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CroisiEurope has chartered Indochine since 2011, but in 2014, it acquired Compagnie Fluviale de Mekong (CFM) and now owns the vessel, as well as three other Asian river ships. From August to April, Indochine sails Mekong River itineraries in Vietnam and Cambodia. Select sailings are designated "international" cruises, where English is the first language; however, all passengers are welcome to join French-speaking voyages. They certainly won't miss out on any of the sights or experiences as Croisi will always provide a separate guide -- no matter how few English speakers there are onboard. (There were just the two of us on our cruise, so it was like having a private guide, and we felt very spoiled!)
In fact, the cruise experience is definitely enhanced by the capable and enthusiastic cruise director and delightful crewmembers (employed by Croisi) and the local, extremely knowledgeable guides (engaged on a freelance basis). The latter stay with passengers for the duration of the cruise and land-based stays, and lead the shore excursions to destinations such as the famous Angkor Wat temples, Cambodia's bustling capital Phnom Penh and cosmopolitan Ho Chi Minh City.
As the Indochine is small and has a shallow draft, it can reach parts of the Mekong and its waterways and tributaries that are inaccessible to larger vessels. For example, it can float across Tonle Sap Lake during the dry season when Southeast Asia's largest lake shrinks to a quarter of its usual size. Whatever the season, this element of the cruise is a fascinating and exciting experience that is not included in most Mekong itineraries operated by other lines.
The intimate 48-passenger, colonial-style Indochine has wooden decks and extensive teak fixtures and fittings throughout, giving it a very traditional and homely feel. Cabins and public areas are functional rather than luxurious; although the cruise is certainly not basic, you don't get the extravagance and fuss associated with more expensive lines. However, any shortage of bells and whistles is more than made up for in Indochine's value-for-money cruise tours and the personal service of an independent family-owned business.
Dress is casual and relaxed onboard and ashore. While there is no obligation to change for dinner, many do after a hot day of touring. Jeans and shorts can be worn in the restaurant. Loose-fitting clothes are advisable in the heat, with a sweater or wrap for cooler evenings if you want to sit out on deck. There is a fairly low-key captain's cocktail evening and gala dinner where some women choose to wear a dress and men opt for smarter slacks. Helpful hint: Don't go overboard on packing as there are fantastic bargains in the markets -- T-shirts, colourful cotton pants, scarves and beautiful traditional silk attire -- that are great to wear in the day and evening. The ship also has a very inexpensive laundry.
Note: In some temples, skimpy tops and shorts are not allowed and women are required to dress modestly in high-necked tops that cover the shoulders and skirts or pants that fall on or just below the knee. When this is required, the guides or cruise director will always advise in advance.
The Sun Deck, which also has an outside area, is home to the indoor air-conditioned lounge and bar, a relaxing area with sofas and easy chairs set around tables. This is the main place where passengers gather to chat, upload photos, read and catch up with world events through the potted online newspapers that are printed each day in English and French. The two barmen seem to be on duty all day long, serving specialty coffees, sodas, milkshakes, wine and cocktails. Each night, there is a featured cocktail of the day, and pre-dinner drinks are served with bowls of snacks.
Most nights a movie is screened on the large flat-screen TV in the lounge, themed to the destination and in English or with English subtitles. On our trip, they included "The Killing Fields," charting the harrowing Khmer Rouge campaign; the tiger movie "Two Brothers," which was filmed in Cambodia; and "The Lover," based on the affair between French novelist Marguerite Duras and her lover Huynh Thuy Le, whose former Sa Dec home is visited on an excursion.
One morning the chef stages a vegetable-carving demonstration, and on other days, the local guides provide a fascinating insight into the geography, history, culture and customs of their respective countries. Each evening, before dinner, the cruise director gives an overview of the following day's activities (also contained in the daily schedule left in the cabin each night) and answers any questions.
Daily shore excursions (on occasion, two a day) are included in the cruise price. They were all punctual and well organized and covered a myriad of sights and experiences, including Angkor Wat, day and night markets that were a great place to pick up souvenirs (and where the U.S. dollar is universally accepted), floating fishing villages and a cruise through inland waterways on a small local boat (sampan). Crewmembers were always there to see us off and hand out bottles of water, and greet us back onboard with very welcome cold towels and a chilled beverage.
