Small boats, short hops
Boats that carry eight to sixteen people, not eight hundred. Island hops, river weeks and one dhow — with the guide on board, not a schedule.
Four boats, chartered whole. Same twelve guides, same 20% deposit — the only thing that changes is that the hotel moves at night. See the four boats
These are the boats themselves, not routes. Each one is chartered whole — including the thing about it we would tell you before you booked.
014 cabins · 8 berths
$2 800pp, from5—7 nights
What we would warn you aboutOne shower, no air conditioning, and it rolls. Wonderful for a week if none of that bothers you.
Best in June—October, flat seaCrew of 4 · guide Ahmed
02 · MOST BOOKED8 cabins · 16 berths
$3 200pp, from7 nights
What we would warn you aboutThe most comfortable of the four and the busiest coast. Book May or October, never August.
Best in May and OctoberCrew of 6 · guide Rana
036 cabins · 12 berths
$2 600pp, from6—8 nights
What we would warn you aboutYou are on the move most of the day and the river is brown, not blue. Come for the villages, not the water.
Best in November—FebruaryCrew of 7 · guide Vinh
045 cabins · 10 berths
$4 400pp, from7—9 nights
What we would warn you aboutThe dearest of the four, and the only one where the swimming alone would justify the week.
Best in April—OctoberCrew of 5 · guide Jean-Luc
Someone from our office has slept a full week on each of these four. The warnings above are the ones we would give a friend. Send us four lines
Day four on the gulet, as it happened. Two things are fixed — breakfast and dinner. Everything between is decided that morning.
Under way · 3 h 20 Anchored, swimming · 3 h 30 Ashore, optional · 1 h 40 Yours · the rest of it
06:1001
The crew is up, nobody else is. Coffee in a pot, land somewhere behind you.
09:3002
Eaten while the boat moves. Whatever the cook found at the last market.
13:0003
THE POINT OF THE DAY
A cove picked that morning by the skipper. Nobody else in it.
16:3004
OPTIONAL
A village, a walk, a market. Or stay on board — half the boat usually does.
19:4005
One table, everyone at it, the boat still. Nobody dresses for it.
2fixed points all day 0excursions to buy 1table, every meal See a full week
FIRST LIGHT
Thirteen and a half hoursDay 04
Anchored at seven the night before, still there at dinner. Nothing was scheduled in between and nothing arrived.
The same bay in the same month holds a dozen boats off a cruise ship. That week it held ours.
“I take the same photograph most mornings. It is why I stopped working on big ships.”
DINNER, STILL AT ANCHOR
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Marta Ferreira
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She reads every request herself and answers from her own address.