Ha Long Bay
Dusk at Ha Long Bay
Should You Visit Ha Long Bay
I can't really say in good conscience you should go to Hanoi and not take a trip to Ha Long Bay. It would be like saying, check out Florida without going to Disney World. Many people have a great time in Florida without seeing Disney, but it is a top destination there for a reason. But Ha Long Bay hits the nail on the head for the very definition of "overtourism." Now I will never complain about long lines while standing in them, hence being a reason the line is so long, nor am I complaining about them here.
What I would recommend is reading about this trip and checking with tour groups around Hanoi to see if they offer trips to Ha Long Bay that were different from mine. I don't mean I had a bad time, my expectations were just a bit different and if I was steering the boat, I would have done it differently.
A Little About the Formation of Ha Long Bay
Ha Long Bay had me confused when I first saw it. I just couldn't figure out how they were formed. It reminded me of the floating mountains in Avatar, except they didn't float. But they were small, individual peaks. I assumed if it was geological, it would be like an interconnected mountain range. After some research, I found it was a phenomenon called karst topography, and the whole place used to be a giant limestone plateau slowly being eaten away by rain until only the toughest peaks were left. This also means if you want to see it, you need to go in the next million years or so before it is completely gone.
Starting the Day
The bus picks you up at around 7:30 AM for the two-and-a-half-hour ride to the bay.
When I was booking the tour, I was asked "do I want the limousine option for 100,000 VND ($3.80)". I knew it wouldn't be a stretched black car like the one I took to prom so I wasn't sure what to expect, but I said "yes" anyway. It was a wise choice. The bus was really comfortable and I saw some other buses on the trip. None looked awful, but I think it was worth the small upgrade.
On the Ninh Binh tour, we were taken to a place that appeared to be a little tour that showed how to make bamboo into fabric, but just ended up being an infomercial to get us to buy stuff. This tour had the same thing.
We were told we were going to be shown how pearls are collected from the bay, and it really just turned into a way to herd us into a gigantic jewelry store that sold pearl jewelry and we stayed here for like 45 minutes.
One of the 1,969 islands in the bay
I also found the town itself really bizarre. Coming in, there are tons of hotels, like literally enough that you feel like this place could host the Super Bowl, and tons of construction going on as they were still building more stuff. But it really seemed like a ghost town. Most people either stay the night on the boat or do it in one day and head back to Hanoi. I can't really see what the draw would be to staying here. I did some research and I get the feeling it is just a speculative real estate bubble that isn't too far from popping.
Our "limo". It probably was the nicest tour bus I have been on.
Getting ready to go to the boat
This was one of the few photos that I got that were relatively free of boats.
Most of the photos looked like this. This was taken from Sung Sot Cave.
The breeze made the heat a non-issue on the deck
Lady Liberty at the helm
Yeah...I wasn't getting in that...at least 50% piss and 0% chlorine and 100% chance of ringworm
Expectations vs Reality of the Ha Long Bay Tour
Now the booking office did say we would see a cave and had the chance to do some kayaking, but again, it just wasn't what I had pictured.
I saw several pictures of boats with nice pools and I really thought the focus of the tour was just sitting poolside on a boat sipping drinks and enjoying the views of the bay. Part of me didn't want that so I was glad that kayaking and hiking were options, but after going, part of me wishes the tour did have more lounging.
I know that all reads wishy-washy as fuck, but I'll try my best to explain.
See, the islands are AMAZING to look at, and I guess in my head I pictured it as just a long scenic ride close to the islands and soaking in the views, but, except for the places you actually dock at, you don't get that close to many of them.
And docking, I found funny as fuck because, unlike Carnival cruise lines, it is a game of bumper boats. The boat pulls in for a tight fit and it'll be thunk-thunk-thunk as you ricochet off the boats next to you. If you want to see that stop, the boat quickly unloads people and then backs out to let the next boat in and then picks you up later.
Getting on the Water...Finally...
At about noon, after navigating some crowds, you finally get on the boat. This was one pleasant surprise I had on the trip. I expected the boat to be much more crowded than it was. We weren't jammed in like sardines. We sat down for lunch and there were maybe 10 tables with five or six people per table. Felt like we were filled to capacity but not overcrowded.
They served a nice buffet lunch as the boat departed for an hour-long ride into the bay. The ride out and the ride in were my favorite parts of the tour. Sitting on top of the boat with a nice breeze and enjoying the view is great. Just be warned, you are probably not going to be able to get many of the pristine photos you probably saw while researching this place. There are 100s of big cruise ships just like yours in the harbor.
I took this photo with my camera held in the air, just below the field of view is a back and forth line of around two hundred people.
This is taken from where you exit the boat and then you will go through the rock and exit at another point and be picked up.
First Stop Sung Sot Cave
The first stop was Sung Sot Cave. It was a 1.4km hike with about 100 steps up and 100 steps down. That cool breeze from the boat is gone so it got pretty hot here. It was neat inside the cave because you would just walk through these natural "cool spots" where it suddenly got ten degrees cooler and five feet later it is back to hot.