The Sun Deck is adorned with lush, tropical plants and aft is a sunbathing area with 10 loungers. Directly outside the lounge is an alfresco seating area, with a sun canopy and cooling electric fans, where smoking is permitted. Another open-air seating area is located forward, and comfortable rattan chairs are also dotted around the Upper and Sun Decks, which are more private and good spots to watch the passing river scenery.
For such a small vessel, it's a welcome surprise to find an onboard masseuse. Treatments are an absolute bargain when compared to those found on many ocean ships (so much so, some of my fellow cruisers booked almost one per day). Similarly, no tip is added to the price and there is no "hard sell" to buy any products.
The short spa menu includes a facial and a selection of Thai, Khmer and aromatherapy treatments, including a foot massage, full-body massage and head, back and shoulder massage. All treatments, apart from the foot massage, can be booked for 55 or 85 minutes. Although the therapist on my cruise spoke little English, she was friendly and professional and my very firm, thorough and traditional Khmer massage was an incredible value.
Treatments are carried out on the bed in passengers' cabins, or in a dedicated spare cabin if one is available during the cruise. The spare cabin is often one near the engine room, but we spoke to a fellow passenger who said she didn't notice any excessive noise during her massage when the ship was moving. If you're concerned, book your treatment for a time when the ship is moored.
There is one token exercise bike, incongruously situated on the open deck behind one of the seating areas on the Sun Deck. I never saw anyone use it, apart from a couple of passengers who got on it for fun to pose for photographs. Plenty of exercise can be gained from walking around on the shore excursions.
In one corner of the Sun Deck lounge is the cruise director's desk and along one wall are a small selection of board games and books (with a few English-language titles), and a couple of display cabinets with postcards, local souvenirs and a few Croisi-branded items for sale. Passengers can also purchase notebooks, pens and other items onboard to take as gifts on the school visit.
Outside the lounge, next to the alfresco seating area, there's a 24-hour complimentary tea and coffee station with coffee and hot water urns, Nescafe sachets and assorted tea bags. Passengers can also help themselves to sweet and savoury snacks and -- rather novel -- cut off bananas from a huge bunch hanging from the ceiling.
Free Wi-Fi is available throughout the ship, although the signal can be slow or non-existent in remote areas. A laptop is available at the bar for passengers to use free of charge.
Indochine does not have lifts.
Due to the size of the ship, there is no need for intrusive public announcements. A hand-held gong is used for early wake-up calls and to alert passengers to mealtimes and shore excursions.
Indochine's dining room, with panoramic windows, is situated on the Upper Deck. It is an open-seating setup, usually arranged with a choice of tables for two to eight, which can easily be reconfigured if people want to sit together. With predominantly French groups, it seems the norm for diners to stay together and not move for the whole week, which is what happened during our cruise. That said, our fellow diners were a happy and sociable bunch, and we all got on well, despite my inadequate schoolgirl French and a few language barriers.
Breakfast and lunch are both buffet style and, depending on the time of excursions, tend to run from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. and noon to 2 p.m. On a small ship you are never going to get the expansive choice of larger river vessels, but the food for the duration was fresh, tasty and imaginative, and you'd be hard-pressed not to find anything you like. During our cruise, the meals certainly got the thumbs up from the French, who are renowned for their love of good food. As Indochine is French-owned, it even employs a dedicated onboard baker, creating all manner of delicious croissants, pain au chocolat and freshly baked white and wholemeal baguettes at breakfast and pastries and sweet treats at other meals.
At breakfast, a central table is set out with cold dishes, including a selection of fruit and juices, yogurt, cereals, cold meat, bread, rolls and sliced cheese. Preserves include more unusual varieties, such as pineapple jam. Hot dishes are available at the counter next to the kitchen. In addition to favourites such as sausage, bacon, tomato, fried potatoes and eggs (including fried, hard boiled and omelettes cooked to order), local dishes, such as fried rice with egg and vegetables or noodles and exotic dragon fruit, are on offer.
