Cần Thơ

Sunset at Ninh Kieu, sunrise at Cai Rang

Two days in Can Tho revolve around one early boat. Arrive from Saigon by early afternoon, book the next morning's trip at Ninh Kieu pier while the boatmen are idle, then leave at 5:30am for Cai Rang floating market, which is busiest just after sunrise. Afternoons are for resting and old houses.

Drop your bags in Ninh Kieu, sleep off the drive, then walk the riverfront in the late afternoon past the Ho Chi Minh statue to the pier. Compare offers for tomorrow's boat. Cross the pedestrian bridge as its lights come on, then eat banh xeo at the night market on Nguyen An Ninh.

The next day starts at 5:30am. The boat to Cai Rang takes about half an hour down the Can Tho River, and the market is at its liveliest just after sunrise, when wholesale boats hang samples of pineapples, pumpkins or sweet potatoes from tall poles to advertise what they carry. Breakfast is a bowl of noodle soup bought from a boat alongside. A good tour then turns into the small canals, stopping at a fruit orchard and a workshop where rice paper is spread to dry on bamboo racks, and gets back by early afternoon.

Rest through the heat. In the late afternoon, take a taxi to the Binh Thuy ancient house, a French-influenced family mansion with tiled floors and carved wood, or visit Ong Pagoda on Hai Ba Trung, a Chinese assembly hall full of incense. On the last morning, buy fruit at Xuan Khanh Market before the coach back.

Banh Xeo, Lau Mam and Mekong fruit

Start with banh xeo, the crackling turmeric pancake sold at the Nguyen An Ninh night market, then share a lau mam hotpot and buy whatever fruit Xuan Khanh Market has in season. Delta cooking leans sweet and herb-heavy, built on the fish, greens and fruit that grow around the city.

Banh xeo is a thin, crackling pancake of rice flour and turmeric folded around shrimp, pork and bean sprouts. You tear it with your fingers, wrap it in mustard greens and herbs and dip it in fish sauce. The night market on Nguyen An Ninh and Chau Van Liem streets has several stalls, and the covered market area on Phan Boi Chau sells it hot in the evenings.

For a group meal, order lau mam, a dark, pungent hotpot based on fermented fish, loaded with river fish, eggplant and a pile of local greens and water flowers. It tastes far better than it smells. Nem nuong, grilled pork sausage rolled in rice paper with herbs, is another local favourite, and the restaurants along Hai Ba Trung serve river fish, snakehead and elephant ear fish fried whole.

Fruit is the other reason to be hungry. Xuan Khanh Market and the floating market boats sell whatever is in season, from mangoes and pineapples to the small, tangy bon bon. Sugarcane juice pressed on the street, iced coffee with condensed milk and young coconut are the drinks of the riverfront.

High water, orchard fruit and the Ok Om Bok boat races

December to April is the easiest time for Can Tho: the city is dry, highs run 30C to 34C and February sees almost no rain. The wet season from May to November brings afternoon showers but good river mornings, and from about September the Mekong runs high and floods the fields around the city.

Dry-season lows sit around 22C to 25C, and February averages only about 4mm of rain. These are the easiest months for early boat trips and dry paths through the orchards. March and April are the hottest, so plan to be off the water by late morning.

Rain returns in May, with about 220mm, and builds to a peak of around 450mm in September. Showers mostly fall in the afternoon, and the mornings on the river are still good. Locals call the high-water months nuoc noi, when fishing and the river landscape change. Boats run all year, but bring a rain jacket.

Fruit follows the rains. Orchards around the city are heaviest with rambutan, durian and mangosteen from roughly May to August, which makes the wet season a good time for orchard visits. Tet, in late January or February, fills the floating markets with boats piled with flowers and fruit in the days beforehand. Since 2025, the enlarged city includes Soc Trang, where the Khmer community holds the Ok Om Bok festival around the tenth lunar month, with long-boat races on the river.