I. Overview
What is the Mekong Delta?
The Mekong Delta is one of Vietnam's two rice basins; the other is the Red River Delta in the north. The numerous branches and tributaries of the mighty Mekong River, which has its source 2,800 miles distant on the Tibetan upland plateau, have deposited sediment to create this huge delta.
The river travels from its source through China, Myanmar (Burma), Laos, Cambodia, and South Vietnam before emptying into the South China Sea. The Vietnamese name for the Mekong, Cuu Long, translates to "Nine Dragons" due to the vast river's nine mouths, which stop its flow until it is absorbed by the sea.
Geographical region
In general, the Mekong Delta region forms a triangle that extends from Mỹ Tho in the east through Châu Đốc and Hà Tiên in the northwest, down to Cà Mau and the South China Sea at the southernmost tip of Vietnam, and includes the island of Phú Quốc. This region is direct to the west of Ho Chi Minh City.
II. Top sites to visit in the Mekong Delta
1. Ninh Kieu Wharf
1.1. Overview
The Ninh Kieu Wharf was built in the nineteenth century. The waterfront park, which is currently known as Ninh Kieu Park, is a well-known tourist and cultural destination in Can Tho.
Between the junction of Hau River and Can Tho River, on the right bank of the Hu River, is where you'll find the wharf. It borders Tan An Ward, Hai Ba Trung Street, and Ninh Kieu District in Can Tho City.
1.2. Things to do and see
With the inherent luxury and richness of the Mekong Delta, Ninh Kieu Wharf serves as a symbol of Can Tho City. Boats carrying products from the delta fill the river. As a result, Ninh Kieu is among the busiest and most advanced tourist sites in Western Vietnam.
Enjoy the fresh air in Ninh Kieu Park Can Tho
The cold, fresh breezes that create a sensation of refreshment and relaxation can be felt while sitting in the park. There are quite a few locals and guests who gather in the evening to stroll, dine, and play together. You won't regret taking a stroll to this magnificent park while Ninh Kieu Wharf is deserted at night!
View the Can Tho Bridge from the boat
Visitors can also take in the expansive view of the Can Tho Bridge, a cable-stayed bridge. Visitors can view the sparkling Can Tho Bridge at night from the boat. Tourists can rent a boat and go around Ninh Kieu Park to take in the expansive vista from a distance. Before getting on the boat, you should carefully inquire about the cost.
Buy souvenirs at Ninh Kieu Night Market
The merchandise sold at the Ninh Kieu Night Market is primarily souvenirs. Street food stalls serving a variety of cuisines, including dumplings, grilled rice paper, mixed rice paper, fried fish balls, fruits, etc., are located in the outside area.
Can Tho Bridge
2. Cai Rang Floating Market
2.1. Overview
The largest and most well-known floating market in the Mekong Delta is Cai Rang. The market represents the distinct culture of the locals that reside near this powerful river. They shop and haggle on the river, which is easier to get by watercraft, rather than in the town.
The floating market is situated on the Can Tho River (a branch of the Hau River), in the Cai Rang District, about 6 km (or 45 minutes) by boat from Ninh Kieu Quay and Can Tho City's downtown.
Cai Rang Floating Market
2.2. Things to do and see
Blend in the active trading scene
The Cai Rang Floating Market is known for being a wholesale market for local agricultural and fruit products. There are a lot of goods concentrated here. You can watch traders juggle fruit as they move from boat to boat. To find out what they are selling, simply look at what is fastened to the tall pole above the boat. While the large boats are owned by traders to transport fruit around, locals and residents in the surrounding districts frequently utilize them to transport agricultural products to this location for consumption.
Learn about the locals' daily routines
You can see and learn about the lives of numerous families with multiple generations living together aboard boats while soaking up the energetic atmosphere of the specialty market. On the river, there are boats that serve as "mobile apartments," complete with flower pots, pets, and a full interior that includes a TV, DVD, stereo, and a motorcycle parked on the boat. The van is not only utilized for delivery and purchase, but it also serves as the family home of the trader. On boats, all daily activities take place.
Buy local products
Cai Rang, one of the Mekong Delta's major trading hubs, is where locals may buy and sell a variety of items for use in their everyday lives. In addition to basic necessities, this is a well-known site to acquire competitively priced local goods. Freshest fruits including durian, milk fruit, rambutan, mangosteen, grapefruit, etc., as well as other processed specialties like fish sauce, coconut candy, and dried fish, are available from surrounding farms. Later on in the day, you can pack a picnic with your pick of selection of fresh fruit!
Try local foods & drinks
While visiting the floating market, you shouldn't pass up any intriguing dining opportunities! Breakfast is available at several floating restaurants for both buyers and sellers. The majority of regional cuisine is available here, including "com tam" (broken rice with grilled pig and an egg), "pho," "hu tieu," and "bun rieu" — several types of noodles eaten with beef, pork, and crab... You can certainly satisfy your hunger with a full dinner for only 25,000 VND (around $1).
3. Cai Be Fruit Garden
3.1 Overview
Not only is it one of the biggest fruit stands in the nation. But it's also regarded as one of the most alluring ecotourism destinations. Stopping by fresh fruit trees is possible when visiting Cai Be garden.
Cai Be Garden is surrounded by rivers and silt-filled, lush green canals. With so many fruit and green trees, it's always fruitful and green. One-third of Tien Giang's fruit tree acreage is made up of gardens and other outdoor spaces.
Cai Be Fruit Garden lies along the Northern side of Tien River, about 70 km away from Ho Chi Minh City.
3.2. Things to do and see
Experience local life
As stated, it is wonderful to experience the local culture here. It is entirely distinct from the people who reside in urban areas, along the central Vietnamese coast, or in the northern Vietnamese mountains. The aforementioned boat trip and cycling tour are great ways to learn a lot about this.
There are numerous small enterprises and businesses in the Cai Be area that turn locally grown ingredients into regional delicacies like rice paper, coconut candy, fish sauce, or dried fish. During a visit, you can observe the entire procedure and perhaps even participate in the production process.
Collect fruits from fruit orchards
Currently, the Cai Be district has nearly 15,000 ha of fruit tree gardens, covering more than 1/3 of the Tien Giang fruit tree area. These gardens include varieties of durians, milk durians with thin seeds from Cai Mon (Ben Tre), Nam Roi pomelos from Binh Minh (Vinh Long), sugar pomelos, logans, King oranges, honey oranges, Hoa Loc sweet mangos, and some grafted mangoes with distinctive flavors.
Other fruit trees include sapodilla, guava, apple, tangerine, jackfruit, plum, peach, and many more. Cai Be gardens are regarded as among the most voluminous in class when compared to the gardens in the Southwest.
Fruits are accessible here year-round, with four distinct seasons and associated product kinds. Therefore, visitors to Cai Be in every season have the opportunity to delight in a bounty of delectable ripe fruits and meet the kind, innocent, sincere, and welcoming locals.
4. Tra Su Forest
4.1. Overview
One of the most stunning places in the Mekong Delta is Tra Su Forest, which is located in Chau Doc Town. This region has developed into a Green-paradise world for wildlife animals and eco-system with 845 hectares of Cajuput trees in the forest.
The Tra Su flooded forest is situated in the Tinh Bien district of the province of An Giang, 60 kilometers from Long Xuyen and 10 kilometers from the Vietnam-Cambodia border. During the flooded season (September, October, and November), it is possible to clearly discern the characteristic Mekong Delta environment in this flooded woodland. The woodland has the attractive appearance of a green carpet of duckweed spanning the entire spacious space.
Tra Su Cajuput Forest
4.2. Things to do and see
Enter Tra Su forest by motorbike
You will initially pass through a large area with dirt roads made of large, old cajuput trees on one side and a roomy area with a lot of different kinds of water and trees on the other. Numerous birds, including storks, can be seen on the road looking for fish, snails, and other food sources. Numerous species, including plants, fish, snails, crabs, frogs, and aquatic creatures, thrive in swampy areas and provide food for storks and other birds that roost overhead.
Explore The diverse ecosystem of the Tra Su flooded forest
The forest has been a popular tourist destination since 2005 and covers an area of more than 800 acres, mostly with cajuput. The forest had been around for hundreds of years before to 2005. Because they can clean the water, produce ideal conditions for fish, aquatic animals, and wading birds like (herons, snake birds, kingfishers, bitterns, egrets.....), vast duckweed carpets in particular play a vital role in maintaining the ecosystem. These green carpets unintentionally enhance the swampland's already serene attractiveness.
There are an estimated 140 different plant species, 70 different bird species, 11 different mammal species, 25 different reptile species, and 23 different fish species. Despite the presence of several snake species, the majority of the species in this area are not poisonous.
Watchtower with telescopes
You will have to walk an additional 500 meters to reach the dining area and watchtower after using a motorboat to travel to the center of the Tra Su forest. It can be difficult to reach the top of the watchtower because it is 5 levels and 14 meters high. The tallest structure in this vicinity is this one. At the top, the watchtower's 360-degree views can assist you in getting a general overview of the forest and a view of some mountains, such as Forbidden Mountain, Sam Mountain, or the region along the Cambodia-Vietnam border.
