Thread: Trip report HANOI and HALONG BAY

TRIP REPORT

HALONG BAY and HANOI

There are places we need to see sooner rather than later for various reasons. For example I visited Angkor Wat and other temples in Cambodia earlier this year. I am so pleased that I did, because I am not sure that I will be able to manage the steep steps, and extensive walking in years to come. None of us grow younger.

Another place that has to be visited now, but for a different reason, is Halong Bay in northern Vietnam. This has incredibly stunning and spectacular scenery and is available at the moment to be experienced on overnight cruises on a junk. But these cruises are to cease in just five years from now. A huge project is underway to build enormous resorts on the mainland at Ha Long, from where visitors will be able to take one day boat trips into the Bay, but will be forbidden from remaining in the Bay overnight. The reason given is pollution.

I travelled to Vietnam via Doha on Qatar Airways (see separate trip report), arriving at Hanoi at around 6:30 am in a torrential rainstorm. By the time I was through immigration and got my luggage, the rain had stopped, and thankfully the hot and humid weather behaved itself most of the time after that. I got a Mai Linh taxi to my hotel, avoiding the hassle from other drivers, many of whom allegedly may have been ready to scam visitors if they could.

I had booked a room at the Hotel Bella Rosa Trendy Hotel which is situated in the heart of the old ‘french’ quarter, and with whom I had struck up a rapport as soon as I had made my booking, - in fact to the extent that I felt very comfortable booking my three day Halong Bay cruise through them. And when I had arrived in Hanoi, I made all my other day tour arrangements through them, and was very pleased with their help.

I spent an enjoyable four days in Hanoi before my Halong Bay trip. One day was spent just walking around the city, to see all the usual sights, and on one day I did what I often do, and took a local bus to a village outside the city, to see parts that are less frequented by visitors. On this occasion I visited Coa Loa.

On the other two days, I went on organised tours. One to the Nimh Binh area, to visit the fascinating and extensive Bai Dinh Pagoda in the morning, and to Trang An in the afternoon, where we were rowed on small boats for several hours through beautiful countryside with wonderful mountain scenery. The second tour was quite different, it was to Mai Chau, which is a valley surrounded by mountains around 90 miles south west of Hanoi. The journey to get there was over a high mountain pass with fantastic views, and once we arrived at the valley, after lunch, we were given bikes to ride around and visit some villages in the valley with a local guide.

After four days in Hanoi, it was time for my Halong Bay trip. Picked up from the hotel, we made the four hour journey to the harbour at Dao Tuan Chau, where we arrived just before midday. I had booked with ‘A class’, a mid-range operator with three junks. After boarding the boat and being allocated our cabins, we had a nice lunch while we got underway into the bay. There are about 2,000 islands in the Bay, of which, it is said, only 1,000 have names.

We dropped anchor near Ti Top island and then went in a small tender to Luon Island to visit the Luon cave. We were given a choice of kayaking, or being rowed in a bamboo boat to visit the cave. (I took the bamboo boat as you can get very wet kayaking !). The Luon cave turned out actually to be a low tunnel and exiting on the other side you are in a tranquil lagoon in the middle of this island.

After the Luon Island visit, the tender took us to Ti Top island itself, which is a major attraction for all visitors. Here you can walk up some 420 steps (some steeper than others), to the top of the island to get the most fantastic panoramic views over Halong Bay and its islands. To my mind this was a major highlight of the trip despite the long climb in the heat, but for those who would rather not walk to the top, there is a nice beach for swimming. After our visit to Ti Top, the tender returned us to the junk, where we enjoyed evening drinks while the sun set before dinner. After dinner lines were provided for people who wished to try their hand at squid fishing off the back of the boat.

The second day started with Tai Chi on the sun deck at 6.15. The views were marvellous, as the islands were generally shrouded in the early morning mist with the sun trying to break through. After an early breakfast we transferred to a small junk which was to be our base for the day. The small junk was able to get us further in amongst the islands and our first stop was a floating village. There used to be 11 such thriving villages, but now there are only two and these have very few people left in them. The government has undertaken a comprehensive plan of resettlement of people in floating villages with generous housing and financial support. Again we were offered kayaks or bamboo boats (with a rower) to explore the village.

After the floating village we had a nice lunch on the small junk, before proceeding to a Pearl farm, where the cultivation of pearls was explained and demonstrated.

Then the small junk took us to Dong Me Cung Island where there is a cave in the hillside, known as the ‘Maze Cave’, (because people can easily get lost inside with its various passageways and caverns). It is about 100 steps up the hillside to the cave which is entered through a very small entrance. Part of the route through the caves was through a narrow tunnel, which sloped upwards with a slippery floor, and as if that wasn’t enough of a challenge, we came out of the cave on the ‘inside’ of the island looking over a lagoon, before an optional climb up a ridge of rocks to a lookout point near the top of the island. The views were again marvelous, but not as good as Ti Top island.

The small boat now took us back to our junk for evening drinks and sunset. Unfortunately due to all the clouds, the sunset on both days was not impressive, but at least the drinks were good. Note that drinks are not included in the package price, and can be expensive on some boats. I would guess ours were average (expensive compared to normal Vietnamese prices) but they did mix a nice G&T and plied us with ‘buy one, get one free’.

The third day started very much like the second day, with Tai Chi and an early breakfast. Then we boarded the tender and were taken to Sung Sot island where there is a cave in the hillside. It was a climb of around 100 steps up the hillside in the early morning heat, but once inside the cave it was nice and cool. The cave is known as ‘surprising cave’ and comprises three main caverns, the first big enough to take our small group, the next one a little larger, and the last one being absolutely enormous. The caverns had numerous stalagmites and stalactites in all sorts of shapes and sizes and resembling, with imagination, all sort of things such as dragons, chickens, frogs, a large turtle, and even a Buddha.

Then we were back to the boat via the tender, and had a short while to pack and ‘check out’ of our cabins. There was then an interactive cooking demonstration before enjoying our final lunch on board, as the junk made its way back to the harbour. We returned to Hanoi in the afternoon by minibus, and were dropped off at our respective hotels.

I stayed in Hanoi for a further full day, when I went on another organised tour. This was to the Perfume Pagoda, which is a vast complex of temples set in mountainous countryside, and only accessible by boat. We went by minibus to the village of Huong Son, where were took a small boat (with a rower) for the one hour or so trip along the river to Ben Trong which is where the 3km uphill walk to the main temple starts. Luckily there is now a cable car which we were able to take both ways. The main temple (Dong Hurong Tich) is in a cave set in the mountainside and is a place of pilgrimage for devout Buddhists. After arriving on the cable car, a short uphill walk brings you to the gate of the temple, after which there is a large set of about 120 steps which you have to descend into the cave, where there are the usual statues and icons.

I left Hanoi on the following day, and spent some time in Danang (may do a separate trip report if requested) before returning home.

A few photos of Halong Bay can be seen here… https://www.flickr.com/gp/75686213@N06/5TrrWW

A few photos of Hanoi can be seen here…… https://www.flickr.com/gp/75686213@N06/e28bX1

Lee