vietnam halong bay

What to see in Halong bay?

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Rent a junk to visit the bay for either several hours or overnight on the bay.

Ha Long Bay is a beautiful area with 1969 limestone islands jutting imposingly upon the skyline. Unfortunately the place is a tourist trap and the unique panorama is spoilt by a tremendous amount of "junks" which are in fact slimly disguised tourist boats that bear no resemblance to the authentic Chinese sailing vessels of the same name. These diesel-powered floating money-makers careen about the bay with casual indifference to safety as they bump and crunch against each other in a frenzy to drop their fares onto the obligatory island or floating shop before depositing the harried passengers back at Halong Bay dock feeling like they've been cheated out of their Dong, even if that isn't particularly true. The romantic setting is forever spoilt by the cattle-market mentality. Still... nice scenery.

Visitors to Ha Long Bay must purchase a ticket (30,000 dong) from the Ha Long Bay management department, which gives the option of following one of two routes:

* Thien Cung Grotto, Dau Go Cave, and other sites (excluding Sung Sot Cave).
* Sung Sot Cave and other sites (excluding Thien Cung Grotto and Dau Go Cave).

What you can do in Halong bay?

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The vast majority of tourists visit Ha Long Bay on a pre-purchased tour from Hanoi. Prices are extremely variable depending on the quality of the boat, crew, food and additional activities. The cheaper the tour, the more basic the amenities. Virtually all hostels and hotels in Hanoi offer tours to Ha Long Bay. You can usually judge the level of professionalism of the tour based on that of the hotel itself. As most hotels do not run their own tours, but serve as a proxy for tour companies, it will usually be cheaper to go to an actual tourist company location and deal with them directly.

As a rough guide, a two night three day tour for US$80 should get you at a minimum:

* one night aboard a deluxe imperial junk (ie. better than the standard boat and much better than the el cheapo options) with decent sized amounts of food and enough lounges on the deck for everyone.
* one night at a 4 star hotel on Cat Ba island, again with more than enough food.
* a fluent English speaking guide.
* lots of activities: cave visits, kayaking, swimming, island stopovers (to climb Titov mountain, bike ride amongst rice paddies and see monkeys).

Kayaking is great fun - find a secluded bay and soak in the amazing surroundings. The water is lovely and refreshing when the sun is out, but extremely salty.

What to eat in Halong bay?

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There are many restaurant in Halong City (Bai Chay Town)which opposite to the Bai Chay Beach and offers mostly Vietnamese Rice dishes and Seafood.

The only western foods restaurant in the area is Emeraude Café (033 849 266) located on Bai Chay coast near the post office.

Where to sleep in Halong bay

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There are several new hotels on Cat Ba Island, most catering to overnight boat trip packages.

You can also sleep aboard a junk as part of an overnight cruise. The price will include dinner and breakfast aboard the boat, along with the extras described above.

There are countless travel agencies who sell these cruises in Hanoi and other cities in the region, and every hotel will be thrilled to book one for you as well. Since most agencies contract with third-party companies to handle the actual cruise, experiences can vary — the seas of Ha Long Bay are plied by smooth, classy junks and old, loud rattletraps. You might run across someone who had a great time on a US$10 cruise with one agency, and upon booking the same, spend a whole night choking on carbon exhaust fumes. The sad fact (for budget travelers) is: the more you pay, the better your odds will be. You should be safe with cruises in the US$35 range, but really nice ones can run as high as US$200 per person.

How to get to Halong bay

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From Hanoi: 165km or 3 hrs 30 minutes drive.

From Hai Phong: 75km or 1 hr 30 minutes drive.

The best way to get to Ha Long Bay is to rent a car from Hanoi. It costs approximately US$100 return.

There is also a tourist open bus service offered by travel agencies around the Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi. Cost: US$8 net/person/way.

Some hotels & cruise operators also offer the transfer service for passengers even not staying in their hotels. Call Emeraude Shuttle bus at (04) 9340 888

Public buses leave from Long Bien or Gia Lam Station (other side of Red River, 2km from Hoan Kiem Lake) to Bay Chai (Halong City) every 30 minutes from 6AM to 6PM and cost 50,000 dong/person each way.

Vietnam Airlines now operates helicopter day trip to Ha Long Bay, departing from Gia Lam airport (Hanoi) every Saturday.

