Soc Trang is the capital of Soc Trang Province in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. It’s not a big tourist destination, but it has some wonderful Khmer temples in and around the city. Soc Trang is the closest mainland port to Con Dao, so this is a faster trip than the boat from Vung Tau.

I was in Soc Trang to get this ferry to Con Dao. I’m also making a point to visit the provincial capitals of Vietnam, so instead of just going straight to the ferry, I stayed in Soc Trang first.

Soc Trang map

Places mentioned in this article are shown on this map.

[Map of Soc Trang.]

Soc Trang notes

My trip to Soc Trang was the end of a tour of the lesser-visited provinces of the Mekong. I started in Ca Mau and then went to Bac Lieu. Like those two cities, Soc Trang doesn’t have much written about it, so I headed straight for the central market.

There is a central market building, but most of the action spills out to the surrounding streets.

Even though it’s a relatively small city, it still has the glorious mayhem that you want from a market in Vietnam.

There are some remnants of old shophouses in the streets around the market area.

There is not much of old Soc Trang left though, so it’s a matter of walking down every street to find the last vestiges of the past.

[83 Phan Chu Trinh.]

[35 Pham Ngu Lau.]

[35 Ngo Quyen.]

[1 Pasteur St.]

I was at a restaurant where they had some old photos of Soc Trang on the wall.

Like so many places I’ve visited in the Mekong Delta this year, I wondered what might have been if they had been able to conserve some old buildings.

If you want to know more about Soc Trang, there is the Soc Trang Provincial Museum.

Soc Trang has a surprising amount of Khmer temples. Some of the best temples are a few kilometres outside the city centre. I walked to the Mahatup Pagoda temple, also known as the Bat Pagoda.

It was the wrong time of day for bats, but it’s never the wrong time of day for a rooster to be making a racket.

On the north side of the city is the Kh’Leang Temple.

Opposite the Kh’Leang Temple is the Soc Trang Church.

I passed these and other temples on the way to Som Rong Pagoda.

It has been described as the pearl of Soc Trang, and after visiting I wouldn’t hesitate to upgrade it to the Pearl of the Mekong Delta. Look at this ridiculously beautiful temple scene.

Tra Vinh is probably more famous for its Khmer temples, but this one is my favourite in the Mekong so far. I happened to be there at the end of the day when the sun was low on the horizon. The main temple building faces west, so the colours on the building stood out in the afternoon sun.

The temple was in the midst of constructing a giant reclining buddha when I was there. The structure was finished but the painters and decorators were still working on it. I think that this will become an iconic temple of the Mekong Delta that will bring more tourists to Soc Trang.

West of the city centre is the Huong Son Pagoda.

It also has a large buddha.

[Buddha at Huong Son.]

The city is split in two by a river with a walkway on either side.

The river is affected by the ebbs and flows of the Mekong, so the water height varies throughout the day.

I observed in Ha Tien that every provincial city has a dentist named Sai Gon, and the naming convention continues here.

Food

Just about every province in Vietnam has a signature dish, and in Soc Trang, there is Bun Nuoc Leo. Not that I knew this at the time. I was scouring Google Maps for a place to eat when I saw this marked on the map.

I arrived to find everything that I dream of in a Vietnam street food scene. Little plastic seats, outside and under a tree, serving a soup I’ve never heard of before, by a group of lovely soup ladies who bemused and amused to see this foreigner turn up.

Bun Nuoc Leo is a soup with fish, shrimp, and pork, and it was amazing. I’m writing this report from my desk in Ho Chi Minh City, and sometimes I still daydream about sitting under a tree in the Mekong Delta while having a delicious soup.

I was walking to another place that I had marked out for lunch when I got distracted by the crowd at the Hương Sơn Pagoda.

The Huong Sơn Pagoda was a good place to visit, and the lunch was a bonus. If you are a vegetarian there are more options in the Mekong Delta than anywhere else in Vietnam, and big Buddhist temples often have an attached restaurant. It turned out that the other place I was going to had closed down, so I was obviously meant to eat here.

In my provincial wanders I have been making a note of what food chains are in Vietnam. The two biggest chains are Jollibee and Lotteria, both of whom are on a campaign to reach every corner of the country.

The chicken and rice place where I saw the old photos is at Quan Cơm Gia Dinh.

Cafes

I didn’t find any cafes that stood out as highly recommended, so I just went to random places when I needed a break.

One place that stopped me in my tracks was Ca Phe Khoai Lac Lam. This beautiful building in the old part of the city required me to stop and have a coffee here.

The simple joy of having a Vietnamese iced coffee on little red plastic chairs with a bottomless glass of iced tea.

I went to Moon Cafe for a coconut ice cream.

There are no chain cafes here yet, which gives you an idea of how deep in the provinces Soc Trang is.

