Halong Bay: The World’s Nature Heritage of Vietnam

Ha Long Bay (also “Halong Bay”) is in northern Vietnam, 170 km east of Hanoi. The bay is famous for its scenic rock formations

If you thought the hideout in the James Bond film “The Man with the Golden Gun” was spectacular, imagine a place where there are 3,000 such limestone islands clustered together in the East Sea of Halong Bay. Paddle through caves into secret lagoons, drift down channels surrounded by cliffs and forest and sail out into the open sea. Relax on the deck of our luxurious double-sailed junk and look forward to seafood bought straight from passing fishing craft. Swim alone amongst the limestone islets under the stars and take a breather at a floating village hidden amongst the islands. Our fiber glass sea kayaks make for satisfying travel, whether you are an Olympic champion or first time enthusiast.

GETTING THERE

The best way to get to Ha Long Bay is to rent a car from Hanoi from a tour opganizer as ActiveTravelVietnam (ATV). It costs approximately US$100-US$120 return. There is also a tourist open bus service offered by travel agencies around the Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi. Cost is around US$8 net/person/way.

Public buses leave from Long Bien Station to the Bai Chay Station (other side of Red River, 5km from Hoan Kiem Lake) every 30 minutes from 6AM to 6PM and cost 50,000 dong/person each way. This is not recommended for foreign travelers, as these buses are often crowded, slow and unsafe.

THE POPULAR TRAIL (starting from Hanoi)

Day 1: You leave Hanoi for Halong Bay at 8.30am with a short break for refreshment at a handicraft centre. Upon arrival in Halong City you will board a Chinese-style wooden boat (locals call it “Junk”) for a fine seafood lunch and a short cruise to one cave. After a short exploration of the cave you start the kayak exploration of the bay, paddling through an amazing area of limestone islets, passing a floating village to reach Luon Cave, which is a tunnel thrusting through a mountain. Paddling through the tunnel to explore a beautiful secluded lagoon. End of the first with dinner and overnight in AC, private junk’s cabin.

Day 2: This kayaking day starts from Van Chai Floating village and then continue paddling to Dark Cave. The cave is a 200m long, dark tunnel thrusting through a limestone mountain. The tunnel is the only entry to a secluded and beautiful lagoon. You can also explore some other caves nearby. After lunch you paddle to Ba Trai Dao Lagoon, along a stunning and fairly rough sea channel, to explore its beautiful beaches. Then continue paddling to Lan Ha Bay, which is smaller than Halong Bay but much more interesting with lots of secluded beaches.

Day 3: Breakfast is served on the junk and you will enjoy the sundeck while the Junk navigates amazing rock formations of Bai Tu Long Bay to get back to Halong City. Lunch on the junk before heading back to Hanoi by bus.

WHEN TO KAYAK

You can do kayaking on the bay all year around but great time is between October and June. A typical kayaking day starts at about 8.00 am after breakfast. Lunch will be served on support boat. At the end of a kayaking day, we would return to the junk by 5 pm or 5.30 pm.

TRAVEL GEARS

On this trip ATV use hard-cell, tandem kayak. Paddle, life-jacket and dry bag are available. We recommend you to bring some extra gears such as Sun block, hat, anti-insect repellent, sunglasses, rain coat. The kayak tour with well-trained and experienced tour guide is always recommended for a best exploration.

Source: Kayak Halong Bay

Active Travel Asia # 303, 3rd Floor, Building 30 Nguyen Du Street, Hanoi, Vietnam
Phone: +84 4 9446230 | Fax: +84 4 9446231 |
VIETNAM | CAMBODIA | LAOS |MYANMAR | TRAVEL SHOP

ACTIVELY EXPLORING HIDDEN LANDS

Crazy Luxury cruises Summer Promotion in Halong Bay Vietnam

Exploring the world heritage site and overnight on board - 2 DAYS 1 NIGHT

( VALID FROM 15 JULY – 31ST AUGUST 08)

1. Superior cabin: 135 USD/ person (Twin shared) – 210 USD/ single Cabin

2. Deluxe cabin: 155 USD/ person (Twin shared) – 260 USD/ single Cabin

INCLUDED

•Superior Double/Twin (Twin shared)

• Shuttle bus return Hanoi - Halong Bay – Hanoi

• Candlelight Dinner BBQ Seafood dinner with Big choice of fresh local sea foods and others dishes

• Welcome Drink

• Entrance and Sightseeing Fees.

• Luxury en-suite air-conditioned Cabins

• Vietnamese Set Lunch Menu

• International Breakfast Buffet

• Onboard Insurance

• Tax and Service Charges

EXCLUDED

• International Wine tasting - A select wine list for 1 hour free flow from Spain, Chile,US, Italy

• Visa Arrangements

• Beauty Spa Services and Massage

• Kayaking

• Beverages

• Tips and Personal Expenses

• All other services not clearly mentioned above

Terms & Conditions

• Cruise rates based on group of two adults

• This promotion applies for new bookings made and paid directly by guests

• This promotion could not combined with other promotion

• Advance reservation required

• Supplement cabins for normal walk-in rate without extras

• Other terms and conditions apply

• Available on Indochina Sails I and II only

• Cruise Itinerary and program for 2 days on Halong Bay

For reservations, Please email info@indochinasails.com

More information at: http://www.indochinasails.com

Supported by Active Travel Shop, Active Travel Vietnam, New 7 wonders 2008

Miss Universe contestants visit Ha Long Bay thru Huong Hai Junks

Eighty contestants of the Miss Universe 2008 on June 27-28 visited northeastern Quang Ninh province where they called at well-known Ha Long Bay and voted for it as one of the world’s seven natural wonders.

