Best of · HANOI ISLAND HOPPING TOURS
Every trip has one free day too few. These 13 hanoi island hopping tours justify the slot, priced and timed so you can decide in minutes and get back to packing a dry bag.
Spend a full day on Ha Long Bay with Dragonfly Cruise, a seafood lunch, Thien Cung Cave, and 45 minutes of kayaking or bamboo boating. English and Vietnamese guides such as Harry, Benjamin, Linh, and Hoi lead the day. Expect a long road trip, but excellent value if time is short.
“A great day visiting Ha long bay. Harry is a great guide!”
Spend one night aboard the Royal Palace cruise in Ha Long Bay, with seafood meals, kayaking, Ti Top Island, Surprising Cave, Tai Chi, and squid fishing. Guides such as Violet, Violette, Alex, and Tony are known for warm, capable service. Hanoi pickup is optional.
“The trip was absolutely amazing. Our guide, Violet, was incredibly knowledgeable, funny, and truly outstanding. I highly recommend this trip to everyone. Ha Long Bay is stunningly beautiful.”
Travel by coach from Hanoi’s Old Quarter to Ha Long Bay for a full day on the water. You’ll visit Surprise Cave, kayak or take a bamboo boat through Luon Cave, climb Ti Top Island, and eat a set seafood lunch. Guides such as Tony, Toan, Max, and Nam are often assigned to this route.
“The trip was great. The one exception was that I believe both my son and me got sick from the food served on the boat. The rest was very good.”
Spend a full day sailing Lan Ha Bay, cycling or riding an electric car to Viet Hai Village, kayaking, swimming, and eating lunch aboard a spacious boat. English-speaking guides such as Binh, Billy, and Charlie keep the day moving. Hanoi pickup is included, though the long road transfer makes this a packed day.
“Only thing that disappointed me was the weather all the rest met or exceeded my expectations.”
This full-day Ha Long Bay trip combines a Hanoi hotel pickup, scenic boat cruise, seafood lunch, Surprise Cave, Titop Island, swimming, hiking, and optional kayaking. Guides such as Phong, Long, Ken, and Phuong lead groups of up to 40 people. Expect a long day, busy stops, and strong value.
“This excursion surpassed our expectations! First, we were impressed with the lunch on our boat ride. We expected sandwiches but, instead, got a 7-8 course lunch including several salads, grilled fish, soup, chicken stir fry and more…so Read more”
Spend about 10 hours from Hanoi exploring Halong Bay by boat, with a seafood lunch, a 45-minute visit to Heaven Palace Cave, and kayaking or a bamboo boat at Ba Hang. Pickup covers Hanoi’s Old Quarter hotels, while Airbnb and apartment guests meet at 31 Lo Su.
“It was a pleasant day trip to Ha Long Bay. I enjoyed the kayaking to go and see the caves outside. The internal caves was pretty good also. Lots of photo taking and pleasant cruising.”
Travel from Hanoi to Halong Bay and Cat Ba Island on a guided three-day trip with one night on a cruise and one hotel night. Expect kayaking or bamboo boats, cave and island visits, swimming, a sunset cooking activity, included meals, and transfers by bus, boat, ferry, and bus.
“What a great trip, Annie was a wonderful guide who seemed to have impeccable timing and explanations for each activity in our itinerary. She was very sweet, and very friendly and professional. I'm a professional tour guide in the United State and I thought she managed everything flawlessly. We had a great group and we opted for the extended 3 day tour. Even though she wasn't with us for the extent of the whole 3 days, she passed us on to other individuals smoothly to continue our adventure to other locations in the area. This program was the highlight of our Vietnam trip.”
Spend one night aboard a private-cabin cruise from Hanoi, sailing through Halong and quieter Lan Ha Bay. Expect kayaking, swimming, Sung Sot Cave, Titop Island, sunset views, spring-roll making, squid fishing, Tai Chi, and attentive service from Tom, Andrew, and Tung.
“Amazing and friendly staff, beautifully appointed and gorgeous cabin. Mr Tom and his crew made our visit to Halong Bay a wonderful experience.”
Spend two days aboard a Halong Bay cruise with an English-speaking guide, private cabin, meals, Sung Sot Cave, Titop Island, kayaking, swimming, a pearl farm, and a spring-roll cooking class. Hanoi Old Quarter pickup is available for the 8:00 to 8:30 AM departure.
“The ship is old and falling apart. No Wi-Fi No heat , heaters were broken, it was very cold I don’t like communal dining Other than our guide no one spoke English”
Spend one night aboard a traditional wooden junk boat in Halong Bay, with kayaking, Titop Island, Surprise Cave, sunset and sunrise views, four meals, and an English-speaking guide. Hanoi pickup is available, but check the transfer option carefully before booking.
“Everything was very good except the room. The facilities in the room needed maintenance or upgrades but the staff were great and the food was excellent.”
You’ll cruise from Hanoi or Ninh Binh to Cat Ba and Lan Ha Bay, with bamboo-boat cave trips, kayaking, swimming, a sunset cooking class, seafood meals, and a cycling or electric-car visit to Viet Hai village. An English or Vietnamese guide leads the trip, with several cruise boats available.
“We booked the tour to avoid mass tourism in Halong Bay – with around 15 people, the group size was fine. However, the boat did not match the photos: run-down cabins, unpleasant smell, broken air conditioning. The better rooms on the upper deck are worth it, as it was loud, hot, and barely habitable downstairs. Drinks, even water, were extremely overpriced. The excursions seemed overcrowded, with only a short stop for swimming and lots of groups during the kayaking. The bike tour was the highlight, with an enthusiastic and informative guide – otherwise there was little support. We had to pay extra for hotel pickup or make our own way…”
Spend one night aboard a traditional boutique cruise in Halong Bay, with Hanoi pickup, full meals, kayaking, Surprise Cave, Titop Island, swimming, and sunrise views. The group is limited to 22 people, and guides such as Andrew help keep the busy schedule moving.
“We had a horrible experience with the tour operator. After pick up during the first rest area stop our tour guide 'Pink!' told us that the boat initially booked was full and we would be moved to a different boat, which we thought would be for everRead more”
From Hanoi, you travel to Cat Ba for a two-day, one-night cruise through Lan Ha Bay and Ha Long Bay. Expect floating villages, cave kayaking, swimming, Dau Be Island, Vietnamese meals, and an English-speaking guide. Confirm your cabin bathroom before paying the $35 solo supplement.
“I had booked this tour online and received a phone call two hours after my confirmation stating that I unfortunately could not go, because the registrations had forgotten to close and the boat was now fully booked. After I had expressed my displeasure, I received confirmation the next day that I could go – same price, same boat, same room. Nicely arranged, I thought. But once on board it turned out that my room did not have a private bathroom at all, even though it was indicated that it did. I had to wash and brush my teeth in a shared toilet/washroom that was really not clean, and which was…”
By hull, by landing, by how long you want to be out.
