A Step-by-Step Guide to Halong Bay

Halong Bay Cruise Overview

Halong Bay

Be called "rock wonder in the sky" by Nguyễn Trãi in his verse “Lộ nhập Vân Đồn” 500 years ago, Halong Bay today is well-known for unspoiled landscape as well as the incredible natural beauty and geological significance with a large area of 150,000 hectares. Besides, the most impressive thing about the bay is the 1,600 islands and islets that rise up out of the water. With over 450 species of Mollusc and over 200 unique types of fish such as Sea Eagles, monkeys, Hawks, antelopes, lizards, and frogs, Halong is considered as the home to a broad spectrum of wildlife and boasts high biodiversity.

According to experts, Halong is also made up of rock formations that can be dated back 3 million years. It’s the evidence shows that people have only inhabited the Halong area for tens of thousands of years. Thanks to these outstanding values, Halong is honored to draws around 2.58 million tourists per year.

Especially, it has probably welcomed the world’s most influential ones from leaders, celebrities, fashion icons, to Hollywood directors like actress Brad Pitt & Angelina Jolie, The late celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, Facebook’s Founder/CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan or Myanmar president... Moreover, it was designated by UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 and then achieved recognition as one of the New7Wonders of Nature in 2007.

Coming to Halong Bay, aside from the chance to witness the breathtaking scenes of nature, we give you also some recommendations for Halong Bay activities you can’t miss to make your trip more memorable than ever.

Halong Bay Cruise

You may be wondering why should book a cruise in Halong Bay for your trip and the main reason is that going on a cruise is the only way to fully appreciate the vast natural attraction of Halong Bay which will allow you to set foot on some of the larger islands, get close to the limestone pillars and even go inside the bigger sea caves.

Moreover, it’s convenient to go by a cruise that you don’t have to worry about what to eat, what to do or where to stay because mostly everything will be planned for you, from the activity schedule to the meal’s menu.

How to choose the best Halong Bay Cruise

Be one of the destinations of choice for travelers to Vietnam, there are many cruises to choose from. And this can make you be more confused about maintaining a reasonable budget, arranging the schedule or the chances of getting scammed are still high. Halong Bay Cruise Deals understands, so in this 7-steps guide, we’ll help you find the cruise that’s right for you.

Step 1: Decide the best time of your trip

The weather is an important thing on your trip because Halong Bay cruises are often cruise trips. Even though tourists can go to Halong Bay all time of the year, but it’s better to choose the months that the weather is dry, no rain or storm, and not too hot.

In the spring (March-May): Halong Bay spring weather is not hot yet an average of 24°C but it will be more likely to rain especially during March. With pleasant weather and sunlight, travelers absolutely can take part in many outdoor activities such as swimming and kayaking in the daytime.

In the summer (June- September): In this season, the temperature and humidity will start to increase but Halong scenery very charming with crystal clear sky and emerald water. There will be more time for kayaking, swimming, and other water activities in this beautiful bay.

In the fall (October- December): This is the peak season in Halong because of its pleasant weather. Travelers can enjoy more sunshine, which is not as harsh as in the summer. For this occasion, there will be more deals and special programs. Because in this season, Halong is expected to be more crowded, travelers should contact their tour company to have them arranged the activity for you.

In the winter (January- February): Halong Bay’s temperature is around 13-20°C which is very pleasant and perfect for relaxing. In the morning and late afternoon, you will mostly see fog and drizzle. But during this time you can see a completely different look of Halong Bay.

Step 2: Decide how long do you want to go

In general, there are some schedules in Halong Bay as follows:

Day trip cruise (usually 4 hours on boat): This schedule only suitable for travelers who don’t have much time or just want to take an overall glimpse of Halong Bay. With at least 3.5 hours or more (4 hours, 6,5 hours, 8 hours, or 10 hours) cruising time in the Bay, you can have a glimpse into the local life of Halong or Lan Ha Bay.

Normally, tourists will cruise around the bay, see a limestone cave or two, and possibly have a little time for swimming or kayaking. For more detail, you can check-in 5 Amazing Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Halong Bay Day Cruise.

2 days 1- night tour (1 night onboard): It's the most common choice because of its adequate length, reasonable price, and a good schedule. The 2 days – 1-night itinerary can satisfy most of the travelers that allows you to discover most of the popular attractions and activities.

If you choose the 2-day/1-night option, your cruise will be started at Hanoi at around 8:00 am. You will be collected and took to the boat around 12:00 pm. Visitors will have lunch on the boat, enjoy a few afternoon activities, have dinner, and then you’ll depart the boat the next day around noon.

3 days 2 nights tour (2 nights onboard)/ 4 days 3 nights tour (3 nights onboard): With the longer schedule, you’ll have an in-deep experience, as well as a much closer look into all that Halong Bay, has to offer.

