Experience overnight stay and sunrise on a cruise in Ha Long Bay

On a luxury cruise ship , explore the majestic Ha Long Bay with many interesting experiences no less than abroad. Each tourist only spends from 2.8 to 3 million VND for a 2-day, 1-night cruise.

Having read reviews on online travel sites about cruise tours in Ha Long Bay (Vietnam), Ms. Karen (from Singapore) still remembers the comments of some tourists who have experienced it. "The trip was quite bland, except for getting on the boat and feeling sleepy", "The cruise was beautiful but there weren't many activities", "The tour is only suitable for family travel , not for those who love to travel and are extroverted",... Having the habit of traveling to experience, not reading too many reviews about the destination she was about to visit, Ms. Karen still decided to go abroad with her family, choosing Ha Long Bay - Vietnam as a stopover in mid-September.

Ha Long is a famous destination that attracts domestic and foreign tourists with its majestic natural scenery and many interesting experiences such as cruises, seaplane flights,...

When she arrived here, she was overwhelmed by everything that was "beyond imagination", like a dream. "The natural scenery here is really overwhelming, making me feel so small. The sea water is clear blue, everywhere are undulating mountains, with many unique shapes," said Ms. Karen. On a luxury cruise ship floating in the middle of the bay, she and her family had a short but memorable cruise in Ha Long. Not only did she get to see with her own eyes a beautiful bay worthy of the world , but she also experienced the services on the cruise ship that were as classy as the night cruise streets in Hong Kong, Vancouver or Singapore,...

Ms. Karen (far left) and her family came to Ha Long in mid-September, experiencing a luxury cruise tour, admiring the beautiful scenery of the bay in late autumn and early winter.

"To enjoy the best trip, my family booked a suite room for 4,750,000 VND/person for a 2-day, 1-night itinerary. The room is 22 square meters wide, located on the 3rd floor, with a beautiful view of the sea," Karen shared. This room is designed with a private balcony and is located near the sundeck and bar, so members can comfortably sunbathe or watch the bay at sunrise and sunset.

Guests enjoy a moment of relaxation

"I love reading books on the deck in the afternoon and sunbathing at dawn. The space is airy and quiet regardless of day or night, and the scenery is so poetic and majestic. This trip is truly for those who want to relax and completely immerse themselves in nature," the Singaporean tourist confided. On the 2-day-1-night cruise, the boat takes visitors through places with the most beautiful scenery in Ha Long Bay such as Trong Mai islet, Yen Ngua islet, the lake and cave complex of Dong Tien, Hang Trong area, Me Cung cave, ... enough to make anyone exclaim: "So beautiful"!.

The cruise takes guests through many islands and mountains with unique shapes.

Ms. Karen admitted that she went from one surprise to another when standing on the cruise ship and admiring the bay scenery. With each area, the scenery changed, creating unique views and beauty, completely different from the cruise experience in Singapore. In the early afternoon, after checking in, Ms. Karen and the members of the cruise ship took a break to rest and take a nap to regain their strength after a few hours of traveling from Hanoi to Ha Long. After that, the ship anchored near Tung Sau lagoon. A small canoe was waiting, taking the whole group to the famous pearl farming area.

Tourists take advantage of taking pictures at the famous pearl farm in Ha Long Bay.

The tour guide introduced the Singaporean group to the process of creating beautiful pearls here.

After visiting the famous pearl farm, visitors can dispel the afternoon heat by kayaking right here. Colorful kayaks are waiting, visitors put on life jackets, move down to the boat and start 30-40 minutes of free exploration of the clear blue sea.

Tourists kayak and explore the bay and mountains surrounding the pearl farm.

This is also the experience that Ms. Karen was eager to try as soon as she received the schedule for the tour of Ha Long Bay by cruise. "The first time I sat on a kayak, the wind was strong, I paddled in the opposite direction so I felt exhausted. In return, I felt like I was dispelling all my fatigue when I saw the beautiful bay, at a very close angle, where there were steep cliffs eroded into many unique shapes," Ms. Karen excitedly said. On the small kayak, the Singaporean tourist and a friend took turns paddling on both sides, slowly moving around the towering islands that seemed to "rise from the sea". "The sea water was cool, clear blue, embracing the steep cliffs. Under the sparkling afternoon sun, all the scenery appeared even more beautiful, making lazy people like me unable to refuse, having to jump in to test my endurance and admire the wonderful things that nature has to offer," the female tourist added. After kayaking, tourists returned to the cruise to rest, preparing for the next destination, Titop Island. Titop is known as one of the most beautiful islands in Ha Long Bay. The island leans against Cua Luc Bay, in front is Bo Hon Island, Sung Sot Cave, on the right is Dam Nam Island.

