We had spoken to many people about Ha Long Bay with most saying it was very busy and quite dirty. On the other hand we felt we came all this way and it would be a shame not to see it. In the end we settled on going to Bai Tu Long which involves sailing through Ha Long Bay but is much less busy. According to our research, there are 500 boats authorised to take tourists in Ha Long Bay but only 13 in Bai Tu Long.
Ha Long itself is a large and very empty resort. It was built with Chinese and other foreign investment for the huge cruise ships that used to stop here until Covid struck. Since then they no longer come and the development has been abandoned. The Vietnamese government is now threatening to reclaim it and demolish everything.
To be fair as we sailed through Ha Long Bay it was busy but not crowded and the litter problem of previous years has been resolved. Their solution was to ban plastic bottles and to employ the fisherman to fish for rubbish and pay them more than they could ever earn fishing.
The boat had 34 passengers and was quite luxurious. We had a large bed with windows looking out onto the limestone stacks. The separate bathroom even had a big bath.
On arrival we were served a five course lunch with soup, chicken, beef, shrimps and pork plus a special Ha Long beer!
Above is the view from our bedroom window.
Our guide, Tommy, spoke superb English and was also very informative and witty. He took those of us who wanted to, on a kayak trip through the karsts stacks to a sandy beach where we went for a swim. Our first dip in the South China Sea. As we kayaked we watched Sea Hawks diving and taking fish, we paddled over red coral and had shoals of small fish jumping out of the water all around us.
Warning, lots of photos of Bai Tu Long follow.
Back to the boat for a Singapore sling, take that Raffles tourist trap. Then after a crispy pancake making class we have some free time to relax in our jacuzzi bath. Dinner was more of the same and once again excellent.
We slept soundly and missed the 6am tai chi lesson. After breakfast we caught the launch to one of the islands with a pretty cave. This felt a bit more like the tourist trail with groups arriving one after the other, but it was interesting nonetheless. The fishing families lived in these caves until the start of the 21st Century.
Then an early lunch and head back to the terminal to catch the bus towards our next stop.
This featured blog entry was written by SearlesTravels from the blog Exploring the Far East.
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