Introduction

Travelling from Ho Chi Minh to Siem Reap by bicycle is a great way to experience local life, cross the Mekong River network and travel through the charming villages of Vietnam and Cambodia. Begins a fantastic journey from the famous historic Saigon through the most Delta's beautiful countryside, speed boat upstream Mekong River to the Phnom Penh Capital city before spending a couple of days in Siem Reap. The only bicycle allows tourists to meet locals at their homes, cross many small rivers by little ferry boats, and cycle into removed hamlets. Enjoy every moment of your cycling adventures, and travel through inland waterways, and discover the Unesco World Heritage Site of Angkor before going back home.

Destination
Duration
Tour code
VCT: MCT-11D- HCM - REP
Travel style
Tour meets
Tour ends
Accommodation
3 - 4 star hotels
Single supplement
405.00$
Number Of cycling days
8 days
Ages to ride
16 years old
Average distance per day
45km
MTB Bike hire
US$104
Total cycling distance
555km
E-Bike hire
$280.00
Small group
02
Large Group
14
Price in US$
USD $2275.00 2275.00
Price in VND
What's included
Private A/C vehicle takes up all cyclists, luggage
Truck to carry all bikes, spare bikes
Helmets
All entrance fees, ferry tickets in countryside
Daily cold water, snack, fresh fruits, facial tissues
9 nights: double room/ twin room
B = 10 Breakfasts, L = 10 Lunches, D = 10 Dinners
Speed boat Chau Doc to Phnom Penh
All Airport in/out
Pick up & drop off at hotels
English speaking guide throughout the tour
What's not included
Personal travel insurance
Other personal expenses
Drinks are not included with any meal
Visa to Vietnam & Cambodia
International flight

The trip starts in Ho Chi Minh. Would you please inform us about your flight to arrange services to pick up each on time? Suppose you arrived in Ho Chi Minh on the trip's departure date on time OR the day before, and we will offer you a day cycling to famous Cu Chi tunnels. Those who arrive in Ho Chi Minh on the departure date will dine with the group in town. 


7:30 am, depart from your hotel, travel on the vehicle out of Saigon, and we explore hamlets, the life of locals, and rubber plantations, see workers harvest natural latex rubber, visit a local home to see how rice paper is made? Arrival at tunnels, We enjoy lunch at a nice restaurant by the Saigon River. Then we watch the documentary film about tunnels during Vietnam War. Following are booby traps, secret entrances, fighting bunkers, air-holes before we explore 3 levels of the tunnels. We return to Saigon in the afternoon.

Northern Hotel Saigon
Lunch/ Dinner
25km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

We commence today ride with an hour's drive south to the rural village of Ben Luch to see the lushly green Mekong Delta by bicycle. We cycle through beautiful farmlands where locals grow many dragon fruits and kinds of rice. Then we ride cross through a network of farming canals and rustic villages to My Tho. The morning is about 35km, but it could make flexible from 25 - 35km—lunch in My Tho city, then transfer to a rural village in Cay Lay where we ride to Cai Be in the afternoon. Explore the lively waterways and vibrant villages along the river to Cai Be with a ferry boat to An Binh Island.

Ut Trinh Homestay
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
25 - 65km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

If you could get up early, take a walk through the village, and explore the morning activities of the locals. Return to the homestay, taste tea and coffee, enjoy breakfast and watch local's morning activities on the front waterways. From the homestay, we ride to explore people living through Binh Hoa Phuoc, then Phu Phung villages, before cycling to Cho Lach.


The paths are mixed of different surfaces; dirt tracks, concrete trails, asphalt country back roads through verdant fruit orchards, farmlands of ornamental trees, backwaters, and rustic villages. We travel through local markets, cross many small rivers on narrow bridges, and pedal on the dirt tracks alongside the Mekong River to Cai Mon. Enjoy lunch at the local home has a beautiful nursery garden. After lunch, take a rest with a transfer to Mo Cay for the beautiful ride to Tra Vinh in the afternoon. We explore Mo Cay, scenic villages, water palms, and crossing water channels. The routes are smooth through thousands of coconut trees, water palms, and cross-irrigational canals. We will stop at local family businesses that produce oily products made from coconuts before we ride to the ferry that takes us to the other side of Co Chien River to Tra Vinh.

