Pandaw to launch new ship to meet 'rising' demand for cruises in India
Asian river cruise specialist Pandaw will launch a new ship and itinerary on the Kerala Backwaters next year in response to increased demand for sailings on Indian waterways.
In the last year, the line’s UK general sales agent, Fred Holidays, said bookings for Pandaw cruises in India have doubled.
The incoming 10-cabin Kochi Pandaw, the line’s fourth ship in India, has been specifically designed for the Kerala Backwaters.
It will also feature the classic Pandaw cabin and wraparound promenade decks.
Pandaw’s other India-based ships are Kindat Pandaw, Kalaw Pandaw and Katha Pandaw.
Starting October 2025, Kochi Pandaw will operate a weekly seven-night round-trip sailing from Kochi visiting towns including Thanneermukkom, Nattakam, Kavalam, Allapuzha, Thottapalli and Perumpalam.
Fred Holidays packaged up this itinerary with weekly departures throughout September, October and November 2025 and January, February and March 2026.
Prices for the seven-night cruise with all meals, excursions and activities plus a complimentary drinks package, return flights from London, overseas airport transfers, a night in a five-star hotel in Kochi, start from £4,999 per person.
Pandaw was acquired by Paul and Roser Strachan in 1995 when it was originally known as the Irrawaddy Flotilla Company.
The line claims to have pioneered the first sailing routes on both the Red River in northern Vietnam and the Upper Mekong through Laos into China in 2015.
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