Transport

The nearest airport is around 60 km away in Can Tho.

There are direct bus services to HCMC at the Soc Trang Bus Station, and local buses from the Tra Man station go to Can Tho, Bac Lieu, and towns in Soc Trang province.

[Local buses at Tra Man station.]

The Soc Trang ferry port is at Tran De, 35 km away. There are two ferry services to Con Dao: Superdong and Phu Quoc Express. The Phu Quoc Express service was starting in Can Tho with a stop at Tran De, but when I visited the Can Tho service wasn’t running. I’m not sure if this is a permanent cancellation.

I booked my ticket via Baolau, and I’m glad I did it that way. I had originally booked on Phu Quoc Express, but that service got cancelled. Baolau messaged me about the cancellation and asked if I wanted to rebook on Superdong.

Superdong offers a shuttle service from their ticket office in Soc Trang to the port. Search for Soc Trang – Con Dao ferry tickets.

My next destination was Con Dao.

Bac Lieu is the capital of Bac Lieu Province in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. Judging by the lack of travel information online and the small choice of hotels on the booking sites, it’s fair to say that it doesn’t receive many visitors.

I was in Bac Lieu partly because it was on the way to my next transit destination. I flew to Ca Mau and then made my way to Soc Trang to get the ferry to Con Dao. Bac Lieu is about halfway between Ca Mau and Soc Trang, so it would have been rude to not make a visit. I was also there because I’m making a point of visiting provincial capitals while I am hiding out in Vietnam during the Great Pandemic.

Map of Bac Lieu

Places in Bac Lieu mentioned in this article.

[Map of Bac Lieu.]

Bac Lieu notes

From the little information I gleaned from the internet, the highlight of the city appeared to be the theatre at Hung Vuong Square, so that is where I began my exploration.

The Cao Van Lau Theater is three round buildings with conical hats for roofs. On paper that sounds like a cheesy idea, but to their credit, they made this work. 

The theatre opened in 2014, and it is used as a theatre and convention space.

In the theater grounds is an aircraft on display from the war.

The city square features the Moon-Lute Statue, and it turns out that the city has a traditional music festival. Despite my initial thoughts of it being a city with few tourists, Bac Lieu has been proactive in promoting domestic tourism. This is something I’ve been thinking about while I have been visiting the provinces of Vietnam. I’ve been looking for a breakdown of tourism numbers by province, so if anyone knows let me know.

Hung Vuong Square is a big open space that is too hot to hang out in the daytime heat. At night though it comes alive with strollers, kids playing, and all kinds of vendors.

Near the square is a monument to the Tet Offensive of January 1968, carved in the socialist-modernist style.

Beyond Hung Vuong Square, the main area of interest is around the central market on the riverfront.

While the main market building isn’t as remarkable as Sa Dec or Long Xuyen, it’s the surrounding streets with the market activity that makes this area interesting.

There are many old shophouses around the market that suggest a more glorious past.

On the other side of the river there are some interesting temples, such as the Cao Dai temple.

Walking along the river I was struck by how many more nice old buildings there were, and that with a bit of love they could become a tourism attraction. The old Bac Lieu Hotel should be a famous place to stay in the Mekong Delta.

My idea of renovating these old buildings was not an original thought, as there was a plan to restore 21 French colonial homes on the banks of the Bac Lieu River. This report was from 2012, so it doesn’t appear that much progress has been made since then.

One of the old houses is the Bac Lieu Mandarin’s Son Museum, also known as Bac Lieu Dandy’s house. The Vietnam Tourism website describes him as the most famous dandy in the Southern province of Bac Lieu in early 20th century. There is something to be said for being a big fish in a small pond rather than another fish in a big pond. He would have just been an unknown dandy forgotten by time if he moved to Saigon.

Many of the buildings on the Dien Bien Phu riverfront are shophouses that are covered up by advertising or unsympathetic extensions. Once again I find myself wandering through a city in the Delta wondering what might have been if only they had kept a few streets of heritage architecture intact.

If the riverwalk was tidied up it would make this a great area to stay.

The Bac Lieu River connects to a canal that goes all the way to Ca Mau. This canal follows alongside the road between Ca Mau and Bac Lieu, which I noticed on the bus trip. This would be another good candidate for cargo boat tourism in the Delta.

The Bac Lieu Museum is also in a fine old building.

If you walk around Bac Lieu between the river and Hung Vuong Square you can see glimpses of the past, but most of the old buildings have gone.

[27 Ba Trieu.]

[15 Duong 30/4.]

Coffee

As I’ve noted in my previous provincial wanders, chain cafes are still few and far between outside the main cities of Vietnam. Not even the local chains have established themselves here yet.

I enjoyed an iced coffee at Apollo Coffee.

