Dong ThapOrchard
NG Cho Gao dragon fruit farm
Night-lit dragon fruit fields monitored by drone
4.7(518)
Dong Thap
Former Dong Thap and Tien Giang
Land of pink lotus, Sa Dec flower village and fruit islands on the Tien River
Best time: June – November (lotus and flood season), December – January (flower village)
The new Dong Thap stretches from the vast lotus fields of Dong Thap Muoi to the Tien River mouths at My Tho. Visitors come for the cranes of Tram Chim, Sa Dec flower village, rowing through nipa-palm creeks on Thoi Son islet and the dragon fruit farms of Cho Gao.
History
- My Tho took shape in the 17th century as one of the earliest towns in the south.
- Sa Dec flower village is over 100 years old and supplies Tet flowers across the south.
People
- Down-to-earth people, skilled at river life and gardening.
Customs
- Flood season (August – November) brings linh fish and sesbania flowers – flavours of a single season.
- At Tet, Sa Dec's flower beds blaze with colour along the canals.
Illustrative map, approximate positions
Top places
NG partner 
NG partnerDong ThapOrchard
NG My Xuong mango orchard
Bagged Hoa Loc mangoes, QR-traced from orchard to table
4.6(214)Dong ThapNature
Thoi Son islet
Row through nipa-palm creeks, hear folk music, eat orchard fruit
4.4(2,210)Dong ThapSpiritual
Vinh Trang Pagoda
Historic My Tho pagoda blending Asian and European styles
4.6(1,530)Dong ThapCraft village
Sa Dec flower village
A century-old flower village with beds raised over canals
4.7(2,390)Dong ThapCraft village
Dinh Yen mat-weaving village
Colourful sedge mats drying and a midnight mat market
4.4(260)NG partner Dong ThapCraft village
Fruit & vegetable preserves workshop (NG partner)
A cooperative making preserves from NG farm produce – sample data
4.8(190)
Specialties
- Mekong sizzling pancakeA pancake as wide as the pan, crisp and golden with turmeric and coconut milk, filled with shrimp, pork and bean sprouts. Eat it by hand, wrapped in a dozen garden herbs.
- Straw-grilled snakehead fishField snakehead skewered and grilled under burning straw – a farmer's meal. Peel off the charred skin, wrap in rice paper and dip in tamarind sauce.
- My Tho rice noodle soupChewy, clear noodles from Go Cat rice in a light bone broth, with shrimp, pork and liver.
Craft villages
- Ornamental flowers on raised bedsSa Dec flower villageIn Sa Dec, flowers grow not on the ground but on beds raised over water channels – so they stay dry when the floods come.
- Sedge mat weavingDinh Yen mat-weaving villageLooms clatter from dawn to late night, and the mat market opens while everyone else sleeps.
- Preserves from NG's traceable produceFruit & vegetable preserves workshopProduce that is a little odd-looking but still delicious goes to the preserves workshop instead of being wasted – a zero-waste loop.
Where to stay
Island homestay
Rach Dua homestay, Thoi Son
Nipa-thatched bungalows by a quiet creek
4.6(388)650,000 ₫/night
Flower village homestay
Sa Dec flower garden house
Wake up among flower beds, free bicycles
4.7(156)600,000 ₫/night