Top Cruising Routes in Asia

Photo courtesy: Ponant Cruises

Asia is indeed a harmony of countless rich cultures and is home to some of the oldest civilizations in the world. Cruising Asia means enjoying an unforgettable experience as you explore the exotic landscape and unravel the colonial history. Cruise passengers heading East are sure on a wonderful experience as they come across sea cruise destinations such as Cambodia, Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Burma, China, Taiwan, and more. What makes Asian cruising a much more attractive option is that you can cover several countries in one go!

A Ponant cruise to Asia is a lot more than just taking a journey from one exotic port to another. You are on an unforgettable vacation of tranquil landscapes and most intriguing destinations. Ponant luxury vessels and boats add to the appeal of the captivating ancient continent with diverse cultures. Learn more about the exceptional Ponant itineraries on this website and get ready to discover some of the most enchanting and dynastic cities of Asia.

Here are some of the top cruises in Asia.

Japan Cruise


Photo courtesy: StudioPonant Margot Sib

Enjoy the best of Japan on an exceptional itinerary designed by Ponant that will take you straight to the heart of Japan. Explore the Land of the Rising Sun and its enhancing cities like Osaka, Tamano, Miyajima, Busan, and more. Learn about the history of the samurai and geishas on the Japanese cruise and admire the country’s landscaped gardens as well as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. This is your chance to discover medieval and ancient Japan.

The Seychelles Cruise



Photo courtesy: StudioPonant Morgane Monneret

For cruising Seychelles, you arrive and depart from Victoria Port, and the new and exciting itinerary invites you to discover the paradise of archipelago’s Inner Islands. Some of the essential stops include Sainte Anne Marine National Park, Curieuse Island, Praslin, and more. Enjoy unforgettable snorkelling as you get to see coral reefs with stunning species or look at the Aldabra giant tortoises within the mangrove. Vallée de Mai Nature Reserve, with its gigantic endemic fruits, should not be missed. Enjoy some moments of relaxation on the stunning islands with fantastic beaches.

Hong Kong to Japan Cruise

What could be better than cruising from Hong Kong and spend some days in Taiwan and Shanghai before heading for the Japanese city of Yokohama. This is your opportunity to get a taste of vast and varied cultures of the Asian region. You will come across countries and cites that are radically different but deeply honour their past. It is indeed a unique experience to see the quiet serenity of ancient times existing side by side with hyper-modernity. Throughout the trip, you can observe the modernist impulse in the traditional aesthetics and architecture of the cities and its food and culture.

Aldabra Atoll Cruise

Aldabra Atoll and its Secret Islands are very popular among the Asian cruisers. The expedition cruise invites you on an unforgettable trip aboard one of the luxury PONANT vessels and leads you to the most beautiful islands with idyllic landscapes that boast of exceptional flora and fauna. During the cruise, there would be endless opportunities to swim, dive, and snorkel, especially when you are in the Alphonse lagoon. Aldabra is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is home to the largest population of land turtles and numerous colonies of birds.

Vietnam to Singapore Cruise




Photo courtesy: Ponant Cruises Ship

Another of the popular Asian cruise covers Vietnam and then Hong Kong to Singapore. The cruise offers you a glimpse into the Asian lifestyle and culture. Those families living in floating fish farms in Vietnam and alter halts in Hong Kong and Singapore are sure to amaze you. The cruise covers visits to Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Mekong Delta.

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Travel Photo: Yellow Lanterns at Taipei’s Longshan Temple

This is possibly one of the oldest temples in Taipei. It is also a place where you will definitely find the spiritual vibe during the early morning and early evening hours. This is the famous (Mengja) Longshan temple in the Wanhua district of Taipei. This temple worships a mixture of Buddhist, Taoist and folk deities like most temples in Taiwan and showcases beautiful Taiwanese classical architecture with southern Chinese influences.


And after you have explored your spiritual self, you can listen to your growling stomach and sample one of the many night markets located close to the Longshan temple. Taipei has such a night eating culture that you can keep eating all the way to your bed. But, irrespective of the night markets, if you are in Taipei and have seen the view from the top of Taipei 101, you have to visit this temple to see the fervor with which the locals pray here every day. Personally, I love it here.

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Travel Costs: South East Asia Backpacking

A lot of you must be curious to know how much I spent in the last nine months while I traversed 12 countries across South East Asia (Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Burma, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Philippines) and a bit of East Asia (Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau).

