7 Days Ho Chi Minh City & Mekong Delta

Touch down at Tan Son Nhat Airport and transfer to your hotel in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City, where the energy of ten million motorbikes is instantly electrifying. Settle in before heading to a rooftop bar for a chilled sugarcane juice or a local craft beer, watching the Saigon River glitter below as the city lights flicker on. Travel tip: always negotiate taxi fares before getting in, or use a ride-hailing app like Grab for fair prices.

Dive into HCMC's layered history with a visit to the War Remnants Museum for a moving and essential perspective on the American War, followed by the Reunification Palace, frozen in time since 1975. Refuel with a bowl of hu tieu — southern Vietnam's beloved noodle soup — before exploring the chaotic aisles of Ben Thanh Market. In the late afternoon, admire the red-brick Notre-Dame Cathedral Basilica and the elegant Central Post Office, two enduring French colonial landmarks.

Journey out of the city to the Cu Chi Tunnels, a vast underground labyrinth where Viet Cong fighters lived, cooked, and strategized during the war — you can crawl through a widened section to feel the claustrophobic reality of tunnel life. Return to the city for lunch, then spend the afternoon exploring Cho Lon, HCMC's vibrant Chinatown, where ancient pagodas sit alongside bustling medicine shops and street-food stalls serving char siu pork.

Leave the urban sprawl behind and drive south to Ben Tre, the gateway to the Mekong Delta. Board a sampan and glide through narrow canals shaded by coconut palms, stopping at a family-run workshop to watch coconut candy being made by hand — taste a piece warm from the stove. Pedal a bicycle through sleepy villages, past fruit orchards and rice fields, and sip fresh coconut water straight from the husk at a riverside garden.

Continue deeper into the delta, passing a patchwork of rice paddies, fish farms, and fruit orchards that paint every shade of green imaginable. Stop at a riverside workshop to see how locals make rice paper, popped rice, and other delta staples, sampling each along the way. Arrive in Can Tho by late afternoon and settle into your hotel, then take an evening walk along the Ninh Kieu Pier to watch painted boats drift on the Hau River.

Rise before dawn for one of Southeast Asia's great travel experiences — a sampan ride into the chaotic, colorful whirl of Cai Rang Floating Market, where farmers in conical hats hawk pineapples, dragon fruit, and steaming bowls of noodle soup from boat to boat. After breakfast on the water, return to shore and drive back to Ho Chi Minh City, arriving in time for a final evening of rooftop drinks and southern Vietnamese specialties like banh xeo — crispy turmeric crepes.

Enjoy a leisurely final breakfast with a cup of strong Vietnamese drip coffee and perhaps one last banh mi from a street cart before your transfer to Tan Son Nhat Airport. Browse the airport shops for weasel coffee, Mekong coconut candies, and lacquerware souvenirs. Safe travels — cam on va tam biet!