Ben Tre

The City of Ben Tre is actually where the Vietnam War started when the Viet Cong killed 12 southern Vietnamese soldiers in 1959 and where the preposterous strategy was proposed by a US army officer who said, “It became necessary to destroy Ben Tre to save it” and was bombed till flattened. But this meant the city had a clean slate and rebuilt what it is now today. The completion of the Rach Mieu Bridged in 2009 was when things kicked into high gear as development growing at a rapid pace with tourism following suit.

It is still considered an off-the-beaten-track destination for tourists but developers are quickly catching up and buying property along the Tien Giang River so hotels and commercial buildings are on the rise. To get there, one must take a 20-minute ferry ride from My Tho or a direct bus from Ho Chi Minh City. In the city, the best way to explore is via motorbike rental or intercity buses which uses a very system to navigate the different districts.

Boat tours are the centerpiece of a visit to Ben Tre so you could take a tour along the rivers in Con Phung Island or head off to Con Oc Island. Other interesting sites are the Ben Tre Museum, Dong Khoi Building of Historical Value (war history), Nguyen Dinh Chieu Poet’s Mausoleum and traditional handicrafts villages such as the Son Doc Rice Paper Villages, Cai Mon Fruit and Flower Village, Phu Le Traditional Alcohol Village, and the Hung Phong Coconut Handicraft Village. Lastly, one cannot leave without trying out the coconut produce with the fruit so prominent that there is a Coconut Festival held every four years.