The easiest escape from Ho Chi Minh City is south into the Mekong Delta, the country's flat green rice bowl where life is oriented entirely around water. The closest jumping-off point is My Tho, about 70km southwest and reachable in well under two hours by bus or organised tour. From there a small boat carries you through narrow palm-lined canals — paddle far enough into the mangroves and the fronds close overhead, turning the channel into a green tunnel — with the usual stops at coconut-candy workshops, fruit orchards, and a riverside home with traditional music. Ask your guide about the Coconut Monk, a Vietnamese ascetic who built an eccentric compound on Phoenix Island in the 1960s.
For floating markets you need to go further. Cai Be, a little beyond My Tho, still has vendors selling produce boat to boat, though it has shrunk as roads improved. The delta's largest and most photogenic market is at Cai Rang near Can Tho, which is really an overnight rather than a day trip. Tours from District 1 are cheap and easy to book from any hotel or travel office; for independence, buses to My Tho leave from the Mien Tay station throughout the day. The delta is noticeably cooler than the city, and a morning on the water is one of the best things you can do from Saigon.
