Robin & Karen Living the Dream: Cruising Halong Bay & on to Tam Coc

Ha Long Bay is a collection of over 3000 limestone karst islands & islets in northeastern Vietnam, surrounded by emerald green water that is a UNESCO World Heritage Site & is on most travellers “must see” lists. There are several options available for a visit - a long day trip from Hanoi, a 2 day/ 1 night cruise or a 3 day/2 night cruise. The cruises range from affordable 3* up to crazy expensive 6*. We chose the affordable option of a 2 day cruise with Cozy Bay Boutique on a 3*boat knowing that all the boats travel to almost the same places. Our price was $150 CAD each, our cabin was small but had what you needed including a full bathroom, the meals were delicious & there was almost too many activities included. We travelled from Hanoi by bus, transferred to the boat via tender & we were off. The boat had 11 cabins, 22 passengers. We cruised out from Halong City & into the bay passing spectacular beauty on a cool, cloudy day (the only downside was the weather).

Our boat

Stop at an oysters for pearls farm

Halong Bay

Tenders to travel to the bigger boats

Dining room

Lunch

One of the “fancy boats”

Our first stop was Soi Sim Island (also called TiTop in recognition of a Soviet cosmonaut) to climb 140 steps to an overlook of the bay - unfortunately a crowded spot for climbing & then you realize just how crowded the bay is with cruise boats! But some wonderful views!

View from the lookout

Beautiful place, but crowded

Back to the tender boat & on to another island to visit Sung Sot Cave (Surprise Cave). Here the crowds were ridiculous - a full 30 minutes of snaking back & forth in lines before we could even begin to climb up the 420 steps to enter the cave! But it was worth it - a 2 km. walk through 3 jaw-dropping caves on good walkways, with lighting to showcase the stalactites & stalagmites.

Looking up to the cave opening

View from the cave

Back to the boat, hurry up & shower so we can do a herbal foot bath, then learn how to make fresh noodle/spring rolls. This was part of the “Sunset Welcome Party”, but by now the sun had set. All of the boats are required by law to anchor overnight in designated areas, all together, so we could hear parties from the other boats. Another tasty & plentiful meal, then some rowdy karaoke for those interested, followed by squid fishing by spotlight. We were done in, so off to bed for us.

Herbal foot bath

Making freshen spring rolls

The disadvantage to the shorter trip is that they feel the need to fill your time & forget that you are really there to enjoy the natural beauty. We were up at 6!, for breakfast at 6:55 & then out kayaking in & around an oyster farm for pearls (not food). The weather was cool, 14C, misty & I had no intention of getting wet in a kayak (& not a novelty for us, we own 2), so we watched from the boat. We had stopped on the was to Halong City at the Halong Bay Pearl Farm where we were shown how they open each oyster shell, make some sort of a cut & insert a small round ball of seashell that the oyster goes on to create layers & layers over to form a pearl. Pretty amazing & of course there was a wide assortment of pearl jewelry to purchase!

Pearl oyster farm

Fishing boat

We had to check out of our cabins by 9:30 so they could prepare for incoming guests arriving around noon, so time to marvel at the passing scenery & visit with the other guests. We were back on a bus for the 3 hour journey back to Hanoi, passing farms, rice fields, cemeteries, large factories (many with Japanese investment) & rivers. The trip was definitely a highlight, only dampened by the overcrowding & cloudy weather.

We were back in Hanoi for 1 night so out for food & beers, followed by an exhilarating & rather scary ride in a bicycle taxi/pedi-cab! We rode around in a seat for 2 with the driver on a bicycle behind us - through chaotic, busy, crazy traffic in the Old Quarter for 30 minutes. Pictures do not do it justice, video shows just how close we were to cars, scooters, people & carts. But it was a blast! And we were smart enough to take a beer along for the ride.

Crazy traffic & a bicycle cab

Decorations for sale for Tet, Vietnamese New Year

The next morning, December 28 we were off to Ninh Bình - we chose a “Luxury minivan” for the 2 hour ride, comfy massaging seats & only 9 passengers - for a whopping sum of $14 CAD each.

We booked 5 nights in Tam Coc (the town near Ninh Bihn where most attractions are) at Mai Place Homestay, nice room with balcony, breakfast included for $18CAD. Many similar options, ours was down a side street but walkable to town centre for food. These smaller towns are well equipped with many minimarts/convenience stores, restaurants & bars, places for fresh fruits, souvenirs, ATM’s, pharmacies (many things available without the need for a prescription), bicycle & scooter rentals. And draft beer for 7000 dong (40 cents)!