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A sandy beach and turquoise sea with a forested mountain behind, Côn Đảo

Sample journey · 9–11 days

Southern Vietnam slowly: canals, floating markets and the islands of Côn Đảo

Ho Chi Minh City, Bến Tre, Cần Thơ & Côn Đảo

Photo: Degaharu / Unsplash

Illustrative journey ideas — not bookable packages. No prices, dates or accommodation are implied.

Southern Vietnam is often seen in a hurry: a day in Ho Chi Minh City, a single trip to the Mekong Delta and then a flight north. This journey gives the south its due. The delta is not a day trip but several nights: the coconut-palm canals of Bến Tre, explored by small boat and by bicycle between the orchards, and Cần Thơ, where traders gather at dawn for a floating market. The stays run from a family home beside a canal to quiet riverside lodges.

To finish, a short flight to Côn Đảo, one of the quietest stretches of Vietnam's coast. Most of the archipelago is a national park of rainforest, coral and beaches where, in season, green turtle hatchlings make their way to the sea. It also holds the history of the prisons where thousands were held in the colonial and war years, a story we tell calmly and with respect. It suits couples and honeymooners who want culture and time by the sea together, without the big resorts.

The route

The journey

  1. Ho Chi Minh City
  2. Bến Tre
  3. Cần Thơ & the Cái Răng market
  4. Côn Đảo
  5. Ho Chi Minh City
  1. Ho Chi Minh City's skyline at night and boats on the Saigon River near the Ba Son bridge

    01Days 1–3 · Ho Chi Minh City

    A city that never pauses

    Two nights in Ho Chi Minh City, which many locals still call Saigon. In the morning, the old centre on foot: the Central Post Office with its iron vaults, the red-brick cathedral and quiet courtyards hiding cafés. The War Remnants Museum tells a hard story, so we visit only if you wish, with a guide who helps place it in context. In the afternoon, the Chinatown of Chợ Lớn, with its incense-filled temples and wholesale streets. In the evening, a food walk with a local guide on foot or by scooter: cơm tấm, bánh xèo and sweets whose names are impossible to remember but whose taste lingers. On the next evening, a boat on the Saigon River as the city lights spill across the water.

  2. Boats on a river among the greenery of Bến Tre province in the Mekong Delta

    02Days 3–4 · Bến Tre

    Canals under the coconut palms

    About two hours south and across the branches of the Mekong lies Bến Tre, a province where coconut palms grow in every garden. One night here, in a family home beside a canal or a quiet riverside lodge, depending on the comfort you'd like. In the afternoon, a small rowing boat along narrow canals under the palm fronds, workshops where coconut candy is boiled and mats are woven, and a bicycle along paths between fruit orchards. In the evening, dinner with your hosts: fish from the canal, crisp rice-paper rolls and a conversation that a guide often helps along. At night the only sounds are frogs and the occasional passing boat.

  3. Traders in boats laden with produce at the Cái Răng floating market, Cần Thơ

    03Days 4–6 · Cần Thơ & Cái Răng

    A market that opens before dawn

    About two hours further south-west is Cần Thơ, the largest city in the delta, and two nights by the river. On the second morning we rise early: in the dark, a boat heads to the Cái Răng floating market, where traders hoist what they sell, a pineapple, a pumpkin or a cabbage, on tall poles so buyers can see from afar. Breakfast is a hot noodle soup bought straight from a passing boat. The market has been shrinking in recent years, so it's worth seeing now, with a guide who talks about changing life on the river. In the afternoon, the old Bình Thủy house with its French and Chinese motifs, the Ninh Kiều waterfront and free time by the pool or the river.

  4. Fishing boats moored in a calm bay beneath green hills, Côn Đảo

    04Days 6–8 · Côn Đảo

    An archipelago that stayed quiet

    A short flight from Cần Thơ or via Ho Chi Minh City brings you to Côn Đảo: an archipelago of sixteen islands, whose main island has one main street, a few villages and long beaches beneath forested mountains. Four nights mean no rush. The first days are for the sea: snorkelling or diving on the coral of the national park's waters, a boat to smaller islands whose beaches are often empty, and a forest trail down to a cove. In the mornings it's worth driving the coast road by scooter or car, when the light is soft and the only traffic is goats and fishermen. We'd choose the stay around what you want, from a small hotel above a bay to a quiet villa over the beach.

  5. An old stone pier reaching out to sea on Côn Sơn island, Côn Đảo

    05Days 8–10 · Côn Đảo: history & turtles

    Places of remembrance and a night with turtles

    One day is given to the island's history. The prisons founded by the French in the mid-19th century, and used again in the war years, left a deep mark: today their courtyards and cells can be visited with a guide, and the Hàng Dương cemetery is an important place of remembrance for Vietnamese visitors, who come in the evenings with incense and flowers. We visit calmly and without hurry. In summer (roughly May to October) green turtles come ashore to nest on beaches on the park's islands; with park rangers, under their rules and only for a limited number of visitors, it's sometimes possible to watch them laying or to see hatchlings heading for the sea. It depends on the season and on permits, so we promise nothing in advance. On the last day, a flight to Ho Chi Minh City and onward home.

Experience highlights

  1. 01

    A night by the canal

    Bến Tre's palm-shaded canals, dinner with your hosts and a silence broken only by frogs.

  2. 02

    Cái Răng at dawn

    A floating market where goods hang from poles and breakfast arrives by boat.

  3. 03

    The sea at Côn Đảo

    Coral, empty beaches and islands you can reach only by boat.

  4. 04

    Sea turtles

    In season and with park rangers, green turtle nests and hatchlings.

First, we listen. Then, we explore what's possible.

Make it your own

  • For a honeymoon

    Longer on Côn Đảo in one of a few quiet villas above the beach, a private boat to the islands and dinner by the sea.

  • Slower in the delta

    One more night around Bến Tre or Cái Bè, with more time for bicycles and boats among the orchards.

  • With the seasons

    The delta is most comfortable in the dry season, while turtle season on Côn Đảo is in summer. If the turtles matter most, we plan around them.

  • With Cambodia or central Vietnam

    From the delta you can continue upriver to Phnom Penh and Angkor, or fly from Ho Chi Minh City to Hội An and the central coast.

Practical considerations

  • Southern Vietnam is warm all year. The dry season runs roughly December to April; in the rainy season (roughly May to November) short but heavy afternoon downpours are common. The sea around Côn Đảo is usually calmest in roughly March to June, and turtle nesting season runs roughly May to October.
  • Flights to Côn Đảo are short, but the planes are small and services limited, so we book early and check schedules before you travel.
  • Turtle watching is possible only with national park rangers and under their rules; we check the current arrangements and permits before you travel.
  • The Côn Đảo prisons and the Hàng Dương cemetery are places of remembrance for the Vietnamese: we dress modestly and keep our voices low.

General guidance only. Seasons, weather and wildlife are never guaranteed, and travel requirements are always worth checking before you go.

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