Visitors can have also more free time, either for relaxing or taking additional activities and Your ranges of tourist destinations will be expanded.

It means that you will see more extents of Halong Bay. The 3 days or 4 days itinerary offers further and less touristy sites including biking on a local island, visiting a pearl farm, time at a private beach..etc.

For more detail, you can keep reading our article 20 things you should know about Halong Bay Cruise Overnight.

Step 3: What’s your budget?

It can cost you from tens of dollars for a dayboat to hundreds and thousands of dollars for a luxury overnight one. "you get what you pay for" - if you spend just a little bit more, you have an unforgettable journey in this unique UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Most of your money will go for the cruise booking, as everything has been included already in a Halong Bay cruise package. Usually, the differences between luxury, mid-range, and budget cruising come from cabin amenities and furnishings, onboard facilities the quality of the food and service.

Standard boat:

For those who are on a tight budget, the standard boat is a suitable choice. The plus point of this boat is the cheap price, it cost only tens of dollars for a day excursion.

We will offer you some recommendations for the Halong Bay Budget Cruises as follow:

1. V’Spirit Premier Cruise
2. President Cruise
3. Glory Legend Cruises
4. Indochina Sails

Mid-range cruise:

Perhaps, mid-range Cruise is the most chosen option for the excursion with The prices of 80 – 120 USD/pax/night in peak season and 70 – 100 USD/pax/night in low season (meals and kayaking included already).

The cruise boats will be on par with a 4-star hotel At the top end of the mid-range level and at the low-end of mid-range will be comparable to a 3-star hotel or a good 2-star. You are advised to try to book one at the high end of mid-range.

Here are some recommendations of Halong Bay mid-range cruise:

1. Huong Hai Sealife Cruise
2. La Paci Cruise

Luxury Cruise:

If budget isn’t an issue, you are advised to book the Halong Bay Luxury Cruises which should be comparable to a five-star luxury hotel stay with spacious well-equipped and luxuriously furnished cabins, with the facilities and amenities, attentive service, an array of well-organized excursions and onboard activities,...

Moreover, The activities are also more diverse, promising to offer passengers an unforgettable stay on the Bay. The average price for the luxury cruise is about 300 USD/night.

For more detail, you can check-in The 12 Best Halong Bay Luxury Cruise.

High-end Cruise:

Choosing A-class ship,  Tourists will be treated like VVIP guests with extra-large rooms with high-end amenities and top-notched services.

The special care from multilingual staff will make your visit to Halong Bay the trip of your lifetime. The price for the high-end Halong Bay Cruise is about 800 USD. Still, we promise that it is absolutely worth the experience.

1. Scarlet Pearl Cruises
2. President Cruise
3. Ginger Cruise

Step 4: Who are you traveling with?

Every trip, every group of people is different. Something impossible to predict who you might be traveling with, but you can get an idea of the types of people the boat attracts by checking the reviews on Booking.com and Trip Advisor.

Determining who is going with you will allow you to choose the most suitable cabins for your trip. Location, size, number of cabins, and amenities are all important considerations. You are advised that the higher the cabin, the better and wide window or a private balcony is highly recommended for the best views.

Basically, there’s only 2 to 3 types of the cabin on a cruise: double, twin, and family. All cruise from 3 - 5-star standards have double and twin cabins. However, not every Halong Bay cruise has a triple room, family room or connecting room, therefore, before deciding to book a cruise, you have to consider carefully about your real demand and the cruise you like as sometimes you need a family room but the cruise you choose don't have that type of room or the price for that room is too expensive.

Moreover, there are also options for party cruises or boats that have single rooms for backpackers or independent voyagers.

In particular, if you go with your children and your kids are not so small, you can ask for babysit help from cruise staff. They're pretty sure there will be someone willing to help you take care of your kids for a short time.

Step 5: Decide exactly the destinations you want to go

Not all Halong Bay cruises go to the same places. While the vast majority of the boats sail the most popular sights in their itineraries, some Halong Bay boats are taking alternative routes and docking closer to lesser-visited points of interest. Actually, Halong Bay consists of three different bays: Ha Long, Bai Tu Long, and La Han Bay.

Halong Bay Main Route

the area closest to shore and is the most famous and crowded route with the most popular spots. Reportedly, Halong might reach millions during its high peak season and getting more crowded year after year.

Accordingly, Halong City and the bay now have become busier than ever with the rising of services including entertainment, restaurants, and accommodation. Once visiting Ha Long, the travelers should allow a few days to discover this magical bay as its attraction is extremely numerous.

The summertime is the best to visit Halong Bay. With the beautiful weather, you can enjoy your trip with a variety of experiences like kayaking, canoeing, diving, fishing, and so on.

