First published January 2026 | Words and photos by Vietnam Coracle | Read time 10 minutes
Tom Divers is the founder and creator of Vietnam Coracle. In 2005 he moved from his native London to Vietnam, where he has been living, working and travelling ever since. He pays rent in Ho Chi Minh City but is more often on the road, riding his motorbike a quarter of a million kilometres across Vietnam to research guides to the farthest-flung corners of the nation. When he’s not in the saddle, you’ll find him on a beach with a margarita, in a tent on a mountainside or at a streetside noodle house: in other words, at the ‘office’. Read more about Tom: Q&A, About Page, Vietnam Tourism website.
Sampans, Cycling & Strolling under a Canopy of Trees in a Swampy Jungle
Deep within Đồng Tháp province, Xẻo Quýt is a small, protected stand of wetland forest in the Mekong Delta. Visitors can explore the lush, swampy area by sampan or on foot via a pathway leading along a narrow channel winding through the jungle beneath a canopy of cajuput trees. The dense foliage provided shelter and protection for Vietnamese resistance fighters during the wars of the 20th century, including a base for high-ranking Việt Công generals who planned attacks and military strategies from here for years without being detected by U.S forces. Some of the base’s infrastructure has been restored, including bunkers, and the area is pockmarked by bomb craters. As such, Xẻo Quýt (also spelled Xẻo Quít) is known to most domestic visitors as a national war relic, but it’s increasingly popular as a natural site, particularly enjoyable as a short break from Ho Chi Minh City (just 130km due east) or as an add-on to a wider Mekong Delta exploration. Foreign travellers rarely visit, and even if they do, it’s usually as part of a tour. But Xẻo Quýt is well worth experiencing, especially the sampan ride through the forest. Other activities include walking or cycling around the lanes and dyke paths crossing the wider property, and enjoying a traditional Mekong-style feast at the lakeside restaurant. *If you enjoy Vietnam Coracle, please support it with a donation or join my Patreon community – I run this website at a consistent loss. Thank you, Tom❤️
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THE GUIDE:
How to Visit & Enjoy Xẻo Quýt Forest
Xèo Quýt can be visited at any time of year, but ‘floating season’ (roughly September-December) is when the forest is at its fullest and lushest, and the water levels are high enough for the sampans to glide along. It’s a good idea to bring some insect repellent and avoid weekends and public holidays if you prefer to visit without many other people around. Click from the contents below for details. (For more Mekong Delta guides see Related Posts, and if you enjoy Vietnam Coracle, please support it with a donation or join my Patreon community.)
Contents:
🗺️ Map
📷 See & Do
🛌 Sleep
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MAP:
Xẻo Quýt Forest
Xẻo Qúyt Forest:
A compact but atmospheric and attractive patch of jungle growing in a wetlands, Xẻo Quýt Forest is known both for its natural beauty and for its role in the 20th century wars of resistance. About 30km east of Cao Lãnh city in Đồng Tháp province, Xẻo Quýt is a 50 hectare stand of tall trees (mostly cajuput) and thick tropical undergrowth bisected by a narrow channel. The dense canopy and waterways provided shelter for Việt Công generals during the America War (Vietnam War) in the 1960s and ’70s. From this jungle base, consisting of several simple, thatched huts and bunkers, around 10 military generals planned and directed major war operations in the region, just a couple of kilometres from a US base. Although the area was bombed by the Americans – several bomb craters are still visible – they never discovered the base. During rainy season the foliage is at its fullest and greenest and the water-level is high enough for sampans to navigate, although the parallel walkway might be flooded and inaccessible. Xẻo Quýt Forest is home to hundreds of species of flora and fauna, including fish, snakes, frogs and birds. It’s not difficult to imagine what the Mekong Delta must have been like a century or two ago, before large-scale dredging and agriculture, when most of the region would have resembled Xẻo Quýt.
