Although the Delta is primarily a rural region, it holds plenty of large, bustling towns too, and Can Tho is the liveliest of them. It’s also the most rewarding to explore, thanks to the wealth of Vietnamese pagodas, Chinese and Khmer temples, mosques and churches lining its streets. Most visitors, however, come to visit the wonderful floating markets a short trip upriver, where local people buy and sell a prodigious array of fresh produce, piled on to an equally amazing selection of craft, ranging from tiny rowed sampans to lumbering houseboats.

Easily reachable on a day trip from Can Tho is the delightful Bang Lang Bird Sanctuary, a 1.2-hectare wetland area famous above all for its population of resident storks, egrets and cormorants. Whether perched in the reserve’s partly submerged trees or wheeling through the air in spectacular flocks, the birds create a mesmerizing spectacle.