Mekong Delta Discovery — 4 Days / 3 Nights

DAY 1 – HO CHI MINH CITY TO MY THO | EMBARKATION

Transfer by private vehicle from Ho Chi Minh City to My Tho — the gateway to the Mekong Delta, approximately 70 kilometres southwest of the city. Embark your luxury river cruise vessel at My Tho pier in the late morning. A welcome lunch on board as the vessel casts off and moves into the main Mekong channel. The afternoon brings the first sampan excursion through the narrow canals of Ben Tre province: fish sauce workshops, rice paper factories, and orchards of longan and pomelo. Welcome dinner on board: a chef’s tasting menu of reinterpreted Mekong Delta classics — ca tai tuong deep-fried elephant ear fish, lau mam fermented fish hot pot, and che buoi pomelo dessert soup.

DAY 2 – CAI RANG FLOATING MARKET | BEN TRE CANALS | CAN THO

A 5:30 AM call for the highlight of the Delta: Cai Rang Floating Market, the largest wholesale floating market in the Mekong Delta, operating at its most vivid in the two hours after dawn. Transfer by sampan through the pre-dawn river traffic into the centre of the market where hundreds of boats laden with watermelons, pineapples, and sweet potatoes cluster together in a floating commerce that has functioned the same way for generations. Breakfast back on board as the ship moves on through the canals of Ben Tre province — the land of coconuts. Lunch on board. Afternoon navigation upstream toward Can Tho. Optional cyclo ride through Can Tho’s riverside streets: the Binh Thuy Ancient House, a perfectly preserved merchant villa with French and Chinese architectural details accumulated over 150 years of river trade.

DAY 3 – LONG XUYEN | TAN LOC ISLAND | CHAU DOC

Depart Can Tho before dawn for the upstream leg toward Long Xuyen. Morning yoga on the sun deck as the delta awakens. Midmorning stop at Tan Loc Island — a river island mid-channel accessible only by boat, home to a community of farmers who grow nothing but longan, rambutan, and dragon fruit on the rich alluvial soil. A homestay lunch at a local family home: steamed snakehead fish, morning glory with garlic, and rice from the paddies visible from the dining table. Continue upstream toward Chau Doc — the frontier town at the Vietnam-Cambodia border. A guided visit to the floating fish farms and the Cham Muslim village of Chau Giang across the river. Disembark at Chau Doc pier and transfer to Victoria Nui Sam Lodge on the hillside above the town.

DAY 4 – NUI SAM MOUNTAIN | RETURN TO HO CHI MINH CITY

Rise early for a sunrise walk up Nui Sam — the sacred mountain that rises improbably from the flat delta plain above Chau Doc. Breakfast at the lodge before private transfer back to Ho Chi Minh City — approximately four hours by road, or 45 minutes by speedboat to the city’s Bach Dang pier. Optional extension: cross into Cambodia at the border for a continuing river journey to Phnom Penh — see Tour 2.

Tour Inclusions

• 3 nights accommodation — 2 nights luxury river cruise (full board) & 1 night Victoria Nui Sam Lodge (breakfast)
• All sampan excursions and shore visits as per itinerary
• Cai Rang Floating Market dawn visit with guide
• Tan Loc Island homestay lunch
• Chau Giang Cham village visit
• Nui Sam Mountain sunrise walk
• English-speaking river guide throughout
• All transfers by private air-conditioned vehicle
• Welcome dinner (Day 1) and all meals on board the cruise vessel
• 24/7 on-trip support from Sun DMC operations team

Practical Information

Best Time to Travel: November – April (dry season; floating markets and canals at their most accessible)
Minimum Pax: 2 pax (FIT); 10 pax for group rates
Vessel: Boutique luxury river cruise, maximum 14 suites, private en-suite, air-conditioned
Accommodation Tier: Luxury (5-star vessel + Victoria Lodge) — mid-range vessel option available upon request
Customization: Itinerary can be extended with a Cambodia border crossing continuation. Contact your Sun DMC account manager for NET rates.