Ha Long Bay

This trip to Hanoi, Vietnam included a day trip to the famous Ha Long Bay. Since we weren't considering yachting and overnight accommodation, we opted for a day trip with round-trip transportation. The tour departed at 7:30 AM and returned to Hanoi city center around 8:30 PM. In addition to the designated pick-up location on the itinerary, you can specify a pick-up near your hotel when booking, and the guide will arrange pick-ups along the route. Our guide for this day trip was Nam, a Vietnamese national. He was very dedicated to explaining Vietnamese history and culture, which was very informative. His English was simple and easy to understand, and his speaking pace was gentle; even we non-native English speakers could understand 80-90% of his explanations. The order of the itinerary may be slightly adjusted depending on the day's schedule, but all the attractions will be visited, so don't worry too much about that! Additionally, the journey included an extra stop at a pearl factory where you can observe the pearl harvesting and culturing process. There's no hard selling, and you can choose whether or not to purchase pearl jewelry. For the canoe experience, you can choose between a two-person canoe (requires experience and it's recommended to bring a change of clothes), a multi-person bamboo raft, or an additional fee of $30 per person for a speedboat ride. The bamboo raft ride took approximately 20-30 minutes; the bamboo raft experience at the Ningping Chang'an Ecological Zone is highly recommended! The buffet on the yacht was decent, nothing particularly amazing but filling. Drinks can be purchased separately at an extra cost. In the afternoon, there are complimentary snacks, fruits, and basic fruit juices and teas. During Happy Hour, drinks are buy-two-get-one-free. Finally, enjoy a beautiful sunset from the yacht to end the day – highly recommended!

This two-day, one-night cruise on the Hermès ship, with its beautiful scenery of Ha Long Bay, delicious food, and engaging itinerary, was definitely worthwhile.

Overall, it was good. Our guide, Austin, handled every point very well. He was friendly and humorous. The buffet on board was just barely passable in terms of food and taste, but it was acceptable for the price. The overall experience felt a bit commercialized, which is understandable. For the canoeing, we chose the less strenuous option with 20 people per boat, and the boatman was very friendly and offered to take photos for us. The Surprise Cave was very crowded; we spent about an hour just queuing, but the wait was definitely worth it. The cave is a hidden gem, and the wonders of nature are truly breathtaking.

This trip started with my wife's words: Let's go to Vietnam for New Year's! We had a really fun trip to Halong Bay! We managed to overcome the language barrier, which worried me, but when we arrived at the kayaking area, I got a little lost because the guide went ahead without explaining anything. I didn't have my ticket at the ticket handover area, so the ticket attendant at the gate told me to leave someone else behind to get my ticket, so I hurried over to get it from the guide. After receiving it, we were able to go kayaking around Halong Bay without any problems! Personally, I'd love to kayak again! 🤤 Thank you!

Everything smooth and well organised. Our guide, Son, speaks fluent English and give clear instructions; should be awarded 5 stars. Beautiful scenery in Halong Bay. Some safety belts of our bus are not work.

I was worried about being picked up at the hotel, but the large bus arrived on time on the narrow roads and we boarded safely. The guide explained everything very carefully in English, so we were able to participate in the activities without getting lost. The limestone cave was overwhelming, and the bamboo boat ride was thoroughly enjoyable. At the sunset party on board, the guide acted as the entertainer, and everyone enjoyed dancing. It was a very thoughtful tour and a memorable day.

Nice and clean cruise with delicious meals servers. Need improve the return transportation a bit messy