Cai Be Floating Market Tour: Sampan Cruise in Mekong Delta
A wooden boat, a floating market, and the farms that feed the delta
A full-day Mekong Delta tour from Cai Be takes you by motorized boat to the former wholesale floating market on the Tien River, then to working family farms where locals produce rice paper, honey, and handicrafts from water hyacinth. You taste seasonal fruit and honey tea in a garden, cruise a narrow sampan channel for 30 minutes, bike through paddy fields, and eat a Vietnamese set menu lunch on Tan Thai island. An English-speaking guide leads the route. Pickup is included.
Options for this experience
2 optionsStep-by-step itinerary
Mekong Delta Floating Market and Village Tour
- Embark wooden boat at floating market
- Cruise along Mekong river bank
- Visit local houses producing rice paper and handicrafts
- Bike along green paddy village road
- 30-minute paddle boat ride in scissor channels
What’s included
- Bottled water throughout the day.
- motorized boat and sampan cruise on the Mekong.
- air-conditioned vehicle for transfers.
- seasonal fruit and honey tea tasting in a garden.
- English-speaking tour guide.
- Vietnamese set menu lunch at a local farmstay.
- biking on the island (on request).
Times
- Every day 07:00 08:00 08:30
Before you book
Operated by VietCruise Tours
Prices and times updated 3 days ago
Traveler reviews
The experience
The tour starts with a wooden boat ride to the floating market, where farmers still buy, sell and live from their boats along the Tien River. From there you cruise past green gardens and paddy fields to visit local houses where families produce rice popcorn, rice paper, honey wine and water hyacinth handicrafts: the work that sustains life in the delta. A guide explains how each craft is made as you watch, and you taste what they produce: seasonal fruit and honey kumquat tea while listening to southern Vietnamese folk music in a garden setting.
After the farms, a 30-minute sampan ride takes you through narrow scissor channels shaded by overhanging plants, a quieter counterpoint to the motorized boat. Then you bike along green paddy village roads on your own pace before heading to lunch. The meal is a Vietnamese set menu served at a local farmstay on Tan Thai island, eaten with the family who runs it. Biking after lunch is optional, depending on your interest and energy.
The tour runs 8.5 hours total and includes an air-conditioned vehicle for transfers, bottled water throughout, and an English-speaking guide. You can book it as a private tour with your own guide and boat, or join a small group sharing the same route and stops.
Is this one for you?Choose the private option if you want the guide and boat to yourself and your travel companions, or the small group option if you are comfortable sharing the route with other travelers and prefer a lower price. Both follow the same itinerary and stops. The difference is who else is on the boat.
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Top questions
Can children come?
Yes. Ticket types: Child (5 to 9 years); Infant (under 5): free.
What happens if it rains?
It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.
What is the floating market at Cai Be like when we arrive?
Cai Be's floating market on the Tien River is a working market where farmers buy and sell produce from their boats, and some live on the water year-round. It is no longer a wholesale hub as it once was, but boats still gather to trade and chat, giving you a real view of how the delta's waterways function as a marketplace and a home.
Do we actually get in a sampan, or just watch from the bigger boat?
You transfer into a sampan for a 30-minute paddle through narrow channels with overhanging trees and plants. It is a separate leg of the tour, quieter and slower than the motorized boat ride, and it lets you see a different part of the delta landscape up close.
What do we eat and taste during the day?
You taste seasonal fresh fruit and honey kumquat tea in a garden while listening to folk music. Lunch is a full Vietnamese set menu served at a farmstay on Tan Thai island. The tour also includes snacks at the local farms you visit, though specific items depend on the season.
Is the biking part mandatory, or can we skip it?
Biking along the paddy fields after lunch is on request, so you can choose to do it or rest instead. The guide will offer it as an option once you finish eating.
Cai Be Floating Market Tour: Sampan Cruise in Mekong Delta
8h 30m · EN
from US$ 91 per person
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