Cuu Long Provincial/ Nha Khach Tinh Tra Vinh
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
25 - 75 km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

Tra Vinh populated with major of the Khmer Krom ethnic group, and they were partly members of the old Khmer Empire, later divided under political and historical turmoil. Mekong Delta is one of the second homelands of Khmer Ethnic. Today's ride allows you to learn deeply about Khmer's history & cultures.


We cycle on narrow paths, pass tiny thatched houses amongst coconut trees, cross the endless rice paddies, visit Khmer homes and colourful old temples. The bike routes are link hamlets to hamlets on small concrete, a network of agriculture canals with plenty of water for farming. You will immerse yourself into the Khmer cultures, meet the Khmer monks at the temples, see women on conical hats working on farms. Taste fresh fruits, local snacks at a small market.


Break for lunch in a small town, and follow a transfer to the next town for the afternoon's adventurous ride. The afternoon ride is more enjoyable, with some tiny ferry boats through water channels of the Mekong River. We ride along the lively Mekong River, through lush rural farms of Vinh Long province, finish today's ride in the outskirt of Can Tho, and will transfer on the Longest suspension bridge to Can Tho city.

TTC Hotel - Premium Can Tho
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
25 - 80km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

Cai Rang is the largest wholesale floating market in the Mekong Delta, and it attracts tourists all year round because it's a real one. After leisurely breakfast, enjoy a 40-minute motorized boat ride from Ninh Kieu Pier to the most active Cai Rang floating market, where hundreds of small boats exchange farm products, from boat to boat. The boat gets through the market slowly, so we watch locals exchange farm products from sampans to sampans, and it is also an excellent time to capture the market in trading. Every boat has a long upright pole at its bow on which samples of the goods for sale hung on the bamboo sticks with bananas, pineapple, sweet potatoes, watermelons and so on.


Then we get off from boat to ride Long Xuyen, where we stay tonight. We pedal along rivers, the backwaters of Phong Dien. Enjoy fantastic views of the surrounding and along waterways—lunch in small-town, in Thoi Lai rural Dist. The afternoon ride takes us deeper to hamlets, pass rice husking mills, duck raising farms, frog farms, thatch houses along with the agricultural system, and cross through immeasurable rice paddies to Lo Te Junction. Finally, we'll transfer to Long Xuyen city.

Marina Plaza Hotel ****
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
25 - 75 km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

Chau Doc is a small border town with many gateways to Phnom Penh by boat and land. Chau Doc is about 65 km by car from Long Xuyen and by bicycle is about 80 km. Depart from the hotel at 7:30 with a 30-minute transfer out of Long Xuyen, explore the peaceful rice bowl of Mekong Delta, enjoy the most scenic landscapes in the Mekong Delta regions.


We'll explore the lush endless rice paddy fields, pass brick mills, factories, visit impressive stilt-houses, and removed hamlets and agricultural canals in the morning. Following your lunch is the 1.5 hours transfer to the rural village of Tri Ton, and we ride to explore.


In the afternoon, we ride on various dirt tracks through Khmer communities, numerous pagodas and temples, enjoy Sam mountain views, under the shady paths, line-palm trees we cross the Khmer villages, undulate the ways to Tra Su Forest. We arrive at the perfect time to explore this forest when many birds return to their homes to sleep. Take a tour, explore this forest by a quiet motorboat ride and sampan boat paddling through the brilliant green duckweed, lotus flowers, and water lilies. The tour usually includes a stop at a bird-observation tower that is 23 meters. Tra Su bird sanctuary is home to more than 70 species, including storks, egrets, and herons. The best time to visit is when the cajeput forest is flooded, from July to November. The forest is also the home to flora and fauna. Afterwards, we ride to Sam Moutain, pass lotus fields, colourful Buddhist pagoda, and you will transfer to Chau Doc town.

Chau Pho ***
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
25 - 80 km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

After breakfast, say goodbye to the Vietnamese team and board on the speed boat at 7:15 am for Cambodia. The boat journey is upstream of the Mekong River, and it takes about 4.5 hours. It is the perfect time to watch daily activities on waterways, beautiful scenery along the river banks.


