First time to Singapore. Loved Singapore. Stayed at the York Hotel just off Orchard Rd. good location. The York is older but very comfortable, friendly staff and great buffet breakfasts. We bought a 3 day tourist subway pass and went everywhere, good value. We checked out all the WW2 history. Singapore is really on the move, no GFC in Singapore. We want to return to Singapore in the future.

Singapore

We took the free shuttle from the port Laem Chabang into Bangkok. Each coach had a guide who gave you a non stop commentry. We were dropped off at a jewellery factory as part of the shuttle. Good quality. My wife is very happy with her purchases. We chose to take the canal cruise. We were dropped off at the river and were amazed at the amount of river traffic. The tour took about 1 hr and was a lot of fun cuising along in a "James Bond Boat" it was also quite reasonable. The boat dropped us at a market near the King's Palace. The Palace is well worth seeing. We spent about 1hr there. Time was always short in port. We took a tuk tuk back to the hotel to board the shuttle back to the ship. The tuk tuk's are an experience but may not suit everybody and you have to bagain hard with the driver. Money is no problem in Bankok as banks are easy to find. I am not sure about weekends!

Bangkok (Laem Chabang)

You have to have a visa to enter Vietnam. Princess look after that for you and it is cheaper that sourcing your own before departure. We took the shuttle from Phu My to Ho Chi Minh City cost around $50 each and it takes about 2 hr. It is an adventure in itself seeing all the sights along the way. We also had a guide on the coach who gave us a non stop commentry which was a little hard to understand at times. We were dropped at the Rex Hotel which was a short walk to the Bin Tan markets great place for a bargain plus a lot of knock offs. Very crowded it may not suit everybody but we loved it. My "Rolex" has not missed a beat in almost 12 months. We did a tour of the Presidential Palace which was interesting, be warned some attractions close for lunch. Saigon was great just to walk around and explore and watch to the sights go bye on motor bikes. The Rex was the haunt for journalists during the war. We bought a fair bit of Dong before we left but we did not spend it all and no other country we visited would exchange it. Our tip is to take small US bills but you may need Dong to get into government building.

Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon)

We took the free shuttle (about 30 min) into a hotel adjacent to the Star Ferry. Hong Kong has changed a bit since our last visit. We liked it better last time. The day was not good and the air was not clear. we took the Star Ferry over to the island and did Stanly Markets which are always good. Our advice is if you see something you like, buy it as you may not see the same item again. The trip out of Hong Kong was great as the Diamond Princess was given permission to go north out of the harbour which was lovely at night.

Hong Kong

Cabin was more than sufficient for our needs. Plenty of storage space. The bath room was small but adequate. Once we closed our door we heard nothing. The fridge and TV were all that was needed. We made good use of our balcony particularly when entering or leaving ports. Bed was to our liking.

It was interesting as the ship cruised up through the South China Sea dodging the long line fishermen, however some time the Diamond Princess went staight through.We found the Peace to be very good and the buffet breakfasts were great.

Diamond Princess Review

Singapore to Beijing aboard the diamond Princess

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