Food

I didn’t go anywhere that was recommendation-worthy, but I enjoyed this food court near the market on Hai Ba Trung. The road splits in two to form an island in the middle, and there are all kinds of Vietnamese food options here.

I had a good Banh Cuon here.

I stumbled into this duck curry place mainly on the strength of the smiling vendors, who found it amusing to see a random Australian wandering around.

Transport

I got a local bus from Ca Mau, and got a minivan for the bus station to Soc Trang.

There are direct bus services to Can Tho and Ho Chi Minh City.

Ca Mau is the capital of Ca Mau Province in the Mekong Delta Region of Vietnam. Ca Mau is the southernmost city of mainland Vietnam, and this geographical fact was enough to make me curious about the place. I’ve often looked at it on the map and I wanted to see this place that’s not on the way to anywhere.

Since I’ve been holed up in Vietnam during this pandemic era I’ve been making my way through the capitals of each province in Vietnam. In addition to visiting the provincial capitals, I also want to take a train on every kilometre of track in Vietnam and visit every airport. There is no railway here (though a railway to Ca Mau has been mentioned by wishful provincial leaders), so I took a flight from Ho Chi Minh City and then worked my way overland to some other provinces. Alternatively, there is a direct bus from Saigon that takes 8 hours.

One thing I’ve wondered about Ca Mau Province is that while it’s in the Mekong Delta Region, it’s not on any of the branches of the Mekong River. Flying over the Mekong Region is an instructive way to see the geography of the region, as there are canals everywhere that connect to the Mekong.

The Ca Mau airport is close to the city centre, and there is just one flight per day from Ho Chi Minh City via an ATR turboprop aircraft. I had researched some sights I wanted to see and marked them on a map, and flying over the city I could recognise the central market area.

It was this market that was to be my first place to visit in the city.

Ca Mau Map

This map of Ca Mau includes the places mentioned in this post.

[Map of Ca Mau.]

Ca Mau Travel Notes

The main market of Ca Mau was alive with the usual hubbub of activity that can be found in markets across Vietnam, and I always enjoy visiting them.

I had an extra spring in my step that comes with that first-day feeling of being on the road again. And it helped that I was in the friendly Mekong Delta in a place where they see very few tourists. I always feel like I am walking through someone’s workspace when visiting a market, but I was welcomed with hellos and requests for photos while walking around.

The market is on a junction of two rivers, and previously there would have been more market activity on the river. These floating markets have been gradually moving on land as roads and infrastructure improve.

Walking around the city I kept an eye out for any remnants of old architecture, but like most other places in the Delta, there is very little left of anything that would be considered heritage. I found this one that looks like it’s on its last legs.

Hung Vuong Park is a decent park in the city centre.

It’s flanked by a row of mature trees.

Near the park is the Cao Dai temple, which is another common site in the Mekong Delta.

No prizes for guessing that the grandest and most modern-looking building in Ca Mau is the provincial capital building.

There are Khmer Buddhist temples throughout the Mekong Delta Region that serve a small community of Khmer Krom people – one of Vietnam’s 53 ethnic minorities. The best place to see Khmer temples in Vietnam is Tra Vinh, and there is a great one to visit here in Ca Mau.

Visiting Chua Monivongsa Bopharam reminded me of being in Cambodia, and I was happy to experience a change in temple style.

Overall there aren’t many sites here that I can tell you about. The main satisfaction is just wandering around, maybe finding a tree-lined street that lures you in another direction, and finding a new cafe or potential place to eat.

I’ve noted before in my provincial travels that you won’t see many chain cafes. I’ve been using the local chain Highland Coffee as a benchmark, and The Coffee House is another one that seems to be spreading across the country. There were no chains here at the time of my visit, so I sought out the spacious garden cafes for my coffee fix.

I have also noted previously in Ha Tien my theory that the further south you go in Vietnam, so more sweetened condensed milk they use in the iced coffee. This theory was proven when I was served this glass of coffee with sugar milk. Even accounting for the cone-shaped glass, this is probably a new record for me for most condensed milk.

While researching things to see in Ca Mau I found mentions of a floating market, but these websites were using photos of the Cai Rang Market in Can Tho (which I have been to and recognised). Seeing misinformation like this made me wish there was a dedicated Mekong Delta travel guide.

Vietnam Tourism actually has a slick website (compared to other governmental departments here), but it now has no dedicated Mekong section.

There has been talk of a strategy to help Mekong Delta optimise tourism potential, so making a comprehensive guide for the 12 provinces of the Mekong region (mekongdelta.travel for example) would be a good start.

I was thinking about tourism strategies when I was looking out the aircraft window at those cargo boats in the canal. I’ve written about promoting Mekong Delta tourism through cargo boat travel. Instead of getting a bus to my next destination, it would have been great to have a cargo boat adventure instead.

