Mekong River Region

The mighty Mekong River in Southeast Asia is pulsing with new life thanks to a slew of riverboat launches. AmaWaterways’ 124-passenger AmaDara cruise makes 15-night trips connecting Vietnam and Cambodia; the 18-stateroom vessel Avalon Siem Reap has a similar itinerary. But the river’s reigning queen is the Aqua Mekong, owned by Italian-American entrepreneur Francesco Galli Zugaro, who already made a name for himself with his two luxury vessels on the Peruvian Amazon. With dedicated customers clamoring for an Aqua sequel, in fall 2014, Galli Zugaro launched a Mekong riverboat with three-, four-, and seven-night itineraries between Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, and Siem Reap, Cambodia. All have off-the-beaten-path excursions—biking through remote Cambodian villages, exploring Vietnam’s floating markets—planned by a cast of excellent guides. New hotels, too, are opening in destinations along the delta. The towering Reverie Saigon, with 286 ornate Italian-designed rooms, is a welcome addition to Ho Chi Minh City’s hotel scene. Also in southern Vietnam, Aman Resorts’s new Amano’i has a collection of pavilions and villas nestled in a hillside, all with private pools and sweeping views of low-rise mountains and the deep blue Vinh Hy Bay.  —Stirling Kelso