Ha Long Bay itineraries

Ha Long in a day from Hanoi

Leave Hanoi at dawn, spend the middle of the day on a boat threading between the limestone islands, and watch the sun go down over the whole bay from a cable car. If you cannot sleep in Ha Long, this is the order that wastes the least.

A night on the bay

Once the day boats head home the bay goes quiet. Dinner on deck, squid fishing off the stern, and you wake in the dawn mist. If you have one extra night in Ha Long, this is what to spend it on.

Hon Gai, the bay and Yen Tu

Day one in the old town across the bridge, eating what Ha Long people eat; day two on the water; day three up to the bronze pagoda on Yen Tu on the way back to Hanoi. You see the Ha Long of tourists and the Ha Long of locals.

Festivals & seasons

Souvenirs