MV Mahabaahu

You will find a noon to sunset bar facility on the Sun Deck.

Morning yoga is done either on a deserted island or, on the open deck space on a couple of mornings.

There is a cricket set on-board and a sandy beach becomes an impromptu cricket pitch.

The swimming pool is 29 feet by 9 feet and is 4 feet deep.

Time for gourmands to rejoice! Learn how to cook authentic Indian cuisine thanks to our chef’s live demonstration. Got a special request for an Indian dish you’ve always wanted to learn to cook? Ask us and we’ll try our best to make it happen.

One of the great pilgrimage temples of India for Hindus, Kamakhya is thronged by devotees coming from all over the sub-continent.

Devoted to the Goddess Kali, the Kamakhya temple is said to be a place of great faith. Travellers can witness, first hand, a temple where the occult and spiritual come together. The fervent atmosphere of mysticism and spiritual tranquillity combined is one our guests are unlikely to forget anytime soon.

The smallest inhabited river island of the world is called thus as the growth of the flora on the island gives the image of the unfurled feathers of a peacock in its dancing form. Home of many species of birds makes Peacock Island an exciting boat excursion of natural history. The constant arrival of pilgrims to pray at the temples located on the island also gives it a lovely essence of living cultures amid the flowing waters of the great river. A lovely sight to behold!

A friendly village inhabited by immigrants from the low-lying lands of Bangladesh. Interact with this friendly agriculturist community where the village schools teach modern education and where the children gather along the banks of the river to smile shyly at the visiting tourists. These people stay on these river banks in winters when the river subsides as the land is rich for growing crops. Come summer floods caused by the melting snows of the Himalayas along with the deluge of the monsoons the river rises by eight and a half meters and submerges this world under its torrential flows. The villages are prepared to leave only to return next season and so the cycle starts again.

Gain insight into the history behind your cup of tea combined with a traditional Assamese meal in a unique setting. A meal with a tea planter’s family is a memorable experience where a taste of the traditional Assamese cuisine combines with an educating talk of how the English Breakfast Tea started. The talk centres around how tea is savoured with the benefits of this famous brew that the world wakes up in the morning to. The original bungalow belongs to the romantic times of the English tea planters and is a walk down memory lane.

Lush green tea bushes and traditional dances beckon – this is immersive travel at its best. The valley of Assam was the birthplace of the black tea or, as it is so famously called, the English Breakfast Tea.

The visit to the village of the plantation workers who come from a tribe known as the Jhummars with their white and red coloured dresses is another lovely living culture experience. The process of cutting, tearing and curling of the tea leaves in the factory is a great education till the month of December and then from the month of March when the tea leaf plucking season happens.

Explore the park in sturdy 4WD Jeeps and immerse yourself in the wilderness that surrounds you.

The jeeps allow explorers to both, stand up and sit down comfortably. Photography buffs will find that the solid frames of the jeep provide great support to the body, allowing you to lean further ahead and get the best possible shots.

As travellers pass through the rolling, lush green elephant grass against the backdrop of the mighty river under the shadows of the towering Himalayan peaks there remains no doubt that Kaziranga is one of the most beautiful jungles of the world.

An exciting boat safari through the mingling waters of the Dhansari and Brahmaputra River with plenty of fresh water dolphin sightings.

Get ready to spot swimming elephants, wild buffaloes, tigers, deer, occasionally rhinos, water monitor lizards, beavers, monkeys, turtles, eagles, vultures, storks, kingfishers and more.

The possibility of spotting this much wildlife makes for a truly exciting boat safari adventure for 2-3 hours. Relax in the comfortably cushioned armchairs built in the tenders for the boats to slice through the pristine waters of the rivers bringing back memories and pictures of a great natural history experience. The Brahmaputra River is the only other river apart from the Zambezi River in Africa where such a wonderful experience can be enjoyed.

Step back in time in Assam’s ancient capital soaking in the architecture of a glorious bygone era. The erstwhile rulers of Assam or, Asom as they used to call it came originally from Yunan, through the region of Northern Thailand. Being great administrators and benevolent rulers, they won over the local chieftains and established their rule throughout the Brahmaputra River valley. At Sibsagar they established their capital and built their palaces, temples and amphitheatres. A great destination to witness their unique style of architecture combining South East Asian, Bengali and Mughal styles of architecture seen in the buildings of the bygone era.

The largest river island in the world awaits. Get ready to be steeped into its myriad of rich traditions, ancient culture and artistic rituals.

Majuli Island declared by the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest river island of the world is home to a pacifist Neo-Vaishnavite culture with 22 monasteries on the island. The male monks of the monasteries live the life of renunciation and their simple life of religious devotion is a wonderful cultural experience. To see their vibrant dances with the beating of drums and cymbals inside their temples is a deeply moving experience. Due to the culture of pacifism, the island is home to many species of both migrant and resident birds including storks of many varieties.

A step back in time with a visit to an old jute mill using industrial revolution technology.

The good old hemp and jute is today the biodegradable answer to substitute the notorious plastic. With the clickety-clack of the machines that create the jute thread from the hemp plant to the manufacturing of the jute gunny bags – this is an interesting experience of how the early conveyor belt factory working used to be.

A culturally rich village filled with artisans, music, dance and idyllic views all around.