I just stayed in the city of Ca Mau on this trip and didn’t visit anything else in the province. Many visitors continue on to the Ca Mau Cape National Park to go to the most southerly point in Vietnam. I’ve been to enough “most southerly points” in my lifetime to know that I didn’t need to go. My next stop was to neighbouring Bac Lieu, the capital of Bac Lieu Province.

Ha Tien is a coastal city in the far Southwestern corner of Vietnam, next to the Cambodian border. Located in Kien Giang Province in the Mekong Delta Region, Ha Tien is one of the two ferry ports that serve the island of Phu Quoc (the other port being Rach Gia).

Port cities are not usually places you would want to hang around, and border towns even less so. Most travellers that pass through here do so via a bus+ferry combo tickets from Saigon to Phu Quoc, or are making the international crossing. If you have time and if you like wandering chilled-out provincial cities, it’s worth breaking up your trip here before going to Phu Quoc or onwards to Cambodia.

I knew I was going to like Ha Tien before I visited. Technically I had been here before, so that helped. I had changed buses here after crossing the Cambodia-Vietnam border in 2013. Passing through a place doesn’t count as a visit (in my travel rulebook at least), but that sneak preview was enough to make me curious to return. For this trip I was on my way to Phu Quoc, so this was an ideal opportunity to give it a proper visit.

Ha Tien Map

[Map of Ha Tien.]

Notes on Ha Tien

Ha Tien is on the mouth of Giang Thanh River on the Gulf of Thailand. My hotel selection process was to find a place near the river and central market. The riverfront walk made Ha Tien immediately likable for me.

The market is near the riverfront, and it’s around here that you will find the most active part of the city.

Not surprisingly, the market is dominated by seafood.

The city is the usual jumble of modern concrete buildings that is common in Vietnam. At least some of them are colourful.

I was surprised though to find lots of old buildings scattered around the city.

Like Sa Dec and Long Xuyen which I had previously visited, I wondered what might have been if Ha Tien still had a core heritage area.

[40 Tran Hau.]

[49 Lam Son.]

[53 Lam Son.]

Maybe Ha Tien could have be like Kampot across the border in Cambodia, where its intact heritage architecture has made it a popular place for such a small provincial city.

[20 Tuan Phu Dat.]

There are lots of nice temples around the city as well.

I didn’t visit any, but their presence makes for a pleasing streetscape.

The modernist church is also a highlight.

Something that I’ve noticed in my wanders around Vietnam is that dentists (nha khoa) are always named Sai Gon. Perhaps the chief dentist went to dental school in Saigon, or having a big city name makes it more reputable.

On the other side of the national highway is the Ha Tien new urban area. This area caught my attention in Google Maps as the street layout looks different from the rest of the city. As a chronicler of future cities in Southeast Asia, I had to have a look.

This area faces the sea, and the main project is called Centroria.

There were no signs at the site to show what it’s going to look like, so here is the plan from the official website.

It’s still a work in progress, with only a few buildings having started construction.

There is a new canal and park that forms a boundary of the Centroria project.

Some streets have homes that are occupied, but cows are still wandering around as if they own the place.

Despite all the space, the skinny tube house that is so popular in Vietnam is still the prevailing style here.

Another section is the Ha Tien Venice Villas project. I always cringe a little on the inside when I see these fake European towns being built in Southeast Asia.

At the corner of Rome Street and Millan Street is an Italian-inspired fountain.

Even though they haven’t started building, Lotteria has already set up shop. I noted in my Sa Dec post that Lotteria is the leading franchise in Vietnam. They really are going all out to be everywhere.

There are no houses or villas built yet, so I should wait until I see the finished product before judging. Who knows, maybe I end up eating my own words and end up retiring in one of these villas in 30 years’ time. For reference, here is what Ha Tien Venice Villas will look like.

Something that is happening across Southeast Asia is edible birdnest farming. The “farms” are distinct as they are usually these windowless blocks with little holes in them.

You will hear the farms before you see them though, as the houses broadcast screeching bird noises to attract birds. All-day, all you hear is this noise:

Birds-nest farming is become common across Southeast Asia. Houses are modified with small holes in the wall, and screeching recorded bird noises are played from the roof to attract swiftlets. This shouldn't be allowed in urban areas. pic.twitter.com/VFSFXlwoy5

— James Clark (@nomadicnotes) January 9, 2021

It turns out that Kien Giang has the largest number of birdhouses in Vietnam (2,600 at last count).

If you want to eat edible birds nests then who am I to stop you. It’s a massive export industry for Vietnam, apparently worth 450 million USD per year. I just wish that this was zoned as an agricultural business and that the farms (which is what they are) are kept out of residential areas.

Near the new area is the Martyrs Cemetery. You can find such memorials in most Vietnamese cities, and they are not something I would usually visit unless it was a significant landmark. Ha Tien though has a pivotal place in modern Southeast Asia history.