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See & Do:
Opening Times: 07.30–16.30 daily
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There are several activities at Xẻo Quýt. Most visitors will only need 1-3 hours to enjoy the forest, including some time for a drink, snack or meal on-site. There’s a new museum at the main entrance, but this was still under construction at the time of writing (January 2026). If you arrive with your own wheels, parking is available at the entrance: bicycle 1,000vnđ, motorbike 3,000vnd, car 15,000vnđ.
Buy your entrance ticket at the kiosk (20,000vnđ) – this gives you access to the entire site, including the walkway through the forest. In addition, you can buy a separate ticket (25,000vnđ) for the sampan ride along the waterway, which is highly recommended. Walk straight along the paved lane beyond the ticket office until you see a bridge on your left. Cross this to get to the start of the walkway and/or the boat station for the sampan ride. The latter is a very serene, peaceful and beautiful experience, lasting just 15 minutes while drifting along a narrow waterway in the dappled sunlight beneath the canopy of tall trees. Even if you take the sampan, it’s still worth taking the walkway alongside the waterway as well, because you can stop and look in at the restored military bunkers and defense network dating from the war. Bicycles (30,000vnđ for 30 minutes) can be rented to explore the lanes around the site. This is pleasant enough, but there’s not really anywhere to go that can’t be reached easily on foot. A fish pond and lotus lake are overlooked by several snack stalls and a decent restaurant.
| Ticket | Duration | Price | |
| General Entrance & Walkway | 15-30 minutes (walkway) | 20,000vnđ | |
| Sampan Canoe Ride | 15 minutes | 25,000vnđ | |
| Bicycles | 30 minutes | 30,000vnđ |
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Sleep:
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There’s nowhere to stay in the immediate vicinity of Xẻo Quýt Forest, but several good options are scattered within 30 minutes’ of the site. The town of Tháp Mười, 20km due north, has a handful of decent nhà nghỉ (guest houses) and mini-hotels that are absolutely fine for a night. However, Cao Lãnh city is just 30km due west where there are lots of good value mini-hotels to choose from. B.O.B has two properties, each with large, clean mid-range rooms, a rooftop cafe and city views, or Cao Lanh Hotel has a swimming pool, or Mango Trail (just outside of the city) is a superb boutique near the riverside. You can browse and book a selection of hotels in Cao Lãnh on this page. Alternately, base yourself in Tràm Chim at the atmospheric Việt Mekong Farmstay (about 45 minutes away) or try your luck at the floating lotus lake homestays instead.
Eat & Drink:
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There’s an on-site restaurant located at the northern end of the main lane through the property. If it’s open, there’s a good selection of classic southern dishes for a Mekong-style feast. A couple of drinks and snacks kiosks are also dotted around the site. For more variety you’ll need to head either due north to Mỹ Đông village (15km) where there are some rice and noodle eateries, or due south to the main road (QL30), or all the way west to Cao Lãnh city for a large selection of restaurants and street food (30km).
Getting There:
Buses depart Ho Chi Minh City’s Miền Tây bus station for Cao Lãnh at least every hour from dawn until dusk. The journey take about 4 hours. Several different bus companies operate on the route, but the most frequent is Phương Trang. Check bus times and book tickets on this page. From Cao Lãnh you can get a taxi or use a ride-hailing service, such as Grab or Xanh SM, to take you the 30km to Xẻo Quýt Forest. If you’re staying in Cao Lãnh, it might be easier just to organize the onward transportation through your hotel.
If coming to Xẻo Quýt on your own two wheels, there are several different route options from Ho Chi Minh City, but all of them are pretty uninspiring: traffic-clogged for the first third of the journey, scattered with potholes for the second third, and then excellent for the final third. Leave very early in the morning (4am) if you want to avoid the worst of the traffic.
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Support My Work
Free | Independent | No Sponsored Content
“Hello, if you enjoy my website, please support it.
Thank you.” Tom
*Disclosure: I never receive payment for anything I write: my content is always free and independent. I’ve written this guide because I want to: I like this forest and I want my readers to know about it. For more details, see my Disclosure & Disclaimer statements and my About Page
