My wife and I recently travelled on your Irrawaddy cruise, Prome to Mandalay, 06 Nov – 14 Nov 2013, as part of a more extensive Cruisco holiday in Myanmar.

Our thanks for the pleasure we gained from our cruise. As guests we found our host the Purser “Mr Erick”, and all members of the crew were most professional, considerate and a pleasure to be around.
We particularly wish to record our appreciation of the tour guide, Mr San Lin Tun, and to congratulate you on his selection. Having been on guided tours in Europe, Canada and the USA, we know that the guide is vital to how rewarding and enjoyable a tour we experience. (It also influences future choices)

On this tour San met all the criteria. He was very professional and personable in his dealings with both guests and the various local people we met along the way. His knowledge and enthusiasm for each topic that arose was apparent, and his ability to provide the information in an engaging manner was excellent. His willingness to expand and explain both to the group and to individual’s questions was appreciated.

That the demands of each day had been considered in advance and our needs and best interests taken into account in the detailed planning was unobtrusive but self evident in the outcomes. Your guests were impressed – congratulations and thank you.

Lyn & Norm Bunn

The boat was a real treat, well designed for its purpose, beautifully outfitted with teakwood everywhere (including the shower door), plenty of storage, our own AC, contemporary bathroom fixtures, great mattresses and linens. Very comfy. The food was superb and plentiful with a salady buffet and a main course buffet. The dishes were a nice mix of the familiar and the exotic (morning glory tempura and good brown bread). Breakfasts were fruits, breads and choices from a menu that included some of the best oatmeal I've had and lots of egg dishes, pancakes, french toast, even eggs benedict. The crew almost outnumbered the passengers and were uniformly professional and attentive.

On the last night aboard, the crew ran the boat onto a sand bar and set up a complete beach party for us including twinkling lights, a bonfire, a music system that played rock (Hotel California!?), a bar from which we were served cocktails and a barbeque to make us delicious appetizers. Then back aboard for dinner and a musical performance that was top notch if you could stand the music.

Dear Mr. Strachan:

I wanted to give you additional feedback on our recent 7-day cruise on the RV Kalay Pandaw down the Chindwin. We are frequent visitors to Myanmar and were enticed on a Pandaw cruise to visit an area of the country not easily accessible otherwise. While I confess we had some reservations (being in close confines with 8 other passengers for 7 days being one of them), we were blown away – mostly everything exceeded our expectations, including our fellow passengers. The ship which I understand you had built for your own use, is very comfortable and kept in immaculate condition – we stayed in the owner’s suite which we loved. You can be very proud of the ship’s team led by our purser Win Myo. Win and his able assistant Maing provided unobtrusive and simply excellent service at every turn. In his unassuming and low-key manner Win ensured that his passengers’ various expectations were met and that everyone was onboard with the plan for the day.

The rest of the crew were kind and helpful and my husband who has a bad leg truly appreciated their discretion and their willingness to assist whenever necessary. I read your book with great interest while lounging on the deck between excursions and understanding the challenges this poses in a country like Myanmar, I can tell you that your customer service/hotel senior managers have done an outstanding job in training the teams to provide 5-star service. It seemed impossible that these beautifully prepared and presented meals were coming out of that small kitchen. Win’s Shan tea salads and all the seafood dishes (including the Prawn Burger) were stand-outs for me. There were nothing but rave reviews about the food from all 9 passengers, including the one vegetarian among us. The New Year’s party on a sandbank with dancing to 50s music was a blast by the way.

Finally we were grateful to have San Lin Tun as a guide – he is very knowledgeable, well-spoken and the consummate professional - overall my husband and I both rate him as the best guide we’ve had in Myanmar or anywhere else for that matter. The excursions were all very well chosen – for us the visits to Kanee and the Phowin Taung Caves were highlights. Mingkin was very interesting although we thought its comparison to Luang Prabang and Bagan by some to be bit of a stretch.

I offer some suggestions for your consideration. The weather on the Chindwin can be quite cool in the early morning and evening so blankets to keep warm on the deck would be appreciated. Also the pre-departure literature should mention that warm clothing is required. Some of us would have brought additional warm clothing. Merchandising suggestion – books are excellent but you would also do well with polo shirts and sweaters and caps.

In summary we greatly enjoyed our first Pandaw expedition and we look forward to experiencing another one on our next trip to our beloved Myanmar.

Sincerely,
Priscille