After the American War ended, the Khmer Rouge began border incursions into the Southwest corner of Vietnam. Thousands of people died in the border provinces, and Ha Tien was abandoned for a while. Eventually, Vietnam marched on Phnom Penh to remove the Khmer Rouge from power.

Overall Ha Tien is pretty chilled out, and there is not much to do here at night. Just enjoy the sea breeze as you walk along the riverfront, because if you are going to Phu Quoc next you will be immersed back into a total tourist destination.

Food

I just ate whatever looked good and didn’t seek out anything specific. Sorry my food blogging is terrible. I found a great Bun Ca (fish noodle soup) for 20,000 VND.

Yes, this delicious bowl of soup was 0.87 USD.

Cafes

You know you are deep in provincial Vietnam when there are no Highlands Coffee outlets. In fact, I didn’t see any familiar chains here. My favourite kind of cafes in Vietnam are garden cafes, and Ha Tien has plenty. I enjoyed Quoc Hoa Cafe near the new urban area.

When in the Mekong Delta Region be aware of how much sweetened condensed milk they use in the iced coffee . And I’ve said this before but I will say it again, free bottomless cups of iced tea is the ultimate in cafe civilisation.

I saw one cafe/bar that was on the cusp of opening when I was there. It’s in a new building on the riverfront, on the corner of Dang Thuy Tram and Nhat Tao. I can envisage this stretch of riverfront being filled with cool cafes one day. If anyone goes here let me know how it is!

Accommodation

The biggest hotel in town is the River Hotel Ha Tien, which has a commanding spot on the riverfront.

I stayed at the Ha Tien Happy Hotel, and that turned out to be ideally located.

Transport

Ha Tien is the closest ferry port to Phu Quoc, so that is something to consider when choosing between Rach Gia and Ha Tien. I took the Superdong ferry, and there is also the Phu Quoc Express. You can compare prices and book at Baolau.

[Superdong at Ha Tien.]

There are a few different bus companies that operate direct services to Ho Chi Minh City. Compare services here.

It’s an 8-hour bus trip from Ho Chi Minh City, so I hopped my way through the Mekong Delta with local buses instead. I got the Can Tho – Ha Tien bus that goes via Long Xuyen. There are also regular local buses from Rach Gia and Chau Doc. Pick out a few places in the Mekong Delta that you would like to visit and build your own itinerary.

[Can Tho – Ha Tien bus.]

There are bus services that travel to Kampot, Sihanoukville, and Phnom Penh. That trip I took in 2013 was a minivan from Kampot to Ha Tien. This trip in 2021 was in the midst of the Great Pandemic and the border was closed. I saw some sad buses parked in the city that usually travel to Cambodia. You will need to check with travel agents once borders reopen.

The nearest airport is in Rach Gia, with daily flights to Ho Chi Minh City.

When I passed through Ha Tien in 2013 I changed vans at Oasis Bar. This was a true travellers cafe where you could get travel information alongside a Full English Breakfast. The riverside location has since closed, but they are planning to reopen outside the city once the country opens up again. Check the website for details.

Long Xuyen is the capital city of An Giang Province, in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. I had been through Long Xuyen before but I had never stopped there, so continuing my quest to visit the provincial capitals of Vietnam I scheduled a visit. As a tourist it’s not somewhere you would specifically travel to, but if it’s on the way to somewhere else then why not stop for a visit. At least that’s my motto for travel.

Long Xuyen map

Places in Long Xuyen mentioned in this article.

[Map of Long Xuyen.]

Long Xuyen trip report

I first went through Long Xuyen by bus on the way to Chau Doc on the Vietnam-Cambodian border. This time I was on my way to Ha Tien to get the ferry to Phu Quoc, so I scheduled a stop in Long Xuyen. I don’t like long bus trips, so doing these short bus trips between provinces is a good way to see the country while avoiding arduous journeys.

Unfortunately for Long Xuyen, the main highway barrels through the middle of the city. There are no highway bypasses in this part of the world, so a convoy of trucks passes through the city all day. If all you were to know about Long Xuyen was this view from a bus then you wouldn’t be blamed for not thinking much of it.

The highway through the city was my only impression of the city, but I knew that surely there would be more to Long Xuyen than the highway. This highway though was doing its best to deter me. When I arrived there was a massive traffic jam due to the main highway being renovated. It was dusty and there was construction mess everywhere.

It turned out that the small street that my hotel was in was also being repaved, so I was not having a good start. As for the hotel, I’ll get to that later.

After that inglorious introduction, I was eager to get exploring. Long Xuyen is the third-largest city in the Mekong Delta (after Can Tho and Rach Gia), so there were going to be some points of interest. As I have mentioned previously about provincial cities in Vietnam, if you don’t know where to start exploring then head for the central market. Not only are they a great place to see the hustle and bustle of market activity, but they are also usually the principal landmark building of the city. The Long Xuyen market building doesn’t disappoint.

