‘Business is not good’: Vietnam’s floating markets dwindle as economy soars

As dawn breaks over Can Tho, the city’s river is filled with the roaring engines of tour boats.

In the distance, traditional wooden houseboats emerge through the dim light as the Cai Rang Floating Market comes into view.

Cai Rang, and other markets like it, were once among the most recognisable cultural icons of southern Vietnam, with a history dating back to the early 20th Century.

Before the development of roads and bridges, the myriad waterways of the delta region were the primary means of trade and transport, leading to the development of floating markets where channels converged.

But over the last two decades, the markets have dwindled in size in tandem with Vietnam’s rapid economic development – first gradually, then suddenly – and only two of the region’s 10 major markets retain any significant presence.

“When I first visited [Cai Rang] market in 2011, it was much larger,” Linh, a local guide, told Al Jazeera.

“Now it’s about a third of that size,” said Linh, who led daily tours to the market up until a few years ago.

Today, Cai Rang comprises about 200 vessels, fewer than half as many as during its peak in the 1990s.

Nearby Phong Dien market has shrunk to fewer than a dozen boats and has largely disappeared from tourist itineraries.

Cai Be, a once-thriving market in neighbouring Ben Tre province, is among those that have vanished completely, closing for good in 2021.