Springtime trip to the "Land of Nine Dragons"

Việt Nam•05/02/2024

As one of the key tourist regions of the country, the Mekong Delta, with its unique ecosystem, landscape, and riverine culture, offers visitors exciting experiences and discoveries, especially during the Lunar New Year.

Tourists visit the Ca Mau Cape National Park. Photo: Kim Ha/TTXVN

Sacred Land of Ca Mau Cape

Located in the southernmost part of Vietnam, the beloved land of Ca Mau has always been one of the sacred destinations many tourists long to visit. The Ca Mau Cape National Tourist Area (Dat Mui commune, Ngoc Hien district) is the only place on the mainland in Vietnam where visitors can witness both the sunrise over the East Sea and the sunset over the West Sea. At the Ca Mau Cape National Tourist Area, visitors can explore the National GPS Coordinate Marker 0001, the Ho Chi Minh Trail milestone – the final point in Ca Mau, the complex of Lac Long Quan Temple and Mother Statue, the Hanoi Flagpole symbol, and the symbol of the nation's ship always heading out to sea…

According to Mr. Tran Hieu Hung, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Ca Mau province, visitors to Dat Mui can also experience many community-based ecotourism destinations associated with the mangrove forest. With tours through the mangrove forest, visitors have the opportunity to admire the vast stretches of mangrove trees, go crabbing, and catch snails with the locals... These experiences are sure to bring visitors very special feelings.

Ca Mau is also a destination for many interesting discoveries related to the melaleuca forest ecosystem in the buffer zone of U Minh Ha National Park. Here, amidst the fragrant melaleuca forest, visitors can learn about the traditional beekeeping profession – a National Intangible Cultural Heritage – join the locals in guarding beehives to encourage bees to build nests and produce honey, or "go bee hunting" (harvesting honey), and enjoy local specialties such as U Minh fish sauce hotpot, young bee salad, and brown fish stewed with star fruit…

Mr. Pham Duy Khanh, Director of Muoi Ngọt Ecotourism Area (Khanh Binh Tay Bac commune, Tran Van Thoi district), said that he was originally a beekeeper, but in recent years, he has combined forest-based economic development with ecotourism, guiding tourists to experience beekeeping and "honey harvesting" in the melaleuca forest. As Tet (Lunar New Year) approaches, the U Minh melaleuca forest comes alive with the spirit of spring, and it's also the "springtime" of beekeeping. Tourists visiting Muoi Ngọt Ecotourism Area are always excited to ride in small boats, navigating through the canals under the melaleuca canopy, fishing, setting traps to catch eels, harvesting sweet honey, and enjoying rustic, flavorful local dishes.

The vibrant colors of flowers in the garden

When traveling to the Mekong Delta in spring, tourists can hardly miss Sa Dec flower village (Dong Thap province), known as the "capital" of flowers and ornamental plants in the Southwest of Vietnam. Here, you can admire vast fields of flowers such as chrysanthemums, forget-me-nots, sunflowers, petunias, daisies, lucky bamboo, periwinkle, peonies, etc., displaying their vibrant colors under the Southern spring sun.

According to Nguyen Van Hon, Chairman of the People's Committee of Sa Dec City, developing the flower, plant, and ornamental tree industry in combination with tourism services, Sa Dec currently has more than 2,000 different varieties of flowers and ornamental trees. Sa Dec's flower and ornamental tree products are consumed in most provinces and cities nationwide and exported abroad.

Visitors to Sa Dec flower village are entering a "kingdom of flowers," where locals introduce them to the village's history, dating back to the late 19th century. Today, Sa Dec flower village has developed and expanded from Tan Quy Dong and An Hoa wards to Tan Khanh Dong, Tan Quy Tay, and Tan Phu Dong communes (Sa Dec city), spreading to neighboring areas such as Tan Khanh Trung and Tan My communes (Lap Vo district), Tan Duong and Hoa Thanh communes (Lai Vung district), and Tan Binh commune (Chau Thanh district).

According to the Provincial Center for Trade, Tourism and Investment Promotion, visitors to Dong Thap have many unique attractions and experiences. Highlights include the Sa Dec flower and flour villages, the Dinh Yen mat weaving village with its traditional craft recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage, the Go Thap National Special Monument, the Nguyen Sinh Sac National Historical and Cultural Monument, and experiences at eco-tourism areas, mango and mandarin orange orchards in Lai Vung, pink lotus growing areas, and Tram Chim National Park. Each year, Dong Thap tourism welcomes approximately 4 million domestic and international visitors.

Floating market

With its intricate network of canals and rivers, one of the unique tourist attractions of the Mekong Delta is its floating markets. Beyond simply facilitating trade, these markets have become a cultural feature and a tourism product of the Mekong Delta region and its people. The sight of boats laden with goods ranging from agricultural products, fruits, flowers, and ornamental plants to household items and culinary specialties creates a vibrant scene on the waterways of the Western region, attracting many tourists.

Cai Rang floating market. Photo: Thanh Liem/TTXVN

Among the floating markets in the Mekong Delta, those like Cai Rang (Can Tho City), Cai Be (Tien Giang), and Nga Nam (Soc Trang) are popular destinations for both domestic and international tourists. A survey by the Can Tho Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism shows that approximately 80% of domestic and international tourists visiting Can Tho choose floating markets as a must-see destination. Cai Rang floating market was once voted one of the 10 most impressive markets in the world by the British travel magazine Rough Guide.

According to the Can Tho City Tourism Development Center, Cai Rang floating market preserves the unique riverine culture in its trading activities, daily life, and the religion and beliefs of the merchants (those who sell goods on boats and canoes). The image of the "bamboo pole" is a way of introducing goods that reflects the riverine culture. The method of delivery, where sellers transfer goods to buyers from one boat or canoe to another in a "tossing and catching" style, is also very unique and appealing to many tourists.

In the days leading up to Tet (Lunar New Year), visitors to the floating market witness a much more vibrant and bustling atmosphere of buying and selling. Boats and barges carrying fruits, vegetables, household goods, and especially those laden with flowers and ornamental plants, create a dazzling array of spring colors on the picturesque waterways.

Along with the unique Cai Rang floating market, Can Tho tourism also attracts visitors with its fruit-laden orchards, eco-tourism areas and villages, and community-based tourism destinations on the islets. The city currently has nearly 650 accommodation establishments with more than 11,000 rooms, meeting the accommodation needs of various tourist segments.

Springtime excursions in the "land of nine dragons" offer visitors many attractive destinations, combining the experience of the Mekong Delta countryside with the scenic rivers and orchards of Ben Tre and Tien Giang; eco-tourism areas, cultural and historical relics, and spiritual tourism destinations in Long An, An Giang, Tra Vinh, Soc Trang, and Kien Giang; or coastal tourism destinations in Tan Thanh (Tien Giang), Ba Tri, Thanh Phu (Ben Tre), Ba Dong (Tra Vinh), Ha Tien, and Phu Quoc (Kien Giang). Each destination provides visitors with unique and exciting experiences and emotions about the Mekong Delta – the beloved "land of nine dragons" of our country.

According to VNA

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