• Menu
  • Skip to right header navigation
  • Skip to main content

The Wandering Suitcase

Travel Blog

  • Home
  • Start Here
  • New Zealand Travel
  • Destinations
    • Australia
    • Fiji
    • Finland
    • Japan
    • New Zealand
    • Scotland
    • Singapore
    • Sweden
    • USA
    • Vietnam
  • Musings
  • Tips & Tools
    • Balancing a Career with Travel
    • Blogging
    • Budget Travel
    • Driving Overseas
    • Hiking
    • Moving Overseas
    • Photography
    • Winter Travel Tips
    • Sustainability
  • About
  • Home
  • Start Here
  • New Zealand Travel
  • Destinations
    • Australia
    • Fiji
    • Finland
    • Japan
    • New Zealand
    • Scotland
    • Singapore
    • Sweden
    • USA
    • Vietnam
  • Musings
  • Tips & Tools
    • Balancing a Career with Travel
    • Blogging
    • Budget Travel
    • Driving Overseas
    • Hiking
    • Moving Overseas
    • Photography
    • Winter Travel Tips
    • Sustainability
  • About
Mekong delta private tour - fruit boat

A sustainable Mekong Delta private tour to Cai Be

January 25, 2019 //  by Mae-Gene//  Leave a Comment

Why, hello there! This post might contain affiliate links, which means I earn a commission (at no extra cost to you!) if you purchase from them. 

Pin58
Share
Tweet
58 Shares

Visiting the Mekong Delta (even if it was just a glimpse!) was our favorite experience in Vietnam. I’d always wanted to see the floating markets here, and this Mekong Delta private tour was the perfect way to do it.

In this post, I’ll share our experience booking a local day tour to the town of Cai Be to see the floating markets (note: this is a non-sponsored post!) I loved my experience so much, I want to share it with others.

Mekong delta private tour - floating market fruit

Why visit the Mekong Delta?

The Mekong Delta is a must visit for any traveler to Vietnam. If you want to experience and see more traditional parts of Vietnam, away from the big city, this is the perfect place to do it.

The Mekong Delta is the worlds 12th longest river, which stretches across several countries. It runs through China (Yunnan province), Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam. Yes – this is one long-ass river!

Many towns and cities lie along the Mekong Delta. In Vietnam, there are endless places you could visit here. One of the most famous parts of the Mekong Delta is the Floating Markets.

These are markets which exist on boats. That is – local market holders (or boat holders should I say?) sell their goods and produce on boats.

The most famous floating market is the Cai Rang Floating Market, located in Can Tho. If you book a traditional 1 day Mekong Delta tour, you will most likely visit the Cai Rang Floating Market.

Other markets you can visit include Cai Be, Nga Bay, Phong Dien… And many, many more.

When researching, we found it overwhelming choosing from the different places we could visit.

Mekong delta private tour - boat driver

Our Mekong Delta Private Tour experience

When we booked our trip to Vietnam, visiting the famous floating markets were on our wish list, but we found many of the tours to be very “touristy.”

Most of the tours came with mixed reviews or involved big busloads of tourists. We were after something small and run by a local operator.

For new visitors: I’m a huge fan of traveling sustainably and choosing local tour groups rather than big bus tour companies. I have a guide about responsible travel in Vietnam – check it out if you’re interested in finding out more!

Imagine my surprise when we came across a tour guide by the name of Jason SS Superstar. Jason offers locally run Mekong Delta private tours and comes highly recommended via TripAdvisor forums. Jason’s tours are focused on experiences around Cai Be, where he is based locally.

We reached out a day after arriving in Saigon, and crossed our fingers – after all, it was a little last minute! While Jason was not available, he organized for us to take a tour with his cousin, Mr. Vu who also lives in Cai Be.

We were picked up from our hotel in Saigon at 7 am by Mr. Duong, our driver for the day for a 2hr drive to Cai Be. Located along the Mekong River, Cai Be is a small town of approximately 2000.

