Tourism and poverty are two phenomena that used to be studied separately. The function of tourism in poverty alleviation has not been recognised until recently. Previous research has examined the potential of tourism in improving the livelihood of the poor in some developing countries but no similar research has been done in the Cai Rang floating market, Can Tho city, Vietnam. The main aims of the research project are: to gain a clearer picture of stallholder and retailer perceptions of the market and pro-poor tourism; to provide recommendations for local tourism officials, policy makers and local communities on future opportunities to develop the market as a tourism product and tool for poverty alleviation and to contribute to the growing body of knowledge on pro-poor tourism and community development.