Transport in Ha Long bay

1. High speed boat, water motor-boat, sea beach services:
 
Royal International Joint-venture Company
Add: Ha Long Road - Bãi Cháy - Hạ Long
Tel: (84-33) 847 095 - 846 658
Fax: (84-33) 846 728

Âu Lạc Company in Tuần Châu Island
Tel: (84-33) 842 115
Fax: (84-33) 842 119
 
2. Types of tourist boats

By size, these boats can be categorised as follows:
10 to 15-seat wooden boat: small, with a single deck. It travels at a low speed of 8 to 13 km/h and rolls with the waves. Small groups of tourists, even as small as three or four people, prefer to hire such a boat as they can escape from sharing with larger groups.
15 to 25-seat wooden boat: This boat is larger and better for landscape viewing from the top of the boat. There are some small bunks in the hold.
35 to 60-seat wooden boat: There are passenger compartments with wind and rainproof windows and seats on the upper deck. Individual bunks are located in the hold. The average speed is from 12 to 15 km/h.
60 to 70-seat steel-hulled boat: This type of boat is converted from specialized vessels.
Speedboat: This small type of boat, 10 to 15 seats, can travel at a speed of up to 40km/h. It can be hired at Bến Ðoan in Hòn Gai, or in the Hoàng Gia tourist area, at prices ranging from VNĐ300, 000 to VNĐ500, 000 per hour of boat running time (time at anchor or moored at islands is excluded).
The major fleets of tourist boats are:
Hạ Long Bay Service Company Fleet run by the Management of Hạ Long Bay. Office: at Bãi Cháy Tourist Wharf.
Tel: (84-33) 844 631
Fax: (84-33) 844 234
Hòn Gai Tourist Company Fleet
Office: at Hạ Long Road, Bãi Cháy.
Tel: (84-33) 825 898
Hải Âu Company Ltd. Fleet
Office: Yêt Kiêu, Ha Long.
Tel: (84-33) 824 779

Well-equipped boats
These boats are double-deckers with terrace, 40-50 seats, 6 bedrooms with cushions, life buoys and toilets. Meals are available on the boat. The average hire charge for the whole boat ranges from US$6 to 12 per hour. Meals are available at VND 40, 000 to 70, 000/person.

Hire charges vary according to the quality and size of the boats, and the duration of the trip. The most popular are tours of four, six and eight hours long. Unless requested otherwise, all boats will follow the best routes for each type of tour  (see next section). The hirer can, however, require changes to the routes. If the boat returns to the wharf late due to a failure, such as engine breakdown, tourists should pay no additional charges. If the hirer requests the trip to be longer, a supplementary charge should be agreed by negotiation and should be lower than the average fee charged per hour.
A charge for hiring the whole boat can be negotiated at the ticket office or directly with the boat’s captain on the tourist wharf.
A list of fixed prices is displayed in the ticket office. However, in practice, the price rises sharply on peak days, and boats are often fully booked. Conversely, the hire charge may be lower on slack days.
Individuals or small groups can buy tickets at the ticket office. However, people who are unable to combine with other parties may have to wait until there are enough passengers. On slack days, this can take a long time as many groups do not want to include strangers. It is advisable to contact the ticket office or the Tourist Guide Information Centre in advance by telephone at: (84-33) 846 592

Boat capacity	Four-hour tour		Six-hour tour		Eight-hour tour
	Whole boat	One person	Whole boat	One person	Whole boat	One person
10-15 seats	280, 000	30, 000	380, 000	42, 000	490, 000	54, 000
15-25 seats	360, 000	20, 000	500, 000	28, 000	630, 000	35, 000
25-35 seats	400, 000	16, 000	550, 000	22, 000	700, 000	28, 000
30-60 seats	450, 000	15, 000	600, 000	19, 000	750, 000	24, 000
60-70 seats	800, 000	15, 000	1, 100, 000	19, 000	1, 400, 000	24, 000

4. Time for visits to the bay
Tourists are allowed to visit islands, caves and beaches only during stipulated hours. Boats arriving early or late are not allowed to dock.

 

Opening time: