How a cruise from Vietnam’s heaving Halong Bay can be a blissful experience – head to its outer reaches
- Vietnam’s much visited Halong Bay is chock full of cruise ships, but its eastern Bai Tu Long Bay is further than most ships will venture
- A trip on the Dragon Legend takes in towering limestone karsts, eerie caves and a visit to a fishing village to see its impressive conservation efforts
An ethereal sliver of light shimmers on rippling water, cast from a buttery full moon between mysterious rock forms that rise from the water and throw ghostly shadows. We are surrounded by several other such shapes, vague and undefined in the darkness.
Except for the almost-imperceptible hum of a generator from below decks, it feels as though we’re a long way from civilisation. Which is a surprise, considering our boat is gently bobbing in Vietnam’s much-visited Halong Bay.
The cruise didn’t start out so serenely.
Earlier that December morning, the piers at the massive Halong cruise port terminal, three hours east of Hanoi, heaved as jostling hordes funnelled onto cruise vessels of all sizes. Before the pandemic hit, 6 million tourists visited Halong Bay annually, and it felt like they were back in similar force.
