Ha Long Bay
Ha Long Bay is a place of stunning beauty in Northern Vietnam, a true natural wonder of the world, and an unmissable entry on anyone's Vietnam travel itinerary. For good reason, it has become very popular, but it really lives up to the hype.
The Legend
Ha Long Bay is made of around 2,000 islands of various shapes and sizes. The words "Ha Long" mean "descending dragon". According to local legend, a long time ago in the early days of Vietnam, a family of dragons descended from the skies to protect the Vietnamese from foreign invaders. They spit out giant pieces of jade, emerald and other jewels into the sea, to form a protective barrier against naval attacks, which eventually grew into the islands that form today's Ha Long Bay. Vietnam has many interesting legends like this one and they often involve one of the 4 Sacred Animals of Vietnamese culture (the dragon, the unicorn, the turtle, and the phoenix). You'll encounter those motifs all across Vietnam, reflected in the architecture of the buildings. Anyway, back to Ha Long Bay.
The Cruise
Ha Long Bay can get quite crowded. Parts of the bay can be packed with cruise ships, so timing is key. By taking the right tour, you can see more and at the right time, avoid the crowds and make the most of the experience. It's not really possible to see the bay on your own, which is usually our preference, so you would have to join some kind of tour.
So Ha Long should you stay in Ha Long? To make the most of the experience, I think 3 days would be ideal. You can get a taste of Ha Long Bay by taking a day trip, or opt for a 2-day trip which allows you to spend a night on the boat. Because most travellers to Ha Long Bay would arrive in Hanoi first, tours starting and ending in Hanoi are really popular. Alternatively, you can go to Ha Long on your own and sort out your tour from there. It's a 3-4h drive between the two cities. A typical tour may include sightseeing, swimming, kayaking, beach time, cave exploring, hiking, cycling, great food, and lots of time to relax on the deck! This is an experience that should not be rushed, if time allows. Spending a night on the sea and waking up to a view of Ha Long Bay from your bed is really something to tick off the bucket-list.
After much research, we decided to go on a 3-day/2-night tour of Ha Long Bay + Cat Ba Island from Hanoi with Vega Travel. Everything was well planned and the itinerary included lots of fun activities. It was a small group of around 15 people and great value for money, at the time. What I really appreciated about this tour was that there was little overlap with the masses - you see the touristy parts at the right time of day, but also travel off the beaten path. For example, we began the journey with the less crowded Bai Tu Long Bay and cruised through the main part of Ha Long Bay on the morning of the 3rd day, before any of the ships have set sail from Ha Long - so it was rather empty!
Day 1
Our guide picked us promptly at our hotel at 07:30am. After picking up the others in our group, we made a quick stop at the Vega agency in Hanoi to pay for the trip. We then started our journey towards Ha Long which lasted around 4h. During this time, our guide told us lots of useful information about the upcoming tour and interesting facts about Ha Long Bay and Vietnam in general. Next is a stop at a big hall that sells souvenirs and various other things, a place that is obviously aimed at tour groups.
Fast forward to us departing on our ship from Ha Long. We started with lunch while sailing through Bai Tu Long Bay and laying our eyes on those iconic limestone rock formations for the first time. Our first stop was in a little gulf where we went kayaking. We never kayaked before, and loved the experience. Rowing your kayak and marvelling at the majestic rock formations all around is really something to remember.
The next stop was the Surprising Cave, which we visited near closing time, meaning it was almost empty! This cave is called Surprising Cave for good reason - you wouldn't expect to find a cave this big and well preserved inside one of those rock formations in Ha Long Bay, would you? But some rocks are hollow and hide very large and impressive caves underneath, awaiting to be explored.
After seeing the sunset from the boat, we spent the rest of the evening on the deck. We took part in a "cooking class" (which was effectively rolling a cold spring roll...), then had a tasty dinner of fresh sea food. After that we tried squid fishing - this is much less exciting than it sounds.
Day 2
We woke up to a view of Ha Long Bay from our bed. We had an early morning start at 6am to climb up one of the small rocky islands before the crowds arrived. Ha Long Bay is one of those places that look best seen from above. Ti Top is probably the only islet where you can climb to the top and is right in the middle of the bay, so you get a panoramic view to all sides. There is also a nice beach at the foot of the rock, where we spent a little time.
Another famous viewpoint is Bai Tho Mountain. This is actually on the mainland, thus easier to reach, and a great alternative to see Ha Long Bay without actually going on a cruise.
We set sail towards Cat Ba island. We changed to another ship mid-journey. This is where the journey would end for someone that chose the 2-day tour - they would return back together with the group from the 2nd boat, who are returning from Cat Ba island on their 3rd day. On the way to Cat Ba island, we passed by one of the floating villages of Ha Long Bay - these were once self-contained communities and people would spend their whole lives there in the bay! Some years ago, the 1,600 inhabitants were relocated to the mainland (for better quality of life and education), but they still spend a lot of time in the villages performing daily tasks such as fishing. It's quite fascinating to see such a different lifestyle to what we are all used to.
Once on Cat Ba island, we cycled on a very scenic path towards Viet Hai, a small village in the middle of the jungle. The cycling was followed by a moderate trek through the jungle with lunch afterwards. In the afternoon, we had free time to swim or kayak - we chose the latter.
In the evening, we arrrived at our hotel Hung Long in the main settlement on the island. By this time, we were quite hungry and we found this amazing little place where we had our favourite meal in Vietnam! The reviews on Tripadvisor led us to the culinary gem that is Vietnamese's Soul Food. Don't listen to any recommendation from your guide, trust us and go there instead! Our meal was packed with flavour and cooked to perfection. Their apple wine is to die for.
Day 3
Not much happens on this last day, because the journey back from Cat Ba to Ha Long to Hanoi is a long one (around 8 in total). We started with breakfast at our hotel, then sailed on one last journey through the bay, chilling on the deck and gazing at the beauty around us. It's a relaxing day and it allows you to recharge your batteries in the best way possible. After having lunch on the ship and bidding farewell to Ha Long Bay, we departed towards Hanoi and arrived at our hotel around 5pm.
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