A group of luxury tourists enjoy a light meal in Thien Canh Son Cave (also known as Co Cave) in Ha Long Bay. Photo: Nguyen Hung
In 2025, Ha Long Bay Management Board registered to develop 3 new tourism products in Ha Long Bay, including organizing art performances combined with parties at Trong cave, Co cave, Trinh Nu cave; light parties on the sand at Ban Chan sandbank area, Tra San area.
Admiring the magical beauty of the cave in a private event space, combined with lighting, music , light parties... will be an unforgettable experience for visitors anywhere in the world.
This is a luxury tourism model that many international destinations have successfully implemented, attracting high-paying customers such as Ali Barbour's Cave Restaurant - a restaurant located in a coral cave dating back hundreds of thousands of years near Diani beach in Kenya.
Or the “Bluegrass Underground” concert series that takes place in the Volcano Room, a large cave in America's Cumberland Caverns.
And in fact, this model was previously piloted by ship owners in Ha Long in conjunction with a tourism company and was very successful, although it was later suspended.
Now, if organized properly, with improved artistic quality and a luxurious menu, cave parties in Ha Long Bay will become an attractive highlight, playing a lever role in elevating the Vietnamese tourism brand.
However, the issue worth noting is the fragility of the cave environment. The ecosystems of Trong Cave, Co Cave, and Trinh Nu Cave are extremely sensitive to loud sounds, changes in temperature, humidity, artificial light, etc.
Not to mention, each event entails risks of food waste, noise, and crowding of visitors. If we welcome a large number of visitors to chase revenue, it is easy to lead to the cave being degraded, losing its pristine character - which is the soul of the World Heritage.
In order to both “take” tourists’ money and protect the integrity of the heritage, the management agency in Ha Long can learn from the experience of other famous tourist destinations in the world, which is to apply a “quota mechanism” or “pre-booking” to limit the number of trips and the maximum number of visitors.
For example, only hold a few art parties per week or month, with no more than 50 - 60 guests per party.
This method both reduces pressure on the cave system and creates “scarcity” to increase value and revenue. Those who want to participate in a unique experience are willing to pay a high fee.
In addition, during operation, it is necessary to establish waste management procedures and monitor sound and light to avoid affecting the ecosystem.
It is difficult to compete in tourism without innovation, but sacrificing the pristine beauty of heritage just to attract temporary visitors is also something that should be avoided.
Only when quality and conservation go hand in hand, can the light lunch and performance tour in 3 famous caves in Ha Long Bay truly be sustainable, making Ha Long Bay shine not only because of its natural beauty, but also thanks to the way people manage and exploit the heritage wisely.
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