We have just finished our private 4 days tour and we couldn’t be happier. I would give 100 million stars, but unluckily the system only allows to give 5 stars. So that’s why I can only give 5.
So, to start this review, I’d like to say that when we booked our tour, we didn’t know if the tour was just for us two (private tour) or if more tourists were going to be with us, but when we knew it was a private tour, we were so happy because that was what we wanted.
Our guide, Mr Lê Duy Nhut “Uncle Nick”, and our driver, Mr Quang, were more than excellent. We are so lucky that we were able to share this trip with them!
Our driver, Mr Quang, always drove with care and he gave us bottles of cold water and refreshing wet tissues that we always appreciated so much since it was so hot outside. And he always put the air conditioner on, which we really appreciated because of the heat.
Our guide, Mr Lê Duy Nhut “Nick” , is one of the kindest and most friendly person we have ever met. He is also warm and extroverted. He speaks very good english. He explained everything to us. He gave us so much information and with so many details. He knows so much of everything!!! He is very wise and we learnt so much about Vietnam: everyday life, religion, history, agriculture, fruit, trees, flowers, the Vietnamese conical hat...
If we had questions, he would always reply with so many details. He knows so many dates and numbers... He’s amazing! We have gained an uncle thanks to this trip! He cared for us so much during the whole trip. I wasn’t sure I could ride a bicycle on the 2nd day because of my lack of practice, so he worried and wanted to make sure I was okay with it before that day, so we went the three of us the previous evening for about 30 minutes with a bicycle each to practise a bit. It was great and the next day I had no problem with my bike.
And about the tour itself, it was very well spent money. We did so many activities and we rode on so many different boats. We are so happy we booked and made this trip, but so sad when it finished.
We went to Ben Tre by car and we stopped to see the pagoda. There are so many big Budha statues! The pagoda is so beautiful. And then we continued until we took a private boat where we had coconut water and then we went to an old brick factory. We went back to the boat and had the coconut’s delicious meat. Then we rode to a coconut candy factory/workshop to see how they make the candy. We saw all the process: how they open the coconut, they take the meat, they make the mix, they put it in molds, they cut it, the wrap the candy...
We went later to see how they make grass mats, and we could even try making them! After that, we rode a tuktuk and went to a beautiful restaurant later to eat a delicious meal that included a delicious fish called elephant ear, big shrimps, rice, fruit... We went to Vinh Long by car and them we took a boat to our beautiful homestay/hotel, we helped make dinner and we ate what we had cooked! It was delicious!
The following morning we ate a delicious and big breakfast, we took a boat, we rode a bike to see the local agriculture and went to a lady’s house who made us a really nice tea and gave us some fruit. Then we rode the bike a bit more and it was so refreshing! We saw pinapple plants with growing pinapples in them! Then we took a boat (private, as usual) where a lady made lunch and we ate a delicious meal on the boat. We went to the oldest church in Indochina and then to Can Tho. In our way we stopped at the place where they shoot the film L’Amant. It is a beautiful house. We checked in our hotel and we had free time, so we went for dinner, we went to the night market and we went for a very nice walk along the riverwalk.
The following morning we met our guide and driver very early in the morning to see two floating markets. We took a boat before the sunrise to see the first floating market. It was very early and a bit chilly (take your jacket for the first 40-60 minutes) but it is so worthwhile! The first one was smaller, but there aren’t so many tourists, so we liked it a lot. We were still on the boat and we went to see the second one. In our way we could see the sunrise! It was so beautiful! The second floating market was so big! I couldn’t imagine it was so huge! We went to the floating restaurant where we had a delicious breakfast and for dessert the fresh and sweet pinapple that our guide had bought at the floating market. Delicious!
Then we went (still by boat!) to a beautiful garden. There are so many different trees anf flowers! The cacao tree (with the cacao fruit!), jackfruit trees (with sooo many fruits!!), the durian tree, papaya trees, the Vietnamese-apple tree, water lillies, lotus flower, garlic flower (it smells like garlic, but it’s not garlic, it’s a flower)... Our guide bought some fruit for later and we went took our boat again to go to the car.
We saw a Cao Dai temple, that is so colourful! We went to a kmer pagoda that was beautiful and had this golden colour everywhere. We went then to Ca Tru Conservation. We walked on the bamboo ways and bridges. We could see birds and butterflies! They were so beautiful. We embarked on an arrow-boat. It was so beautiful! The trees, the flowers, the birds... We took two more boats to go to the exit. We arrived to our hotel, we checked in and then we had free time. We went for dinner to a delicious restaurant.
The next morning we had breakfast and we drove to Ha Tien. We were very sad because it was our last day since we were going to Phu Quoc and we had had such a great trip and learnt so many new things thanks to our guide. If I could go back in time, I would do this trip again. We are so happy. Thanks so much to our excellent guide Mr Lê Duy Nhut and our driver Mr Quang for this unforgettable trip!
Can't Imagine a Better Tour of the Mekong Delta
We were lucky to have had 4 fantastic days exploring the delta, and luckier still to have Tam as our enthusiastic and knowledgeable guide, and Quang, our cheerful and safe driver. We spent much of our time actually on the river, in a variety of boats, bigger and smaller (I think there were 7!), and travelled on many branches of the Mekong - wide busy main channels and small meandering, narrow waterways clogged with water hyacinths. We walked through small villages (though we could have ridden bikes) to visit a farmer's rice paddies and market gardens, and took a motorised rickshaw to a secluded house loaded with treasures which had been handed down for generations.
The itinerary was jam-packed with interesting local businesses to visit, floating markets to experience, a conservation area of incredible beauty to float through. We hadn't known what to expect from the Homestay - it was simply great - traditional buildings of the highest quality filled with family antiques in a magical setting on a quiet branch of the river. The food provided on the trip was excellent, from our picnic on the boat to a four course meal of the freshest fish and prawns at an upscale restaurant to our dinner at the Homestay - it was all excellent.
If you are a little unsteady climbing in and out of boats, walking on uneven ground and/or walking when it's really hot, then maybe this tour might not be for you. There were helpful hands along the way but a certain agility is required (and we turned down the chance to ride bikes). However, we are what you would call 'active seniors' and we managed just fine.
And we learned so much about the life of the people who live in the Delta from our guide whose English was excellent and who didn't seem to mind our nonstop questions. He looked after us like we were family which we are very grateful for.
I can't imagine how we could have had a better tour or how we could have had such a great experience if we had only had a day or two. This was definitely a five-star experience and a highlight of our time in Vietnam.