Enjoy a healthily packed lunch on board with the crews. A local guide accompanies the group to help you with visa documents at Vinh Xuong Water Border Gate and then the visa procedure at Kaamsamnor Border Gate to enter Cambodia. You are welcomed at the dock by Vietnam Backroads Team and taken to the hotel to check-in. Take a rest, and explore Phnom Penh on your own until having dinner in town. 


Note: travellers who haven't got the Cambodia visa before the trip! and will get a Cambodia visa at the border. Please take 3 passport photos with you on the trip.


Please keep your passport, visa photos, and other related documents on your day bag for your visa application process. Your guide will help you with exit and visa procedures at both Vietnamese and Cambodian border gates. Please don't keep your passport and its papers in your suitcase.

Frangipani Royal Palace ****
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
Hang Chau
Transfer out/in

Depart from the hotel with a quick transfer on Asian High Way 1, along Tonle Sap River, to Sangkat Preaek Pnov. Then we cycle through the beautiful backwater countryside of Prek Phnov, cross the lake, through tranquil villages with stilted houses, rice paddies, local communities’ farmlands, learn the local culture and customs, and keep biking to Oudong Mountain. The ride is on dirt tracks, gravel through local material stilt-houses, learn the cultural diversity along the rural hamlets, see the temples along the way and mountain views in Oudong surroundings. We have lunch at the local home. We visit the temple, enjoy the views from the mountain, look over the vast farmlands from the Oudong mountain.


The temple on the hill was the capital of Cambodia around 200 years until the King moved it to Phnom Penh, and it is now the capital city. After lunch, we continue through the fascinating countryside with plenty of opportunities to shoot pictures along beautiful stretches of the Tonle Sap River. we will finish for today and then transfer to Kampong Thom in the late afternoon.

Glorious Hotel & Spa
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Dinner
75 km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

After breakfast, we travel by support vehicle, just about 15 minutes from the hotel. We cycle to Sambor Prei Kuk, a ruined complex that dates back to the Pre-Angkorian Chenla Kingdom from the late 6th to 9th century. The property comprises more than a hundred temples, ten of which are octagonal, unique specimens of their genre in South-East Asia. The countryside to Sambor Prei Kuk is beautiful with stilted house villages, colossal rice paddy fields, and plenty of palm trees.


The roads are mixe of dirt tracks on rural and country roads, with less traffic through the small towns. We visit the temple on foot, walk-on track, and learn about the site of Sambor Prei Kuk, "the temple in the richness of the forest" in the Khmer language, has been identified as Ishanapura, the capital of the Chenla Empire that flourished in the late 6th and early 7th centuries AD.


Then we carry the ride moving to Siem Reap. Lunch en route and have vehicle transfer to Siem Reap. There is a coffee break at Kompong Kdei bridge for the opportunity photo taken. 

Somadevi Angkor Resort
Breakfast/ Lunch/Dinner
30 - 65km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

Angkor was the capital of the Khmer Empire that evolved from the 9th century north of the lake Tonle Sap. The Empire encompassed much of south-east Asia, and it had a lot of political and cultural influence on the whole region until its downfall in the 14th century. Because of the Khmer Empire's power and several artistic masterpieces are still left, the site was placed on the World Heritage List.


Today, we explore the incredible Angkor Temple complex, it's surroundings, including the jungle by bicycle. We first travel to Angkor by bus to watch Angkor Sunrise. Then we explore the Angkor temple, Ta Prohm, followed by famous sites of Angkor Thom; Victory Gate, the Bayon, Baphuon, Phimean Akas, the Terrace of the Elephants and the Terrace of the Leper King. Next, we ride through the jungle and explore many ancient Angkor sites. Finally, we return to Siem Reap by vehicle. 

Somadevi Angkor Resort
Breakfast/ Lunch/ Farewell dinner
25km
Flat - rural paths
support vehicles
cold water, snacks, fruits

After a hearty breakfast, you'll transfer to Siem Reap Airport for the flight home. Tour end!

