Mekong Delta Travelers Recommend

The tranquil waterways and villages of the Mekong Delta couldn’t be more of a contrast to the metropolitan chaos of nearby Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon). With one day on the delta, you can dip into the area’s culture, visit a floating market, and take a sunset cruise. Here’s how to plan your time.

Morning: Meet the Mekong

With only one day in the Mekong Delta, your best bet is a day trip that covers the highlights and lets you skip the hassle of arranging boat and vehicle transfers. Typical itineraries include a visit to a honey farm or fruit plantation and a rowboat ride through the Mekong’s narrow canals, which offers a glimpse of locals going about their daily life, as well as convenient round-trip transfers from your accommodation in Ho Chi Minh City. Some tours also feature a visit to Cai Rang Floating Market, the largest of its kind in the area. 

Afternoon: Explore by Land

Most Mekong day trips give you free time to spend the afternoon as you please, so relish the flexibility to customize your own itinerary. Opt to bike around the island of Tan Phong—where edible snails are a speciality—or shop for souvenirs on Con Phung Island, famous for its handicrafts. If you want to learn more about Vietnamese food, take a cooking class and create dishes such as pho and steamed Mekong river fish.  

Evening: Sunset Sailing

Round off your day on the Mekong Delta with a sunset cruise; some include unlimited beer, soft drinks, and fresh fruit from the region. If you’re looking for something a little more lively, head to the city of Can Tho and explore the bustling waterfront of the central Ninh Kieu district. Dine on Vietnamese dishes at a floating restaurant before taking an evening boat ride to see the waterways and floating villages illuminated by night.

With its winding waterways and ancient culture, the Mekong Delta offers a tranquil escape from nearby Ho Chi Minh City. Spending two days in the Rice Bowl of Southeast Asia, as it’s known, allows you to delve deeper into local culture and traditions and explore at a more relaxed pace than you would on a day trip. Here’s how. 

Day 1: Delights of the Delta

**Morning:**Dedicate the morning to one of the Mekong Delta’s famous floating markets. Explore either Cai Be or Cai Rang—the main wholesale floating market—as part of an early morning tour to benefit from a guide’s insider knowledge and beat the crowds.  

**Afternoon:**Spend the afternoon cycling through the rural parts of the Mekong Delta on a bike tour. Trips typically pedal past rice paddies and floating villages and stop at a fruit plantation to sample local produce such as dragon fruit and papaya. 

**Evening:**If you’ve opted to stay in the Mekong Delta overnight, experience local life in a homestay. Most 2-day tours include overnight accommodation in a local home, which comes with the added bonus of a Vietnamese family-style dinner. 

Day 2: Canals and Can Tho

**Morning:**Rise early and get out on the water while the morning mist still lingers. The village of My Tho is the gateway to the canals of the Mekong River, and most boats depart from here. Cover more sights in less time on a motorized boat, or go traditional by choosing to explore in a wooden rowboat. 

**Afternoon:**This afternoon is all about enjoying the bounty of the Mekong Delta. Experience the most of My Tho and its surroundings with a tour that takes you to a coconut-candy workshop, a local beekeeper, and the Dong Tam Snake Farm zoo—not for the faint-hearted. 

**Evening:**On your final evening in the Mekong Delta, soak up the lively atmosphere of the Ninh Kieu waterfront in Can Tho, the region’s largest city. Here, you’ll find floating restaurants and illuminated waterfront sights that make for postcard-worthy photos. 

Three days on the Mekong Delta give you ample time to soak up the region’s relaxed pace of life. In addition to exploring canals by boat and islands by bike, you’ll have time to immerse yourself in the bustle of a floating market and experience local life during a homestay. Read on for the best way to experience the Rice Bowl of Southeast Asia.

Day 1: Essential Mekong Delta

Spend your first day gaining insight into local life on the Mekong River Delta. Start by visiting a floating market, where vendors sell fresh produce from wooden rowboats; tours typically visit either Cai Be or Cai Rang floating market. In addition to saving you the stress of arranging transfers by land and water, many sightseeing packages include a cruise along the Mekong’s palm-fringed canals, a visit to a fruit orchard, and a traditional Vietnamese lunch. Most multi-day tour packages include a local homestay, which offers the opportunity to get to know Mekong residents and enjoy a home-style Vietnamese dinner. 

Day 2: Life on the Water

Devote day two to exploring out-of-the-way delta destinations. A private tour allows you to customize the day’s itinerary and removes the complication of arranging transportation in Vietnamese. Off-the-beaten-path places to consider visiting include Chau Doc, a Muslim floating village that’s home to a mosque and craft stores that specialize in weaving; Tra Su Mangrove Forest, which is best explored by boat during the rainy season in September and October, when a layer of green carpets the water; and Tan Lap Village, an ecotourism site surrounded by forests and waterways. Continue to stray from the tourist trail in the afternoon with a bike tour that allows you to explore rice paddies and rural villages at a relaxed pace. Tours typically stop at the village of Hoa Loc, home to traditional wooden houses. 

Day 3: A Bounteous Crop

Your final day is for feasting on the local produce of the Mekong River Delta. Start with a cooking class, which will introduce you to ingredients and equipment that you may not have at home, before setting out to explore the My Tho region, where you’ll find farms and workshops that produce coconut candy, honey, and exotic fruits such as jackfruit, dragon fruit, and papaya. After lunch at a riverfront café, wander the lush temple gardens of Vinh Trang Pagoda, where three larger-than-life Buddhas smile down on visitors. Spend your last evening in Can Tho, the Mekong Delta’s largest city, where you can ease yourself back into modern life at a floating restaurant or waterfront bar.