Private 2–5 day Mekong Delta routes
Tours
Four routes, leg by leg
Every route below starts in Ho Chi Minh City and runs west along the same line: Ben Tre and Vinh Long, Can Tho, Chau Doc, and for one route the river into Cambodia. The table shows where you sleep, how long each leg takes and what each route leaves out, so you can see the trade before you read a single itinerary.
Compare
The four routes side by side
| Route | Where you sleep | Road and boat, leg by leg | Total moving time | What it leaves out | Good months |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Can Tho, 2 days | Night 1: Can Tho | HCMC → Vinh Long 2.5–3 h · Vinh Long → Can Tho about 1 h · Can Tho → HCMC 3–3.5 h | about 6.5–7.5 h | Ben Tre's coconut country, Chau Doc, Sam Mountain, Tra Su, Cambodia | December to April |
| Can Tho and Chau Doc, 3 days | Night 1: Can Tho · Night 2: Chau Doc | HCMC → Can Tho 3–3.5 h · Can Tho → Chau Doc 2–3 h · Chau Doc → HCMC 4.5–5.5 h | about 9.5–12 h | Ben Tre and Vinh Long, the Cham villages beyond a short visit, any free afternoon | September to March |
| Ben Tre to Chau Doc, 4 days | Night 1: Vinh Long · Night 2: Can Tho · Night 3: Chau Doc | HCMC → Ben Tre 1.75–2.25 h · Ben Tre → Vinh Long 1–1.5 h · Vinh Long → Can Tho about 1 h · Can Tho → Chau Doc 2–3 h · optional car back to HCMC 4.5–5.5 h | about 6–8 h, or 10.5–13.5 h with the car back | Cambodia, the Khmer pagodas of Tra Vinh and Soc Trang, Sa Dec | September to December |
| Delta to Phnom Penh, 5 days | Night 1: Vinh Long · Night 2: Can Tho · Nights 3–4: Chau Doc | As the 4-day route to Chau Doc · then Chau Doc → Phnom Penh by speedboat 07:00–13:30 | about 6–8 h by road, plus about 6.5 h by boat | The return to Ho Chi Minh City, the Khmer pagodas, Sa Dec | September to April |
Hours are planning ranges. Road distance comes from an OpenStreetMap route model: Ho Chi Minh City to Ben Tre about 85 km, to Vinh Long about 136 km, to Can Tho about 171 km and to Chau Doc about 235 km; Vinh Long to Can Tho about 41 km; Can Tho to Chau Doc about 120 km. We allow 50–60 km an hour plus town traffic. The boat times are the operator's published schedule.
Sources: OSRM route model on OpenStreetMap data, queried 11 Oct 2026; Sài Gòn Giải Phóng — Mekong Delta expressway overview, 20 Jan 2026; Hang Chau Tourist — daily schedule and fares June 2026 to June 2027 · checked .
How to read the table
Start with the second column. On the delta, the night decides the morning, and the mornings are the reason to come. A route that sleeps in Can Tho gets Cai Rang market at dawn. A route that sleeps in Chau Doc gets Tra Su at opening time, the light on Sam Mountain at the end of the day, or the 07:00 boat to Cambodia. A route that sleeps in Vinh Long gets an islet by boat before the heat, and arrives in Can Tho rested.
Then look at total moving time, and at where the longest leg falls. The three-day route has the most driving for its length because it reaches Chau Doc and comes back: the last day is 4.5 to 5.5 hours in the car. The four-day route has less driving per day because it never doubles back, but it ends in Chau Doc, so you need a plan for the day after. The five-day route solves that by leaving on the river.
Finally, read the fifth column honestly. Every route skips something. The Khmer pagodas around Tra Vinh and Soc Trang, the flower gardens of Sa Dec and the islets around My Tho all sit off the straight line west. We can add one, but each costs most of a day, and we would rather say that than squeeze it in.
Hours on this site are planning ranges, not timetables. We take road distance from an OpenStreetMap route model and allow 50–60 km an hour plus town traffic. Holiday weekends and the drive out of Ho Chi Minh City can add an hour.