Below is an approximate daily cost (in US Dollars and Indian National Rupee @INR 58 to 1 USD) for each country that I visited. This should help you give you a ballpark for your future travel expenses to any of these 12 countries. It includes:

1) Stay in a budget hostel or sharing a budget room with another traveler
2) 3 vegetarian meals either on the street or in a budget restaurant per day
3) 1 or 2 snacks from the street or from the super market (like yoghurt, fruits or biscuits) per day
4) Small commute inside the city using public transport or self drive rentals (I walk quite a bit)
5) Entrance fee for one tourist attraction per day
6) Occasional drinking. I don’t drink beer
7) Inter-city travel via trains, buses, ferries and planes
8) Bottled water wherever safe drinking water is not available
9) Lots of Souvenir Shopping (Fridge Magnets, Wood Work and the usual stuff)

Per Day Costs
South East Asia
Thailand: $23 (INR 1344)
Cambodia: $21.5 (INR 1247)
Vietnam: $19.5 (INR 1131)
Laos: $19 (INR 1102)
Myanmar/Burma: $38 (INR 2204)
Malaysia: $32 (INR 1856)
Singapore: $48.5 (INR 2813)
Indonesia: $28 (INR 1624)
Philippines: $19 (INR 1102)

East Asia
Hong Kong: $48.5 (INR 3103)
Macau: $43 (INR 3132)
Taiwan: $38 (INR 2668)

Note. There can be cost variances due to the following:
1) The above costs can be higher for larger cities and lesser for small towns. This is an average across the country.
2) I spent a bit more in Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan as I wanted to treat myself.
3) I spent 2 weeks in Malaysia with family and hence the cost went up marginally.
4) I did some big shopping in Malaysia as it was my last country
5) I took some expensive flights to reach the northern stretches of Myanmar
6) I had to pay for medical expenses in Singapore
7) I stayed with friends for brief durations, especially in Vietnam and Indonesia.

In total, I roughly spent about INR 4.25 Lakhs or ~USD 7,400 over the nine months. Mine was not truly low cost backpacking and I indulged in luxury from time to time. Below points briefly describe the way I traveled.

Accommodation
If the temperature went above 33 degree Celsius or more than 80% humidity, I ended up taking an air-conditioned dormitory or an air-conditioned room.

Land Travel I am 6 foot 3 inches tall. Hence, when it came to land travel, I always opted for more leg room and this were available in the most expensive buses and trains.

Air Travel
I took the cheapest flights available and never paid for anything extra except for 1 check-in baggage.

Food
I never once sacrificed food. I am a big guy who needs a lot of food and drinks and that’s exactly what I gave myself. I am a vegetarian so sometimes I ended up paying more to get good vegetarian food.

Paid Activities
I did avoid some unnecessary activities, but never bothered about entry fees or charges to go somewhere or do something. Since I was already there, I never shrugged from participating in a activity that would otherwise be deemed expensive.

Intra City Travel
I always took public transport and only in rare instances did I take a taxi all alone.

Shopping
I did a fair bit of souvenir shopping, but I bargained real hard.

Phone Connectivity
Except  for Vietnam and Indonesia, I didn’t get myself a local phone connection.

Packaged Tours
I think I took a total of 3-4 tours in the entire 9 months. I tried avoiding tours as much as possible and did everything my own way.

Internet
I always leveraged free internet available in hostels/hotels, restaurants, airports and other tourist areas.

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Fridge Magnets from South East Asia

Welcome back! I got a lot of such phrases from many of you when I landed in India a couple of days back. Thank you so much for giving me such a warm welcome. I would like to thank you in return by showing you South East Asia through fridge magnets. These are the magnets that I collected over 267 days and 12 countries.


I had purchased more magnets, but this is what remains on my metal wardrobe doors after my sister and my friends wacked some for their respective fridges. To all those who do not know my travel shopping habits, the two things that I collect religiously from my travels are fridge magnets and currencies and to a small extent, rare wooden work and masks.


I hope you like this magnet tour! I am slowly settling back into the Indian lifestyle. The first two days were tiring as I found it difficult to get used to the polluted air in Bangalore, but I am doing much better today. I have a lot of stories and pictures to share with all of you. Do stay tuned for a lot of my South East Asia experiences.

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Travel Photo: Cute Damper Baby of Taipei 101

For a structural engineer, it is one of the largest dampers in the world. For a marketing mind, it is his brand ambassador. For a regular tourist, it is a super cute damper baby. Whoever the spectator is, the damper baby never has paucity of admirers. Or may be, Taipei 101, the second tallest building in the world have done a good job with it.


For those who are interested in this damper baby, it is one of the largest structural dampers of its kind in the world and it’s primary function is to absorb the stress that a high rise building like Taipei 101 gets due to heavy winds. So basically, it protects Taipei 101 and the people working in the building at all times. It is also Taipei 101’s brand ambassador and has been promoted as a cute being with 2 legs and 2 hands just like a human baby.


The idea was a huge success and lots of visitors not only like the damper baby, but are also curious about it in its true form. This damper baby can be seen in 5 vivid colors of red, yellow, green, grey and black. Each color has a noble theme and are fiercely popular both with domestic as well as international tourists. Damper baby memorabilia are one of the more sold gift items.

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