Dong Thap (VNA) - Every year, when the flood season arrives, Tram Chim and the vast Dong Thap Muoi land take on a distinctive charm. Floodwaters wind through canals and waterways, carrying alluvial deposits and creating favourable habitats for fish, shrimp and eels.
For generations, local residents have adapted to the natural rhythms of the rising waters, using traditional fishing tools to earn a living. Today, these practices have become part of eco-tourism activities imbued with the spirit of the Mekong Delta. Residents of four communes in the buffer zone of Tram Chim National Park are also receiving training to become local storytellers, sharing their authentic cultural heritage and touching visitors’ hearts.
Bringing traditional livelihoods to life
People in Tram Chim and Dong Thap Muoi have organised their lives around the seasonal rise and fall of the waters for years. During the dry season, they grow rice and vegetables and raise livestock. When floodwaters arrive, they turn to fishing, using traditional traps, nets and eel-catching devices to make a living.
As economic development and urbanisation accelerate, many young people are seeking new livelihoods, leaving traditional occupations increasingly concentrated among older residents. Fishing tools once familiar throughout the riverine region have also become unfamiliar to many urban dwellers.
Pham Duc Hoa, Director of Tram Chim Tourist Site, said modern life and economic pressures mean traditional cultural values are overlooked. Each fishing tool reflects a particular technique and generations of knowledge about living in harmony with seasonal waters. Preserving these tools merely as exhibits risks allowing the stories and local cultural practices behind them to fade away, he said.
Building on the natural assets of the Tram Chim National Park, the world’s 2,000th Ramsar site, and the region’s cultural heritage, the tourist site has incorporated traditional fishing practices into its visitor experiences.
Local residents introduce tools such as fish traps, shrimp traps, eel-catching devices, nets and fishing rods, explaining their origins, construction and use according to different aquatic species and water conditions.
Ly Thi Thu On, manager of Tram Chim Farmstay, said that visitors could enjoy the peaceful, natural surroundings of the national park’s buffer zone and discover local agricultural life and culture. Activities include setting fishing traps, harvesting fish, feeding fish, cycling around the farm and taking early-morning walks. The experiences offer an escape from the urban bustle to enjoy meaningful time with family and friends.
Experiencing flood season
Visitors to Tram Chim can travel by boat along canals and waterways, trying traditional activities such as fishing and setting traps under the guidance of local residents.
The flood season also brings brilliant yellow sesbania flowers and the arrival of linh fish (Henicorhynchus), a seasonal delicacy of the Mekong Delta. Along the waterways, visitors can observe fish and birdlife and learn to retrieve traps, gaining first-hand insight into traditional fishing practices and the daily lives of people in the buffer zone.
Nguyen Thi Thuy Trinh, a visitor from Ho Chi Minh City, said the activities helped her learn more about fishing techniques and harvesting vegetables for local dishes. She planned to recommend Tram Chim to her family and friends so they could experience the flood season together.
According to Hoa, a programme to visit Tram Chim during the flood season comprises nine activities designed to connect nature, local communities and seasonal livelihoods. Residents play a direct role in telling stories and guiding visitors, creating opportunities to earn additional income from their local knowledge and skills.
Through these simple yet meaningful experiences, Tram Chim is turning traditional fishing practices into a tourism asset. By involving buffer-zone communities in tourism development, the programme helps preserve local cultural heritage while creating new livelihoods and bringing the stories of Tram Chim and its people closer to visitors./.
