Day Trips

River Cruise in the Mekong Delta

T. L. Watts

The Great Cao Dai Temple: Tay Ninh, Vietnam

A trip out to see the Great Cao Dai Temple in Tay Ninh is a great day trip to escape some of the hustle and bustle of Saigon. The drive is amazing, albeit somewhat bumpy; the roads are in some need of improvement, but hopefully this will improve if the TransAsia highway is ever constructed. Regarding the Cao Dai religion, it is something of a novelty; it was founded by Ngo Minh Chieu, a French civil servant in the 1920s. He asserted that he began receiving "revelations" in 1919 regarding the disunity of other religions and that he should be responsible for bringing about a synthesis. Thus, he was to combine the teachings of various beliefs, including Buddhism, Taiosm, Islam, Christianity, Hinduism and others. He revealed his practices to the public in 1926 and the Cao Dai religion was born. Perhaps one reason it became so popular was that it became involved in the Vietnamese nationalist movement that sought to expel the French. Cao Dai fighters eventually joined the French afainst the Viet Minh, however, but suffered persecution after the takeover by North Vietnam. The great temple functions as the center of the religion, much like St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican. There are numerous other Cao Dai temples in Vietnam, as the religion is particularly popular among people in the South. The temple was constructed between 1933 and 1955, and is located about 60 miles northwest of Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) near the small town of Long Than in the Tay Ninh province. The ceremonies are held four times a day; the most popular for visitors is the noon ceremony. Visitors are restricted to the visitor's gallery, seen as the catwalk above the main floor in the photo.

Mekong Delta Boat Tours  

Mekong Cruise With Song Xanh Sampans

Song Xanh Sampan launched in November is a new cruise to discover the Mekong Delta. This small boat equipped with a private toilet removable beds offers 3 days/2 nights cruise, guests will be led to smaller rivers and canals, discovering life of local people on the river as well as on the land: floating markets, to orchards, local school and fruit production factories. Song Xanh will trace from Cai Be to various provinces in Mekong Delta such as Chau Doc

Mekong Delta Cruise Le Cochinchine

By Karen Mitchell
Iwas visiting Ho Chi Minh City, delighting in its urban charms, when I first felt it - the unmistakable pull of the Mekong Delta. Even in the bustling heart of HCMC you can sense this expansive waterway beckoning like an insistent lover, calling you to its aquatic universe. Make the journey, it whispers. Stay the night on LE COCHICHINE.

Mekong Delta Cruise Bassac

The Bassac is entirely built of wood, from the hull of an 80-foot-long rice barge. She can accommodate up to 12 passengers in six nicely decorated cabins, each with air-con and a private bathroom, and features a bow lounge with music and a library, a 100 sqft restaurant that opens all around, a large galley, a small office room and 700 sqft of sundeck.

Cai Be Princess Cruise Mekong

Drive along scenic countryside to Caibe, stopping en route at Cao Dai Temple. Upon arrival, we board the luxurious Cai Be Princess junk boat with welcome drink and fresh rolled cotton towels.
Cruising with Caibe Princess to visit Cai Be colorful floating market. Proceed to some local home factories such as rice paste making, rice pop corn, coco candies, longans drying processing, etc. Cruise to Dong Hoa Hiep island located between Vinh Long and Cai Be.