Vinh Long

General information

Vĩnh Long is a province in southern Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. The busy capital Vĩnh Long is a transport hub on the Cổ Chiên River cut through by canals. It’s home to the Văn Thánh Miếu Pagoda, a colorful nineteenth-century Chinese temple. The city is also a departure point for boats to Cái Bè floating market, as well as craft villages and orchards on the river’s many islets, including Bình Hòa Phước and An Binh.

Modern-day Vinh Long was part of Long Hồ dinh established by the Nguyễn Lords in 1732, comprising the provinces of Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, and parts of Cần Thơ. The area saw some of the heaviest fighting between the Tây Sơn brothers and the Nguyễn Lords in the late eighteenth century. In 1784 Nguyễn Huệ defeated Siamese forces aiding Nguyễn Ánh at the Mang Thít River. In 1951, the Southern Resistance Administrative Committee of the newly-declared Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) merged Vinh Long and Tra Vinh provinces into Vinh Tra province. Vinh Tra existed until 1954 however, as North Vietnam never administered the area for a significant period of time, this arrangement was not enforced. In 1957, the government of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) formed Vinh Long province. In 1961, Cái Nhum District was split from Chợ Lách. Đức Tôn and Đức Thành Districts were added in 1962 but joined the newly-formed Sa Dec Province in 1966. After the fall of Saigon, South Vietnam was reunited with North Vietnam, the new government merged Vinh Long with Tra Vinh province, forming Cuu Long province in 1976. In 1991, Cửu Long was again split into Vinh Long and Tra Vinh. At the time of the split, Vĩnh Long Province consisted of one city (Vĩnh Long) and 5 districts. In 1992, Mang Thít District was re-split from Long Hồ District.

Weather Summary

This city has a tropical climate; precipitation falls much more in the summers than in the winters. Temperatures are highest in April, averaging 28.9 °C (84°F) and at their lowest in January with average temperatures at around 26.1 °C (78°F). The average annual temperature in Vinh Long is 27.4 °C (81.3°F) and the average annual rainfall is 1426 mm. The least amount of rainfall occurs in February, with an average of 2 mm rainfall. The greatest amount of rainfall occurs in October, with an average of 244 mm of rainfall.

Highlights of Vinh Long

Boat Trips From Vinh Long

The simplest way to see the river is to hop on the An Binh Ferry on Phan Boi Chau, and cross the Co Chien River to reach An Binh Island. Sometimes called Minh Island, it’s a jigsaw of bite-sized pockets of land, skeined by a fine web of channels and gullies, eventually merging, to the east, with the province of Ben Tre. This idyllic landscape is crisscrossed by a network of dirt paths, making it ideal for a morning’s rambling or cycling, though you’ll need to take your own refreshments.

However, most people fork out for a day or half-day boat trip to see several aspects of delta life, organized either through Cuu Long Tourist or Mekong Travel, or through local boatmen always on the look-out for customers near the tourist jetty. These tours often include the option of overnighting in a homestay in a totally rural environment, though as they increase in popularity, some start to resemble guest houses rather than home-stays, with visitors put up in custom-built bamboo huts separated from the family home.

Most tour itineraries head upriver to the floating market at Cai Be, stopping to visit fruit orchards, and rice-paper and candy factories en route; some tours also stop for a fish lunch at a rural outpost. Watching the river traffic, from the tiny rowing boats to huge sampans loaded with rice husks (fuel for the nearby brick kilns), is fascinating, and stepping ashore from time to time reveals insights into the lifestyles of the locals.

The simplest way to see the river is to hop on the An Binh Ferry on Phan Boi Chau, and cross the Co Chien River to reach An Binh Island. Sometimes called Minh Island, it’s a jigsaw of bite-sized pockets of land, skeined by a fine web of channels and gullies, eventually merging, to the east, with the province of Ben Tre. This idyllic landscape is crisscrossed by a network of dirt paths, making it ideal for a morning’s rambling or cycling, though you’ll need to take your own refreshments. However, most people fork out for a day or
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Climate chart in Vinh Long

Average daily maximum temperature in
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Temperature (°F)(°C)
Rainfall
1000 mm
125°50°
800 mm
100°40°
600 mm
75°30°
400 mm
50°20°
200 mm
25°10°
0 mm
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Temperature (°F)(°C)

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