Special ferry route connecting two heritage regions

On the weekend, I invited a few of my friends from Hanoi to experience the unique tourist ferry route of Quang Ninh, which is also the only ferry route still operating in the province. Traveling in the heart of the heritage on the Tuan Chau - Cat Ba ferry, connecting the two heritage sites of Ha Long Bay (Quang Ninh) and Cat Ba Island Biosphere Reserve (Hai Phong), we could not hide our excitement, delight and the feeling of relaxation and peace.

Experience ferry travel

The Tuan Chau - Cat Ba ferry route has been in operation since 2009, invested and built by Au Lac Quang Ninh Company Limited (Tuan Chau Group), and has been in operation for 15 years. This is an important and fastest waterway connecting the two coastal cities of Ha Long and Hai Phong and is also a special ferry route connecting the two world heritage sites.

Tuan Chau - Cat Ba ferry route is the only tourist ferry route in Quang Ninh .

The ferry route is 7.8km long, including trips to and from Tuan Chau (Ha Long City, Quang Ninh) and Gia Luan (Cat Hai District, Hai Phong). The ferry has a capacity of 120 tons, can accommodate 200 passengers, and can carry 25 cars of all types with 50 seats or less at the same time. It has a capacity of 45 minutes/trip and can dock at least 2 ferries/trip.

Therefore, traffic at both ends of the wharf is always guaranteed to be smooth, so visitors do not have to wait long, especially on peak days. Every day, the ferry operates 10-12 trips, transporting hundreds of visitors back and forth. Especially in the summer, the number of visitors can reach more than 1,000 people per day.

With a not-too-fast speed (45 minutes/trip), the Tuan Chau - Cat Ba sea ferry route always brings a smooth, relaxing feeling to visitors on the ferry. Instead of sitting in a closed compartment with limited visibility on the ships, on this journey, we can expand our vision, admire the majestic natural picture of Ha Long Bay with thousands of large and small limestone islands of various unique shapes in the middle of the peaceful turquoise water, relax our bodies to enjoy the cool breezes from the sea, see the whole Bai Chay bridge - the longest single-span cable-stayed bridge in Southeast Asia, see Ba Hang fishing village, Trong Mai islet, Gia Luan seafood farming area...

Romantic and poetic scenery on the ferry route.

The Tuan Chau - Cat Ba ferry runs in the sheltered area of Ha Long Bay, which is surrounded by thousands of limestone mountains, so it is less affected by waves, wind and other weather factors. If on days with wind level 5 or 6, when other ferry routes in Hai Phong or neighboring areas of Quang Ninh province have to stop operating, the Tuan Chau - Cat Ba ferry still operates normally. In addition, the ferry is fully equipped with life-saving, fire-fighting, medical and communication equipment with the mainland according to tourist ferry standards.

Slowly entering the heart of the world natural heritage and then gently arriving at the world biosphere reserve, the ferry route takes visitors from one level to another of emotions. My friend said that although he had been on the ferry a few times when he was young, this was the first time he had traveled by ferry. The feeling was wonderful, like returning to his childhood and seeing how beautiful Ha Long was.

Time on the ferry is the beginning of an exciting journey ahead and also a meaningful moment for each of us to slow down and feel more deeply the beauty of our homeland and country.

Foreign tourists also take the opportunity to experience this special ferry trip.

The ferrymen

The time waiting for the ferry and nearly 1 hour traveling on the ferry was enough for us to observe and learn more about the work of the ferry drivers. At the wharf, there will usually be a wharf captain, deputy wharf captain and a team in charge of selling tickets, checking tickets, guiding people and vehicles to get on and off the ferry in order, coordinating between the two ends of the wharf to manage passenger vehicles, ensuring safety. The ferry crew usually consists of 6 people: the captain, chief engineer and sailors.

Before each ferry trip, the Management Board, in conjunction with the captain, chief engineer and crew, carefully inspects safety equipment such as life buoy systems, life jackets, valve systems and fire extinguishers before the ferry operates to ensure safety and timely response in case of an accident. Typically, each ferry has about 120 life buoys and nearly 300 life jackets for adults and children.

The ferry management board checks the life buoy equipment before allowing the ferry to operate.

Mr. Nguyen Van Thai, Deputy Director of Tuan Chau Port, said: 7:30 is the ferry's operating time, so at 6:30, the crew must check the steering gear, steering switches to see if they are working properly, and whether the life buoys are complete. Currently, all ferries are self-propelled, so carefully checking the equipment is especially important to ensure a safe journey for tourists.

Talking to us, Captain Vu Van Cong shared: The captain is responsible for steering the ferry and must understand very well the rules of the water and the channels to safely dock the ferry. During the ferry's movement, the chief engineer will be responsible for checking the technical parameters and monitoring the operating machinery system, promptly supplying water to the machine for seamless and safe operation. The chief engineer and the captain also regularly connect by walkie-talkie to control the technical parameters displayed on the clock. When the ferry is about to dock, the captain will use the walkie-talkie to contact the pier chief to grasp the situation at the pier and prepare for the ferry to dock. The sailors on the ferry will coordinate to guide the passengers.

The captain checks the equipment parameters during ferry operation.

The last ferry of the day leaves Tuan Chau wharf at 3:00 p.m. and arrives at Gia Luan Ferry Terminal, Hai Phong at 4:00 p.m. The ferry then turns around to take passengers from Gia Luan wharf to Tuan Chau, ending at 5:00 p.m. On busy days, the number of trips may be increased to ensure the travel needs of residents and tourists are met.

The ferry drivers therefore have no days off, and on holidays they even have to work overtime because the number of passengers doubles, sometimes not finishing work until 9-10pm.

The last ferry of the day arrives at Gia Luan...

...and turn around to take passengers back to Tuan Chau wharf.

The ferries connecting the two heritage sites have existed for 15 years and the ferrymen, besides their duty of transporting passengers safely, also play a significant role in promoting the beauty of the heritage of Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba to tourists, contributing their small efforts to keep the ferries flowing peacefully between the sky and water of Ha Long.

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