Vietnam forum

We'd like to visit the Mekong Delta for a few days as part of our route from HCMC-Phu Quoc-Siem Reap, but are undecided how best to incorporate this and which towns to include. We have about 3 days budgeted for the delta (an additional 3 days in Phu Quoc). A couple of options we thought of:

1) Take bus from HCMC to a town such as Ben Tre / Vinh Long/Tra Vinh for a 1-2 days, then onward to Can Tho for the floating markets. Fly from Can Tho to Phu Quoc. Leaving Phu Quoc we'd take the ferry to Ha Tien and catch the bus up to Phnom Penh .

2) Fly from HCMC to Phu Quoc. Leaving Phu Quoc, take ferry to Ha Tien and travel to Chau Doc for a couple of days, then take a boat up to Phnom Penh or maybe all the way to Siemp Reap (?).

Any advice? Option 2 would perhaps be less rushed and easier- we'll already be at the HCMC airport as we're flying there from Hue, so we could just hop on the flight to Phu Quoc rather than finding our way to the bus station. But I'd hate to miss out on Can Tho and the other smaller towns such as Ben Tre sound lovely too. Is there enough to do in Chau Doc? The Tra Su bird sanctuary looks interesting (we'll be there in Dec., not sure when the best time to visit this would be). Any other towns in that area that would be worth a visit? We're mainly interested in just observing the way of life, seeing the floating markets and scenery, maybe some cycling if we can find bicycles to rent. If anyone has opions on which area they like the best, I'd appreciate it! Thanks! [img]smileys/smile.gif[/img]