Ben Tre is a province in the Mekong Delta, bordering Tien Giang, Vinh Long, Tra Vinh and the East Sea. 85 km from Ho Chi Minh City to the west, Ben Tre is like a green island in the middle of four rivers, an attractive tourist destination for those who love to explore the West.
What season is beautiful in Ben Tre?
Ben Tre is located in the Southwest region, with a warm and sunny climate all year round. Visitors can visit any season of the year, but the ideal time is in the summer months of June, July and August. This is the time when you can admire the colorful natural picture and enjoy the fruits. Freshly picked right on the tree like mangosteen, durian, rambutan…
Move
If you come from Ho Chi Minh City, you can go to Mien Tay bus station to find a suitable bus station with prices ranging from 85,000-140,000 VND. Travel time 1.5-2 hours.
Besides, you can travel by motorbike or travel by self-driving car to freely stop and admire the scenery along the way. It is recommended to depart early in the morning or after 9 am (because the time is 6-8 am on the busy road). Follow Highway 1A to My Tho city, Rach Mieu bridge, turn right across the bridge and you are already in the center of Ben Tre city.
You can also choose a tour according to the preferences of travel companies in Ho Chi Minh City for convenient sightseeing.
Hotels, homestays
In recent years, homestay is quite developed in Ben Tre. You can eat, stay and chat with the host, learn about the local people’s lifestyle and enjoy the specialties of the countryside. Especially when you book a room at Homestay Bao Binh, you are always offered attractive prices and services.
In addition, there are many motels and hotels in the inner city for you to easily choose such as: Cong Doan hotel, Ham Luong hotel, Cuu Long hotel, Thu Thu guesthouse, Que Huong guesthouse… Go up to the rooftops of these hotels for a late-night coffee and a view of the street along the river.
Where to play?
Con Quy is located in Chau Thanh district with specialties of delicious fruits and fish. Con Quy is the smallest of the “four spirits” of the Mekong Delta gardens. Visiting Quy islet, visitors can also enjoy the dish “don ca tai tu” bearing the identity of the southern river region.
Con Phung is located on a floating island in the middle of the Tien River in Tan Thach commune, Chau Thanh district. Coming here, visitors can take a motorboat along the dunes to visit the coconut candy processing facilities, coconut souvenirs or get on a horse-drawn carriage to visit the orchards, stop by the coconut leaf-roofed house to drink tea with honey. bees and kumquats, enjoy tropical fruits. The attractive experience is Crocodile fishing, bottle feeding carp…
There are two places for you to visit: Cai Mon orchard in Cho Lach and Tien Long and Tan Phu areas in Chau Thanh district. You can just enjoy the green space of the orchard, enjoy the fresh fruits picked by yourself and eat on the spot. The ticket price includes one time to enter the garden and enjoy any fruit freely, and gifts will have to be purchased.
Coconut garden: Ben Tre has more than 200,000 coconut growing households, accounting for about two-thirds of the total number of households in the province. Visitors should try cycling a few kilometers around the coconut groves, enjoying the peaceful and cool space. While cycling, visitors can also chat with locals to understand more about life in the countryside.
Vam Ho Bird Sanctuary is a place where visitors can observe more than 100 different species of birds. There are individuals that are almost extinct but they are residing here.
The tomb of Nguyen Dinh Chieu in An Duc commune, Ba Tri district is the resting place of the nation’s great poet, patriot and people’s physician. On July 1 every year, the people of Ben Tre always hold a traditional festival here to commemorate the famous poet, son of the South.
Having come here, visitors can go another 9 km to Ngao beach and Tiem Tom port to see Ba Lai and Ham Luong gates (the 3rd and 4th gates of the Mekong River empty into the East Sea). These two gates are only a few kilometers apart.
Binh Dai Beach belongs to Binh Dai district, located on the banks of Cua Dai river. The beach is still unspoiled, not as noisy as Vung Tau or Nha Trang. Coming here, in addition to swimming, enjoying seafood, visitors can also fish, visit some spiritual tourist attractions…
Dong Khoi guerrilla village is located in Dinh Thuy commune, Mo Cay district. Here, visitors can visit the exhibition hall, which displays the rudimentary weapons that the people of Ben Tre used to use to fight the invaders.
Specialty
Coconut specialties of Ben Tre will surprise visitors. Not only getting coconut water, people also have many delicious dishes such as rice cooked with coconut, coconut porridge, roasted coconut shrimp, coconut tofu, Giong Luong coconut cake…
Crushed bananas: Bananas are flattened and then grilled over charcoal fire, served with coconut milk. The hot and crispy taste of bananas and the greasy taste of coconut milk will delight you.
Chopped flour soup cake: cake is made from rice flour, thick broth cooked with duck meat dipped in ginger fish sauce. This is a typical Western specialty.
Pomelo tea: is made from grapefruit peel, peeled off the green skin, soaked in salt and cooked. The tea is added with durian so it always has a unique taste.
Coconut mouse meat: animals that live on coconut trees are processed into a favorite dish of local people. You can enjoy many dishes such as: grilled, steamed, curry and most especially steamed mouse in a rice cooker.
Rice snail pancakes: In the Mekong Delta, Cho Lach’s Phu Da dunes have the best rice snails. The snail season is only from April to July of the lunar calendar. The cake shell is poured from flour mixed with fragrant coconut milk, eaten with the filling of chopped cassava roots, bean sprouts, and rice snails with Bui Bui will impress diners.
Crayfish is another rustic specialty that is loved by diners. Whether grilled, boiled with red Siamese coconut water, or exploded with salt and lemon leaves, shrimp meat retains its sweetness and firmness.
Fruits: You can enjoy a lot of fruits such as durian, rambutan, longan, mangosteen… with pretty cheap prices and especially don’t forget waxy coconut.
Termites mushrooms grow on extruded termite mounds, appearing from about April to July. Ben Tre’s specialty termite mushrooms are tough, sweet, and have a characteristic aroma.
What to buy as a gift
If you move near the road, you can buy specialty fruits such as mangosteen, Cai Mon durian, green skin pomelo, five roi pomelo… If you want to keep gifts for a long time, choose My Long rice paper, Son puff pastry. Doc, coconut jam, coconut candy, coconut wine… and some beautiful handicrafts from coconut.
