We are planning a trip to Vietnam to include an overnight stay on Halong Bay. Have read your responses regarding Handspan and Pearl Dragon, has anyone experienced Halong Ginger?

Have no idea about Halong Ginger... I went with Handspan, but not on Dragon Pearl. Handspan has an excellent photo album of the junks it uses. I tried for Dragon Pearl, but it was full, so I chose another from their "catalogue". It was smaller than Dragon Pearl, but still of a very high standard and I'd more than happily use it again - probably in preference to Dragon Pearl because it was a little more intimate, and unlike Dragon Pearl attracted less young back packers.

I was on the Dragon pearl in october 2003. The boat only holds around 30 people, so it's relatively small. There were no backpackers on the boat, it was full of travellers from all over

When I was on the Dragon's Pearl there were some old backpackers (including me), but I think it's a bit out of the price range of the young ones. Probably not something you can forecast, though.

A lot of adventure tour operators use Dragon's Pearl, such as Intrepid and Gecko.... But I wouldn't hesitate to use Handspan again. It also assisted me with internal travel anbd was most professional and price competitive.

Can anyone comment on the Ginger?

Have you looked at the price? It's quite expensive compared to the other options.

When are you going? We'll be there the 1st half of Jan. and have decided to wait to see what the weather is actually like and then deciding if we want to go. I've been doing a lot of reading as I surf and have discovered that most of the rave reviews of Halong bay tend to come from those who visit when there is nice, warm sunny weather. It doesn't seem so appealing when it is 60, cloudy and drizzly.

Anybody do a day trip from Hanoi? That is all the time we have. So, any advice on getting a good boat just for the day??

You could try Handspan, but remember that in your day, more than half will be spent in a mini bus.

The Halong Ginger has been recommended to me by a tour operator. She says it's the most luxurious junk boat on Halong Bay. The brochure and website look truely amazing - www.cruisehalong.com however when trying to get a comparison quote Travelmood could not book Halong Ginger. There are no prices on the website. What junks do you think might compare to the Halong Ginger?

We went on the Halong Ginger. We decided on it because it was new and has a reputation of good kayaking. The Junk was beautiful. The food was amazing. The staterooms were very large and even had marble bathrooms. We met some wonderful people on board.

I am sure however that we would have been very happy with Handspan. All the boats tend to go to the same places.

The most luxurious and expensive in Halong is Emeraude.
If you check out their own websites, the price is very expensive. You should use a travel agent to book the boat for you. Most of them offer cheaper price. Such as Vinasunrisetravel.com offers US$ 15 for one day tour from Hanoi to Halong. US$ 105 for two days tour overnight on deluxy boat.

Hopefully, this information is helpful to you!

Hi Friends,

Pearl Dragon is quite good junk. Hanspan travel also leases out some cabins on Pearl Dragon. That mean, you can book either with Pearl Dragon or Hanspan.

Halong Ginger is a new strong competitor. They got a lot of good recommendations from our hotel's guests.

If I have to choose, why don't try out the latter?

Good luck,