The watchtower is a nice place to take a break after you have been climbing to the top and enjoy the coldest winds while viewing the daily activities of the birds. For anyone who would like to see the bird nests in greater detail, there is also a telescope available. The tourists appear to be exposed to the forest's rhythm of life, which has even started to become more vivid and lively.
5. Tan Lap Floating Village
5.1. Overview
Tan Lap village used to be an area that was constantly under water. To deal with the water, people constructed homes on tall mounds. The floor was consistently elevated to match the water level whenever the water level rose. As time went on, people began to refer to it as a "floating village". Since the government is working to turn this area into an eco-tourism destination, it is now uninhabited.
Located in the center of Dong Thap Muoi. Tan Lap floating village eco-tourism site in Tan Lap commune, Moc Hoa district, Long An province. It’s about 15km south of the Cambodian border.
5.2. Things to do and see
Take a sampan boat ride amidst canals
This is one of the most alluring services that offer the most genuine impressions and sensations of the breathtaking wetlands' natural settings. You will be guided down the canals by the tour guide wearing “áo bà ba," a traditional Southern Vietnamese gown, where you may immerse yourself in the huge expanse and observe the school of fish swimming beneath the emerald water, which is speckled with clusters of purple water hyacinth and mosquito ferns. A Tan Lap floating village trip will take you across numerous creative bridges and tiny canals while you experience the soft forest solitude.
Take a boat along Tan Lap Village
Participate in Vietnamese folk games
A great location for hundreds of kinds of birds to congregate and go on hunts in the morning and evening is the area for folk games in the floating town of Tan Lap, Vietnam. This area is almost 10ha in size and is bordered by lotus ponds, which are home to many fish species. You can participate in a variety of entertaining Vietnamese folk games, such as tug of war, swinging, balancing a bridge, catching ducks while wearing blindfolds, and slapping a pond to catch fish, in addition to taking in the breathtaking natural scenery. These games can be played individually or in groups.
Learn about the island where the species of birds are tamed
This remote island, which is located deep within the heart of the Melaleuca forest, has been cultivated by skilled bird tamers to create a rich underwater habitat that draws a variety of bird species, including storks. You must board a motorboat or a sampan boat to access this location, then go through narrow canals in the dense forest and cross a bridge that is 100 meters long. Melaleuca trees and several varieties of "Ma" rice canopies blanket the landscape on both sides of the road.
6. Tram Chim National Park
6.1. Overview
Tram Chim National Park was formed in 1998 to serve as a miniature version of the Plain of Reeds. It now successfully communicates the distinctive characteristics of the Westside regions and serves as the indispensable habitat for several natural creatures.
This lush haven, which is ranked 2000th overall and 4th in Vietnam, continues to be significant for global ecology. Tram Chim National Park is deserving of being the pinnacle of ecotourism since it is blessed with a gorgeous environment, pure air, a tranquil atmosphere, and most significantly, holy animals.
In Tam Nong District, Dong Thap, the Tram Chim National Park spans seven communes (Tan Cong Sinh, Phu Duc, Phu Tho, Phu Thanh A, Phu Thanh B, and Phu Hiep). The park continues to be open in a remote area, 35 kilometers away from Cao Lanh City, the administrative center of Dong Thap province. It is located 170 kilometers to the southeast of Ho Chi Minh City and 20 kilometers north of the branch of the Mekong River.
Tram Chim National Park
6.2. Things to do and see
Sightsee on canoe
On a boat tour, visitors will see a lot of stunning sights. To navigate the zigzag network of canals, reserve a Tac Rang (canoe) or wooden boat - with or without a guide. The park's most popular experience is this one. The landscape changes outfits in a split second. One moment you are amid Melaleuca trees, the next you already turn to lotus gardens. The whole journey will be blended in endless green, gentle breeze, and incredible peace.
Be a part of Mekong life
You may experience daily life as it exists in the flooded land. Fishing, setting nets, using trums (eel collecting implements), gathering wild rice, and hunting vole—the local specialty—seems to evoke memories of a bygone era. A chance to take a dip in the clear water surrounded by a sea of purple bladderwort blooms is also available. observing birds.
Camp for afterglow
The park expands rental options for specific regions and rest houses to give visitors a more engaging experience. The quest for nature exploration will continue even as the sun sets. The breathtaking scene can be admired by visitors in the center of streams and rivers.
III. Final Words
Here is the list that we have synthesized in the most detailed way so that you can find it easier to follow and explore the Mekong River Delta. Hope you can enjoy the vacation fully and don’t forget to take a look at our tour to have more useful information.
You can thoroughly immerse yourself in the beauty and culture of this wonderful city by booking your Mekong Delta tour with VietnamStay. You can maximize your time in this beautiful territory and generate priceless memories with the help of our knowledgeable guides and custom itineraries.