Delta day trips from Ho Chi Minh City
From Ho Chi Minh City
The Mekong Delta in a day, or with one night
Day trips to My Tho, Ben Tre and Cai Be, and a two-day trip to Can Tho for the Cai Rang market at dawn. Each one runs as a join-in day with other travellers or as a private day for your own party, and each page says what that choice changes: who is in the vehicle, when you are collected, and how long you sit on the road.
Where to begin
Three ways in
People reach this page at different points. Some already know they want a day on the river and only need to pick a route. Some have heard the names My Tho, Ben Tre, Cai Be and Can Tho and want to know how they differ. Some have one question only: should we join a group or pay for our own car and guide? Start wherever you are.
Pick a trip
Four trips: My Tho and Ben Tre in a day, Cai Be in a day, Can Tho over two days, and a private Ben Tre day for families and small groups. See the trips.
Understand the places
What each town is really like now, what changed after the 2025 province merger, and when each one is worth the drive. See the places.
Decide how to go
Join-in against private, route by route, with pick-up times and hours in the vehicle. Compare the two.
Trips
The four trips at a glance
| Trip | Days | Leaves the city | Back in the city | Road time, round trip | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| My Tho and Ben Tre | 1 | 08:00–08:30 | about 17:00 | about 3–4 h | On request |
| Cai Be | 1 | about 07:00 | about 18:00 | about 4–5 h | On request |
| Can Tho and Cai Rang | 2 | 07:30–08:00 | about 17:00–18:00 on day 2 | about 6–7 h direct, more via Ben Tre | On request |
| Private Ben Tre day | 1 | your choice, often 07:00–08:00 | your choice | about 3.5–4.5 h | On request |
Times are typical windows taken from published join-in schedules in the city and from route-planner distances; the exact time for your date goes on your written confirmation. Road time assumes normal weekday traffic. Weekends and public holidays add to it, sometimes by an hour or more at the junctions where the expressway meets the old roads.
Sources: TheSinhTourist — Mekong tour listing; Mekong Smile — shared-minivan My Tho & Ben Tre day; OSRM / OpenStreetMap route model, queried 11 Oct 2026 · checked .
How to go
Join-in or private, in short
A join-in day puts you in a shared vehicle with other travellers who booked the same route for the same date. One guide speaks to the whole group. The route, the lunch stop and the departure time are fixed, and the vehicle may collect several people from different hotels before it leaves the city. It costs less because the vehicle, the guide and the boats are split across everyone on board.
A private day is your party only: your car or minivan, your guide, your boats. You choose the pick-up time, you can leave earlier to beat the heat, skip a stop that does not interest you, or stay longer where the children are happy. You pay for the whole vehicle and the whole guide, so the price per person falls as your party grows.
Neither is better in general. For one or two travellers on a budget who are content with the standard route, join-in is usually the sensible answer, and we say so. For families, slow walkers, photographers and groups of four or more, private often costs less per person than people expect. The full comparison, route by route, is on the join-in or private page.
The road out of the city has changed
Every trip on this site starts on the same road: the Ho Chi Minh City–Trung Luong expressway, 62 km long, four lanes plus two emergency lanes. From Trung Luong the routes split. My Tho is a short run off the end of the expressway. Ben Tre is across the Tien River by the Rach Mieu bridge, and since 19 August 2025 also by the new Rach Mieu 2 bridge; the temporary ferry that used to carry traffic stopped the next day. Cai Be is further along the Trung Luong–My Thuan expressway, and Can Tho is reached over the My Thuan 2 bridge and the My Thuan–Can Tho expressway, opened in December 2023.
These roads made the delta closer, but not every day. Press reports describe frequent congestion on the Trung Luong expressway at weekends and holidays, and on New Year's Day 2026 queues at the Dong Tam junction near My Tho were worst on the approach from the expressway. If you can travel on a weekday, do.
Distances and typical times for each route are on the pick-up and timing page.
