Halong Bay, Vietnam

Halong Bay is a UNESCO World heritage site and is located approximately 3 hours drive east of Hanoi. We left the craziness of Hanoi behind us and settled into our comfortable bus journey, our guide Dat, chatting to us about daily life in Vietnam as we contemplate all that is happening on the roads around us: motorbikes carrying whole families, livestock such as pigs and cattle are also transported this way! Cars are more expensive in Vietnam than Ireland, and with wages being only a fraction of ours, owning a car is a luxury. Instead the main mode of transport is motorbike.

A few hours later, and after a short break to stretch our legs, we arrive at Tuan Chau Island where we are given a warm welcome from the Aphrodite staff and we boarded our junk boat. Once onboard, and after a safety demonstration, we set sail and were served our first meal onboard as we cruised at a very leisurely pace around the bay. The emphasis is on seafood so it’s great if you love fish. They were also able to accommodate our kids who do not like fish! The food was delicious and really well presented. All our meals were five courses (come hungry!).

We took the opportunity to participate in as many of the activities we could. We climbed at total of 720 steps to visit Sung Sot cave also known as Surprise Cave with its stalactites and stalagmites. We took a smaller boat to visit Luon Cave which is mesmerising. After sailing through the opening and underneath the cave, it opens into a beautiful lagoon which is spectacular.

Later, after dinner (yes, another 5 courses) we watched the sun set over Halong Bay and as it gets dark, the whole Bay is illuminated by the twinkling lights of the other boats, creating a magical vista. After the kids had tried their hand at night sea fishing, albeit unsuccessfully, it was time to retire for the night.

The next morning, after a light breakfast buffet, it was back into the smaller boat again, this time, to climb to a viewing platform. Yes, more steps! It was raining quite heavily, but we donned our rain ponchos and ploughed on regardless, the rain making the steps a little harder to navigate. The vista from the top was spectacular. We took a few photos, made our way back down and while some of our group went for a swim at the beach, I chatted with Anna, our very charming hostess.

Once back onboard, we were seated again for our final meal. Then it was time to settle our bill for our drinks and disembark. We bade farewell to Anna and the rest of the Aphrodite crew and headed back to Hanoi airport for the next leg of our trip.