Vietnam Review – Nam Bo Homestay on the Mekong River

Prior to our Mekong cruise on Le Cochinchine, we spent a night at the Vietnamese Nam Bo Homestay near Ben Tre, as a guest of Mr Phuoc.

Actually, this wasn’t exactly Mr Phuoc’s home, but more of a camp in the middle of the jungle next to one of the many winding tributaries.

But who cared? We didn’t. Like the cruise, it turned out we were the only guests so we had the place to ourselves!

We arrived just before lunch and were immediately spoiled with some “ca tai tuong chien xu” or Elephant Fish as it’s affectionately known.

You pick off the fish meat, role in rice paper with salad, and then dip in a scrummy sauce. Washing it down with a Tiger Beer as tiny boats “put-put-put” down the river next to you, you drift in and out of excitement and disbelief that you are actually so deep into the delta.

Part of the tour includes a trip to a market on bicycles (I’ll have a video of that later), but I enjoyed simply sitting by the river watching the fisherman earn their keep and seeing the world go by.

Accommodation is basic, but that’s not what you go on a homestay for. It’s all about the experience of meeting local Vietnamese and learning much about their culture and traditions.

We were spoiled as we had the whole family to ourselves. But this particular homestay could get a little crowded with room for twenty. More for bigger tours I guess.

Everything we did on our Vietnam trip was a highlight, but this was near the top of the list.

The friendliness of the family and local people, the delicious food and the tranquil setting, the awesome photo opportunities…..I could go on and on!

If you’re procrastinating don’t!

A Mekong homestay will be an experience you’ll never forget!

More pics here: Vietnam Photos