For an important majority of travelers, a tour in Vietnam is incomplete without a visit to Halong bay. One of the World’s Natural Wonders, the iconic spot of the country, a worldwide recognition; Halong archipelago is indeed a place not to be missed. It has been a while since tourism companies well understood this. The offer is huge and it is getting hard to make a decision and to really understand the tour we are buying. So here come a few clues and hints for you to decrypt the programs you read.

Please note that we approach here the question of cruises departing from Halong only. We won’t tell about alternative options such as Cat ba or Van Don, it would be too long and deserves another article.

The format of the cruise

Don’t tease your brain on this. There is almost only one format. Cars departing at 8 am from Hanoi. The boatloads passengers in at about noontime. The cruise then ends at the same pier the next day or the day after at 11 am. Passengers disembark and hit the road to Hanoi for arrival at about 4 pm.

Some pick up at the hotel and some give you a meeting point. At Handspan we prefer giving a meeting point for two reasons: First, we do not annoy the whole Hanoi with our bus on small lanes to go pick up guests from hotel to hotel. Second, we do not impose on the first guests picked up a 45-minute horrible ride in the old quarter’s traffic jam.

The departure pier

There are three departure piers in Halong. If you see that the boat is leaving from Hon Gai; then it is probably a higher standard boat with a cruise itinerary passing by the less-traveled Bai Tu Long bay. You’re about to go to beautiful and wilder corners of the archipelago. If your boat is leaving from Bai Chay, that probably means that you are heading for a mass tourism experience to the most popular spots of the Halong bay [some exceptions of course]. If you depart from Tuan Chau, it is rather a luxury boat with a program mixing some popular and sometimes more off-the-beaten-track routes. 

Treasure Junk- A small boutique cruise in Bai Tu Long Bay

The keywords that should discourage you

If you read in the program the following words, be aware that you are certainly going to feel like a sheep in the herd: Sung Sot or Amazing cave, Titop Island, Soi Sim beach.

The ones that should encourage you

At the opposite, if you read: secluded beach, Bai Tu Long, floating farm, kayaking [but make sure it is not some ridiculous kayaking departing from a busy island]; then it is rather positive.

The price

It is easy and there shall be no or very rare exception:

• Lower than 100 USD per person for a 2-day trip: mass tourism crap
• From 100 USD to 150 USD per person for a 2-day trip: Quality ship, okay simple program
• From 150 USD to 200 USD per person for a 2-day trip: Quality ship, nice well-researched program
• Over 200 USD per person for a 2-day trip: Luxurious boat, if the program is not good, you can relax in the Jacuzzi.

Now if you look for the perfect cruise, just click here, or there.

Good luck on your quest!