Ha Long Bay – Things you need to know

1. When is the best time to visit Ha Long Bay?

It is prevalent for visitors to visit Halong Bay from October to June every year. Going in this season, you can enjoy swimming and participating in fun activities on the bay such as kayaking, windsurfing, and skydiving, … In this season, Ha Long Bay also has many promotions for travelers. Moreover, you are highly discounted if you join the cruise ship tours of Halong. However, in the summer, especially in July and August, there are many storms and tropical depressions, so activities on the bay will be banned. Ideally, traveling in April, May, and June is the most suitable choice.

2. How to get Ha Long bay from hanoi?

Hanoi is approximately 165 kilometers from Ha Long Bay. Thanks to recent road works, getting to Ha Long is so much easier than it used to be. The most common departure cities are Hanoi and Hai Phong, both of which have their international airports and a complex highway that connects to the Bay. See more details below:

     2.1. Book a tour

Perhaps the easiest and cheapest way to travel from Hanoi to Ha Long Bay is to book a tour with us.  All our tours include 2 ways to bus and there is a guide on your car so you don’t have to worry about anything.

     2.2. Private car

Booking a private car through your travel agent is undeniably the most comfortable way to get to Ha Long Bay. This way you will feel more comfortable but of course, the price will be a lot more expensive.

     2.3. Bus Ticket

You can buy bus tickets at travel agents to come to Ha Long Bay. Tourist bus: 10 USD / Person, Limousine Bus: 15 -20 USD / Person.

      2.4. Seaplane

In 2017, a new type of tourism in Ha Long Bay – Vietnam Seaplane Tour – was officially launched by Hai Au Aviation. With this package, travelers will be transferred between Hanoi and the Bay by Hai Au seaplane (45 minutes for each route).

     2.5. Motorbike

If you want to experience it you can rent a motorbike to come to Ha Long Bay, you can travel along National road 18. Of course, there is a little challenge because the traffic in Vietnam is quite complicated.

 3. What is the best place to see in Ha Long?

Sun World Ha Long Park: This can be said to be the largest entertainment complex in Ha Long that has just come into operation. The population consists of 5 main areas: Dragon Park, Cyclone Park, Ba Deo Playground, Sun World Beach, and Food & Shopping. The reference price for adults: 300,000 VND/ 01 ticket, children from 1 meter – 1.3 meters: 200,000 VND/ 01 ticket, children under 1 meter free. (The above price includes the whole package for the cable car, rotation sun, and amusement park on Ba Deo hill).

Another place to see:  Bai Chay Bridge, you can come here in the evening, take the elevator up on the bridge. When it is dark, you can stand there and look around happily.
Shopping at the Night Market: You can buy souvenirs as gifts for relatives and friends (Note: Prices here price very high because most customers are tourists so the price is higher than usual).

4. Where do you can stay?

        4.1. Overnight on the cruise in Ha Long Bay

Today, the cruise is the most popular method which travelers choose to overnight in Ha Long Bay. There are two types of cruise in Ha Long islands like luxury cruise and normal cruise. Depending on your budget for the trip, you can choose one suitable option. Of course, to stay at the luxury cruise with 4-5 stars, you must pay more money around 130 -250USD / Person / Per Night.
Click here to see all our cruises to Ha Long Bay.

       4.2. Overnight at hotels in Ha Long City

Also, a lot of visitors who come to Ha Long don’t choose to stay on the cruise or want to stay longer in Ha Long, they decide overnight at the hotel. Many hotels were built to meet accommodation adapt for a large number of travelers. The same to the cruise, hotels have two types like the luxury hotel and the normal hotel.

 5. How long should I stay in Ha Long Bay?

This question is really difficult to answer, it depends on the time you have in Vietnam to decide how long to spend on Ha Long Bay. Normally, people will need to stay for 2 days to 3 days either on a cruise or a hotel on land. But if you do not have much time, a day trip is not a bad choice.

6. How much does it cost to go sightseeing in Ha Long Bay for a day trip?

      6.1. Entrance fee: + VND 290,000 / person. The popular sightseeing routes that many visitors choose are Route 1 and Route 2 below.

• Route 1(4 hours): Cho Da Stone, Dinh Huong Stone, Ba Hang fishing village, Trong Mai Stone, Thien Cung Cave.
• Route 2 (5-6 hours): Cho Da Stone, Dinh Huong Stone, Ba Hang fishing village, Trong Mai Stone, Sung Sot Cave, Ti Top Island, Luon Cave.

      6.2. Rent a Ship (boat )

Private boat to visit Ha Long Bay according to route 4 – 6 – 7- 8 hours, prices may fluctuate by holidays or weekends and summer.
+ Wood ship: weekends (Saturday, Sunday): 650,000 VND/hour, weekdays 600,000 VND/hour
+ VIP ship:  (iron ship, including fan, air conditioner, karaoke): VND 1,200,000/hour equivalent to 4,800,000 VND/ship (4 hours), 7.200,000 VND/ship (6 hours), 9,600,000VND/ship (8 hours).
Click here to see our day cruise to Ha Long Bay.

 5. What food should visitors eat?

The most typical feature when traveling to Ha Long must mention seafood dishes, besides you will also enjoy special attractive Ha Long special dishes.
Regarding cuisine, there are many restaurants from high-class to affordable to choose from in Ha Long Bay. Typical such as Mithrin restaurant (Hung Thang, Bai Chay); Panorama Restaurant (168 Ha Long and Bai Chay); Son Ca Restaurant (98 Ben Tau); Bien Xanh Restaurant (08 Le Thanh Tong); Hai Ninh restaurant (area 3, Vuon Dao); Thien Ly Restaurant (Ly Thuong Kiet, Cua Ong) … If you want to enjoy Ha Long specialties, you can go to Seafood Restaurant (Ha Long Street); Thu Huong Restaurant (Ha Long Street); Niem Nho Restaurant (Tran Hung Dao Street) …

In sum, traveling to Ha Long Bay is interesting. There are many things to do here. Above are our suggestions for you. Hope it is useful for you and have a nice trip. Thanks for reading.