Vietnam 2025- Ha Long Bay

We went to Ha Long Bay to run the Ha Long Bay Heritage ½ marathon. We were also there less than two months after it was ravaged by Typhoon Yagi. Both of these factors probably influenced our experience there. Many people who go to Ha Long Bay come right from Hanoi to a tour boat and never spend a night in the town.

We took a van from Hanoi to Ha Long Bay it was a four hour trip. We stayed at the Ha Long Park Hotel. We picked the location because it was walking distance to the race start. The hotel was nice, very modern, but no one spoke English and there were not many restaurants in the area. We also had to search far and wide to find a travel agent to help with bookings. The hotel staff were friendly, but all they could book was tours of Ha Long Bay.

There may be a “backpacker touristy area” in Ha Long Bay, but we never found it. There are many resort style hotels near the port where the Ha Long Bay tours leave from, but those are not really our thing. There were some great mid-week deals to be found if that is what you are looking for.

There is a big push in Vietnam to build resort style accommodation with golf courses and amusement parks to attract Chinese and Vietnamese tourists. Not what we are looking for. One local tour operator we spoke with explained it like this. The “backpacking crowd” come here looking for nature, but when you come from a country without resorts and golf courses where your day to day is more basic you want these things on your holiday, and there is a lot of money in China. I am no expert so this may be an unfair analysis.

Food

Finding somewhere to eat was a bit of a challenge. Many of the local restaurants sold more ice cream and desert type stuff than actual meals. Our first day there we ate mostly local spring rolls which are quite unique. We don’t eat red meat which made things more difficult. On the second night we found an Indian restaurant quite close to the hotel. It was so good we went back almost every night. Francesca Indian Halal Restaurant. The owner was very friendly. We recommend it!

We found a great Banh Mi spot for lunch by the university. Basically a stall on the street, but the Banh Mi was good Bánh mì UMI Monbay

We decided to venture out one night and ended up at a local student hang out. The menu was all Vietnamese and no one spoke English. We were able to order some chicken. It was not bad, but they used the whole chicken cut into chunks not quite what we are used to. The only beverage available was beer so that’s what we had. Most tables were ordering their beer by the case. Twenty four cans were delivered to the table still in the box. We were not up for 24 beer between the two of us so we ordered the draft. We saw this a few times in Vietnam. Once the beers were finished they crushed the cans and threw them on the floor under the table. We asked someone later and were told that it’s actually kind of rude. A bit like saying I am the customer the staff can clean up after me. They were very nice to us in the resturant, but I am sure they were asking themselves what two old forgieners were doing in a what was basically a student pub!

Running Routes

You can run along the bay. It’s a nice run and you will not be alone.

Things to do and see

Cong Vien Hoa Ha Long

Is a park across the street from the Ha Long Park Hotel. It has raised walkways to provide views out onto the bay and at night it comes alive with locals playing sports, kids on of all sizes and a fountain with coloured lights. It also looked to have lovely gardens, but they were being replanted while we were there. There was also obvious damage from the storm.

Walking or riding along the bay

There is a walking path which goes along the bay and in some areas it is widened to provide room for cycling as well. The road along the bay is busy but you can safely cycle in the areas where there is no path. We rode several kilometres along the bay to Hon Gai Beach. Many of the outcrops in the bay have lights on them but none of them were lit where we were there. This may have been due to storm damage.

Bike rental

We had a tough time finding anywhere to rent bikes but we eventually found Giant International Ha Long. They were friendly and helpful and the bikes were great.

Hon Gai Beach

This is one of the nicest beaches we have seen in Vietnam. Lovely white sand with change rooms and palm trees. It was too cold to swim when we were there.

Poem Mountain

This mountain is an obvious feature along the waterfront and is suggested as a great spot for views of the bay. We had ambitions to go up it, but the reviews about the path to the top were very mixed. I have seen more recent reviews that sound better so it may have been a post storm issue. To get up the mountain you have to find a blue door which is close to the point indicated on google maps. A lady at the house will charge you anything between 100,000 and 500, 000 VND. You start by climbing a ladder and then a series of steep steps. The view is said to be worth it. If anyone has been up let us know what you found.

Vincom Plaza

This is a big modern shopping mall along the water. It has a great grocery store where we actually ate dinner one night. Bus loads of tourists from cruise ships stop here.

Ha Long Market

This traditional market is located just east of Vincom Plaza. The outside stalls are mostly local food, fish and staples. The inside stalls are primarily clothing, footwear and household goods with a few souvenirs. It’s worth a visit.

The local harbor

A little further east there is a small local harbour. It’s worth a visit to see the local fishing boats coming in and out. It is also where you go to get the small ferry to Quan Lan Island. We found a travel agent here that spoke English.

Den Chau

This temple along the waterfront is small but interesting. It is built right into the side of the mountain.

 Chua Bao Hai Linh

This temple has great views and we almost had the place to ourselves. We took a Grab. It is connected by a skywalk to an amusement park, Sun World  with a Ferris wheel, a slide down the mountain and a gondola to the cruise ship terminal. It was 200,000 VND to get in. We skipped it. I am not sure it was open.

We enjopyed Ha Long Bay and we had some interesting experiences, but if I had it to do again I would skip Ha Long Bay and go straight to Cat Ba Island.