I visited Mekong Delta as part of my 7-day trip in Vietnam, and booked this experience via Klook. As part of the experience, I also visited the Cu Chi tunnels before Mekong Delta.

The tour also includes a visit to Handicapped Handicrafts, a lacquer painting shop. At the end of the day, we also got to visit a local coconut sweet workshop and soaked in the atmosphere of local Vietnamese folk music performance.

Mekong Delta

Mekong Delta is a 2 hour's drive from Cu Chi Tunnel, followed by another 15 min cruise along the tranquil Mekong River to reach the small town of Châu Thành. We got to enjoy fresh coconut juice on board the boat ride - Much needed on a warm day! We had to transfer to another smaller motor boat for another quick 10min journey to a small restaurant - Nhà hàng sinh thái Việt Nhật where lunch was served.

After a delectable meal, it was time to tour the Mekong delta. In groups of 3 now, we went down into small row boats that could only fit 1 person per row. Because the boat is small, it can get wobbly so watch your step as you enter and leave the boat. Each boat is steered by a local using a wooden paddle. At one point, I got the chance to help steer the boat along too using the spare paddle.

We transited to a 15min bicycle tour around the small town of Châu Thành, where we got a glimpse of local lifestyle. We cycled through the backyard of a few houses before emerging into the main street, where we cycled by the side of the road alongside traffic. At one point, we passed a pre-school just as students were being dismissed, so there was a cluster of motorbikes parked along the road where parents were waiting for their children.

Coconut Sweet workshop

Soon after we were done cycling, we moved on to visit a local coconut sweet workshop, where we got a chance to witness the traditional methods of sweet-making. Coconuts were split open by impaling it on a sharp dagger planted to the ground. To extract the flesh from the coconut, a tool with what seemed like a filer was used to grind the coconut back and forth. Coconut flesh is then gathered to a pulp, before undergoing compression to extract the coconut milk. After leaving the flesh to dry for a few days, it can be compressed again to extract coconut oil.

Snake wine was also available which I tried - It is created by infusing snakes in rice wine and is believed to promote health. Shockingly, venomous snakes are preferred, where their venom is dissolved in the liquor. As I only learnt while writing this, envenomation is possible due to the venom present in the drink. Had I known this before drinking, I might not have consumed it! Thankfully, I'm alive and well today.

The tour finally wrapped up with a nice Southern Vietnamese folk music performance performed by the locals, where we were serenaded while munching on fresh fruits.

And that concludes the tour - We made our way back to mainland via boat, and the tour bus transported us back to the pick up point this morning.