Ha Long travel guide
Limestone karsts by boat, squid cakes in Hon Gai
The port city on Ha Long Bay, where cruises leave for the UNESCO-listed limestone islands. March to May and October to November give the mildest weather and calmest water. Plan one night on a boat and a few hours ashore. Prices are low, and many nationalities need no visa.
Ha Long lines the north shore of Ha Long Bay in Quang Ninh, about two and a half hours by expressway from Hanoi. Almost everyone comes for the bay, a UNESCO-listed spread of limestone islands and pillars, and the city is the main departure point for the boats that weave between them. It is also the administrative centre of the province.
Two halves face each other across a narrow channel, joined by the Bai Chay Bridge. Bai Chay, on the west side, is the resort half, with hotels along the waterfront, the cruise port and the Sun World park with its cable car and big wheel. Hon Gai, to the east, is the older working town around the market and the coal port. Seafood there is cheaper and the crowds thinner.
Cruises are where the money and the decisions go. Day boats spend a few hours in the busiest corner of the bay, typically Sung Sot Cave, the viewpoint stairs on Ti Top Island and a kayak or bamboo boat stop. A night or two aboard lets the larger boats reach quieter water toward Lan Ha Bay or Bai Tu Long Bay, where you see far fewer hulls at sunrise.
Ashore, the Quang Ninh Museum is a black glass block on the Hon Gai waterfront that runs through the province's history, from the coal mines to the sea. When the path is open, Bai Tho Mountain gives a view over the harbour and the first islands. Eat cha muc, the city's fried squid cake, with sticky rice at a market stall.
Summer is hot and stormy. From about June to September, typhoon warnings can stop every boat leaving port at short notice, so leave a spare day before any flight. Winter, roughly December to February, is cool and drizzly. The mist softens the karsts, though, while the boats run emptier. One night on a boat plus a morning in Hon Gai is the right length for most trips.
Explore Ha Long by theme
Find your kind of trip: 24 travel themes, each with the packages in Ha Long.
Ha Long at a glance
The essentials first-time visitors ask about, in one place.
Explore more of Vietnam
Pick a place by travel style: beaches, nature, cities, heritage, hills, islands.
Nothing in that category yet.
Top things to do in Ha Long
Cruises among the karsts, then a cable car, a museum and squid cakes on land.
Ha Long
Ha Long Bay (Vịnh Hạ Long)
Ha Long Bay lies in the Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of Quang Ninh province in north-east Vietnam, about three hours by road from Hanoi. The bay covers around 1...
Best time to visit Ha Long
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Mild temperatures and steadier weather for cruising and kayaking.
Hot, humid and busy with Vietnamese families; typhoons can cancel sailings.
Cool, misty and often drizzly, with fewer boats on the water.
In typhoon season, book a cruise with a clear refund policy; when a storm warning goes up, the port authorities stop boats from sailing.
Packages in Demand
A Journey to Remember
Tours, activities and day trips in and around this destination, with the details you need before booking.
No packages in Ha Long are listed yet. Browse all packages
Create Your Custom-Made Trip to Ha Long
Traveling to Ha Long? Chat with a Local Travel Specialist in Ha Long Who Can Help Organize Your Trip.
START HEREOur Travel Experts are Recommended by
Plan your trip
Practical answers before you go. Pick a topic.
Getting there
Old Quarter cruise shuttles, Van Don flights and the Tuan Chau car ferry
Ha Long is about two and a half hours from Hanoi by expressway, and most cruise companies include the transfer: a shuttle collects passengers from Old Quarter hotels in the morning and delivers them to Bai Chay's international cruise port or Tuan Chau marina in time for lunch on board. Independent travellers can take a limousine van or an ordinary bus from Hanoi's bus stations to Bai Chay, then a taxi to the pier or hotel. Van Don International Airport (VDO), to the north-east, has domestic flights from Ho Chi Minh City and other cities and is around an hour by road from Ha Long, a handy option for travellers coming from the south who want to skip Hanoi. Hanoi's Noi Bai remains the main international gateway. Linking with Cat Ba is straightforward too: a car ferry runs from Tuan Chau to Gia Luan on the north side of the island.
- Cruise shuttle
- Old Quarter pick-up, about 2.5 hours to the pier
- Limousine van or bus
- From Hanoi to Bai Chay, then taxi onward
- Van Don Airport (VDO)
- About an hour by road to Ha Long
- Tuan Chau to Cat Ba
- Car ferry to Gia Luan in the north of the island
- Confirm which pier your boat uses; Bai Chay and Tuan Chau are a taxi ride apart.
