Our highlights of Halong Bay, Vietnam
In summary – you probably should do it but don’t have too high expectations and hold out for when it’s sunny if you can!
We were desperate to see the beauty of Vietnam that so many people talk of so it was a no brainer for us to venture to Halong Bay.
We researched trip options and tour operators, having heard so many bad reviews of Halong Bay being overcrowded and the boat trips being over priced and under par.
In the end, we found a recommended tour operator through Lonely Planet and opted for a three day, two night tour. The itinerary promised to take us a quieter route through the karsts whilst still seeing all the highlights and was action-packed with kayaking, trekking and cycling.
The main benefit of two nights is we could go further to Kat Ba Island which doesn’t get as many tour boats passing through.
It’s a three hour trip to Halong Bay port from Hanoi (via a mandatory stop off at a cafe/gift shop).
Once at the port, all the comments we read about Halong Bay being busy made total sense. There are just hundreds of boats all lined up waiting for passengers. We later learned that these boats literally drop one tour off and pick the next one up within half hour and off they go again. Be under no illusion, it’s a well oiled machine and certainly doesn’t offer the personal touch!
Food throughout the trip is pretty average – there are lots of dishes which are shared between four or five people, which offers variety but that’s about it.
Here’s our lowdown of the main things we did during our three days:
Sailing through the karsts – without a doubt, the best bit of the trip. We had poor weather but it actually gave an eerie feel to the karsts with layers of grey. Make sure you spend your time outside and at the front of the boat to really make the most of it. We were grateful we had chosen a company which avoided the crowds as much as possible.
Kayaking – this was fun on the first day, but make sure your guide comes with you so you see everything worth seeing. We stopped off in little caves and explored them which was pretty cool. The second day just feels like an activity to fill the time. We did think we would be kayaking through caves but that wasn’t the case!
Village visit with cycling and trekking – we enjoyed the cycling around the island. We cycled through the village rather than really spending much time in the village itself and then trekked up a hill. The walk was good fun but not the easiest route! There isn’t really much of a view at the top either!
Dau Go Caves – these caves were awesome to be fair. We were up and out early to beat the crowds, which is worth the early start! We walked through them with our guide giving some history about them. The lighting makes them look pretty special.
Ti Top Island – again this was pretty cool. We walked up around 400 steps to get to the viewing platform at the top which gives a good view over part of the bay. It also gives a feel for how many boat trips there are!
Kat Ba Island – sailing into Kat Ba Island, we got to see a fishing village with over 200 floating homes in the bay.
We arrived quite late in the day so didn’t get to see much of the island itself, but that may not be a bad thing – it’s much bigger and built up than we were expecting, but does offer some pretty good food.
The most disappointing thing for us about the trip was the amount of pollution, created by both the boat tours and the local fishermen. We were actually kayaking through rubbish at one point – definitely not the idyllic setting we had imagined! So be prepared for reality versus the pictures!
