Ben Tre

Travel Guide

Hotel Deals of the Day

best price guarantee

Maps

Ben Tre

Ben Tre province is made up of three main islands wedged between the Tien Giang River to the north and to Co Chien River to the south with the Ham Luong River running straight down the centre. All are effectively offshoots of the Mekong River as it splits out into many fingers before spilling out into the South China Sea.

Famous for its coconut desserts, the province is suitably covered in coconut trees. During the war these coconut trees were used to make coconut oil which was then used as a valuable substitute for kerosene.

Verdant and flat, the province is mostly given over to rice and fruit cultivation, though being an island province, fishing is another mainstay of the local economy. Traditional Mekong life is the norm here and it's a very unadulterated scene -- wandering the market, sipping the coffee, doing a boat trip and skipping through the local museum are the main pastimes.

As far as exploring the Delta is concerned, Ben Tre is a dead-end province. Once you've experienced all the province has to offer, you'll need to turn around and head back through My Tho to get any further into the Delta. That's not to suggest it isn't worth visiting -- it is. For starters you can do boat trips from here for a fraction of the price of a trip from My Tho (either organised through Ben Tre Tourist, or via the boatmen at the pier) and, with its large network of minor canals, there's a lot of scope for riverine exploration. There's also a small museum and a pleasing riverfront worth investigating.

First things first -- Ben Tre town is clean -- it's as if somewhere between the My Tho ferry crossing and downtown you pass through a cleanliness vortex -- the roads are spotless, the pavements are tiled and smooth and there's little refuse -- even in the market.

Secondly, there's not really all that much to do in Ben Tre. There's boat trips, a pagoda, a small museum, a good market and lots of friendly people, but overall there's not enough here to justify a stay of more than a night or so.

The main advantage of coming here is that the boat trips are far cheaper than in My Tho and you can pretty much visit the same spots. If you're on a budget, Ben Tre is a far better base than My Tho -- it's a pleasant enough place, with a small town charm, that makes it an allround reasonable spot for those with enough time on their hands to dawdle slowly through the Delta.

Check Ben Tre hotel rates on Agoda. Best price guarantee!

Accommodation: Ben Tre
Dong Khoi Hotel | Hung Vuong Hotel | Phuong Hoang Hotel |

Text and/or map last updated on 21st August, 2009.

Jump to a different destination in Vietnam

Get orientated with a map of Ben Tre, Vietnam

Ben Tre reviews

Backchat from the Travelfish community

Ben Tre chill out after HCMC

its a sleepy kind of rural town i liked to spend the time watching the boats full of coconuts going up and down the river also unloading
across the river you can have good walks into the coconut plantations or hire a bike can jump on local bus to MY THO 1/2 HOUR
people are nice at night very little to do in the center not many eating places best get a motor bike taxi to the many local places to eat on the main highway near the new police hq the best i liked was the NAPOLI Italian and VN food clean and cheap (good pizza) 2/3 nights should be ok
- Sights & activities
- History & culture
- Scenery & environment
- Eat & drink
- Traveller's scene
- Romance
- Value for money
- I'll be back (or not)
By JOCKBELL (dabbler)
Written on 9th November, 2012 after a visit to Ben Tre in January, 2012

Have your say

You need to be logged in to add a review.

Username: Password:

Not a member? you can join here.
Review title

Snappiness encouraged ;-)

When did you visit here?

This gives your review a bit of context - especially if you were last in Chiang Mai in 1932.

Your review

(Remotely sensible, non-ranting comments are much appreciated. If you don't like somewhere, please explain why -- it's all far more helpful for others that way.) Serial ranters, loons and spammers will be banished!
And please, no self-promotional URLs -- that's what your signature field is for.

So how does it rate?

On a scale of one to ten (with 10 being outstanding and 1 being bloody awful) how would you rate here under the following criteria?

Note: Ratings are OUT OF TEN -- not five!
Please note comments are edited for clarity, typos and style before they appear. Ranting tirades, spam and anything else that really belongs somewhere else won't make the cut. If you want to rant, go to Thorntree.

Please login and refresh this screen before writing your review -- thanks!