Around the market are different sections for seafood, live animals, and vegetables. It’s not a tourist market so there is no hassle walking around here.

Markets in provincial Mekong cities would have previously been on the rivers, though floating markets are slowly disappearing from the Delta region as roads are improved and markets are moved to land. 

There is a floating market here, but I found it hard to find any decent information about it. Most Vietnamese travel agency sites seem to be using photos of the Cai Rang floating market to depict it. I found one blog that has been there, and they described how to visit if you are so inclined to get up early for the adventure. If you have never been to a floating market then you should visit Cai Rang in Can Tho.

Moving on from the market area I went to Nguyen Hue Street. This is the central street of Long Xuyen, and like Nguyen Hue in Saigon, this is a pedestrian street (or walking street as they are known here).

Nguyen Hue has remnants of old shophouses that hint at what the street might have looked like back in the day.

In another similarity to Nguyen Hue Street in Saigon, there is a golden statue of a historic figure. In Ho Chi Minh City there is a statue of the city namesake on Nguyen Hue, while here there is a statue of Ton Duc Thang.

Long Xuyen is famous in Vietnam for being the birthplace of Ton Duc Thang, who was the last president of North Vietnam and the first president of the reunified Vietnam. There’s a street named after him in every city in Vietnam, so naturally, he’s kind of a big deal in Long Xuyen. He was born on Ong Ho Island in the Hau River outside the city centre, and there is also a memorial museum on the island.

Apart from the market, the main architectural highlight is the Long Xuyen Cathedral.

Built in the Vietnamese Modernist style that was prominent in the mid-20th century, this is a great example of that style that can be found throughout Southern Vietnam.

I always visit cathedrals where ever I may be, and they make a good place for respite from the heat in tropical countries.

I liked the clever design of porous walls to let air circulate; an architectural consideration made in the age before air conditioning.

Outside the cathedral, there was a coconut lady waiting for me for a much-needed rehydration break.

Throughout the city, there are also lots of photogenic Buddhist temples. I had these marked on my Google Map as points to walk to.

[Guangji Temple.]

And rounding off the religious diversity, I was surprised to find a mosque under construction near the main market. There is a small minority of Muslim communities throughout the Delta, and in the evening there was a call to prayer broadcast from this worksite.

[Masjid Salamat.]

In addition to the modernist church, there are lots of fine examples of Vietnamese Modernist architecture throughout the city. I love these old apartment blocks with rounded corners.

[140 Le Minh Nguon.]

I went down this street and found more remnants of old Long Xuyen.

I wondered what this street would have looked like today if they had been able to preserve the old shophouses. It might have been enough to put Long Xuyen on the tourist trail. I had this same thought in Sa Dec, and in other cities in the Delta as well – if only they had preserved some of the old shophouses. Here are some photos of old Long Xuyen.

Another hint for things to do in provincial capitals is to seek out the provincial museum. These are sometimes architecturally odd, and they usually include war remnants on the property.

Near the museum is a roundabout with a monument to rice, which makes up such a big part of the Mekong Delta economy.

Near the rice monument is a pleasant park with giant trees.

There is a Vincom Plaza shopping mall here, which is becoming a ubiquitous feature of Vietnamese cities. Next to that is the Marina Plaza apartment. This appeared to be the first modern highrise apartment block in the city. It was still under construction at the time of my visit, so maybe by the time you are here, there will be Airbnb apartments for rent.

Even though Long Xuyen is on one of the main branches of the Mekong, most activity happens around the rivers and canals connected to it. Some of the canals have been redeveloped to include walking paths, while many of the canals around the city still have informal housing along the riverbank.

Where to stay in Long Xuyen

I had a hard time finding accommodation here. Despite Long Xuyen not being an international or even domestic tourism destination, it thrives as a provincial hub city. Considering how many people live in surrounding rural communes and towns, Long Xuyen is the Big Smoke for many people.

[Long Xuyen at night.]

In the end, I booked lodger-style accommodation in a karaoke street. I had a bad feeling about it, and my trepidation was confirmed when the street became a rowdy party street at night. I was staying there on a Friday night, which might explain why I couldn’t find any decent hotel availability.

On my wanders around town I liked the look of the Long Xuyen Hotel. This hotel is in a renovated modernist building and it’s the best-located hotel for a short-term tourist (link not available).

The fanciest new place I saw that I wished I was staying at instead of my karaoke bunker was the Chau Khuong Hotel.

On the island where the museum and park is there is the Hoa Binh 1 Hotel. It’s a big hotel on the main road, but far back enough to be not in the traffic.

Look for more hotels in Long Xuyen.

