Compare An Expedition up the Chindwin by Red Savannah
Compare details and see what other travelers are saying.
| Trip |
5 | Excellent
|
| Duration | 12 days |
| Price From | $ 4,995 |
| Price Per Day | $ 416 |
| Highlights |
|
| Trip Style | Small group tour |
| Lodging Level | Basic |
| Physical Level |
|
| Travel Themes |
|
| Countries Visited | |
| Cities and Attractions |
|
| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included |
| Activities |
|
| Meals Included | N/A |
| Description |
The towns and villages on the banks of the Chindwin are still very difficult to reach, and are best explored by boat. An expedition up this beguiling tributary of the Irrawaddy is an adventure into an Asia of yesteryear, as you pass former colonial outposts where teak and oil were extracted, and sail by hills through which thousands fled the Japanese advance to India in 1942. |
Day 1: Arrive in Mandalay
Accommodation: Hotel by the Red Canal
Arrive in Mandalay, the former royal capital and centre of Burmese culture on the banks of the Irrawaddy River.
Day 2: Explore Mandalay
Accommodation: Hotel by the Red Canal
Spend a day exploring several of the ancient Burmese capitals that surround the modern city, such as Ava and Sagaing. See too the fascinating workshops and artisans that flourish in the city and the wonderfully photogenic U-Bein bridge, the world's longest wooden bridge.
Day 3: Monywa
Accommodation: RV Kalay Pandaw
Drive out of Mandalay to board the RV Kalay Pandaw, your characterful and comfortable home-cum-transportation for the expedition up the Chindwin River. With just 5 large cabins, the Kalay Pandaw is extremely exclusive and intimate - the ideal expedition ship with the feel of a comfortable private yacht.
In the afternoon, explore Monywa and see the Thanbodi Temple, which boasts a million images of the Buddha.
Day 4: Phowin Taung Caves
Accommodation: RV Kalay Pandaw
Travel to admire the stunning mural paintings at the Phowin Taung Caves. Then cast off for the journey upriver. Beyond Monywa the river narrows and you sail past several villages on the banks.
Day 5: Mingkin
Accommodation: RV Kalay Pandaw
Arrive into Mingkin, which is an architectural tour-de-force, virtually unknown outside of Myanmar. There are plenty of traditional wooden houses surrounding amazing, teak monasteries in the Konbaung court style.
Day 6: Kalaywa and Mawlaik
Accommodation: RV Kalay Pandaw
Kalewa is considered the gateway to the Chin State, and had excellent markets selling all manner of exotic local produce. Further upstream is Mawlaik, to which colonial employees of the Bombay Myanmar Trading Corporation would repair after months extracting teak from the surrounding forests. Here they could have a hot bath and a drink, and this atmosphere is maintained to this day by the eerie lack of cars and the many Edwardian "Dak Bungalows" set around a golf course.
Day 7: Yuwa and Sittahaung
Accommodation: RV Kalay Pandaw
The expedition continues past the Kubu Valley and the Yu River, down which a relief force was sent to rescue the Manipur garrison during a local rebellion. Beyond this is Sittahaung where the British scuttled several of their commercial river steamers to prevent them from falling into the hands of the Japanese, in 1942. This was the starting point for what became the nightmarish trek over the mountains to India for all those fleeing the conflict.
Day 8: Paungbyin to Toungdoot
Accommodation: RV Kalay Pandaw
Continue upriver, deep into the Chin State, where the Indo-Burma Petroleum Company established a large oil refinery and where a community of Shan tribes people maintained an enclave, far from their homeland near the Thai border.
Day 9: Toungdoot to Homalin
Accommodation: RV Kalay Pandaw
Sail to the highest navigable point of the Chindwin River at Homalin, close to the Indian border, and surrounded by large, forest-covered mountains.
Day 10: Fly to Yangon
Accommodation: The Strand Hotel
Disembark and fly to Yangon, where you are met and transferred to The Strand Hotel, in the heart of the colonial downtown.
Day 11: Yangon
Accommodation: The Strand Hotel
Explore the city of Yangon with your local guide, seeing the crumbling colonial downtown, Scott Market and the fascinating Botataung and Shwedagon Pagodas.
Day 12: Depart Yangon
Transfer to Yangon airport to catch your flight out of Myanmar.
NB: The river journey operates upstream and downstream on alternating weeks during the season (late September - March). The above journey illustrates the upstream itinerary. The downstream itinerary works in reverse.