Now the cave is awesome, just be prepared. It feels exactly like the line waiting to get on a roller coaster. You know how the lines are usually decorated to keep it as interesting as possible while waiting. That is exactly what this felt like. I do mean EXACTLY. It was weird even though I knew it was a real cave system, my mind just kept picturing it like I was getting on a King Kong ride. The crowds here are brutal and were pushy as shit. I can't stand when people are all fighting to get to the same place. You have still got to be picked up by the fucking boat. I don't see what the rush is. And be careful with the steps and the crowds, it could be a little dangerous.
Now it wasn't all bad. The cave just has some severe bottlenecks. It does open up in parts allowing you to breathe, even though I'm a little disappointed with how a lot of my photos turned out because I didn't want to stop for more than a second or two to snap one off because I knew there was a herd of impatient tourists behind me.
There was an older couple at our table that didn't get off at any of the stops. Maybe they had the right idea. If I had it to do over again, would I have gotten off or stayed on the boat? Yeah, I'd still have gone and seen the cave, but just prepare yourself for it.
I found it hard to believe so much green would grow on what appeared to just be giant rocks in the middle of a saltwater bay
This is right after you actually get inside and the worst bottleneck
I had to keep reminding myself "This is real, not a fiberglass set design at a theme park".
In my opinion this was the coolest part of the cave. Seemed like something out of Indiana Jones.
Kayaking in Ha Long Bay
Back home, I owned a kayak, so this was what I was looking forward to most about the trip. When booking, all the pictures from the tour office showed pristine stock photos of a single person alone in the bay on a kayak.
This was...not that.
Your options are to either take a tandem kayak or ride on a large rowboat paddled by a local with about ten other people. I don't really know why anyone would choose the rowboat, but surprisingly, most of the people on our cruise did.
Since the kayaks are two-seaters, if you're traveling solo, you have to pair up with someone. Luckily, I met another solo traveler from Scotland on the tour and we hit it off, so she and I grabbed a kayak together.
The spot they take you to is nothing like the pictures I saw, but it's still a very scenic area. You paddle out, go through a small cave, and circle around another bay. We took a wider loop than most people and were able to avoid some of the crowds. But watch out for the big rowboats with locals paddling them. They don't give a single shit about avoiding kayaks and will charge right through you. It got pretty tight inside the cave. You actually need to lean way back and allow them to swing the paddles over you.
I didn't get many pictures while I was kayaking because I was too busy dodging other boats, but once we got away from the crowds I stopped to take a few.
Ti Top Island Beach
The Beach
This was the final stop and talk about being wishy-washy... I was full of increasingly poor decisions here. Every choice I made was wrong.
When we first got here, we could go swimming, take a hike to the top, or stay on the boat.
I was at the top of the boat (where I should have stayed) enjoying the air. I was planning on staying, but at the last minute I decided, "No, while I'm here I need to explore when given the chance." The boat was actually seconds away from backing up when I got down, but they held it up for the dumb American.
Even though I could clearly see the crowds, I got off and IMMEDIATELY wanted to get back on the boat, but it was already backing up. I did want to climb, but I didn't want to deal with the crowds like at the cave. I decided to explore the little island.
I quickly realized there wasn't a whole lot to see on the island and went over to where the climb was. Then I see it doesn't look crowded at all, but now I am worried that since I farted around on the boat and island I wouldn't have time to climb it.
So I just sat around on one of the decks people-watching until I started seeing members of my group. But it was at least another twenty minutes from when they started appearing to when we got back on the boat, so I would have had plenty of time to do the climb anyway. Total shit show of a stop for me.
I do regret not doing the climb, but I definitely don't regret not swimming. I mean that shit obviously wasn't happening, but I saw two people limping out of the ass soup with jellyfish stings, so if you go and decide to swim, remember that. I'm sure the pool on our boat would have had enough piss in it to neutralize the pain, though.
All of those boats dumping waves of people on the island 50 or 60 at a time
I actually took this photo on the way out not realizing that little pavilion would be the destination at the end of the trip
Sunset in Ha Long Bay
Final Thoughts on Ha Long Bay
So maybe after reading this you can tell I'm not a big fan of crowds. Would I recommend going to see Ha Long Bay? Yes, absolutely. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for a reason. Put on your Panama Jack hat and Hawaiian shirt and embrace being a tourist for a day.
I would, however, recommend shopping around and finding an option that doesn't sound like the tour I took if your budget allows. They have cruises that go for one or two nights. I think I would have gotten bored on those solo, but with a lady friend or group, it probably would have been great.
Also, while Ha Long Bay gets all the name recognition, right next door are Bai Tu Long Bay and Lan Ha Bay. I originally saw options for Lan Ha Bay and wrote them off as the lame little brother to Ha Long, but now I would seriously consider it instead. Lan Ha has more high-end luxury boats, while Bai Tu Long has rustic wooden boats in areas that are far more remote and almost deserted. Plus, I found out too late that squid fishing is an option on some of those trips and I would have been all about that.
I booked both my Ninh Binh tour and Ha Long Bay tour not long after I arrived in Vietnam, but spaced them out and did Ha Long right before I left. I wish I had done Ha Long Bay sooner so I could have booked another tour out to Lan Ha Bay afterward.