Mekong Delta Full Day Tour – Cai Rang Floating Market

Overview of the Cai Rang floating market tour

If you want to enjoy a peaceful atmosphere, be close to nature, and gain a better understanding of the lives of people in the Floating Market, then you can’t miss the Mekong Delta full day tour from Ho Chi Minh City, a journey to experience the land of the Western Capital fully, Can Tho, with places like Cai Rang Floating Market, a traditional craft village, and Son Islet.

Cai Rang Floating Market is located right at the confluence of three rivers (the Hau River and the Cai Rang River). Because of its prime location in shallow water, it provides ideal conditions for boats to anchor. Gradually, more and more boats came to anchor here, turning it into a bustling floating market. 

This is an attractive destination not only for locals but also a familiar stop on the Can Tho exploration itinerary for many adventurous travelers. Established in the early 20th century, Cai Rang Floating Market is where people from the Mekong Delta come to exchange and buy goods, especially specialties of the region. 

In 2016, Cai Rang Floating Market was recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage, becoming a source of pride for the people of the Mekong Delta.

Mekong Delta full day tour itinerary

At 4:00 AM: The tour guide will pick you up at the hotel, beginning the tour of the Mekong Delta full day tour from Ho Chi Minh city and exploring the wholesale market along the Cai Rang floating market. The floating market usually operates from 4:00 AM to 9:00 AM, so you have to start the day early.

07:00 AM: You arrive at Ninh Kieu pier in Can Tho. The tour guide will you onto a boat to visit the Cai Rang Floating Market. Here, you can freely explore and discover the unique beauty of this market. The bustling and cheerful atmosphere provides wonderful moments of fun and relaxation.

Furthermore, the locals are extremely friendly, so while shopping or eating on the boats, you can listen to them share stories about the daily lives of people in the Mekong Delta.

With the diverse range of goods, trading on the Can Tho River used to be challenging due to the market’s vast space, where the noise of engines and people blended, drowning out the vendors’ calls. Therefore, the “four-hanging” – “4 treo” method emerged to help both sellers and buyers easily identify what nearby boats were selling.

In that context, “4 treo” means the following:

– What you hang up to sell: Whatever the boat owner sells, they will hang that item on a pole (also called a “neu” pole) so that boats and canoes on the opposite side can easily identify the goods.

– Hanging up but not for sale: Clothes belonging to families living right on their boats.

– Not displayed, but sold: These are the boats that serve food on the river, such as vermicelli, noodle soup, coffee, and meat sandwiches…

– Hanging one thing but selling something else: When a boat owner wants to sell their boat, they will hang a piece of roofing material on a pole.

You can have breakfast on the river with many famous dishes in Vietnam, like Pho, Hu Tieu (Vietnamese Noodle Soup), Bun Rieu, etc., and treat yourself to delightful refreshments, including aromatic coffee, cool fresh coconut water, and various types of “che” (traditional Vietnamese sweet soup).

08:00 AM: The boat will leave the floating market and take you to a noodle factory. Visit a traditional rice noodle workshop. This place is also famous for its noodle pizza.

Through a few simple steps, such as seasoning the noodles, frying them until golden brown, and adding ham, depending on the visitor’s preference, a crispy and delicious noodle pizza will be ready (at your own expense). 

09:30 AM: You return to the Ninh Kieu pier. Arriving at the wharf where the captain had picked you up at dawn

10:00 AM: Continue the Cai Rang floating market tour. The car will to take you to the pier, then transfer you to the Con Son tourist area.

You can board a boat to visit the fish farms on the Hau River: over 30 big and small fish farms form a long row stretching about a kilometer, standing proudly against the waves of the Mekong River, with many types of fish such as basa, eel, giant catfish… but the main species is the spotted snakehead fish.

Koi fish massage & enjoying Thac Lac fish cake: You will admire thousands of koi fish in various colors and experience the fascinating koi fish massage. After the massage, the group will enjoy Thac Lac fish cake.

Visiting the Flying Snakehead Fish area, you can admire the unique performance of snakehead fish leaping and jumping on the water’s surface—a truly strange and beautiful sight—and visit the guava orchard to enjoy fresh, delicious guavas straight from the branches.

1:00 PM: You will have lunch at the Con Son Community Tourism Village, enjoying local specialties. 

Visiting fruit orchards (seasonal): On Con Son Island, visitors can visit orchards of rambutan, longan, pomelo, mangosteen, strawberries, guava, etc., laden with fruit, and can personally select and pick the fruit directly from the trees to enjoy right in the orchard.

3:30 PM: The vehicle will pick you up and take you back to your hotel. The Cai Rang floating market tour concludes. On behalf of the company, the Vietnam Trails Travel guide bids you farewell and hopes to see you again on future trips! 

The driver will drop you off at your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City around 6:30 PM – 7:00 PM. However, please note that the arrival time may be delayed by 30 to 60 minutes due to rest stops and weekend traffic congestion.