I’ve seen photos of Halong Bay, the “Guilin on the Sea” in Vietnam, a few times, but there aren’t many complete travelogues. During the Qingming Festival trip to Vietnam with @yizhiyiqiao, we arranged a one-day cruise at Halong Bay, and I’d like to share some of the surprises and pitfalls.
We blindly chose a group tour on Klook.

The activities for the one-day tours are exactly the same, with the only differences being the facilities of the cruise ship and the meals.
– Overall schedule: We were picked up by a minibus from a hotel near Hoan Kiem Lake at 8:00, arrived at the Halong Bay port at 11:20, had a buffet lunch at 12:00, visited three attractions in sequence, and returned to the port at 17:30.

We got back to Hanoi at 20:10 and had dinner on our own.
– Mysterious Cave Rafting (P4-6): You can choose between a two-person hand-rowed raft, a multi-person wooden boat, or a speedboat (extra charge). After entering through a cave, you circle around a “lake” surrounded by mountains. We chose the raft, which was easy to balance and didn’t get our clothes wet.

– Surprise Cave (P7-9): Surprise Cave is a cave without colorful, eerie lights. You need to queue up and climb a mountain to enter a one-way route. The scenery is very magical, and walking through it feels like exploring a cave in Interstellar or The Lord of the Rings.
– Titop Island (P10-14): From the top of Titop Island, you can enjoy the classic view of the “Guilin on the Sea” with the naked eye.

It takes only about half an hour to go up and down, and it’s not physically demanding. You can also choose to rest on the beach or play in the water. The combination of the beach and karst hills is quite unique.
Summary of Surprises:
1. Facilities: The bus seats were particularly comfortable, and I slept well on the way to and from Hanoi.

The cruise ship facilities were good, and the buffet was decent. The first floor had individual seats, while the second floor had tea tables and the third floor had recliners, all free to use.
2. Scenery: The karst hill scenery on the sea met expectations. The scenery in Surprise Cave was stunning, and adventure enthusiasts would be thrilled.

It’s said that due to citizen complaints, they changed to incandescent lighting, and I suggest this should be widely promoted in China.
3. Drones: You can fly drones on Titop Island without any restrictions, but you cannot fly them while the cruise ship is moving.
4. Guide: The guide was very nice and talked about Vietnam’s economic development, housing prices, and the lives of ordinary people, rather than promoting shopping.

Summary of Pitfalls:
1. Shopping Stop (P18): The trip included a very expensive shopping stop, with no prior notice. Although it wasn’t mandatory to buy anything, it wasted at least half an hour.
2. Schedule: The journey was long, and there was a lot of idle waiting time. In reality, it was a half-day tour, with only about 40 minutes allocated to each attraction.

To fully immerse yourself in the experience, opting for a multi-day cruise is highly recommended.
3. Expenses: Before setting sail, we were informed that bringing bottled water into the Halong Bay scenic area was not allowed. We adhered to the guidelines, only to discover upon boarding that this restriction was in place to encourage the purchase of on-board drinks priced at around 30 RMB—significantly higher, at 3-5 times the usual cost.
4. Scenery: The boating route through the Mysterious Cave felt somewhat underwhelming, and the lake inside the cave lacked any distinctive features. The view from Titop Island, while pleasant, did not compare to the breathtaking vistas offered by the high vantage points within Halong City. The overall beauty of the scenery is heavily influenced by the weather. On our overcast day, the photos we took, except for those captured from a drone’s vertical perspective, were rather lackluster.
Halong Bay sounds amazing, but it’s good to know the tours can be hit or miss. I’d be more cautious about choosing an operator after reading your experience. Those pitfalls could really ruin the trip for someone!