river. After lunch, we explore Mingkin, rediscovered by Paul Strachan in 1987 and described in some detail in his book Mandalay: Travels from the Golden City. It remains for Paul the most art historically interesting site in Myanmar (more so than the now spoilt Pagan) with its Konbaung court style teak monasteries sumptuously decorated. Mingkin may be described as the Luang Prabang of the Chindwin
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight onboard.

Day 5: : Kalewa

Stop At: Kalaw, Kalaw, Shan State
• Morning walking tour of Minkin followed by cruise to Kalewa located at the confluence of the Chindwin and the Myittha Rivers, where we enjoy a walking tour
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight onboard.

Day 6: Mawlaik

Stop At: Mawlaik, Myanmar (Burma)
• Morning visit to Masein Village and then sail to Mawlaik, the town that replaced Kindat as the administrative capital but ironically the Myanma refused to move there from upstream Kindat. It was mainly settled with the company houses of the by the Scottish owned and run Bombay Myanmarh Trading Corporation in the 1920s and 1930s. There are many splendid ‘Dak Bungalows’ set around a verdant golf course. Mawlaik and the other towns of the Upper Chindwin can only be reached by boat so cars are few. There is a dreamy otherworldly quality to such places and truly one feels that one has travelled there in the Pandaw time machine
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight onboard.

Day 7: Mawlaik Elephant Camp

Stop At: Mawlaik, Myanmar (Burma)
• Morning excursion by Tuk Tuk or coach to Bus to view the Teak wood Forest outside Mawlaik. Continue to the Pyar Swe Elephant Camp, a working camp where the elephants are protected in natural surroundings. We then sail to Kalewa where we overnight.
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner
Accommodation included: Overnight in kalewa

Day 8: Kalewa

Stop At: Kalaymyo, Kalaymyo, Sagaing Region
• Disembark at Kalewa IWT Jetty and explore Kalewa with its markets and quaint wooden architecture. Continue to Kalay Airport for your onward flight to Yangon or Mandalay (included in the price of this cruise).
Duration: 1 day

Meals included:
• Breakfast
No accommodation included on this day.