Sources: Báo Sài Gòn Giải Phóng — Mekong expressway corridor, 20 Jan 2026; Doanh nghiệp Hội nhập — Rạch Miễu 2 opens, 19 Aug 2025; KTSG Online — HCMC–Trung Lương expressway congestion, 20 Jul 2022; Tuổi Trẻ — Đồng Tâm junction on New Year's Day, 1 Jan 2026 · checked .
A straight word on floating markets
Many brochures still sell the delta with a picture of hundreds of boats. That picture is out of date. Roads and bridges have let traders move their goods by truck, and the markets have shrunk. Cai Rang in Can Tho is the main one that still works as a market, smaller than it was and with a growing share of tourist boats. It is busiest roughly from 06:00 to 07:30, which is why our Can Tho trip spends a night there.
Cai Be's market, near the start of the Cai Be day trip, has faded much further; recent reports describe only a few trading boats on many mornings. We still run the Cai Be day, but we sell it for the river, the workshops and the orchards, not for the market.
Sources: Doanh nghiệp Hội nhập — Cái Răng heritage and decline, 20 Oct 2020; vietnamtourism.com (private publisher) — Cái Răng guide, 27 May 2026; Báo Văn Hóa — floating markets that no longer float, 12 Aug 2024 · checked .
How booking works
- 01
Send the form
The route, the date, how many of you, and whether you lean to join-in or private.
- 02
Read our reply
By email: the price per person for your date and party, the pick-up window, the vehicle and what is included.
- 03
Confirm in writing
Payment details come only on the written confirmation. Nothing is held until you confirm.
- 04
Check the evening before
Your pick-up window and the meeting point are restated before the day.
The how to book page covers changes, weather and children, and the pricing page explains what moves the price.
Who we are not the right fit for
- Travellers looking for routes of three days or more through the delta — we sell day trips and one two-day trip
- Anyone who wants a crowded floating market from a day trip: that only exists, in reduced form, at Cai Rang at dawn
- Groups who need a guide in a language other than English — tell us in the form and we will say honestly whether we can
- People who want to book for the same day — we need time to confirm the vehicle, the guide and the boats
Common questions
Questions travellers ask most
Which trip should I choose if I only have one day?
My Tho and Ben Tre is the shortest drive and the fullest day on the water. Cai Be is a longer drive for a quieter river. If a floating market matters to you, a day trip will disappoint; the two-day Can Tho trip is the one that reaches Cai Rang while it is still trading.
Is a join-in tour a big bus?
It depends on how many people booked that departure. Published join-in schedules in the city list a bus, a minivan or a car. Your confirmation names the vehicle type for your date.
Do you pick up from any hotel in Ho Chi Minh City?
Join-in departures collect in the central wards of the former District 1, or ask you to walk to a meeting point there. Private trips collect from your hotel; outside the centre we quote the extra transfer time before you book.
How do I contact you?
Send the form on any page. We reply by email to the address you give, with a price for your date and the pick-up window.
Related
Read next
Tours
Tours
The four trips side by side: days, departure times, road time, join-in or private.
View this journey
Planning
Join-in or private
Join-in against private for each route: pick-up, group, road time, what changes in the day.
View this journey
Planning
Pick-up and timing
Pick-up zones in central Ho Chi Minh City, road times per route, and a packing list for heat and boats.
View this journey
Example journey
My Tho and Ben Tre day trip
One day, shortest drive, most time in boats: My Tho, Thoi Son islet and the Ben Tre bank.
View this journey
Example journey
Can Tho and Cai Rang, 2 days
Two days, one night in Can Tho, a boat to Cai Rang before 06:00.
View this journey
Destinations
Destinations
My Tho, Ben Tre, Cai Be and Can Tho compared: distance, crowds, markets, what changed in 2025.
View this journeyStart planning
Tell us which trip and which day
The trip, the date, how many of you and whether you lean to join-in or private are enough to start. We reply by email with a price per person, the pick-up window and what is included.