Clear emerald waters and never ending sceneries of limestone islands, that’s Ha Long Bay. A UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New 7 Wonders of Nature. Unfortunately, also a place becoming so crowded and popular it almost seems impossible to find a decent boat tour. Is it even possible to still enjoy Ha Long Bay without crowds of people, tourist scams and spending a fortune? The answer is yes. Let me tell you how I did it.

Don’t Make These Mistakes

If you are travelling to Vietnam, Ha Long Bay should be on your itinerary. However, if you really want to have a good time and not spend hundreds of dollars, do not, I repeat, DO NOT go to Ha Long city. That’s where most people go and where you are most likely to get ripped off. (And don’t even think about taking a day tour from Hanoi, it takes about 3-4 hours to get to the bay, leaving almost no time for the cruise.)

Here’s a newsflash: Ha Long Bay is big. I mean very big. 1,553 km² to be precise. It is not just one bay with one harbour. However, most tourists seem to think all cruise ships sail out of Ha Long city. From what I have heard, the port of Ha Long gets so packed with huge cruise ships you can barely enjoy the scenery. There are also lots of stories on the Internet about various tourist scams, food poisonings and generally very bad tours.

Long story short: Ha Long city is a tourist hell. Avoid.

Ever heard of Cat Ba?

The secret is going to Cat Ba, the biggest limestone island in Ha Long Bay. It is actually not so secret anymore and Cat Ba town seems to be expanding so my advice is: go now before Cat Ba gets ruined by tourism just like Ha Long city did. I recommend spending at least two nights in Cat Ba – it works well if you want to do a one day boat tour. Of course you can also take an overnight cruise or even stay at Cat Ba longer to explore its national park.

Once you are in Cat Ba, you can book a boat tour from there – you will find it’s a lot cheaper than tours from Ha Long! Several agencies have their offices on the main street in Cat Ba town so you still have a lot of choice. However, I recommend reading reviews before booking anything. You can read which company I chose (and had a great time!) in the following paragraph.

My Halong Bay Experience

After doing my research, I decided to book a boat tour with Cat Ba Ventures – and man, was it a good choice! I paid $29 for a one-day tour (trust me, for Ha Long Bay that’s a bargain) with a delicious lunch included (vegetarian and vegan options were available). I loved that there were only about 15 of us on the boat – I don’t think I would enjoy a cruise with hundreds of people.

We were cruising through the more remote areas of Halong: La Han Bay. Sure, it wasn’t the most famous part of the bay and King Kong wasn’t filmed exactly there, but it looked the same! We stopped in a floating fishing village, swam and kayaked in the bay and could enjoy the fascinating landscapes from the deck. The early March weather wasn’t amazing but hey, I kind of loved the mysterious foggy atmosphere!

I am not a big fan of organised tours but you can’t exactly get your own boat and explore Ha Long Bay yourself… But Cat Ba Ventures are a nice choice and I can highly recommend them. This is not an ad, I just honestly enjoyed the trip! You don’t feel like being in a herd nor are you ever dragged to souvenir shops like on many other tours in Asia.

So there you go. I didn’t spend a fortune, avoided the tourist crowds and still enjoyed this natural wonder. Job done.

Read about what else I did in Vietnam in this post! 😉

Have you ever been to Ha Long Bay? What was your experience like?

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