BEN TRE - Accommodations

There’s two places to consider sleeping: in Ben Tre town and in Tan Thach village, at the My Tho–Ben Tre ferry. I prefer the latter for its proximity between My Tho and Ben Tre towns; it’s actually closest to the boat trip destinations too.

THAO NHI
This place is pretty good when the owner’s not around. It’s almost perfect for the scrappy – a 16-room guesthouse in a fruit orchard reached by tiny backlane with free bikes, $8 rooms with AC, and bamboo-covered bungalows to eat meals or drink beer in Ben Tre’s peace. Staff are nice and even the karaoke rooms are enclosed and keep in the sound. The catch is its smiling belligerent owner, Mr Phat – who burdened me with nonstop ‘talking ads’ of his boat trips and guide services (and whispers of women and marijuana; I declined all). Rooms are for those who can deal with the humble well – lizard poop isn’t always cleaned, bathroom walls don’t reach the ceiling, and there’s no hot water. It’s best to go with a plan from the beginning – ‘I just took a boat trip, thanks, and wanted to just ride a bike for a day or two, eat some food’ – and don’t leave ANY room for ‘services.’ A lot of people riding bikes or motorcycles around Vietnam do better here. Breakfast not included. Laundry is free. It’s about 500m from the ferry. Take the first left on the market street after the ferry, and look for the small signs pointing to it on the right. It’s 200m off the road, reached by a small path, then winding left.
Tel 075-860-009; [email protected]; 1 Hamlet, Tan Thach Village; rooms $8

(I later heard about a potentially better option to Thao Nhi. The Thang Phu Guesthouse, which is about 1km south of the My Tho ferry, then east 300m. I didn’t visit it.)

HUNG VUONG HOTEL
The best hotel in Ben Tre town, the clean and friendly Hung Vuong is nothing fancy – tiled roofs with AC and TV and pinkish walls. Higher-priced rooms face the river, but it’s hard to justify the extra dollars. They have a humble café with chilled coconuts that’s a pleasant place to sit and sip a bit.
Tel 075-822-408; 166 Hung Vuong St; rooms $11, $15 & $19

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