The Mekong Delta, often referred to as Vietnam’s rice basket, is the biggest rice-growing region in the country, the rich alluvial soils producing three harvests a year. Despite being a predominantly rural region, the Mekong Delta is one of the most densely populated areas in Vietnam and most of the land is under cultivation. Other delta products include coconut, sugar cane, fruit and fish.

The main towns of the delta are My Tho, Vinh Long, Can Tho and Chau Doc. Driving south from Ho Chi Minh City, My Tho is the first major Mekong Delta town you come to. Its proximity to Ho Chi Minh City has made My Tho the most popular destination for day-trippers to the delta looking for a taste of authentic delta life. Here visitors can take a sampan along the waterways, visit tropical fruit orchards and try the local delicacy, Elephant’s Ear Fish.

The other popular destination for day-trippers from Ho Chi Minh City is Vinh Long, another 65km deeper into the delta. It is the islands in the Mekong River rather than the town itself that is the highlight of a trip to Vinh Long. Most of the islands are given over to fruit orchards and the narrow canals are often straddled by flimsy-looking wooden bridges made from the trunks of coconut palms or bamboo and known as monkey bridges. An early morning visit to nearby Cai Be Floating Market offers great photographic opportunities as all manner of produce is traded from boats. To make shopping easier the boats suspend a sample of what they sell from the top of a long pole. On the way back to Vinh Long it is possible to stop off to visit small riverside workshops including blacksmiths, rice huskers, thatchers and coffin makers!

Just over 30km and a ferry ride away from Vinh Long is Can Tho, the bustling commercial centre of the Mekong Delta. Can Tho is one of the more attractive delta towns but as in the rest of the Mekong Delta the best sights are on the water. The delta’s biggest floating market, Cai Rang Floating Market, is 6km from Can Tho and well worth an early morning visit. For a memorable boat trip the Victoria Can Tho Hotel operates sunrise and sunset cruises on the Lady Hau, a renovated traditional rice barge. A spectacular sight outside of town is the stork garden at Thot Not where hundreds of egrets, herons and cormorants gather in the treetops to roost late in the afternoon.

Chau Doc, nestling at the foot of Sam Mountain on the Cambodian border, has a real frontier town feel to it. This busy little riverine town has large Cham, Khmer and ethnic Chinese communities and the distinctive architectural styles of each community can be seen in their places of worship around the town. A boat trip on the river is the best way to see the unusual floating fish farms, houses with wooden pens suspended underneath where live fish are kept. Chau Doc’s Sam Mountain is home to dozens of temples and shrines and is a popular pilgrimage site for ethnic Chinese as well as Vietnamese. Source: Active Travel Vietnam

Mekong Delta in Vietnamese-Nine Dragon river delta) is the region in Southeast Vietnam where the Mekong River approaches and empties into the sea through a network of tributaries. The Mekong delta region encompasses a large portion of southeastern Vietnam of 39,000 km². The area covered by water depends on the season.

As all deltas, it receives the bounty of the siltation from the upper Mekong, and as such is a very rich and lush area, covered with rice fields. It produces about half of the total of Vietnam's agricultural output, and is the place for timeless sceneries of farmers planting or harvesting rice.

The Mekong splits in Cambodia into two main rivers, the Bassac (Hậu Giang) and the First river (Tiền Giang), then in Vietnam into a more complex system, creating a maze of small canals, rivers and arroyos interspersed with villages and floating markets.

Life in the Mekong Delta revolves much around the river, and all the villages are often accessible by river rather than by road.

The high times of life in the Mekong delta are the lunar new year (Tet, or Tết), and the mid-automn festival (Tết trung thu), where children will set hundreds of candles on their way on the river on as many tiny skiffs.

Regions and cities
The most renowned places in the Mekong delta are My Tho (Mỹ Tho) and Cai Be (Cái Bè) near Ho Chi Minh City, then, more to the heart of the region, Vinh Long (Vĩnh Long) and Can Tho (Cần Thơ), from where it is possible to reach the remotest confines of the delta, South towards the mangrove and the South China Sea, North towards Chau Doc (Châu Đốc) and Cambodia, or West towards the island of Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc).

Regions and cities
The most renowned places in the Mekong delta are My Tho (Mỹ Tho) and Cai Be (Caí Bè) near Ho Chi Minh City, then, more to the heart of the region, Vinh Long (Vĩnh Long) and Can Tho (Cần Thơ), from where it is possible to reach the remotest confines of the delta, South towards the mangrove and the South China Sea, North towards Chau Doc (Châu Đốc) and Cambodia, or West towards the island of Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc).

Understand
If you know how to take your time, or are guided by an able guide, you will certainly enjoy your stay in the Mekong delta.

Get in
The Mekong delta is near to Ho Chi Minh City, and Can Tho (Cần Thơ) is merely 4 hours' drive away, so it is easy to access by road, although there is only one main road, and as such it is rather crowded.

There used to be hydrofoil connections from Ho Chi Minh City to My Tho (Mỹ Tho) then to Can Tho(Cần Thơ) in about 4 hours, but the option does not exist any more. Alternatives are speed boat transfers, or for those who would enjoy unspoilt nature, cruises from Cai Be (Cái Bè) to Can Tho or back.

The Mekong delta is also a natural passageway from southern Vietnam to Cambodia, which can be entered overland or by river. Visas on entry to Cambodia are possible at some (but not all) entry points, however visas for Vietnam must be obtained in advance.

Get around
Countless travel agencies in Ho Chi Minh City can arrange Mekong Delta tours. Source: Wikitravel