Lan Ha Bay

Nowadays, tourists switch from Halong Bay to this place where it is confirmed to be in the developing phase and everything is just getting started.

Belongs to Cat Ba islands area, Lan Ha Bay is considered as the second Halong Bay because it also has hundreds of islands like Halong Bay.

However, it has about 400 islets covered with green trees and vegetation and a more isolated appeal that you cannot see in another place. Lan Ha is home of 200 species of fish, 500 species of mollusk, 400 species of arthropod, and numerous hard and soft coral, while larger marine animals in the area include seals and three species of dolphins.

Moreover, it’s a good spot for swimming, organizing a private beach BBQ, or an overnight camp thanks to a hundred beautiful, small beaches lying at the feet of the mountains.

Bai Tu Long Bay

This bay occupies three-quarters of Halong Bay World Heritage site, but it seems that people hardly know of this place. Bai Tu Long Bay is an ideal destination for those who are not good with the crowd and want to experience a private and peaceful atmosphere.

Bai Tu Long is outstanding with a long-range of islands that were created when the whole limestone upland sunk below sea level. Once coming Bai Tu Long Bay, you will have the chance to visit a great many amusing destinations such as the Cong Do area, Vung Vieng fishing village, Cong Dam area, Thien Canh Son cave, and much more.

In that, we must mention its national park where is the home of many endangered species of birds and animals, as well as plants. It is because of its less rowdy and touristy, Bai Tu Long remains pristine, and residents are more local fishermen than tourism service workers.

In addition to travel by boats here, you can also enjoy an enjoyable bicycle ride watching insightful dense forests on the islands.

Step 6: How to book Halong Bay Cruise?

Here we give a few suggestions of the main channels to book tours:

• Booking directly with a tour organization company.
• Booking through a Travel Agent.
• Booking via OTAs (Online Travel Agent site).

However, with a large number of travel companies today, choosing a trustworthy company to book is not easy. So we would like to offer some tips for travelers as follows:

Step 1: Check information through the Internet (you should choose the site with the address, phone number, email to be able to contact clearly).

Step 2: Send the request through the website to see the time they answer you or call directly to the company for advice.

Step 3: After the information is clear, you can go directly to the company to pay the tour and complete the tour booking reservation.

And here, we provide a comparison for those who are wondering between booking at arrival and booking in advance. Please keep reading for more details!

Booking at Arrival:

Tourists will be able to speak in person with someone about the cruise that you’re booking and see with your own eyes the ship rather than having to rely on online pictures.

You can also bargain down the price or have a last-minute deal, unlike paying just a set price online.

Booking in Advance:

You can be missing out on a better deal when booking upfront.

You can book based on information provided online without being able to see the cruise companies in person.

Step 7: Decide means of transportation to travel to Halong

Although the high-end cruise boats are increasing including transfers in spacious luxury vans with business class airline-style seats, most Halong Bay cruise lines charge extra for transfers from Hanoi to the port. You should check if transfers are included and if they’re not, what they cost. Here we give you some advice to choose the most suitable means of transportation to travel to Halong:

• Local bus: With attractive prices, this is considered as a suitable option for those who travel on a budget. It can take you 3 hours to travel from Hanoi to Halong Bay. However, it took longer since the buses will stop along the way to fill up passengers. And for coaches traveling via the new expressway, the ticket price can be higher as the toll fee is also higher
• Shuttle bus: You can ask the agent or a Halong bay cruise company for a shuttle bus service because they normally will offer a combo package, which is cheaper than you book them separately. It can take you 2,5 hours from Hanoi to Halong Bay.
• Motobike: For those who on a budget and love adventure and wish to explore local life and scenery, there is no better way than driving a motorbike from Hanoi to Halong.
• Train: This is only one train that departs from Yen Vien Station in Hanoi go to Halong City Station at 4.55 am & returns at 13:50 pm every day. It can take you 7 hours to go from Hanoi to the Halong Train Terminal that is near the Bai Chay bus station, around five kilometers to the harbor. The last step after getting off at Halong Station, travelers will need to catch a taxi to get to the city center so that will add to the cost.
• Seaplane: With a seaplane flight from International Noi Bai Airport to Ha Long City which is only 45 minutes, travelers can get a chance to have a more fabulous experience over the countryside with aerial views.
• Private Car: A private car is considered the best choice if you do not want to share the trip from Hanoi to Halong Bay with strangers or wish to be totally flexible about your schedule. Even if you are a busy businessman on holiday or go on a vacation with your family, a private transfer will ensure the best privacy for you.

Read more in here How to get from Hanoi to Halong Bay

Finally, hope that after our article, tourists will have useful information for traveling to Halong Bay. Furthermore, don't forget to visit our website to get more useful and important information for traveling in Halong in particular and Vietnam in general.