Ben Tre: coconut canals two hours from Saigon

Ben Tre is not one town but a cluster of islands between branches of the Mekong, and its identity is the coconut palm. The canals that run between the groves are narrow, shaded and quiet, and the way to see them is from a small boat with an engine off or an oar in the water. Many families still make a living from coconuts, and coconut candy is the product visitors meet first.

Be honest with yourself about the part near the bridge. The first stretch after the Rach Mieu crossing, and the islets opposite My Tho, receive most of the coach tours from Saigon. The workshops there are set up for groups, the canals see a stream of boats in the late morning, and the honey tea and coconut candy are part of a well-worn circuit. It is pleasant, but it is not quiet.

Further in, the picture changes. The canals narrow, fewer tour boats use them, and the orchards are working farms rather than stops. A private day uses the car to get past the busy belt quickly and the private sampan to go into the smaller water. The coach tours cannot do that, because a boat for a whole coach group does not fit.

Since the 2025 merger, Ben Tre is part of Vinh Long province. The name remains on signs, menus and in every conversation; only official documents use the new province name.

In the dry season, salt water pushes up the river mouths. In March 2026 the national forecasting centre reported four-parts-per-thousand salinity reaching 30 to 35 km up the Ham Luong branch that runs through Ben Tre, a season below the 2012 to 2024 average. It does not affect a visit directly.

The Cho Lach area, on its own island more than 40 km from Ben Tre town, is the fruit and plant-nursery district. Its orchards are at their fullest from May to August, and the Cai Mon nurseries, about 40 hectares of them, are busiest in the weeks before Tet.

Ben Tre is inexpensive once you are there. Published figures are sparse and often old, so treat these as a sense of scale:

• A private boat from My Tho to Thoi Son islet was listed at VND 300,000–350,000 in 2021–2023 figures; a seat on a shared boat at VND 20,000–30,000.
• Coconut candy, made from coconut milk, malt, coconut flesh and sugar, is sold by the bag at the workshops.
• Hu tieu My Tho, the thin chewy rice-noodle soup of the town across the river, is a cheap breakfast or lunch.

On our trips the boat, sampan, lunch and entrance fees are included. Money you spend on the day is for purchases you choose.

• If you have already done a coconut-canal day elsewhere in the delta; Ben Tre will feel familiar
• If old architecture matters more to you than canals; Cai Be has the nineteenth-century houses
• If you want a floating market; there is none here
• In the hottest weeks of April, if you cannot start early; midday on the water is hard work