Transport to Long Xuyen

Long Xuyen is about halfway between Chau Doc and Can Tho, following the route of the Hau River. Long Xuyen is easy to visit by local bus if you are travelling between these two cities. On the main road, there are buses passing though to either city throughout the day. There is also a frequent Rach Gia-Chao Doc bus that passes through the main road.

Less frequent is the bus to Ha Tien (my next destination on this trip). There is an infrequent service that I couldn’t find a timetable for. I saw the bus passing through town the day before, so I waited at a bus stop (pinned on the map) where the bus passes. I waited at the Highlands Coffee across the road from the bus stop, and I got a bus at 9 am for a 3 hour trip to Ha Tien.

[Waiting for the bus at Highlands Coffee.]

The main bus station is miles outside the city centre and not really useful for regional travel. The FUTA bus company is here, and they offer direct bus services to Saigon throughout the day. It takes about 4 hours to travel to the Mien Tay Bus Station in Saigon.

The nearest airport is Can Tho, and if this fantastical plan to build a railway from Can Tho to Phnom Penh ever happened it would pass through Long Xuyen. Probably not in our lifetime, so don’t wait up for it.

Sa Dec doesn’t rate highly on Mekong Delta itineraries, which is understandable if you’re pressed for time. But I think that Sa Dec is one of the underrated destinations of the Delta region. The city has old colonial buildings, lots of temples, and pleasant tree-lined streets.

Part of Sa Dec’s problem is that it’s not on the way to anywhere. Tour groups from Saigon do day trips in My Tho, or overnight trips to Can Tho to see the Cai Rang floating market. Tours coming from Cambodia start at Chau Doc and then make their way to Can Tho. None of these itineraries are in the path of Sa Dec.

Sa Dec does get visitors from Saigon for its flower market, where the chrysanthemum flowers used for Tet celebrations are grown. Beyond that, Sa Dec doesn’t get many tourists. I found that out the first time I visited Sa Dec in 2015. I was travelling around the Delta and decided to visit Sa Dec the next day. I couldn’t find any hotel availability online so I just went, hoping to find something when I got there. I arrived and couldn’t find a place to stay, so after a couple of hours of wandering around with a bag I went back to Vinh Long.

This time I made sure I booked a few weeks in advance, but even then there was not a great number of hotels to choose from. I found a hotel near the main market, which is the best place to start exploring an unfamiliar city in the Mekong Delta. It’s chaotic and full of interesting sites, and I love it.

Sa Dec Map

This map features places mentioned in this post. These are my travel notes rather than being a guide.

[Map of Sa Dec, Vietnam.]

Sa Dec Sights

The main market building is an architectural highlight of the city, and it was good to see that it hasn’t been covered up with advertising boards as some markets do.

From the main market, there are other markets connected to it along the river. While everyone wants to see the floating markets, this is a good example of the modern reality of a Mekong market.

Sa Dec is on a branch of the Mekong River, though the town centre sits on the Lap Vo River that runs alongside it. The main branches of the Mekong are too big to conduct market activity on, so town markets are usually on these smaller rivers and canals that connect directly to the main river.

From the market area, the next point of interest are the old houses along the riverfront of Nguyen Hue Street.

It’s here that you will find the most famous house in Sa Dec – the Huynh Thuy Le old house.

This house was made famous by the French writer Marguerite Duras, who wrote the novel L’Amant (The Lover). It was made into a film in 1992.

Continuing along Nguyen Hue Street I was amazed at how many nice old buildings there were.

In any other city, this wall would probably be known as the Instagram Wall.

[Corner of Do Chieu and Nguyen Hue.]

I wondered what this riverfront would have looked like in its prime. I also wondered what might have been, if only the city had been able to conserve its historic city centre. If they had been able to keep a few blocks intact, perhaps Sa Dec would have become a “must visit” destination on the tourist circuit. Unfortunately, some of the old homes are just going to crumble back into the earth.

On the other side of the river are some more old houses next to the Iron Bridge.

From here I walked to the Tien River, which is the main northern branch of the Mekong. The river is so wide and the landscape so flat that there isn’t much to see here. It’s just a big body of water with no landmark to anchor the view. Still, it’s an amazing river that earns its title of “the Mighty Mekong”.

There are canals throughout the city, and I found this lovely bridge (Cau Dau) near a temple.

I liked that this worksite took care to protect this ancient tree from construction.

I didn’t go out to any flower farms, so I opted to walk up to the main flower park in the city. Upon entrance you are greeted by Uncle Ho.

The park has lakes and ornamental bridges.

Even without flowers on display this was a great park to walk around.

In the evening the old section of Nguyen Hue becomes a night market.

Sa Dec has a population of about 215,000 people, and it’s slightly bigger than the Dong Thap capital of Cao Lanh. I have been visiting the provincial capitals of Vietnam while I have been based here during the pandemic, so I will have to visit the capital of Dong Thap province on another trip.

