Mekong River Cruises: Best 4-Day Tour Itinerary

Mekong Cruise From Saigon to Phnom Penh

If the main reason that attracts you to culturally rich Southeast Asia is taking a Mekong River cruise, but you cannot join an extended journey or cannot afford it, why not embark on a 4-day voyage between Vietnam and Cambodia with plenty of serene landscapes and cultural immersion? In this article, we will suggest the best detailed itinerary for a 4-day cruise from Saigon to Phnom Penh, which can be your next vacation to the region.

Mekong Cruise Tour Information

A 4-day cruise tour from Saigon to Phnom Penh is perfect for travelers who want to sail between Vietnam and Cambodia but still wish to save money. You can fully experience some of the highlights in southern Vietnam or particularly in the Mekong Delta, such as Cai Be, Can Tho, Cai Rang floating market, Chau Doc, and more.

This tour departs daily, and during the journey, you will stay in a hotel on the third night and take a speedboat ride from Chau Doc to Phnom Penh in the morning of the fourth day.

Mekong Cruise Tour Details

Day 1: Panorama River Cruise

In the morning, we pick you up at your hotel in Saigon and take you to Can Tho or Cai Be. You board your wooden river cruise vessel around noon. After a refreshing welcome drink, we show you our on-board facilities and your cozy cabin. As lunch is served, the boat starts cruising. Sit back and watch the fantastic scenery and the daily life of the Mekong people.

In the afternoon, you can disembark for a guided leisurely stroll through a village and the surrounding fruit orchards or rice fields. Meet the friendly locals and taste the local produce and fruits.

Get back on board and enjoy a drink at the bar or relax on deck as the sun sets over the magnificent water landscape of the Mekong River. The boat will anchor for the night. The day ends with a delicious on-board dinner. You stay overnight on board your floating hotel in the Mekong Delta.

Meals: Lunch (L), Dinner (D)

Day 2: Life on the Water and Floating Markets

Wake up well rested to the sound of the river and get ready for another exciting day of sightseeing in the Mekong Delta. At 6.30 am, the cruise vessel sets off for a sunrise cruise. Watch the locals go about their daily work, drying exotic fruits and building ships on the wooden yards, while enjoying an early breakfast.

After breakfast, we will board a sampan boat to Cai Rang floating market, the region’s busiest and most lively market. On even dates, you will explore the small channels of the Mekong Delta around Cai Be with a small sampan or by foot. Marvel at the sheer abundance of exotic fruits and vegetables. We will pull up to the boats to talk and bargain with the merchants. We will also visit some of the local candy and cake-making factories or boat through the green water landscape to see local houses, verdant orchards, and shipbuilding yards.

Later in the morning, you can boat through the green water landscape on a little rowing sampan to see local houses, verdant orchards, and shipbuilding yards. Alternatively, you can discover the nearby town by foot or explore the small side canals of the Mekong River on a bicycle.

The cruise boat then resumes its journey as lunch is served. In the afternoon, there will be another side trip to one of the exotic villages along the way.

Meals: B, L, D

Day 3: An exotic world of its own

After breakfast and an early start through the glorious morning atmosphere on the Mekong River, in Can Tho, we will visit the floating market of Cai Rang. In Cai Be, we will explore the delta by foot or with a small sampan. Be sure not to miss the great photo opportunities for authentic snapshots of the Mekong people and their lives. Take another sampan side trip right into the lush rural landscape, the fertile fields, and the exuberant green.

Disembark the boat at around 11.00-11.30 am on the pier and enjoy lunch at a local restaurant. Sit back in the shuttle (bus or car) and watch the water landscape from a land perspective until you reach Chau Doc, where we bring you to your hotel.

Meals: B, L

Day 4: Across the border towards Cambodia

We transfer you to the pier, where you embark on the speed boat for an exciting ride to Phnom Penh, your starting point for discovering Cambodia and the famous temples of Angkor Wat.

The trip ends here.

Each Mekong River cruise voyage offers a truly immersive, meaningful, and customized experience through Southeast Asian destinations. On a 4-day cruise tour from Saigon to Phnom Penh, you’ll witness the energetic life in the Mekong Delta, with an abundance of countryside landscapes. If you’re looking for a short Mekong River cruise trip, please contact our cruise experts for the best deals and information. Bon voyage!