Referring to the very typical culture of the Mekong Delta, it is impossible not to mention the Cai Rang Floating Market, a unique type of market that perhaps no other region in our country has. Cai Rang Floating Market is the busiest and most typical floating market of 3 ones in the Mekong Delta, voted by the UK’s Rough Guide travel magazine as one of the 10 most impressive markets in the world, the famous tourist website Youramazingplaces also voted as one of the 5 most beautiful and interesting floating markets in Asia. On March 10, 2016, Cai Rang floating market was officially recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage according to Decision No. 829/QD-BVHTTDL.
Location: 46 Hai Ba Trung Street, Tan An, Ninh Kieu, Can Tho
I. Highlights of Cai Rang Floating Market
Once visiting Cai Rang Floating Market located in Can Tho Province, you will be amazed by sự sầm uất và nhộn nhịp của nó. During the early morning market meeting hours, big boats anchor and create lanes that smaller boats weave in and out of. The waterway becomes a maze of hundreds of boats contain full of mango, bananas, papaya, pineapple, and even smuggled goods like cigarettes.
Sellers do not need to cry out about their goods because their goods can be seen from a distance and their cries would not be heard in the vastness of the river and the noise of boat engines. Small boats that sell beer, wine, and soft drinks row among the other boats to serve market-goers and visitors. Sellers tie some of their goods to a cay beo (tall pole) so buyers can see what they are selling from a distance.
II. Local Products
Cai Rang Floating Market serves all day; however, it is busiest from daw to around 9 am. The main items sold there are specialties and farm products of Cai Rang District, and neighboring areas such as dried fish, fish sauce coconut candy, milk, fruit, and so on. Every boat has a long upright pole at its bow on which samples of the goods are for sale.
III. Food in Cai Rang Floating Market
Besides seeing how people sell and buy products on Cai Rang floating market, you will also have a chance to experience the rustic lifestyle of Vietnamese people by tasting countless street foods like pho (Vietnamese rice noodle), bun rieu (crab paste vermicelli Soup), com tam (steamed broken rice) and hu tieu (noodle soup). The price of them is very cheap, just around 1.5 USD, surely you can fill up your stomach with a hearty meal. Besides foods, there are drinks, especially coconut water.
Cai Rang Floating Market
IV. Best Time to Visit Cai Rang Floating Market
Cai Rang Floating Market is met very early. when the sky is still foggy on the river’s surface, hundreds of boats from all over the river are bustling to the Floating Market. Therefore, the ideal time to travel to Cai Rang Floating Market, whether booking a tour or self-sufficient, is ideally from 5 am to 8 am, this is when the market is the busiest.
You will be overwhelmed by the sight of dozens of boats parked close to each other, filling the whole river with bustling trading activities, the atmosphere is hectic and cheerful with a Western flavor.
To experience the bustling atmosphere and the beautiful scenery at Cai Rang Floating Market, you can go any season of the year according to your free time. In addition, if you want to discover a particular season only in the West, you should come here between mid-August and late November. This period is the time is also known as the flood season.
The market operates very little on the days of the Lunar New Year (the 1st and 2nd of the Lunar New Year, and the Dragon Boat Festival (the 5th day of the 5th lunar month).
V. How to Get to Cai Rang Floating Market?
There are two main ways to get to Cai Rang Floating Market.
1. Go by Yourself
If you are a type of person who wants to challenge yourself in such a new place, traveling to Cai Rang Floating Market yourself is the right option for you. First, if you are outside Ho Chi Minh City, you must book a domestic flight from Danang or Hanoi. Then, catch a taxi to Ninh Kieu Wharf to buy the boat ticket to Cai Rang, which is about 2.5 USD to 4.5 USD per person. In case you go in a group, the price will be cheaper.
2. Book a Tour
It is easy to buy a tour of Cai Rang Floating Market nowadays. There are many travel agencies offering Mekong Delta tours with the cost ranging from 30 USD to 200 USD. However, you need to check the tour’s schedule carefully before booking so as to pick the one that is most suitable for your timetable.
VI. Tips on Visiting Cai Rang Floating Market
- Don’t forget to arrive in Cai Rang early in the morning to admire the sunrise and eat the freshest food.
- You had better take a local fishing boat to avoid the crowd and get the best experience at Cai Rang Floating Market.
- You should bring an umbrella, a hat, and sunscreen with you to prevent yourself from the heat of the sun during the day.
- You can have breakfast here, especially hu tieu (noodle soup), to have a special feeling when sitting on a boat that is bobbing on the waves.