 

Breakfast/
Airport out

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We have just returned to South Africa from our trip to your wonderful country. First off let me say that our cycle experience with your company was absolutely first class. From the very beginning, when we met Thang at the airport, to when we parted company with your Cambodian guide, Art Siem Reap airport we were treated so well. Let me start at the beginning. Our initial booking and all the subsequent hundreds of emails I sent were answered promptly and with exact information. Thang is an asset to your company. Everyone absolutely loved him. He has a super sense of humor, he is courteous, well informed and always helpful. We also appreciated that we had the other guides with us. They too always looked after us. The few times one of us got lost was sorted out quickly. Our cycles and helmets were perfect. The iced towels at the end of each section of our ride were such a nice touch and so welcomed as were the abundance of cool drinks, cold water and snacks. I would recommend your company to everyone and will write an article about our experience in one of our magazines. I will also write a reference on Trip Advisor. (please let me know if you have a link) Let me also say that we enjoyed it when you joined us on the trip. Please thank Thang for us. We won’t forget him. He is a fine young man. We realised how much went into planning this trip. The driver with the bikes was always there when we rode up sweating and in need of a rest. The driver of our bus and his little assistant were so pleasant and helpful. Please let them know we appreciated them so much. Some of our party, in fact only two, found Art a little difficult to understand and I think they wrote this in their assessment of him. I, personally think they were far too critical as I found Art a wonderful guide. He too was courteous, well informed and went out of his way to see that we were looked after. I recommend him highly. Please let him know that we enjoyed him as a guide. His tour of the Anghor Wat and the other temples was fantastic. We loved riding around in that area. The cycle ride on the wall of the dam was so beautiful and we have wonderful pictures of us cycling in that area. Van, thank you for all the planning that went into this trip. Thank you for giving us Thang and Art as guides and thank you for an amazing insight into your country and its people. If I have one criticism it will be that the litter all over is out of control and if both Vietnam and Cambodia want to promote tourism the governments must go on an all out campaign to get the communities to clean up their areas. The people involved in tourism should also get together to ensure that your government takes a strong stand on this. What a pity to spoil such a beautiful place. 06 Mar, 2016

Moira Clark gr…

We are both back home and into our normal work routines - our two weeks holiday flew by. The whole trip was very enjoyable, well organised and we would certainly recommend it. The two parts (Vietnam & Cambodia) were very different with the Mekong Delta providing the most rewarding part of the trip for me. The Cambodia part had some challenges but overall was still good. In Vietnam, Dat was a superb guide and riding with him was a great experience. He was enthusiastic and made a special effort to explain to us what we were looking at, helped us to engage with the local people and also found us a huge selection of fruit and snacks to try. I felt that he genuinely wanted to give us the best tour that he could and to show us as much as he could. He balanced his time between Tamar and us well and kept us all happy. The hotels were all OK – the Chau Doc Hotel was spectacular and (for us) it would have been good to have arrived a little earlier so that we could use the swimming pool and facilities. The only part of the Vietnam tour that we didn’t enjoy was the visit to the Khmer Rouge Killing Fields memorial. It is a painful and difficult topic and I understand why it was included with his office and arranged the trip but I am sure with a little more advance planning we could have had an even better day and visited some more out of the way places. Siem Reap is more of a tourist super highway than a back road so the end of the trip was very different to the start. The temples at Angkor are superb and Siem Reap has a very lively ‘backpacker’ nightlife which was good fun and it was a good way to finish. On a more serious note, Chek unfortunately had an accident towards the end of our first day in Siem Reap and had to have 6 stitches in his knee so he could not ride. I am very pleased to say that we saw him again on the last day and he was making a good recovery. The loss of our guide was handled very professionally. Chek found an alternate guide (Chouy) who was very good and made our next day visiting the temples very enjoyable - even if he was a bit shaky and slow on his bike at times. Our hotels in Cambodia were all fine without being great. I hope that this feedback is useful and feel free to ask for more details. We both hope that we can find a way to come back visit you all again soon. April 2, 2014

Nick and Jonat…

We had a most memorable time with Vietnam Backroads, we would do it again and certain would recommend your company to others. Here a few things we enjoyed as well as some other feedback. Hotels were great and trip organization was fantastic - this allowed us to focus more on the vacation/site-seeing aspect of the adventure Guides and drivers - wonderful people. The bikes in Cambodia were more comfortable than the bikes we used in Vietnam. Food was excellent but at times too much - we hate to waste food and we felt because of the large portions, we were wasting some of it. The guides in Cambodia would stop and educate us along the way about the culture, people, history, etc. The same thing occurred in Vietnam but not as much. Day to Day flexibility was perfect allowing us to ride at our own pace. We would have liked to stop at some of the smaller markets in remote towns, we missed some of those opportunities. Overall, the experience was excellent, we would love to do it again someday. Nov, 2012

