Mekong Delta 2-Day Tour: Floating Market & Cooking

Row a wooden boat down a canal at sunrise as the floating market fills with vendors selling fruit and fish

A 2-day guided tour from Ho Chi Minh City into the Mekong Delta, based in Can Tho with visits to My Tho, Vinh Trang Pagoda, tropical fruit gardens, and the Cai Rang Floating Market. You take motorboats through the delta's waterways, learn to make Vietnamese pancakes in a hands-on cooking class, and cycle through rural villages. The tour includes one night in a hotel, all meals, an English-speaking guide, and hotel pickup and drop-off from central Ho Chi Minh City.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time at each

1. My Tho1h
2. Cai Rang Floating Market1h · entry included

Day 1: Mekong Delta tour and Can Tho arrival

• Depart to Mekong Delta
• Visit Vinh Trang Pagoda
• Arrive at My Tho Port
• Cruise to Unicorn Island
• Visit Coconut Candy Workshop
• Enjoy tropical fruit garden and folk music
• Rowboat trip on small canal
• Visit orchard garden and bee farm
• Board motorized rickshaw
• Lunch at local restaurant
• Depart to Can Tho
• Check in at hotel
• Free time to explore Can Tho nightlife

Day 2: Cai Rang market and cooking class

• Boat trip to Cai Rang Floating Market
• Return to hotel and check out
• Visit historic house
• Join cooking class for traditional dishes
• Enjoy lunch from cooking class
• Cycle through village
• Return to Ho Chi Minh City

The experience

Day one starts with a 90-minute drive from Ho Chi Minh City through rice fields to My Tho, where you board a motorboat to explore the delta's daily rhythms. You visit Unicorn Island, stop at a coconut candy workshop to taste sugar-free varieties and coconut wine, then drift through a tropical fruit garden listening to Southern Vietnamese folk music. A rowboat takes you down a narrow canal where the water narrows and the noise of the main river fades. You see the bee farm, taste honey tea, and watch how local life moves at the pace of the tides. By midday you're in Can Tho, checked into your hotel with the rest of the afternoon free.

Day two begins before dawn. You head back out on the water to reach the Cai Rang Floating Market while it's at its busiest: vendors selling fresh produce, noodles, and goods directly from wooden boats, the market a working commerce that happens entirely on water. After watching rice noodles being made, you return to the hotel, then move into the kitchen for a hands-on cooking class where you learn to make either bánh xèo (sizzling pancakes) or bánh khọt (small crispy cakes), two dishes rooted in the region. You eat what you've cooked for lunch. In the afternoon you cycle through the village on quiet roads, passing locals going about their day, before the drive back to Ho Chi Minh City.

The tour includes an air-conditioned vehicle, one night in your choice of hotel (3-star, 4-star, or 5-star), all entrance fees and boat rides, breakfast and two lunches, bottled water, and a professional English-speaking guide. Hotel pickup and drop-off are from central Ho Chi Minh City districts.

What’s included

• Hotel pickup and drop-off from central Ho Chi Minh City.
• motorboat and rowboat rides through the delta.
• entrance fees to Vinh Trang Pagoda, Unicorn Island, the coconut candy workshop, fruit garden, and bee farm.
• one night in a 3-star, 4-star, or 5-star hotel (your choice).
• breakfast and two lunches.
• bottled water throughout.
• professional English-speaking guide.
• hands-on cooking class where you make Vietnamese pancakes or crispy cakes.
• village cycling in the afternoon.

Options for this experience

3 options

Guide in English07:30

Guide in English07:30

Guide in English07:30

Options with the same name differ in details you'll see when you pick a date.

You see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates & prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDeparts at 07:30

AgesAdult (8 to 80 years) · Child (3 to 7 years) · Under 3: can't be included in the booking

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup is optional; you can also go straight to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.Operator's directions: “Please note: No-shows or arrivals over 10 minutes late will result in cancellation without refund. Thank you for your punctuality!”

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled if the minimum number of travelers isn't reached. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

Prices and times updated today

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for pregnant travelersNot for heart conditionsNot for back problemsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by SST TRAVEL

Is this one for you?Book this tour if you want to move through the delta by water and on foot rather than watch it pass from a bus window, and if you'd rather learn a dish by making it than eat it in a restaurant. The early morning floating market visit and the hands-on cooking class are the two moments that separate this itinerary from standard delta tours.

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Top questions

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (3 to 7 years). Under 3: they can't be included in the booking.

What is the Cai Rang Floating Market like when we visit it?

The Cai Rang Floating Market is one of Vietnam's largest, and you visit in the early morning when it's at its busiest. Vendors sell fresh fruits, vegetables, and local goods directly from their boats, and you'll watch how traditional rice noodles are made before the crowds thin out.

Do we actually cook the food ourselves, or watch someone else make it?

You join a hands-on cooking class where you learn to make either bánh xèo (Vietnamese sizzling pancakes) or bánh khọt (small crispy cakes), two traditional dishes of the region. You prepare the food yourself and then eat it for lunch.

How much time do we spend on boats versus on land?

Day one is mostly on the water: motorboat to Unicorn Island, rowboat through the canal, and time at the fruit garden and bee farm. Day two starts with an early boat trip to the floating market, then shifts to a cooking class and cycling through the village in the afternoon.

What's included in the price, and what costs extra?

The tour includes entrance fees, all boat rides, one night in your chosen hotel, breakfast and two lunches, bottled water, the guide, and hotel pickup and drop-off. During peak holiday periods (late April, early May, early September, late December, and early February), an additional surcharge applies depending on your hotel choice, paid on-site.

Do we stay in Can Tho or return to Ho Chi Minh City each night?

You stay one night in Can Tho, a city in the heart of the delta. The tour departs Ho Chi Minh City on day one and returns there on day two after the cooking class and village cycle.

Is the cycling difficult, or is it a relaxed ride through the village?

The cycling happens in the afternoon of day two through the village at a pace suited to exploring local life up close. It's described as a way to experience the peaceful rural surroundings and interact with locals, not a strenuous ride.