- In typhoon season, check that the shuttle is refundable along with the cruise.
Where to stay
Bai Chay hotels, Hon Gai streets or a cabin afloat
Most Ha Long visitors spend at least one night on the water, the best use of a short trip. If you sleep ashore before or after a cruise, choose your side of the channel: Bai Chay is built for tourists, with hotels along the waterfront, and Hon Gai is where local people live and work.
- Bai Chay
- Big waterfront hotels, Sun World and the cruise port; convenient but built-up, with karaoke noise
- Hon Gai
- Smaller hotels near Ha Long market and the museum; cheaper seafood, fewer English menus
- Tuan Chau
- Island marina linked by causeway where many cruises board; quiet at night, little to do
- On a cruise
- The only way to wake up among the islands; check cabin size and boat age before booking
- Ask for a room facing the bay in Bai Chay; the inland side often looks onto construction.
Getting around
Across the Bai Chay Bridge by Grab, and into the karsts by kayak
Ha Long stretches for kilometres along the shore, split by the narrow channel under the Bai Chay Bridge. Walk within each half, from the Bai Chay hotels to Sun World or around Ha Long market and the museum in Hon Gai, and take a taxi or Grab to cross between them or to reach Tuan Chau. Motorbike taxis wait near the market and cruise port for short hops. On the water, everything runs through boat operators. Cruises include tenders to the caves and beaches, and most add kayaks or bamboo rowing boats so you can slip under rock arches into enclosed lagoons. Day trips to the core sights leave from the Bai Chay port throughout the morning.
- Taxi or Grab
- Crossing the Bai Chay Bridge and runs out to Tuan Chau
- On foot
- Within Bai Chay waterfront or around Hon Gai market
- Kayak or bamboo boat
- Included on many cruises for caves and lagoons
- Day boats
- From the Bai Chay cruise port to Sung Sot Cave and Ti Top
- Book Grab for the ride to the pier; street taxis near the cruise port may ask for a fixed fare.
Know before you go
What makes Ha Long worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- Sunrise from an overnight boat, before the day boats arrive.
- Kayaking under rock arches into lagoons the big boats cannot enter.
- Ti Top Island's stairs, a short steep climb to a view over the anchorage.
- Cha muc in Hon Gai, the fried squid cake the city is proud of.
- The Queen Cable Car across the water to Sun World's hilltop, best late in the day.
Good to know
- Cheap cruises cut corners; check the boat's age, cabin count and exact route before paying.
- Typhoons cancel sailings between roughly June and September, so keep a buffer day.
- Sung Sot Cave and Ti Top get crowded by late morning; overnight boats can visit earlier.
- Lan Ha and Bai Tu Long bays are quieter options if the crowds put you off.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Ha Long, month by month
Month-by-month climate figures for Ha Long are being researched.
Choosing a Ha Long Bay cruise
Pick a Ha Long cruise by its length first. A day boat from Bai Chay or Tuan Chau covers the core sights in a few hours, shared with many other passengers; one night aboard adds a sunset, a kayak session and an early start before the crowds; two nights take you deep into Bai Tu Long or Lan Ha.
Before paying, ask how many cabins the boat has, which part of the bay it actually sails, and whether the Hanoi transfer is included. Cheap deals often mean old boats on the most crowded loop. Boats heading to Bai Tu Long sail past floating fishing villages and quieter islands, while Lan Ha routes favour kayaking and swimming beaches. In the typhoon months, pick a company with a clear refund policy, because storm warnings close the port without much notice.
Hon Gai market, Bai Tho Mountain and the Queen cable car
A day ashore in Ha Long is worth adding before or after the boat. Start early in Hon Gai, on the eastern side of the channel, with sticky rice and cha muc at a stall near Ha Long market, then walk the market halls, where the seafood section shows what fills menus across town.
Mid-morning, go to the Quang Ninh Museum, the black glass block on the Hon Gai waterfront, for an hour on the province's coal mines, its maritime history and the geology of the bay. If the path up Bai Tho Mountain is open, climb it next for a view across the harbour to the first karst islands.
After lunch, cross the Bai Chay Bridge and spend the afternoon on the resort side. The Queen Cable Car lifts you over the water to Sun World's hilltop park on Ba Deo hill, where the Sun Wheel gives the widest view back over the bay; go late in the day for the light. Walk down along the Bai Chay waterfront for a seafood dinner as the cruise boats light up at anchor, and keep the islands for the following morning.
