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BLACKBOOK A GLOBAL GUIDE FOR THE DISCERNING TRAVELLER The view down-river from the vessel’s top-deck plunge pool Smooth Sailing The newly unveiled Aqua Mekong brings a fresh perspective to the enchanting waterways of Vietnam and Cambodia, as Laurie Kahle discovered PHOTO © AQUA EXPEDITIONS F rom the moment you embark, I don’t want you to feel like you are on a cruise ship, but like you are in a worldclass boutique hotel,” says Francesco Galli Zugaro, who launched the Aqua Mekong last autumn, the third of his trio of diminutive deluxe vessels that cruise the remotest outreaches of the Peruvian Amazon – and now Vietnam and Cambodia. Galli Zugaro travelled to Africa, India and China in search of another great river for his latest floating palace, before alighting on the Mekong and moving his family from Lima to Singapore so he could oversee the custom ship’s construction. The boxy, 62.5m river cruiser sails three-, four- and seven-night itineraries between Saigon, Phnom Penh and Siem Reap on the placid currents of the famed waterway as well as the Tonle Sap River and Tonle Sap Lake. With just 40 guests and a matching number of crew, Aqua Mekong The subdued, modern interiors with Indochine touches reflect the surroundings offers a privileged perspective on some of the globe’s most remote wonders, all from within a chic, contemporary atmosphere and accompanied by five-star service and the toothsome Thai delicacies of Michelin-starred Executive Chef David Thompson of Bangkok’s award-winning Nahm restaurant. “I see this as the Machu Picchu of Southeast Asia,” says Galli Zugaro over drinks in the Observation Deck lounge, where guests gather CONTACT CENTURION SERVICE FOR BOOKINGS CENTURION-MAGAZINE.COM 25