Lunchtime is along the same lines, and always includes a soup of the day and a selection of salads. Main entrees again include Western and Asian cuisine, such as stir-fried seafood with chili sauce, cauliflower in blue cheese sauce, roast meat or a whole fish carved by the chef, or freshly cooked pasta with a choice of sauces, with fresh fruit and desserts to follow.
Dinner, usually 7:30 p.m., is an a la carte meal served at the table, with linen napkins replacing the paper ones used at breakfast and lunch, and more formal table settings. The menu always includes a choice of two appetizers and three entrees. These might include tomato, mozzarella and eggplant antipasto or seafood gumbo soup to start, followed by slow-roasted pork loin in crusted mustard, baked Mekong fish fillet with herbs or steamed okra with tofu and rice. A set dessert follows, and might include a chocolate ramekin or fruit pancake. A vegetarian option is always available, and the chefs will do their best to cater to other dietary requirements.
Our gala meal featured Indochine prawn cocktail, cream of tomato soup, followed by a choice of sirloin steak with green peppercorn, roasted duck breast with hoisin sauce or baked eggplant in tomato sauce and rounded off with ice cream and a cheese platter.
Both lunch and dinner include unlimited water and a choice of one complimentary beer or soda. Each evening menu features a suggested red or white wine, from countries including France (naturally), Italy, Germany, Chile, Argentina and the U.S.
The trio of ever-smiling waitresses were delightful, quickly remembering our food preferences and favourite drinks and readily bringing second helpings if wanted. Each evening, they wore elegant traditional dress, which switched from Cambodian to Vietnamese when we crossed the border -- a nice touch.
There are 10 cabins on Indochine's Upper Deck and 14 on the Main Deck. They all measure 172 square feet, with an extra couple of square feet in the two aft cabins on the Main Deck. Although these two cabins have room for a small table and two chairs, they are noisier than the other cabins due to the proximity of the engine room. As a result, one of these cabins is often empty and set aside to use as the massage room.
All of the wood-floored cabins are river facing and have two large windows; the door opens onto the outside deck, and there are no private balconies. The extensive use of dark wood panelling, bamboo ceiling and wall coverings, lotus-shaped ceiling lampshades and nostalgic black-and-white photos on the walls, gives an atmospheric colonial-style feel rather than a sleek, modern look. Cabins are not ultra-luxurious, but are equipped with all you need for a comfortable stay and have plenty of storage space.
Twin beds can be pushed together to form a double bed, with a separate duvet cover for each side. All cabins have roomy wardrobes, including a full-length section with ample space to hang clothes. The other section is divided into shelves and drawers, with a push-button safe and can of bug spray. Next to the wardrobe is a desk/dressing table with a mirror, stool, overhead light, three drawers and a double power point. There are four more electrical sockets at floor level.
The bedside tables have a drawer and individual reading lights; there are also two ceiling spotlights. Suitcases can be stored in the drawers beneath the beds, and two coat hooks are located by the door.
A louvered wooden door leads into the first section of the bathroom with a wash basin, 110V shaver socket, toilet and five hooks that are useful for hanging towels and robes (provided). There is room to put toiletries next to the basin and in the small double shelf unit hanging on the wall. The large shower area has no door nor shower curtain and is partially screened by a floor-to-ceiling wooden partition. There is a slatted wooden floor throughout the whole of the bathroom and shower area. A toothbrush and small tube of toothpaste, Croisi-branded soap and shampoo (no conditioner or lotion) are supplied and replaced as needed. Two bottles of still water are provided in the cabin and replenished daily when the staterooms are cleaned. There is also evening turn-down service.
All the electrical sockets in the main cabin area are 220V with two-pin European sockets. All cabins have a plug-in hair dryer and good air conditioning. There is no telephone or TV.
Indochine has an extremely efficient and inexpensive onboard laundry; items are picked up from the cabin and delivered the next day and hung in the wardrobe. Members of the laundry staff are happy to help with items not listed; when my friend dropped her much-needed sunhat in a muddy puddle, it was back the following morning looking as good as new.