Cha muc, banh cuon and sa sung from the Ha Long market
Ha Long's signature is cha muc, a squid cake pounded by hand from fresh squid, which gives it a bouncy, slightly coarse bite. Fried golden, it comes with sticky rice at breakfast, with rice and herbs at lunch, and inside banh cuon, steamed rice rolls served with hot broth. Vacuum-packed squid cakes are the usual gift for Hanoi.
The bay itself fills the rest of the menu. Look for sa sung, a sea worm dried and used to sweeten broths, or stir-fried fresh with garlic; it is a Quang Ninh delicacy and costly. Clams, mantis shrimp and crab are steamed or grilled in the waterfront restaurants, and many cruises serve a seafood lunch on deck.
Where you eat makes a difference. The Bai Chay waterfront is convenient but aimed at tour groups, with prices to match; Hon Gai's market stalls and backstreet restaurants are cheaper and often fresher. In any seafood restaurant, pick from the tanks, have the item weighed in front of you and agree on the total before it is cooked. Evening snacks are simpler: grilled squid on skewers sold from carts near the Bai Chay seafront.
Travelers are asking
No questions yet about Ha Long. Ask the community or our travel team, and the answer will show here once it is published.
Our travel desk answers questions about Ha Long
How we research our Ha Long travel guide
Ha Long cruise routes, pier locations and the Hanoi expressway are checked against Vietnam Travel and the Hạ Long Wikipedia record; for visas and arrival rules we use only Vietnam's official e-Visa portal.
Last updated . Spotted something out of date? Tell us.
Checked against trusted sources:
Vietnam official e-VisaVietnam Travel
See all 2 sources
Before You Go...
Discover Trips & Info
A Travel Network Connection Travelers and locals
Incredible Event & Festival, Don't Miss!
Most Popular Event & Festival of Ha Long
Festivals and events in this destination, with dates, venues and ticket details where available.
No upcoming festivals or events in Ha Long are listed right now. Browse all events
Memorable Experiences
Where to Go (& NOT Go) In Ha Long!
Roaming the World one Adventure at a Time: Travel Tales, Tips, and Inspiration for wanderlusters.
Subscriber
Popular car hire destinations
Explore more options to hire a car for cheap
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Ha Long.
What's included
Most do. Companies collect passengers from Hanoi's Old Quarter in the morning and drive about two and a half hours on the expressway to the pier.
General
Usually. A day boat sees the busiest stops in a few hours, while a night aboard gets you sunrise and quieter corners of the bay.
March to May and October to November. Summer brings typhoon cancellations and winter is often grey and misty.
For most people, yes. Add a second night if you want to reach Lan Ha or Bai Tu Long Bay.
At breakfast stalls near Ha Long market in Hon Gai, served with sticky rice or inside banh cuon rice rolls.
Yes. Van Don Airport has domestic flights and is about an hour by road from Ha Long.
Port authorities stop boats from sailing. Choose a company with a clear refund or rebooking policy and keep a spare day before your flight.
Bai Chay for big hotels, Sun World and the cruise port; Hon Gai for cheaper seafood, the market and a more local feel.
Yes. Boats that head into Bai Tu Long see far fewer other vessels, though the trip takes longer, so it suits overnight cruises.
bookingMentor lists 1 thing to do in Ha Long, with its category, rating and a short description. Open one for the full details, such as opening hours and how to get there.
Getting there
Take the car ferry from Tuan Chau to Gia Luan on the north of Cat Ba, then continue by road to Cat Ba town.
Timing & weather
The best time to visit Ha Long is Mar to May, Oct to Nov. Mild and mostly dry, outside both the typhoon months and the winter drizzle.
- Best overall: March - May, October - November (Mild temperatures and steadier weather for cruising and kayaking)
- Summer: June - September (Hot, humid and busy with Vietnamese families; typhoons can cancel sailings)
- Winter: December - February (Cool, misty and often drizzly, with fewer boats on the water)
Booking
Plan one night on a boat and a few hours ashore.
Visa & documents
Citizens of a number of countries, including the UK and many EU states, can visit Vietnam visa-free for up to 45 days. All nationalities can apply for a single or multiple-entry e-Visa valid for up to 90 days on the official portal.
Health & safety
Vietnam is generally safe. Traffic is the main hazard, and bag snatching from motorbikes occurs in cities.
