Cu Lao Gieng Island Vietnam Mekong Delta
1176
Cruises availables
At departure or passage at this port
Emerald Waterways (1176 Cruises)
Emerald Harmony
587 Cruises
Emerald Liberte
587 Cruises
Frequently Asked Questions
On the bank of the Tien river, one of the Mekong's great branches, in An Giang province. The river cruise vessel either comes alongside or lands passengers by tender, depending on the water level.
Its churches, which outnumber its pagodas. French missionaries settled here from the nineteenth century, and the island keeps one of the oldest Catholic churches in southern Vietnam, its grey bell tower rising above the mango trees.
It is often open to visitors. Its Romanesque and Gothic-inspired facade and rows of pillars make an unexpected scene amid the palms; inside, a cool, silent nave crossed by shafts of light.
Yes, several monasteries and convents still active surround the church, where nuns maintain gardens and colonial buildings. They are an integral part of the island landscape, with no tourist staging.
Because orchards follow one another along the concrete lanes, broken by canals where sampans lie still. Depending on the season the trees sag with fruit, which growers wrap one by one in paper to protect them from insects.
Yes, local guides gladly bring visitors in to explain grafting, harvesting and the fruit trade, which leaves each morning for the region's floating markets. It is the most direct way to understand the island's economy.
On foot, by bicycle, sometimes by motorised cart, following the lanes. You pass houses opening straight onto the path, greet craftspeople weaving baskets or mending nets, and stop at a hamlet café where the men talk over iced tea.
The church and its monasteries, then a loop by bicycle or on foot through the orchards: that is all, and it is enough. Nothing here has been arranged for tourism, and river cruises call precisely for that reason.
The Vietnamese dong and Vietnamese. There is no cash machine and no card terminal on the island: bring cash in small denominations for fruit, crafts and the hamlet cafés.
December to April, the delta's dry season, with lanes passable by bicycle and stable water levels for landing. Mango season in spring adds the delicious argument behind the island's nickname.