Travellers get to meander through a large village of Assamese silk weavers, weaving intricate patterns onto colourful fabric made from the lovely Mugga Silk unique to the region. Witness the artisans of the land creating the magic from their handlooms located in the rooms and verandas of their homes. With rock atolls and sand islands in its vicinity where ancient light towers are located to guide the navigators of bygone times, this is a place for the romantics to sit and watch the amazing sunsets across this river.

We ride into the early morning mist and as the sun rays force the mist to thin, we witness wild life up close and personal; swamp and hog deer, Asiatic water buffaloes and Rhinos; all happily grazing within yards of each other. An hour of elephant back saga through tall elephant grass leaves us non-plussed and wanting. This is however orgainsed only on speial request.

This day the nature enthusiasts wake up early to enjoy a walk on the Bund at Neamati Ghat. This is a walk through a narrow village where the huts/homes have sprouted along the two sides of a 12 ft. wide bund. The bund has the Brahmaputra River on one side and a monsoon or rainwater swamp on the other side making it an ideal space for bird life. Owls, owlets, orioles, quails, partridges, adjutant stalks and woodpeckers are an integral part of this space. Star fruit, wild figs, bananas, tamarind trees abound in the area.

At this early hour one can see the village waking up, milking cows, gardening, farming, children in uniform cycling to school and the fishermen fishing out their fresh catch from the net. This walk is an informal way of peeping into the simple unpretentious Assamese village life.

The new 7 nights downstream purly wildlife river cruise covers these four national parks and wildlife sanctuary including Kaziranga National Park too but without the cultural expereinces while, the new 11 nights up-stream and 10 nights down-stream cruise will showcase these four parks plus, all the cultural destinations too. In this program there are greater opportunities for nature walks inside forests, a float trip down a gentle river inside the forest seeing additionally man more species of birds, a total of 9 arboreal species including an ape called the Hillock Gibbon, sloth bears and if very lucky clouded leopards too. We call these as the World’s Richest Natural History River Cruises.

In the month of April and September-October we also operate the 23 nights Indo-Bangladesh River Cruises between Assam and West Bengal in India crossing the entire length of and width of Bangladesh. On this epic voyage you sail 1,725 kms, over 5 rivers, through 3 national parks, visiting 5 UNESCO Sites meeting very traditional Hindu, Muslim and animistic cultures too with beautiful safaris, village visits, visits to temples and mosques. Enjoy the boat vegitable markets, national park safaris in jeeps and boats. Navigate through the world’s largest delta and the world’s largest mangrove jungles in the Sunderbans, which is also home to the largest population of the Royal Bengal Tigers. This is sailing from the mountains to the sea starting from Guwahati and ending at Kolkata in April and starting from Kolkata and ending at Guwahati in September-October passing through Dhaka.

The only railway bridge to connect mainland India West of the Brahmaputra River to the East banks where bulk of the Assamese and other North Eastern regions of India lies.

Free (If you lose the device, then the cost of the device and the sim card will be charged)

There are individual routers for each cabin with the password on the router. You could carry this with you on all excursions or anywhere on the ship. At times the network could be slow but generally we are all able to access the internet throughout the length of cruising. We will encounter pockets of no connectivity at certain spots in the river.

Bottled Water is included in the package for cruise and all excursions.

We accept VISA, Master and Amex cards. Currency conversion is not available.

Allergies & Special Requirements: Needless to say, onboard the MV Mahabaahu all of our guest’s dietary requirements are well taken care of. Our chefs are trained and well-equipped to deal with all intolerances and allergies.

Note: Please do let us know in advance of any dietary restrictions so we can ensure a hassle-free holiday for you.

The tourism season is from October to April: Do bring a warm layer—in the coldest month of Jan, the temperatures range from 60-degree Fahrenheit to 70-degree Fahrenheit or 15- degree Celsius to 21-degree Celsius. Light rain can be expected at times so a parasol/ mackintosh would be useful. Binoculars and cameras will enhance the experience. Casual light comfortable clothes, comfortable walking shoes for all excursions, sun shades and hats are recommended. On the day for Kaziranga, you would need a warm layer as the visit is very early in the morning.

All items in the Minibar and those taken from the bar are chargeable.

Laundry/Sauna/Steam/Jacuzzi/Ayurvedic therapies/Rejuvenation Massages/ Hair Spa facilities are all chargeable.

Safaris at Kaziranga National Park: (a declaration form is to be filled by each guest—still camera charges are Rs 500 and video cameras Rs 1500. Filming cameras Rs 10,000/-. There is no charge for mobile phones.

• The SPA with treatment room, salon, Jacuzzis, steam, sauna is very complete.
• A proper swimming pool.
• The 2 tenders allows us to stop the ship to sail up to any animals spotted when sailing through the Kaziranga National Park for more than one day.
• The 3 engines/propellers allows for a speed whereby, in just 7 nights / 8 days we cover the full distance between Guwahati to Jorhat with 12 sites visited. 13 if the guests demand to do elephant safari too which is only provided on demand. Some programs offer 4 national parks + wildlife sanctuary.
• As a double hull ship built to international class this is the only class certified ship on the river from safety point of view.
• With a crew of 30 for maximum 46 guests we are the highest crew to guest ratio for personalised and hand held services.
• A passenger elevator between 4 out of 5 decks makes it comfortable for the differently enabled.
• A high sundeck with a 360 degree view and canopy is a great location for spotting wildlife.
• The 5 deck configuration offers large general space areas with a lot of elbow room.
• There are 11 cabins with private balconies.