A guide to the Mekong Delta slow boat

The Mekong Delta slowboat ticket office environment was at the best of the pier, and it was a very easy transaction – all I necessary was my passport and the price in money. I was assigned a seat quantity, though in exercise these are arbitrary. Here there was a little bit of waiting around, but I made use of the prospect to laden myself with treats at the nearby stall – something I’d very advocate, as there are not particularly retailers on the river. I also launched myself to a few of my fellow travellers, some of whom were on organised team excursions and some solo-travelling.

The boat left around eleven, but it is far better to board a very little earlier. You want to be in the vicinity of the entrance or center, as the engines are at the back and are deafening more than enough to change this idyllic journey into something entirely a lot more annoying. Some boats have rather awkward wood pew-style seats, while some have chairs repurposed from coaches, so a journey pillow can be extremely helpful. Mine was the previous, and it did signify a good deal of shifting from cheek to cheek, but for the price it was a lot more than cosy sufficient. Although the precise experience down the river is fairly easy, the boat rocks rather considerably during passenger boarding and cargo loading, so if you’re a bit anxious about sailing you may possibly want to put together yourself.

Whilst it experienced only been a several short hrs due to the fact I’d woken up, I felt like I’d presently packed in several days’ well worth of travelling. But now I realized I could sit back again, chill out, and consider in the river surroundings. The mother nature of the boat means shade and a continual breeze to fight the pulsing Southeast Asian sun, so it was a nice journey from the getgo. Even though my surroundings have been a delight, the views had been pretty dependable during the first day, so I obtained through a number of internet pages of my e-book. However, I also had a deck of cards, perhaps the most practical item any traveller can have if they want to socialise. The cards speedily created me popular among the other passengers looking for one thing to do, and soon there had been a handful of unique teams of us all receiving to know each other.