Seen from above, Titop impresses with its crescent-shaped beach, embracing the foot of the island. This is also an ideal stopover for tourists on their journey to explore Ha Long Bay.

Coming here, in addition to swimming and playing volleyball on the sand, visitors can climb mountains, trek, and climb about 450 stone steps to reach the top of the island, to fully admire the view of Ha Long Bay from above. The first day on the cruise to explore Ha Long Bay ends with a luxurious dinner, with many dishes of Vietnamese and Asian-European style. The menu is flexibly changed every meal so that visitors can freely choose according to their taste and preferences.

On the cruise to explore the bay, visitors are served diverse meals with a menu of many typical Vietnamese dishes as well as Asian and European dishes.

In the quiet night on the bay, with the lights from the surrounding yachts, visitors enjoy the relaxing atmosphere at the end of the day on the deck or breathe in the cool breeze from the balcony of their rooms. Some guests gather at the bar, sipping drinks. Others head to the stern of the ship, experiencing night squid fishing. "This is the first time I've ever caught squid at night, the feeling of seeing the squid jumping around the water is very exciting. I also saw many white jellyfish swimming by, and crabs. Although I didn't catch any squid, I was still very happy, doing the first things in my life and learning how to be patient," said Karen. At dawn on the second day, after breakfast with cakes and a cup of coffee on the boat, visitors travel by canoe to Sung Sot Cave. This is one of the most beautiful and largest caves in Ha Long Bay, located on Bo Hon Island.

Tourists visit Sung Sot Cave. In 2012, Sung Sot Cave was voted one of the 10 most beautiful caves in the world by the Czech Association of Travel Agencies and Brokers.

Sung Sot Cave is more than 12,000m2 wide, consisting of 2 main compartments. The first compartment is a large open space with a 30m high ceiling, crisscrossed with large and small dents, smooth as if decorated with foam. The second compartment is located deep inside, visitors who want to come here must go through a small path, along both sides are towering cliffs shaped like birds, royal gardens, lakes, ancient tree roots, dinosaurs, ... The most impressive thing about this trip, for Ms. Karen, is to be able to admire and feel the beauty of Ha Long Bay with all the senses, from the clusters of strange islands, when rowing a boat to the foot of a steep cliff or seeing the whole bay from above, tasting the sea water, smelling the wind, .... In addition, the enthusiastic and friendly service of the professional staff is also a plus that makes Ms. Karen feel impressed and satisfied during her stay and experience in Ha Long Bay. Ms. Nguyen Tuyet Huong - Director of Ha Long fleet of Thien Minh Group said that tourists can travel and visit Ha Long Bay all year round. Because each season, this place has its own unique and attractive beauty. "If Vietnamese tourists mainly visit Ha Long Bay in the summer to enjoy the coolness and participate in many interesting experiences at sea, the most ideal time for international tourists to travel here is winter", Ms. Huong said. According to this representative, the peak season for foreign tourists to Ha Long is from October to April of the following year. At this time, the sea is calm, the natural landscape exudes a rich green color: the color of the sea, the color of the sky, the color of the mountains, the color of the islands.

The cost for a luxury cruise tour on Ha Long Bay ranges from 2.8 - 3 million VND/person for a 2-day, 1-night itinerary.

Joining the cruise, visitors can participate in some interesting activities such as visiting the pearl farm in Tung Sau lagoon and kayaking here or swimming, climbing on Titop island, exploring the overwhelming beauty of Sung Sot cave,... Besides, visitors also have the opportunity to experience some interesting activities such as swimming, kayaking, learning to cook, night squid fishing,... Regarding food, visitors are served 4 meals in a private dining room, including 1 breakfast, 2 lunches and 1 dinner. The menu is designed and flexibly changed, depending on the requests and tastes of visitors with many delicious dishes made from fresh seafood typical of Ha Long. Source: https://dantri.com.vn/du-lich/trai-nghiem-ngu-dem-don-binh-minh-tren-du-thuyen-o-vinh-ha-long-20220930091650846.htm