Jason Kuczek a…

I will send through the valuation form, very tired but wanted to send you a quick note to say how happy we all were with the trip. You and your staff did an amazing job organizing our cycling over 3 countries, 3 languages and all worked efficiently. Everyone had such a good time and I am sure I will get a few more to come back next year. Cycling Mekong Delta Vietnam Cycling Cambodia Thank you again, will be in touch. November 10, 2013 Leonie Leonie's group of 15 from Australia Cycling 10D/9N HCM - Mekong Delta - Phnom Penh - Siem Reap Overall your arrangement is very good. The back up, the food, the accommodation are all superb. And most of all the guide provided is excellent. He speak very good English, very knowledgeable, very easy to get along and very diplomatic. Great job, we definitely like to recommend to my friends. 21st - 30th April 2013 Tan Lye Hock party from Malaysia Cycling 10D/9N HCM - Mekong Delta - Phnom Penh - Siem Reap I took a rest when I choose Vietnam Backroads for myself and my team, but its the best from the internet. It turn out more than I expected and your guide Mr Thang is very professional and very knowledgeable. There is not a boring moment with him around. He made us feel very comfortable and we enjoyed our ride very much. The numerous coffee break is good and dinner is excellent. On behalf of my team, I would say "Big thank you" to Vietnam Backroads Bicycle Tours. 21st - 30th April 2013

Chan party of …

We arrived back home yesterday. Had a great time on our trip! Thank you for leaving the cycling jersey's for us at our hotel room in Chau Doc, we really appreciated those. We left our feedback form with Thai for the Vietnam portion of the trip. Overall we really enjoyed our experience. Both guides were great. Thai was extremely professional, educational and accommodating while we were there. Our guide in Cambodia, Po Leak, was maybe not as professional as Thai but was very informative, friendly, and helpful as well. The one thing that would have made the trip even better is if we were provided some kind of detailed map to follow along with where we came from and went every day that had descriptions about our destinations. I had a little trouble remembered where we were and where we were going each day because we went so many places in such a short time. Otherwise the trip was great and we will definitely recommend it to our friends. We also plan to write a review for you on Trip Adviser at some point in the next week or so to help promote Vietnam Backroads. 28 Nov 2011

Michael Jazwie…

Hi Van,

It was good to be able to get on the bus to skip a section of the day's ride when it was very hot or an uninteresting bit along the tar road.
The back roads through villages and countryside were excellent, very interesting. The guides were all terrific, also the drivers.
Vietnam Backroads did a great job returning our luggage that was lost by Malaysian Airlines.
Colin & Joanne Burke, November 10, 2013

Leonie's group…

Overall your arrangement is very good. The back up, the food, the accommodation are all superb. And most of all the guide provided is excellent. He speak very good English, very knowledgeable, very easy to get along and very diplomatic.

Great job, we definitely like to recommend to my friends. 21 - 30 April 2013

Tan Lye Hock p…

I took a rest when I choose Vietnam Backroads for myself and my team, but its the best from the internet. It turn out more than I expected and your guide Mr Thang is very professional and very knowledgeable. There is not a boring moment with him around. He made us feel very comfortable and we enjoyed our ride very much. The numerous coffee break is good and dinner is excellent.
On behalf of my team, I would say "Big thank you" to Vietnam Backroads Bicycle Tours. 21 - 30 April 2013

Chan party fro…

We are thoroughly enjoying the ride and we cant say enough good things about Hai and our driver. The cycling conditions are great, the gear and accommodations are very good, and we are happy to be here. Thought you might enjoy this. Susan doing tree pose on a monkey bridge. Having a great time. Thank you for the exxellent work on putting it together. More stories to come with Mr. Art in Cambodia.

Our cycling is going very well. While we miss Hai and our Vietnam driver, we are enjoying Art and John Wayne (our driver here). We are seeing some differences in the two countries for cycling but we are enjoying our experience immensely. Thank you, 28 Feb, 2019 - 10 Jan 2020

Michael List P…
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Cycling Vietnam to Cambodia - Saigon to Siem Reap