If you have found your way to Mekong Delta, you cannot afford to miss the Floating Market or “Cho Noi”. Floating markets in Vietnam have existed for a long time in the area. Basically, in here people sell and buy things above water. Actually, floating markets which have been around for a long time make the liveliest part of life in the south-west, the land of ditches, rivers and canals. cruise mekong delta For tourists who travel to Can Tho, metropolis of the south-west, it would be regretful if they could not drop by and purchase something in Cai Rang (6km from Can Tho city), one of the most famous and biggest floating markets in the Mekong Delta.
What to see and do
A floating market usually starts at 4am or 5am in the morning before dawn and ends when the sun rises high at 9am or 10am. Fruits and vegetables such as pineapple, dragon fruit, water melon, yam, and cabbage are the dominant goods at these floating market. Besides, you can also buy crafts, garden tools and Vietnamese breakfast like rice noodle “Bun” or “Hu Tieu”. It is very funny to try to control the chopstick and soup bowl while paddling along the river.
One of the most noticeable features of the floating market is “Cay Beo”. There is a small pillar put in front of every boat. Products can be bought from the local boat will be hung on the small pillar as a notice sign. Of course, they cannot hang on a bowl of noodle in the pillar; so, if you want to eat, you should look for the delicious smell and the smoke.
From Ninh Kieu dock in Can Tho City, you can visit floating market by a boat tour.
Colorful floating market:
The market stretches half kilometre downstream Can Tho River from Cai Rang Bridge. Hundreds of boats gathering here from the sunrise untill before noon makes the area extraordinary animated and the water surface colorful with numerous tropical fruits. The large sized anchored boats create meandering spaces for smaller ones to weave through. All create a joyful and bustling atmosphere that can attract any tourist.
Most of the boats here are packed with a lot of farm products and specialties of Cai Rang Town, Chau Thanh district and the nearby areas like vegetables, coconut, banana, watermelon, grapefruit, dragon fruit and so on. Small boats that sell wine, soft drinks and food for breakfast go among the others to serve visitors and market-goers. Other services and products like mending machine, selling gasoline, cosmetic, mobile card, clothes, spicy, etc all are available here, not different from what are sold in common markets on land. ho chi minh to phnom penh cruise
Trading from boats brings interest to buyers when catching some sample of products that are thrown by sellers from other boats. While shopping on boat, one can also enjoy see floating house of the locals along the riverside and fresh fruits.
Unique advertising tool:
In this hurry floating market, the cries of the sellers seem to be swallowed in the vastness of the river and lost into the noise of boat engines. The disadvantaged condition turns out to create an unique advertising tool: pole of sample goods.
Every boat has a long upright pole with samples of the goods such as fruits, vegetable,… for sale hung on, so the sellers do not have to cry out what they are selling and buyers can easily see from the distance the goods sold on that boat. Just look up and ones can know exactly which boat selling the products they are seeking for.
Tips:
To catch the most attractive views and enjoy the most animated atmosphere of Cai Rang market (often 6 am to 8 am), tourists should stay overnight in Can Tho and come here at the dawn, about 5 a.m.
After watching the sun rising and enjoying local breakfast, one can charter either a motorized boat or a non motorized one to begin a morning shopping in floating market. Most of boats for charter are located along Vo Tanh road. The fee is purchased differently based on the kind of chartered boat.
Your trip in the South of Vietnam can be perfect without visiting Cai Rang: one of the most famous floating markets in Vietnam.
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