Halong Bay cruises – tips and experiences
Floating villages are nestled between the karst islands of Halong Bay. Photo: Jimmy Tran / Shutterstock
Located in northern Vietnam, Halong Bay is a stunning natural wonder. Nearly 2,000 oddly shaped, jagged karst islands rise 50 to 200 meters above the emerald green sea of Halong Bay like the bristles of some giant creature.
Halong Bay literally means “Bay of the Descending Dragon.” The bay is Vietnam’s national landscape, inspiring Vietnamese poets and artists for hundreds of years.
As poet Che Lan Vien wrote:
“Dragons hidden, only stones left
On moonlit nights, stones meditate like men…”
What is a cruise on Halong Bay like?
Halong Bay has it all: beautiful islands and small cruise ships. Photo: Efired / Shutterstock
Halong Bay is Vietnam's most popular natural wonder. Hundreds of ships, boats and ferries cruise between the karst mountains every day.
So is Halong Bay a ruthless tourist trap that is best avoided from afar? Or is it worth going there despite its popularity?
It's definitely worth it. Similar karst islands, formed from ancient coral reefs that have risen to the surface, can also be seen in Krabi, Thailand, and Palawan, Philippines, but Halong Bay is worth a visit just because the trips are cheap and easy to do from Hanoi.
And despite its tourist crowds, Halong Bay doesn't feel like a bad tourist trap: most of the time you're in the peace and quiet of your own boat. From the boat, you can explore a few caves and paddle around in kayaks. It's also usually possible to visit the "floating villages" of local fishermen.
Party cruises are not typical on Halong Bay (although every ship does have a happy hour before dinner). When the ships are anchored in the bay for the night, the sounds on deck are mostly those of the surrounding nature.
It is a 4-hour bus ride from Hanoi to Halong Bay. A day trip to Halong Bay means a really long day, most of which is wasted on the minibus. On a one-day trip, you only have time to see the scenery of Halong at a glance.
In practice, a Halong Bay cruise lasts two or three days – and longer cruises are also available. The nights are spent in a cabin on the cruise ship. There are also travel packages available where the first night is spent on the cruise ship and the second night in a hotel on Cat Ba Island.
Only part of Halong Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you want to visit the most beautiful (and remote) part of the area, Bai Tu Long Bay, you need to take a three-day (or two-night) cruise. Many cruise ships are too large to navigate the more sheltered coves, so a three-day cruise will allow you to take a day trip on a smaller boat.
Of course, you can spend the cruise lying on a deck chair and watching the scenery pass by, but there are plenty of activities on offer that are a great opportunity to get to know other passengers: kayaking into caves in the karst mountains, swimming on sheltered sandy beaches, cooking Vietnamese spring rolls, and doing early morning tai chi on deck. After dinner, every ship offers a chance to try squid fishing.
The cabins of the elegant dzongkha sailing ships exude an old-fashioned wooden ship romance, and the food is usually delicious – as it is everywhere in Vietnam.
Where should I buy a Halong Bay cruise?
It is cheapest to buy tours to Halong Bay on the spot in Vietnam. They are arranged by almost every hotel and travel agency in Hanoi. Tours purchased from Hanoi travel agencies tend to be much cheaper than those booked in advance online. The cheapest way to get a trip is to take a local bus to the coastal city of Halong City and book a cruise yourself directly from the port.
The price of a cruise is also affected by how much the travel agent charges. It is therefore worth asking prices from several different travel agencies. There may be customers on the same ship organized by several different travel agencies who have paid very different prices for the same tour.
Halong Bay cruise price range
Halong Bay cruise ships have comfortable decks. Photo: Aoshi VN / Shutterstock
Halong Bay cruise ships can be roughly divided into three groups: budget-friendly boats, mid-range boats, and luxury ships. Especially for the most affordable boats, it’s worth checking carefully what’s included in the price: sometimes additional fees are required for renting a kayak or landing on certain islands.
The cheapest way to see the sights of Halong Bay is on a day cruise. A last-minute offer at Hanoi travel agencies can cost a measly 20 euros! But as mentioned – on a day trip, you only get a glimpse of the sights of Halong Bay, and most of the really long day is spent sitting on a bus.
The cheapest Halong Bay cruises cost only 50 euros (don’t expect gourmet food on a trip of this price). A mid-priced two-day cruise can be had for around 100, and a three-day trip for 100-150 euros.
Athena Cruise is a slightly more expensive – and higher quality – luxury cruise ship, with a three-day cruise that takes you to Bai Tu Long Bay. Athena’s rooms are so spacious that they resemble more of a high-end hotel room than a ship’s cabin. The ship also has a massage room and sauna.
On luxury cruises, the service is on a completely different level than in basic packages. One of the really praised higher-end cruise companies is Aphrodite Cruise. The food and service are very good even in the basic package, but by booking a more expensive terrace cabin you get real luxury: including an alternative menu, sparkling wine and snacks in the cabin, and your own personal butler, who acts as both waiter and guide!
Cat Ba Island
The best way to enjoy the karst landscape of Halong Bay is to stop at Cat Ba Island for at least a couple of days at the end of your cruise. You can go cycling on the island and paddle among the karst mountains.
The jungle-covered and large Cat Ba is located in the southern part of Halong Bay, and can also be reached from Hanoi by bus and speedboat in less than four hours.
There are many affordable small hotels in Cat Ba Town. See offers for hotels on Cat Ba Island.
When is the best time to visit Halong Bay?
Foreign tourists mostly visit in the winter, from October to April. The temperature is pleasantly cool, but the weather is often foggy.
The best months for a cruise on Halong Bay are September to October and March to April, when the sky is clear and the temperature is quite mild.
Summer, from May to September, is the holiday season for Vietnamese tourists: expect more traffic jams than usual. It is also the rainy season, and cruises may be canceled due to tropical storms. The temperature can also reach 40 degrees Celsius.
