I went to the Mekong area from Saigon with a guide and he accompanied me on a half-day tour of the area. It was impressive. They showed me traditional crafts, food for sale being made, including chocolate and coconut candy, took me on a dugout canoe through the canals, on a horse and buggy, to listen to local singers, and to a temple. They do shuffle the tourists through pretty efficiently, and while I got a whiff of commercialism, it seemed authentic enough to make the trip. They worry climate change will flood the area in 10 years or so, so this will be a thing of the past.

Laos is amazing country and we had a dream came true that's doing a cruise on the Mekong river. There were not much information and we kept finding hard to find a cruise line. There were few choices. Kelvin from Indochinatreks travel organized this cruise + land tour in Laos for us. We had nothing to complain. Amazing scenery along the river, good cruise though basic. Like food and tours by Mekong Sun.