Enjoy a stunning river cruise from Vietnam to Cambodia on the Mekong Delta

IT is 4am in Siem Reap, Cambodia.

The tuk-tuks are tucked up for the night, the monkeys are sleeping and even the humidity is having a rest.

Yet I am slipping out for one of the finest late-night love affairs known to man: Watching the sunrise over Angkor Wat.

It is a beauty call I definitely will not regret.

The sky is brushed with more colours than a four-year-old’s paintbox and the ancient temples are silhouetted against them.

This is a holiday romance to top them all, even if I do have to share it with hundreds of other blokes muttering: “Phwoar!”

The ornate array of beehive towers and endless symmetry was carved into the Cambodian jungle 900 years ago and still stands bolder than ever today.

I am at the end of a ten-day river journey along the 2,700-mile long Mekong River, on board G Adventures’ new river cruise.

And although ten days of captivating sights, intriguing smells and gripping activities make for unforgettable memories, there is nothing that compares to the tour’s finale at Angkor Wat.

The view is simply breathtaking.

We had set sail from Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon, in Vietnam, heading for Siem Reap in Cambodia to experience both countries from a truly different perspective — the waters of the mighty Mekong.

Our riverboat the Toum Tiou II is our saviour in dodging chaotic city traffic, pothole-riddled roads and overcrowded trains.

The plucky vessel is purpose-built and creates a unique on-board environment.

With only 14 cabins, fellow passengers are thrown together for the trip and it opens the door to new friendships with a wide mix of travellers.

Solo backpackers, retired couples, cruise stalwarts, old hands and new — we all merge together to from our inseparable group.

As someone who usually goes on holiday determined to carve my own path, I was sceptical about handing over the decision-making to someone else.

But how foolish I was: I am a tour convert.

All excursions, most meals and the daily headache of planning itineraries are all taken care of, meaning the only thing I need to worry about is relaxing.

Every cabin has air-conditioning and a hot shower, and there is plenty of space on deck to sunbathe and enjoy the river’s constantly evolving view.

This is slow travel at its best and G Adventures is doing it differently — breaking away from the all-inclusive cruise model to get travellers off the boat and into local communities, making a difference to local economies.

We journey north through Vietnam, docking at regular intervals to visit temples in My Tho, sample coconut and honey on Thoi Son island and take a local boat to the Cai Be floating market.

We visit the Kien An Cung Pagoda in Sa Dec and stroll through the food and textile market along the river before scaling the Sam Mountain.

Sa Dec is a small city of 30,000 inhabitants and relatively undisturbed by tourists.

It is the sort of place I would never have discovered on my own — an unspoiled gem that only an experienced tour planner would dig up.

It provides a window into traditional life on the Mekong, complete with tree-lined streets and fading colonial villas.

We end our journey through southern Vietnam and cross the border into Cambodia, sailing straight for the capital Phnom Penh.

Yet more traffic, yet more fun to be had.

And we tear through the rush hour tucked into a bright green rickshaw.

If sailing along the Mekong offers the best perspective on rural life, a cyclo-cab provides one of the most exhilarating angles of a busy city.

We arrive at the notorious Foreign Correspondents’ Club (FCC) with all limbs intact and a cocktail list to help settle nerves.

The draw of the famous bar — where journalists and intrepid adventurers from around the world have gathered for decades — is still strong and with a delicious food menu and river views it’s easy to see why.

The FCC’s walls are peppered with tales of its history and clientele’s escapades — many of whom sought refuge in there to file news stories during the brutal Khmer Rouge regime in the Seventies.

Our dark history lesson prepares us for the following morning, where we make our way to the S21 Museum and the Killing Fields.

The scale of Pol Pot’s genocide is indescribable and his bleak legacy still hangs over Cambodia.

Both memorials deliver a comprehensive overview of the mass killings ordered by the self-styled “Brother Number One”.

The atrocities are an unforgettable part of the region’s character today, with many survivors still living in the same towns and villages savaged 40 years ago.

Phnom Penh is bursting with other sights to be explored to cheer up on.

Architecture buffs should head for the Royal Palace and the silver pagoda while the Russian and night markets provide much-needed retail therapy.

If neither of those do the trick for moving on from a difficult morning at the Killing Fields, G Adventures has just the ticket.

It takes us to a Friends café, which helps local youngsters get an education.

And it serves the best fish amok in town.

Our cruise continues on to silver and copper workshops in Koh Chen before we switch to an ox cart to be blessed by the chief monk at Buddhist monastery in Kampong Tralach.

And as we bid farewell to our captain and crew on the last night there is just time to squeeze in some deep-fried tarantulas, left, and crickets as we make our way to Siem Reap.

It is not the usual dinner you would expect to have before meeting your holiday beau, but then again sunrise at Angkor Wat is no usual date.

And after all, this is a journey of new perspectives.