On June 28 evening, the beauty queens joined a seashore gala night and an exchange with Vietnamese entrepreneurs.

Many of their souvenirs were auctioned during the event to raise funds for the Thanh Nien daily-initiated Nguyen Thai Binh scholarship programme.

Supported by Huong Hai Junks and Indochina sails

Active Travel Asia # 303, 3rd Floor, Building 30 Nguyen Du Street, Hanoi, Vietnam
Phone: +84 4 9446230 | Fax: +84 4 9446231 |
VIETNAM | CAMBODIA | LAOS |MYANMAR | TRAVEL SHOP

ACTIVELY EXPLORING HIDDEN LANDS

An ode to Ha Long bay

It was my fourth visit to Ha Long Bay, but the first time my mother and I could together float on the sea, from sunset to sunrise on a large wooden junk.

Follow the leader: Holidaymakers explore limestone rock formations in Ha Long Bay. Kayaking is just one of many activities tour operators offer in the area. — Photos courtesy Indochina Sails

Our three days and two nights on a the wooden junk named Valentine, of Indochina Sails may just be our most memorable trip together since I was 10 years old and accompanied my mother to visit the sea for the first time. Now I was a 20-something girl, old enough to stretch by my mother’s side on two deck chairs and enjoy the darkness surrounding the numerous white limestone towers, not to mention the melodious ballads flying up from the wooden deck into the sky. It was our first night on board, a moment so tranquil that it made a western couple stand up and waltz. At the time, our junk was still moving slowly ahead, passing through the cool sea-breeze and many gigantic limestone towers, which impressed us with their bizarre shapes in the darkness.

This wasn’t what we were expecting when we joined the newly- designed cruise.

We were excited the moment we took a tender to step onto the gigantic wooden junk, which resembled an ancient French-style palace floating on the sea. Passing through the glittering dining room, with its windows facing the sea, we reached our cabin. My mother and I immediately saw beyond the wooden doors: two parallel white sheeted beds, a jar of white Madonna lilies, two large windows covering almost half of the brown wooden wall, and a splendid view of the sea outside.

Our first day was spent relaxing on the deck and in our cabin, although there were various activities tourists could enjoy partaking in on land, such as visiting Bat Cave, Cua Van fishing village or Soi Sim Beach. Most of us were not interested in stepping off the junk, since it served as an idyllic day-trippers’ paradise. Lying on the beds at night, we could see both the high limestone towers and bright stars glittering in the dark sky.

We went to bed early that night. Perhaps it was the effect of consuming a few glasses of good red wine on deck, or the cool breeze coming in from the large window mixed in with the intoxicating air from the cream lilies, that served as soothing lullabies.

The second day began filled with energy as we woke up early to participate in a tai chi session on the sun deck. We then transferred to the day-trip boat and cruised to the bay’s most untouched areas. A buffet-style breakfast was served on the boat, which was not only impressive in its various delicious Western dishes, but also served very good Vietnamese pho (noodle soup).

By the time we completed our breakfast we had reached Ngoc Vung Island. It was sunny and none of us could refuse to take a light bicycle trip through untouched forests to enjoy the natural scenery here. After half an hour, we found ourselves in front of the endless white sand-beach with not a single human shadow in sight. From afar, the sea could appeared as an emerald. I changed into a bathing suit while my mother chose to relax under the cool shadows of the pine forest.

The highlight of the trip turned out to be kayaking in the afternoon, when our boat reached Cong Do area. All of us were very eager, although my mother seemed hesitant. She had never squeezed into a kayak before and she didn’t know how to swim.

Our yellow kayaks followed each other, moving in the low surf, with the warm waters of the sea lapping, and the cool breeze wrapping around us. The high rock formations seemed much higher when looked up and could make our way through all the narrow slots between the towers to discover a strange area where big boats couldn’t reach.

Our second day came to a good end with a delicious dinner, a grilled seafood feast, after which we went off to see people catching squids offshore. Passengers who caught squids could be found at our table for a second dinner, laughing away as they shared their funny stories.

The next morning our ship steamed forward to Sung Sot Cave, one of the bay’s most impressive limestone caverns. The entrance required a hike up stone steps to a spot high above the bay. More steps led into receding chambers, past humongous stalactites and stalagmites that resembled giant sandcastles.

Our cruise ended in the afternoon with us waving to the staff as we returned to land.

Many hesitate to vacation in a sailboat, but it is worth trying, for once you go, you will want to go again and again. It is advisable to go in a group, as you can share together all the wonderful moments of sitting standstill in the cool sea-breeze, listening to love ballads, sipping Vallformosa red wine, while the limestone towers all around move softly as the boat keeps drifting ahead.

Ha Long is like a story whose ending I thought I had reached but in reality I discovered that it has many alternative endings that need to be discovered, again and again.

Active Travel Asia # 303, 3rd Floor, Building 30 Nguyen Du Street, Hanoi, Vietnam
Phone: +84 4 9446230 | Fax: +84 4 9446231 |
VIETNAM | CAMBODIA | LAOS |MYANMAR | TRAVEL SHOP

ACTIVELY EXPLORING HIDDEN LANDS