Mekong delta private tour - bananas

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:  Responsible travel guide to Vietnam

Cai Be’s Floating Market

Upon arrival, we were met with our guide for the day, Mr. Vu. Mr. Vu welcomed us to his hometown and explained we were about to get onto a boat for a tour of the floating markets.

Cai Be is not nearly as popular as Cai Rang with tourists, as Cai Rang’s floating markets are larger and busier, but it we loved feeling like we weren’t just another busload of tourists.

Mr. Vu explained that the market boats obtain the fruits/vegetables from elsewhere for resell in the local area. You can tell what each boat sells based on the pole on the boat – it will show what they sell.

We then stopped by a fruit boat, where we disembarked and got to eat a selection of local fruit. It was fun to see the fruit on the boat and watch other boats float by and purchase fruit. We saw other tourist boats float by, but the tour groups were too large to disembark.

Mekong delta private tour - floating market

Exploring other parts of Cai Be

We then disembarked for a walking tour of the local market. Since Mr. Vu is from Cai Be, this is the market where he shops himself. He counts many of the stall holders amongst his friends.

The tour included Mr. Vu showing us local food and tasting snacks along the way. He also showed us duck eggs that had baby ducks in them. This is a Vietnamese delicacy which I was too chicken to try  (I couldn’t stomach it)

Mekong delta private tour - cai be market

We then took the local ferry across the river to visit a nearby temple. Mr. Vu showed us around the garden, and we had a quiet moment inside.

The next part of the trip involved visiting the local island – the trip was a bit further, so we got to relax on hammocks on the boat (a fun and relaxing way to enjoy our time on the boat!)

We floated through the narrow waterways, past the homes of residents. It was an incredibly peaceful 30 mins before we made our way back to the mainland!

Mekong delta private tour - boat

We hopped on the back of Mr. Vu’s motorbike to the local hotel to see the view from of Cai Be from the top.

Our Vietnamese Lunch

The driver then picked us up, and we drove 15 min to Mr. Vu’s house, where his parents greeted us. Mama Vu showed us how to wrap spring rolls, and Papa Vu deep fried them.

We enjoyed a delicious home cooked meal from Mamma Vu, and we were treated like family – Mr. Vu even showed us his collection of bottled snakes and his family photos on the wall.

In Summary – Our Mekong Delta Private Tour experience

If you have time on your Vietnam trip, I would highly recommend booking a multi-day experience with Jason, however, if you’re short on time the day trip is a great way to experience the Mekong Delta. Unlike the big bus tours, we didn’t feel rushed at all.

Mekong delta private tour - pineapples

Supporting local tour guides is an essential part of traveling responsibly. The more we travel, we realize the larger tour companies are less likely to take responsibility or look after the local environment. It’s the tour guides who are local to the area who care about taking care of the area they live in for future generations.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE:  Responsible travel guide to Vietnam

For my fellow responsible travelers who want to visit the Mekong Delta, I would highly recommend booking with a local tour company.

If you want to book a tour through Jason SS Superstar, you can find his details below:

Check out Jason’s Facebook page

Read Jason’s reviews on Tripadvisor here

We loved our experience and at the risk of sounding a little cheesy, will remember our day for years to come.

Are you planning on visiting the Mekong Delta?

Would you take a Mekong Delta Private Tour? 

Leave me a comment and let me know!

Pin58
Share
Tweet
58 Shares

Category: Other Vietnam, Sustainability, Vietnam

About Mae-Gene Yew

Why hello there, new friend! I'm Mae-Gene, the travel-obsessed Aussie girl behind The Wandering Suitcase blog.

I'm obsessed with eating copious amounts of sushi and hiking in New Zealand. But on most days you can find me in my home city of Melbourne dreaming of my next adventure, working my lil' corner of the internet (this blog!) or gettin' ready to strap on my hiking boots. Read more...

Previous Post: «responsible travel in vietnam - kayak Responsible travel guide to Vietnam
Next Post: The Ultimate Guide to Responsible Travel in Hoi An »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Site Footer

The Wandering Suitcase is a participant in several affiliate programs.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

You can find our full disclosure and privacy policy here.

Copyright © 2023 The Wandering Suitcase · All Rights Reserved · Powered by Mai Theme