Understand Halong bay

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"Ha Long" is literally translated as "Bay of Descending Dragons." Prior to the 19th century, this name was not recorded in any document or archive. When mentioning the present-day Quang Ninh Sea or Ha Long Bay, old historical books often referred to them by the names of An Bang, Luc Thuy or Van Don. Not until the late 19th century did the name of Ha Long Bay appear on a French Marine Map. The Hai Phong News, a French newspaper of the time, had an article, Dragon appears on Ha Long Bay, reporting the following story: In 1898 a sub-lieutenant named Lagredin, captaining the Avalanse reported seeing a huge sea snake on Ha Long Bay. This was also witnessed by many of the crews. Thus emerged the European image of the Asian dragon. Whether this appearance of a strange animal looking like a dragon resulted the name of Ha Long Bay is not known.

Halong Bay - Overview

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The Ha Long bay, dotted with 3000 limestone islets rising from emerald waters, is the best known natural wonder of Vietnam. Because of their precipitous nature, most of the islands are uninhabited and unaffected by a human presence. The site's outstanding scenic beauty is complemented by its great biological interest. The islands feature endless numbers of beaches, grottoes, and caves. Ha Long means "where the dragon goes into the sea". According to a legend, as a great dragon who lived in the mountains ran towards the sea, its tail gouged out valleys which later filled out with water, leaving only bits of land over the surface, the many tiny islets. Because the distances are actually quite large, it is preferable to hire a fast boat for the tour. Of the two gateway towns, Bai Chay's development is due mostly to tourism's, while Hon Gai has kept its where mining activity and fishing boats. Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Halong Emotion Cruise

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Halong emotion is a new cruise boat in Halong bay.Designed in the 1910’s Indochina style, the Halong Emotion offers the perfect mix in traditional elegance and modern comfort. Special attention has been paid to the decoration and interior of the junk...

Ha Long - Bay of the Descending Dragon

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The end of the Vietnam war, and the advent of "Doi moi", Vietnam's policy of opening its economy to foreign trade, means that Westerners and South Vietnamese now have a chance to visit Ha long. Vinh Ha Long or Bay of the Descending Dragon is often touted by proud Vietnamese as the world's Eighth wonder. One of the main attractions of Ha long is the bay's calm water and the thousands of limestone mountains dotting the seascape. The Bay's water is clear during the spring and early summer. Some of the islands are quite large and there are small alcoves with sandy beaches where swimming is possible. Ha Long bay lies in the northeastern part of Vietnam and is 165 Km from Hanoi.

Ha Long literally means descending dragon(s) and according to local myth, the story goes as follows:

Long ago when their forefathers were fighting foreign invaders from the north, the gods from heaven sent a family of dragons to help defend their land. This family of dragons descended upon what is now Ha Long bay and began spitting out jewels and jade. Upon hitting the sea, these jewels turned into the various islands and islets dotting the seascape and formed a formidable fortress against the invaders. The locals were able to keep their land safe and formed what is now the country of Vietnam. The Dragon family fell so much in love with this area for its calm water and for the reverence of the people of Vietnam that they decided to remain on earth. Mother dragon lies on what is now Ha Long and where her children lie is Bai Tu Long. The dragon tails formed the area of Bach Long Vi known for the miles of white sandy beaches of Tra Co peninsula (see map).

This myth is in line with the Vietnamese myth of their origin Con Rong Chau Tien. This myth describes the union between a king (representing the dragon) and his bride (representing a goddess) giving birth to 100 children which are the ancestors of the Vietnamese people. The Ha Long myth illustrate the Vietnamese belief of their origin and the fact that throughout their history, they are aided by their ancestors, the dragon and the gods, in the defense of their land.

Pearly Sea Cruise

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New luxury junk of Bien Ngoc Liner, the junk is an unique art work cruising on the emerald water of the World Natural Heritage of Halong Bay.

vietnam halong bay

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HaLong Bay Vietnam is one of the world’s natural wonders and is the most beautiful tourist destination of Vietnam. HaLong Bay features more than one thousand awesome limestone karsts and islands of various sizes and shapes along the 120-km coastline of Bai Chay Beach.

Its waters are host to a great ersity of ecosystems including offshore coral reefs, freshwater swamp forests, mangrove forests, small freshwater lakes, and sandy beaches. The folk tale has it that the dragons descended from heaven to help locals by spitting jewels and jade to the sea, forming a natural fortress against invaders; these precious stones are represented by the lush green outcrops. Several islands boast beautiful grottos and caves with contiguous chambers, hden ponds and peculiar stone formations. The bay is about 170 kilometers northeast of Hanoi and 3,5 hours by road.