Food

The one dish I wanted to try in Sa Dec was Banh Tam Bi. There is a restaurant in Saigon called Sa Dec Quan (Sa Dec Restaurant), which serves this Mekong speciality. In Saigon you can find a restaurant from practically every province, so I like to try the Saigon version and compare it with the provincial source.

Banh Tam Bi is a rice/tapioca noodle dish with pork, drizzled with sweet coconut cream and then fish sauce added on top. “Fish sauce and coconut cream together?!” I hear you exclaim. Before I came to Vietnam I might have had my reservations as well, but I am now at the point where I would put fish sauce on anything, and wow does this dish works for me.

One thing I’ve noticed about the Mekong Delta region is that there is a higher proportion of vegetarian restaurants than anywhere else in Vietnam. Just look for the word chay, usually shown with a lotus flower as well.

A good place to find vegetarian street food is outside of Buddhist temples, which is where I found this vegetarian Bun Rieu.

There isn’t much in the way of international food options here. Jollibee from the Philippines is here, and they seem to be in every provincial city by now.

It got me wondering if Jollibee or Lotteria are the biggest fast-food chains in Vietnam, and it turns out it is Lotteria.

Coffee

Sa Dec is still a typical provincial Vietnamese city where chain cafes have not yet arrived (as they have in Can Tho). Here it is mostly Vietnamese coffee, and I’ve noticed that in the far southern reaches of Vietnam they prefer Ca Phe Sua Da with an enormous portion of sweetened condensed milk.

Hallywood Roastery had espresso-style coffee.

Transport

There are direct buses from Saigon to Sa Dac with the FUTA bus company.

From Vinh Long there are frequent local buses to Sa Dec.

I arrived here from Can Tho, which took me two buses to do so (via Vinh Long). It was only when I arrived in Sa Dec that I found out that there is a direct bus from Sa Dec to Can Tho, also operated by FUTA.

The nearest airport is Can Tho, and there is no plan in any anyone’s lifetime for a train line to be built here. Perhaps if the Saigon – Can Tho railway is ever built it might bring more curious travellers into the region that would want to look around further.

If I was in charge of transport and tourism (a refrain I mutter to myself often), I would set up a river transport system in the Mekong Delta. There would be different options, where you could choose to hitch a ride on a cargo boat, and have scheduled ferry services between major cities. Alas, I’m not in charge of anything, so I am reduced to blogging about my ideas. There used to be an informal cargo boat travel system where if you knew who to ask you could get a ride on a cargo boat. I wrote about Mekong Delta cargo boat travel.

Cai Rang is home to the biggest floating market in the Mekong Delta. The market is near the city of Can Tho, which is about four hours from Ho Chi Minh City; too far for a day trip, so an overnight stay is required. Here is my guide on where to stay in Can Tho.

I had spent eight months of the last year in Vietnam yet I still had not made a visit to the delta region, so on the way back to Vietnam from Cambodia I made the detour to Can Tho. This trip was a last minute idea and it turned out that my lack of planning worked in my favour. I arrived at my hotel late and as the market tours leave early I didn’t have time to shop around for tour options or prices. I booked the only tour the hotel had on offer and retired for the evening.

The next morning I was dropped off at the river where I met my guide; a grandma piloting a small boat, with me as the sole passenger. This arrangement turned out to be the best way to see the market.

[My boatswoman]

We left Can Tho to make our way up the river to the market at Cai Rang, which is about 6km away. We weren’t far into the trip before the first drink boat found its way to us. I was relieved to have my first coffee of the day and enjoy the novelty of being served by a coffee boat.

[The breakfast beverage boat arrives!]

My boat driver/sailor/pilot(?) had no English and my Vietnamese is limited to numbers so there was no guided tour, but I found this to be a more enjoyable way to see the market than being on a large boat with 30 other people and no control of what to visit. Whenever I saw a vendor of interest I just pointed and my guide would take me there.

[A large tour boat stopping for drinks.]

I had heard that much of the market activity in the delta is gradually being shifted to land markets, but there is still enough market activity to see how these floating markets operate.

[Loading pineapples]

[Foot steering]

[Man on his boat.]

[I noted that most of the small boats were piloted by women.]

After an hour on the water my boatswoman stopped for a soup break.

[Soup boat]

After a few laps of the market we headed back to Can Tho via a back canal. Even with the throng of tourist crowds, this was one of the most enjoyable mornings out I have had in Vietnam, mainly due to the type of tour I went on.

[Motors parked for the day]

Tour Details

The tour went for three hours and cost $20usd. I had my tour arranged at my hotel, but I read that you can go down the riverside in Can Tho and look for a boat there. There are also seven hour tours available.