The Pandaw fleet, that began with one vessel, the Pandaw, cruising down the Irrawaddy from Mandalay to Bagan, has now expanded to three ships. Between November 2002 and April 2003 the original Pandaw I will begin an exciting new cruise making a circular tour of the vast Irrawaddy Delta. The Delta covers an area of 1000 square miles of waterways and wetlands and is one of the most complex river systems on the planet. There are seven main channels flowing down from the Irrawaddy valley and from these several thousand creeks and lesser channels. The two main ports are Yangon (Rangoon), the present day capital, and Bassein (Pathein), centre for the paddy producers in this area once known as the ‘rice basket of Asia’. The Delta towns are attractive and humming with life and activity. The Delta area has only just opened to travellers and a cruise through its backwaters offers an insight into a lost world. The Pandaw is offering a 4 day/3 night trip from Yangon to Pathein (90 minutes’ drive from Ngwe Saung Beach) or a 3 day/2 night trip from Pathein to Yangon.

The newly built Pandaw II is larger than her sister, at 180 ft long and 34 ft wide with two accommodation decks and an observation deck above. The much loved and generously sized staterooms (14 x 12 ft) of Pandaw I have been faithfully reproduced as have the teak promenade decks that run around the ship. In the coming season the Pandaw II will run ten day trips on the upper reaches of the Irrawaddy and Chindwin rivers. Though Pandaw has been running river expeditions for several years, no two expeditions have ever been the same, they are constantly making new discoveries and learning more and more about these areas.

Also newly built, the Pandaw III will offer the classic one or two night cruise between the ancient capitals of Burma in the coming season. A very comfortable, reliable and fun form of transportation between Bagan and Mandalay. The Pandaw III has 39 cabins divided over 3 decks. The main deck cabins remain at the same prices as last year, while the upper deck is featuring more spacious state cabins and the lower deck is housing the single cabins.

To make a confirmed reservation a 30% deposit is required, refundable in full if the reservation is cancelled more then four months before departure. Contact Exotissimo Travel Myanmar for further information to include these unique Pandaw experiences in the Myanmar itinerary for your clients.

Hill Top Villa

A new hotel recently opened in Kalaw, the former British Hill station in Shan State, popular as a base for treks to the surrounding hill tribe areas. The 16 wooden bungalows of the Hill Top Villa Resort are tastefully decorated and have hot and cold shower, satellite TV, minibar, IDD phone, electric heater as well as a fireplace for the cool evenings. The resort restaurant serves Chinese, Myanmar and Shan dishes.

The Kien Giang Tourism Company plans to launch a high-speed passenger boat service between Rach Gia on the mainland and Phu Quoc Island in the Gulf of Thailand by mid-2003. The boats will be able to carry a maximum of 236 passengers and travel at 60kph taking about two and a half hours to complete the journey.

After a successful trip to Mandalay last year, Australia’s Captain’s Choice Charter Tour, has chosen Exotissimo to handle all ground arrangements in Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia for their exclusive "Emerging Asia Trip" with a chartered Qantas Boeing in June 2002. The plane with more then 200 passengers on board will visit the colonial capital of Yangon, where they will travel aboard a chartered steam train, Vientiane, the sleepy capital of Laos and then continue to Vietnam and Cambodia. Other countries to be visited on this exclusive holiday are Nepal and Malaysia (Borneo). We hope to bring you more news and pictures of this exclusive charter tour in the next issue of New Destinations.

Danang’s Furama Resort has been granted a gaming licence by the Vietnamese Government and plans to open an entertainment and gaming centre in the resort later this year. The centre will be equipped with the very latest gaming machines and will be operated by an international casino management company.

The two Raffles properties in Cambodia, the Grand Hotel D'Angkor and the Le Royal Hotel, have been renamed "Raffles Grand Hotel D'Angkor" and "Raffles Le Royal" to emphasize their links to the world-renowned Raffles Group.