Which route for which trip
One night, one market
For travellers with a single night to give the delta. An islet near Vinh Long on the way out, Can Tho in the evening, Cai Rang at dawn. Can Tho, 2 days.
As far west as three days allow
Can Tho and Chau Doc, with the market, Sam Mountain and Tra Su. The price of that reach is a long drive home. Can Tho and Chau Doc, 3 days.
The whole line, one way
Ben Tre's canals, a night in Vinh Long, Can Tho, then two days of Chau Doc. Ends in Chau Doc, with the car back as an option. Ben Tre to Chau Doc, 4 days.
Out by the river
The four-day line plus a second Chau Doc night, then the speedboat to Phnom Penh. Delta to Phnom Penh, 5 days.
What every route includes
- A private car with driver from your hotel in Ho Chi Minh City, for every day of the route
- A private English-speaking guide on every day, including the boat legs inside the delta
- Each night in a 3–4 star hotel in the town centre, named on your quote, with breakfast
- The private boats the itinerary lists: islet canals, Cai Rang, Tra Su
- Entrance fees for the places on the itinerary, and the lunches shown day by day
- On the five-day route, the speedboat ticket from Chau Doc to Phnom Penh
Dinners, drinks, tips, insurance and visas are not included; each route page lists them. How to book sets out the steps from first message to confirmed hotels, and the destination pages describe the towns themselves.
Every route uses 3–4 star hotels in town centres. We do not name a hotel on this site because the one we book depends on your dates and what is free; your quote names each hotel and room type before you pay anything.
Changing a route
The four routes are starting points, and the most common changes are small. Adding a second night in Can Tho turns the market morning into a slow one, with an afternoon free for the riverfront. Reversing the five-day route is possible: the boat leaves Phnom Penh at 12:30 and reaches Chau Doc at 18:30, so the delta nights follow eastward and the trip ends in Ho Chi Minh City.
What we will push back on is a route with more towns than nights. Four days with five towns means sleeping somewhere you only see in the dark. If you send us a list like that, we reply with the version we would actually drive, and explain what came off it. The overnight bases page shows why each town earns its night.
Plan your trip
Have a different number of days?
Tell us when you leave Ho Chi Minh City and where you need to be at the end. We reply by email with a route built on the same rules.
Common questions
Questions travellers ask most
Can we start somewhere other than Ho Chi Minh City?
Yes. Can Tho has a domestic airport, and Chau Doc can be the start if you arrive by boat from Phnom Penh. The car and guide meet you there instead, and the route runs east.
Do the routes run on fixed dates?
No. Every route is private and starts on the day you choose.
Which route has the least driving per day?
The four-day route. No single leg is longer than about three hours unless you take the car back to the city at the end.
Can we add Sa Dec or the Khmer pagodas?
Yes, at the cost of most of a day each. We usually suggest adding a night rather than a stop, so the rest of the route keeps its mornings.
Related
Read next
Example journey
Can Tho, 2 days
Two days, one night in Can Tho: An Binh islet on the way out, Cai Rang market at dawn.
View this journey
Example journey
Can Tho and Chau Doc, 3 days
Three days, nights in Can Tho and Chau Doc: Cai Rang, Sam Mountain, Tra Su, then the long drive home.
View this journey
Example journey
Ben Tre to Chau Doc, 4 days
Four days east to west: Ben Tre, Vinh Long, Can Tho, Chau Doc. Short legs, ends in Chau Doc.
View this journey
Example journey
Delta to Phnom Penh, 5 days
Five days from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh: four delta nights, then the speedboat across the border.
View this journey
Tours · Pricing
Pricing
How a private delta quote is built, what moves it most and the local prices we can publish.
View this journey
Tours · Booking
How to book
The steps from first form to confirmed route, documents for the crossing, and payment safety.
View this journeyStart planning
Tell us about the route you have in mind
The day you leave Ho Chi Minh City, how many are travelling and where you go afterwards are enough to start. We reply by email with questions or a priced route that names every hotel.