We went on the 2 day sail. During the sail we stopped a few times to see local people and villages. The real beauty of this tour is the authentic... read more experience. There were very few tourists, in the villages we were the only ones. At night we stayed on a beach that we had to ourselves in very comfortable beds and everything was thought of throughout the way.
Our guide Chit was very pleasant and had well knowledge about everything we saw. Do yourselves a favor and go on the 2 day trip. You won’t regret the amazing experience. Big appropriation to the boat crew which was also wonderful and comfortable, we even had beds inside the boat for resting throughout the sail. Wish we could do it again, maybe in the future.

  We booked a private 2-day tour to allow arrival in Mandalay Saturday morning and departure Sunday evening. There were 6 of us in total, including 4 adults and 2... read more young children (ages 4 and 18 mos). The trip exceeded our expectations in nearly every way - first of all, we were fortunate enough to see cooperative fishing in action (which was AMAZING) and got to see additional dolphins from the main boat on a couple of occasions. What a treat! However, beyond that, the trip was very well planned and our whole group enjoyed the various stops (and food!) at the villages, monastery, and sites. Chit was an incredibly knowledgable and friendly leader and it was easy to see how strong his relationships were with the cooking groups/fisherman/guides from the villages. The accommodation was very comfortable and we loved essentially having an island to ourselves for a night! The boat crew was great and we felt very welcome on board with our two young children. Cannot recommend it highly enough!

  What an amazing experience. Chit was an informative guide and created a great experience. We saw dolphins on the first day in two different locations! The glamping was also great.... read more The tents were pitched along the river next to a local village. The village was...More

  This was an extremely well thought and organized experience. I can’t even cite one thing that needs improvement.
The time was filled adequately for my personal level of energy; the... read more foods along the way was perfect and yummy; the staff was attentive and convivial, along with the numerous locals we met along the way; the sites were very interesting, and of course it was great to see the dolphins and witness the interaction with the fishermen, although, we saw them only once out of the two main opportunities.
Given that i took the tour ONLY to see dolphins, i am so surprised everything was truly enjoyable.

  What an amazing experience - such fun and such comfort. Thank you Chit - you are an excellent guide.

  This two-day river cruise experience was absolutely one of the highlights of our trip to Myanmar, and as others have noted, it involves so much more than just seeing dolphins.... read more While spotting the rare and beautiful river creatures is amazing (and we saw many on our first day), seeing local village life, cruising on the river, visiting monasteries and pagodas, and sleeping in tents on a sandbar also make the experience unforgettable. The guide is extremely knowledgeable and fun to talk to, and knowing that you're helping contribute to sustainable livelihoods and to patrolling against illegal fishing that harms dolphins is a plus as well. Anyone visiting Myanmar should make this part of their itinerary!

  Our day began with a short ride to the boat dock where we took a boat crewed by a local family and our guide Chit along the Irrawaddy river past... read more the towns of Mingun and Sinjun. We then transferred to a small boat and followed the local fishermen as they communicated with the dolphins. The dolphins work with the fishermen and being the fish to them so that they can cast their nets for their catch. It is amazing to see the dolphins surfacing briefly and then circling the boat. We had about 90 minutes to watch this and learned that although still very much endangered, the number of dolphins is increasing slowly through the Living Irrawaddy Dolphin Project. We had lunch back on the larger boat which was provided by a local village. We then spent some time in Sinjun where we had refreshing snacks and drinks and learned how to tie a longhi in many different ways and got to see how the local women make the conical bamboo hats. We received 2 of those hats as gifts. We then sailed over to Mingun and visited Hsinbyume Pagoda which was delightful. We sailed back to Mandalay as the sun was setting after a most wonderful day. …

  From the first time I found this tour/experience online, I thought “this is something I must do!” and now, after having enjoyed it, I simply say to myself “this was... read more the best decision I’ve made in this trip to Myanmar!”.
Its nature oriented shape, its cultural uniqueness and responsible driven approach to local communities and nature made me definitely decided to change my initial Myanmar route to include it. And it was the WISEST DECISION I’ve made in this trip.
We’ve chosen the two days private tour mainly because we are very keen on our timings and we love privacy – things that you pay more, of course, because the private tour is not cheap – and we’ve made the right decision again.
Since the first moment to the last minute of the tour we always felt very well and happy.
The tour boat is great, with a few rooms and a toilet in the lower deck and a spacious and comfortable upper deck from where you can relax and enjoy the boat views on route along the calmness of the Irrawaddy river. The tour team, from our excellent tour guide to the main boat team, were very professional and friendly. Our amazing and polite tour guide had a lot of knowledge about everything and was keen to share it with us balancing the time in between the relaxing moments at the top deck when we wanted just to be on ourselves, and the moments where information was needed to be explained by him, which was really nice. All the necessary information has been provided to us, since the start useful and very detailed briefing to the explanations when we visited the villages and the spots during the tour.
The food was great; simple but tasty and great. Each meal was provided by a different village and made from local products.
The dolphin sub-tours were made in small boats like the ones used by the local fishermen and we could spot a lot of dolphins and we saw the cooperative fishing as well, which left us really happy to witness such amazing activity.
The night in a tent was fun. It’s an “almost glamping tent” with a very good bed inside and you need to use the toilet in the boat a dozen of meters walking from the tent. In the evening people from the nearby village from the other side of the river join us at the camp site and create a small bonfire we can join and have a nice moment with them after which we have the dinner at a table near the tent, under the dark night sky. It’s really nice and fun.
The bottom-line of this tour?
It’s something I just tell you: DO IT!
You’ll visit real people in real villages; you’ll eat real food made by that lovely people; you’ll witness such unique fishing way that cooperates with the local dolphins; you’ll be away from crowds and you really feel part of it. And you end up HAPPIER because this is a RESPONSIBLE tour that HELPS the local small communities paying them for the services they provide to us and it does everything on PROTECTING the dolphins environment.
CONGRATULATIONS Living Irrawaddy Dolphin Project for what you are doing!

  My sister and me chose the two days river trip and it was absolutely amazing. April is one of the hottest month in Myanmar and taking a boat up... read more the river was a really nice way to learn about the local culture. The temperature was...More