I knew that I had to take a trip to Halong Bay while I was in Vietnam. It is after all one of the new 7 Wonders of Nature…
Going to Halong Bay
I booked a two-day, one-night trip to Halong Bay during my time in Hanoi. I knew that it was going to cost me a little bit more money to do a tour, but I wasn’t sure how to go about planning it myself.
You can book a cruise wherever you’re staying. Vietnam Backpackers helped me book mine. I was able to choose between two different cruises. Lemon cruises or Castaways.
I would have chosen the Castaways trip if I had been with a group of friends, as its more geared to partying. You don’t actually sleep on the boat, you stay on a private island.
I wanted to do something a little bit more low key, so I went with the Lemon cruise which is geared towards all sorts of people, from families, to younger people to solo travelers.
Boating Around Halong Bay
I think the cruise was very overpriced for what you got. The boat was in okay condition. The staterooms were nice and clean which is what I look for when staying somewhere. The rest of the boat however was a bit dated and there was minimal seating on the upper deck at night.
We went kayaking, hung out on an island, visited a pearl farm and explored a few caves. Every single tour goes to the same cave at the exact same time. Other than that, we didn’t really come across other boats.
At night we were promised karaoke and squid fishing. The guys who were running our trip told us there would be no karaoke. We were a bit disappointed.
The meals were delicious. We were given a lot of food and we even got to make some Vietnamese spring rolls. My only complaint about the meals were that drinks were extra, even water. I find that ridiculous as it wasn’t noted anywhere and I didn’t bring enough water, causing me to spend money on overpriced water for that side of the world.
So, if you can get over these minor issues, you should absolutely visit Halong Bay. Whether you decide to do it on your own or with a tour, you will be amazed by the gorgeous limestone rock formations scattered around the water.
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