Hi-
We are thinking of this as a side trip from Hanoi, but wonder why the "not so great" vibe? Can anyone be more specific as to why we should not go if it's just two days out of a long trip?

Is the boat ride not on really nice water?

Is it too expensive?

Is it anything like the trip in Thailand (Phang Nga Bay spelling?)

Can anybody be more clear as to why this is not that great?

Thanks.
Pete

Really? No one is going to answer? Is it because you think I'm new? I'm old, I just lost my computer (and stored password) and had to restart fresh. Oh, please?

Patience, Peter, really someone will respond. (and on this board people are glad to respond to newbies.)

Part of the problem is that people either seem to love Halong Bay ("It was the highlight of my trip&quot or are left cold by it. ("Ok scenery, but the drive was long and there was trash in the water.&quot

When I went to Hanoi, I also debated this. I ended up not going to Halong Bay because 1. I was there in November when it's usually cool and misty on the bay and 2. I just had a week in Hanoi, and there was so much to do there, I didn't want to lose 2 whole days.

I hope those who have been there can give you more specifics so you can decide for yourself.

We enjoyed Halong Bay. We were travelling in a group of 8 and were driven down in a small bus. Yes, it seems a long way at Vietnamese road speeds, but we left early and had plenty of time on our relaxed boat trip with an excellent lunch provided. Even if the weather is not great Halong Bay can be very atmospheric. I guess the question is whether devoting a whole day to it is acceptable to you, and that probably depends on how much time you have. If you had, say, 3 days in Hanoi, I probably wouldn't recommend that you take one of them to see Halong Bay. If you had 5 or more days in Hanoi then I probably would recommend the trip.

I really enjoyed the serene beauty of Halong Bay; I stayed overnight on the boat and had the best night's sleep ever. The food was quite good; the whole trip cost me about $22 or so.

It's quite lovely in early morning particularly; whilst the drive to it is long, the ride to just about anywhere in Vietnam is as the roads are not precisely freeways (more free-for-all ways, I'd say...)

Happy trails!

PS: More details in the trip report here: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34659821

it is quite a ways from hanoi number one....too far for a one day deal i think....we stayed a couple of nite at the harborside hotel in hyphong and took the hydrofoil to halong bay....

the experience was so, so.....the water was nice enought and like a mirror....the town was horrible....the boats were ok....the food on board was very good...freshly cooked sea food

we had the boat to ourselves--2 of us..

it was cheap to go there...

we had expected more than we saw...picture rocks sticking up out of the water all over the place....very similar to the area off of phuket....i would not go to both...

i would rate it a 6

I can't find prices anywhere, but we really enjoyed our trip in Phang Nga bay in Thailand with John Gray Sea Canoe. They do a similar trip in Halong Bay, as well as some longer ones.

In Phang Nga bay, I think I would have been kind of disappointed had we taken a bigger cruise boat out and sailed around the hongs. With the kayaks, however, we got a whole new perspective on them...from the inside. It was amazing.

If we were to go to Vietnam, which we just might someday soon, we would go to Halong Bay and we would use John Gray's company for kayaking around and in the hongs rather than just have a sail around and look.

http://www.johngray-seacanoe.com/vie...ms.php#halong1

I loved Halong Bay. My husband and I were there in 10/04. We spent 2 nights on the Dragon Pearl, a beautiful chinese junk ship. We swam, kayaked and had a great time with the other passengers. IMO, you have to spend at least 1 night on a boat to enjoy Halong Bay. The town is nothing, hotels looked very basic. It was lovely to be on the boat, to anchor in a small lagoon at night. It was a relaxing break on a month long busy vacation. We booked the boat through Handspan Tours in Hanoi.

Thank you so much! I am sorry I was so impatient...just excited, I guess.

"Emeraude Classic Cruises : 1804/person for 02days and 01 night."

I don't understand the price, sorry. Can't be 1804 dong, can't be US$1804. Presumably it's a typo.