Mekong delta and Cu Chi tunnels one-day tour - single traveller

To do both in one day is pushing it. The delta is huge and the cuchi tunnels are a fair distance from HCMC.
I would suggest one or the other. Possibly Cuchi and the Cao dai temple combined
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=cao+dai+temple+tay+ninh&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjDhd2A4szWAhXMIcAKHVFqDQoQ_AUICygC&biw=988&bih=615&safe=active&ssui=on#imgrc=_

Where do you want to visit in Mekong delta because it's very large and it's too rush to combine Cu Chi and Mekong delta in a day. I think you travel to discover the nature, culture and relax rather than just go there

Thank you ae and Julia!

The tours I've seen that combine Cu Chi tunnels and Mekong delta go to My Tho in the Mekong delta, and include a trip on a row boat, which I'm really keen to do. An example would this this: https://www.getyourguide.co.uk/ho-chi-minh-city-l272/cu-chi-tunnels-mekong-delta-full-day-guided-tour-t22706/?referrer_view_id=788bec046a6a358a9ef2edcf2dd8840c&referrer_view_position=1#booking-assistant or this: https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/AttractionProductDetail/BackUrl?product=8399P1&d=2424560&aidSuffix=tvrm&partner=Viator

From what I can see, after going to Cu Chi in the early morning, these tours then go to My Tho and spend the afternoon there. What do you think of this itinerary?

If you think this is still too much, which one would you do? Mekong or Cu Chi? And could you recommend a tour?

Thank you!

Flavia

Sinh Tourist offer a combined 1 day Cu Chi Tunnels and Mekong Delta Tour.

I have not done this tour myself, but reviews on TA say that it starts from the Sinh Tourist Office in HCMC District 1 at 6.30 am and finishes back there at 7.30 pm.

If a day is all you have and want to do both, you can't really go wrong with a tour by Sinh Tourist. Have used them in the past and they have been okay.

Thank you Gary and Westwood, I followed your recommendation and booked the tour with Sinh Tourist! :-)

I will let you know how it is. :-)

Yo don't get the flashest but for what you pay, its more than adequate.
#2, people travel for different reasons and not all for what you mentioned. Sometimes time and money( sometimes a rule of a country) dictate where we go, how fast and what we see. I've been to places where the destination is the goal, Mt Everest for one.

Hi Flavia,

Can you please tell us about your trip? I am thinking of doing the same tour with that same company in a few weeks.

Thank you!!!
Jill

Hi Jill,

The trip was really good, I greatly enjoyed it! It was a really long day (we left Ho Chi Min City at 7 am, and returned at 6 pm), but it was well worth doing. One of the plusses of doing the combined tour was that we arrived at the Cu Chi tunnels before most other tour groups, and it was nice and peaceful when we arrived! When we were leaving the tunnels, a lot of tour groups started arriving, and it was getting a lot busier.

Our itinerary was as follows:
- Departed Ho Chi Min at 7 am
- Arrived at Cu Chi tunnels (don't remember exact time, but it was just about opening, and it was probably around 8:30-9ish) visited the tunnels
- Drove to Mekong Delta, boarded a boat and had lunch on an island on the delta
- Went back to the boat, and then boarded a smaller 3-person boat to go through smaller channels (this was a highlight, but only lasted 10-15 minutes; it would have been great to have more time on the smaller boats!)
- Went to a traditional singing performance, where we also tried some local fruits and sampled some tea with locally grown honey
- Went to a coconut factory to see how coconut candy is made (this was actually more interesting than I expected!)
- Went on a horse and carriage ride
- Returned to Ho Chi Min City by bus

A few things to consider:
- If you're booking this tour online, make sure you bring the card you booked with with you to their offices to get your tickets! I thought my passport would suffice, but they were very strict on this point, and I had to go back to my hotel to pick up my card before they would give me my ticket.
- The people on the tour are very mixed, but the majority of people were from Asia, with even some Vietnamese people on it! I got to meet some interesting people on the tour, and there weren't that many Westeners (which I count as a plus!). Different than the tours you usually book, where most of the people are from Europe/North America, this seemed to be a tour agency that the locals use.
- In the morning, the Sinh Tourist offices get manic! There was a huge crowd (again, mostly Asian/Vietnamese people) buying tickets, waiting for their tours, etc. You meet in front of the offices, and then they walk to the buses. You have to listen up for when to leave (I didn't find it clear, please just started walking to the buses, even though I didn't hear them announcing my specific tour), and then make sure you board the right bus!
- I don't want to generalise, but my tour guide was quite young and inexperienced (he has been a tour guide for about 6 months). I felt he could have talked more and given more background on the bus, although he knew his stuff when we arrived at the tunnels and delta.

Overall, I really enjoyed it, and would recommend the Sinh Tourist for a more local experience. However, as other people have already said on this thread, having more time in the Delta would have been great, but I'm glad I did both, as I only had one free day in HCMC!

Hope this helps you Jill! :-)