Ho Chi Minh City to the Mekong Delta in 2026: Bus, Tours and Day Trips

The Mekong Delta begins just past the western edge of Ho Chi Minh City, and you can see a slice of it in one day or a good deal more in two. A group Mekong Delta tour to My Tho and Ben Tre takes about nine hours and costs roughly $15 to $60. Doing it yourself, a bus to My Tho costs about $5 to $7 and a bus to Can Tho about $6.50 to $13. Can Tho is where most people spend the night, because the Cai Rang floating market near it trades at dawn, and it’s smaller than the photos suggest. Here’s how to get there, what each stop is like, and when we’d pick a tour over the bus in 2026.

Ho Chi Minh City to the Mekong Delta: your options compared

Prices are one way for buses and vans and per person for tours, from operator and booking pages we checked in 2026. No passenger train reaches the delta that we could find, so everything below is by road or river. Provinces changed in 2025: Tien Giang, the old home of My Tho, joined Dong Thap, while Ben Tre joined Vinh Long and Can Tho absorbed Soc Trang and Hau Giang. Some old maps and tour pages still use the earlier names. Tours differ mostly in group size and in how long they leave you at each stop, so read the itinerary, not the headline price, and check that entrance fees and lunch are included.

Buses and vans from Ho Chi Minh City to My Tho, Ben Tre and Can Tho

Most Ho Chi Minh to Mekong Delta buses leave from Mien Tay Bus Station, in the west of the city, 30 to 45 minutes from District 1 by road. Allow for that ride before you count the savings. Our Grab in Vietnam guide has the fares for the trip out there.

Futa Bus (Phuong Trang) is the name most travelers know, and redBus lists eight operators on the Can Tho run. Fares in the sources vary: one puts Futa at 165,000 to 250,000 dong, another at 110,000 to 150,000, so treat both as ranges and check the day. The 51 km Trung Luong to My Thuan expressway, built for 80 km/h, cut the time between Ho Chi Minh City and My Thuan by half when it opened in 2022, and the bus to Can Tho uses the same road corridor.

What to see in My Tho and Ben Tre: the classic day trip

The standard Mekong Delta day trip from Ho Chi Minh City follows one pattern. A minibus collects you from your hotel around 7:30 am, stops at Vinh Trang Pagoda in My Tho, then boards a motor boat on the Tien River to islands the tours call Dragon, Unicorn, Phoenix and Tortoise. You’ll visit a coconut candy workshop, hear folk songs over honey tea and tropical fruit, and take a sampan along a narrow canal. Lunch is usually in a riverside restaurant, and the minibus is back around 5 pm.

It’s a tourist circuit, and a pleasant one. My Tho is the easy end of the delta, about two hours from the city. Ben Tre is the greener one, known for its coconut groves and the canal rides under the palms, which is why tours often add it. Doing it alone, take the bus to My Tho, hire a boat at the pier and negotiate the price before you step on. We couldn’t confirm current entrance fees for individual sites, so we can’t give you a number for them.

Can Tho and the Cai Rang floating market

Can Tho is the delta’s biggest city and the base for the floating market. Its waterfront, Ninh Kieu Wharf, is the usual place to hire a boat. Cai Rang is about 15 to 20 minutes by taxi from the center or 30 minutes by boat, and trade starts around 4 to 5 am, running until about 9. Sources put the busiest window between 5:30 and 7:30 am, so we’d leave the hotel by 5:15.

Set your expectations before you go. Al Jazeera reported in February 2025 that Cai Rang had about 200 boats, around a third of its 2011 size, and a 2026 Vietnamtourism.com guide counts only 50 to 100 trading vessels a day. Roads have taken the business. Tuoi Tre reported in February 2026 that visitors over Tet met steep prices, no posted fares and touts. The market is still worth an early morning, and tourists make up much of what you see. Bring a hat, sun cream and a light layer, because the river is breezy before the sun is up.

The two sources disagree, so agree a price, a route and a time on shore before you board. Phong Dien, 45 to 60 minutes from the center, is smaller, with 15 to 30 boats, and some visitors find it more real. Breakfast is part of the fun: noodle soup from a boat kitchen costs about 15,000 to 25,000 dong. If you stay the night, the Ong Pagoda, the 1870 Binh Thuy ancient house and the Tay Do and Ninh Kieu night markets are the other things most visitors list. A decent homestay in Can Tho starts around 350,000 dong a night with breakfast.

One day or two days in the Mekong Delta?

If you have one day, take the group tour or a private driver and accept the pace. With two, we’d go on our own to Can Tho by bus, sleep near Ninh Kieu Wharf, and hire a boat at dawn rather than join a bus tour that reaches the market late. Tours take away the planning. Going independent saves money only if you enjoy sorting out stations.

When to go, and what to pack

The south is dry from December to April and wet from May to November, with short afternoon storms; the river runs fullest from September to November. Our best time to visit Vietnam guide has the month-by-month figures. Tet 2027 falls on 6 February, when buses sell out and many restaurants and markets close. Carry small notes for boats, snacks and tips; our Vietnam currency guide explains the notes and the 20,000 and 500,000 mix-up. Cover shoulders and knees for pagodas, as our guide on what to wear in Vietnam explains, and bring a poncho in the wet season.

Going on from Saigon to Hanoi or the central coast? Our Vietnam train guide covers the sleepers, though no train goes to the delta. If Japan is next, read about shrine etiquette in Japan and eating while walking in Japan.

Looking for the rest? Every Vietnam guide we’ve published, from the e-visa to the train, is sorted by topic in our Vietnam travel guide.

Data checked: 2026-10-06