Choosing a Mekong river cruise
Ports
Where Mekong cruises start and finish
Four places decide how a Mekong cruise begins and ends: the delta towns of Cai Be and My Tho, the river city of Can Tho, the Cambodian capital, and the Siem Reap end of the Tonle Sap. Each page covers boarding, getting there, time on shore and when to leave the place out.
The four ports at a glance
| Port | Who boards or leaves here | From Saigon | Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cai Be and My Tho | Delta boats at Cai Be; most ships into Cambodia at My Tho | 71 km (My Tho), 108 km (Cai Be) | Cai Be and My Tho |
| Can Tho | Delta boats at Ninh Kieu pier; Victoria Mekong at its own pier | About 171 km | Can Tho |
| Phnom Penh | Saigon to Phnom Penh cruises end on the riverfront; longer ships pass through | By ship or by air | Phnom Penh |
| Siem Reap and the Tonle Sap | 7-night cruises end here in high water; by road or air the rest of the year | By ship, road or air | Siem Reap and the Tonle Sap |
Sources: OSRM / OpenStreetMap road distances, queried 11 Oct 2026; BestPrice Travel — Bassac 2 days 1 night (reseller); Wendy Wu Tours AU — Victoria Mekong; Pandaw — Saigon to Phnom Penh product PDF (new for 2026); Pandaw — The Classic Mekong guide, 4 May 2026 · checked .
The river between them
The Mekong reaches Vietnam in two main channels. The Tien river runs past Sa Dec, Cai Be and My Tho; the Hau river, also called the Bassac, runs past Chau Doc and Can Tho. Delta boats move between the two through side rivers such as the Mang Thit and narrow cuts such as the Cho Lach canal, which is why a one-night cruise between Cai Be and Can Tho can spend its afternoon in narrow side channels.
Ships bound for Cambodia work upriver through the upper delta, stopping at Chau Doc or Tan Chau, to the border at Vinh Xuong and Kaam Samnor, then continue to Phnom Penh. Above the capital the Tonle Sap river leads north-west past Kampong Tralach and Kampong Chhnang to the lake, while the Mekong itself runs north to Kampong Cham, where several larger ships end their river leg. Which of those two branches a ship takes, and how far it gets, depends on the ship and on the water.
Sources: BestPrice Travel — Bassac 2 days 1 night (reseller); CroisiEurope — RV Toum Tiou II; Cruiseline.co.uk — Scenic Spirit sample departure (agent); Viking press release, 14 Nov 2023; Royal Embassy of Cambodia, Washington DC — FAQ · checked .
Stops without their own page
Several places appear on cruise itineraries without being boarding points. We describe them inside the cruise pages rather than give each a page of its own.
- Sa Dec, on the Tien river, a port on Toum Tiou II's route and on Le Cochinchine's route map; known for its flower village.
- Chau Doc, on the Hau river near the border: Sam Mountain, the fish farms on the river, and the daily speedboat to Phnom Penh.
- Tan Chau, named on AmaWaterways and Scenic itineraries.
- Kampong Tralach and Kampong Chhnang, on the Tonle Sap river above Phnom Penh, ports on CroisiEurope's route; Pandaw reaches Kampong Chhnang by ship or by coach depending on water.
- Kampong Cham, on the Mekong above Phnom Penh, where Viking, Scenic and Victoria Mekong end their river legs.
Sources: CroisiEurope — RV Toum Tiou II; Le Cochinchine (operator site); Travel Market Report — AmaMaya; Cruiseline.co.uk — Scenic Spirit sample departure (agent); TravelVietnam.com — Pandaw low-water programme (reseller); Viking press release, 14 Nov 2023; Wendy Wu Tours AU — Victoria Mekong; Hang Chau Tourist (operator) · checked .
A note on Vietnamese place names
Vietnam reorganised its provinces on 1 July 2025. My Tho and Cai Be belonged to Tien Giang province, which is now part of Dong Thap. Ben Tre and Tra Vinh are now part of Vinh Long province, and Can Tho city now takes in the former Soc Trang and Hau Giang provinces. Cruise operators still use the town names, and so do we; where the province matters we say 'the former Ben Tre province'.
Sources: Bao Dai bieu Nhan dan, 12 Jun 2025 — Resolution 202/2025/QH15 · checked .
Which port pages to read
If you are choosing a delta boat, read Cai Be and My Tho and Can Tho; the cruise is a line between them. If you are choosing a ship into Cambodia, read Phnom Penh and Siem Reap and the Tonle Sap, and then the water page, because the end of the cruise moves with the season.
Each port page links to the cruises that use it. For the cruises themselves, start at the cruise overview.
Direction matters as much as the port. Most of the Cambodia cruises we compare run both ways, so the port you board at can be the one nearer your arrival flight. Saigon has the widest choice of international flights into the south; Siem Reap's airport, opened in 2023, sits about 50 km from the town; Phnom Penh's flights were due to move to the new Techo airport on 9 September 2025, according to Vietnam Airlines. Work out where you land and where you leave, and the direction of the cruise usually follows.
Sources: Heritage Line — Jayavarman; Siemreap.net — Siem Reap–Angkor International Airport, updated 10 Oct 2026; Vietnam Airlines travel guide — Phnom Penh airport · checked .
Common questions
Questions travellers ask most
Do we need a hotel night before boarding?
Usually not in the delta: boats and ships board after a morning drive from Saigon. Some travellers add a night in Can Tho to see Cai Rang market at dawn on their own.
Where do ships board in Saigon itself?
Most published itineraries we read board at My Tho after a coach from a Saigon meeting point. Scenic's sample itinerary lists Ho Chi Minh City as its first port, and Mekong Eyes runs round trips from Saigon.
Can a cruise end at Chau Doc?
Yes. Bassac publishes a two-night Cai Be to Chau Doc cruise, and from Chau Doc a daily speedboat continues to Phnom Penh.
Is Kampong Cham worth a page of its own?
For most travellers it is a place to leave the ship rather than to stay; the road to Siem Reap starts there.
Related
Read next
Ports · Mekong Delta
Cai Be and My Tho
The delta towns where most boats and ships board, and what to expect on boarding day.
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Ports · Mekong Delta
Can Tho
Can Tho as a cruise port: Ninh Kieu pier, Cai Rang at dawn, and getting back to Saigon.
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Ports · Cambodia
Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh as a cruise port: docking, nights, getting on to Siem Reap, and costs.
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Ports · Cambodia
Siem Reap and the Tonle Sap
Where 7-night cruises end: the Tonle Sap crossing, the road alternative, and Angkor.
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How to choose
High and low water
What high and low water change on Mekong cruises, by operator and by month.
View this journey
Cruises
Cruises
The four kinds of Mekong cruise and the boats that run each one.
View this journeyStart planning
Tell us which cruise you are weighing up
A month, how many are travelling and whether you lean towards a delta boat or a ship into Cambodia are enough to start. We reply by email with the boats that sail your dates and the fares their operators show that day.