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Halong Bay Vietnam photo tour

HaLong Bay was visually one of the highlights of my Vietnam trip. This treasure is a UNESCO World Heritage Site featuring  1500-2000 islands and islets in various shapes and sizes. It forms a spectacular seascape of limestone pillars. Take me back!

Limestone islands in Halong Bay Vietnam

Halong Bay Vietnam travel adventure
Halong Bay is so beautiful!

I’ll give you some background, and then start the photo tour. Halong Bay Vietnam travel adventure

Also written as Halong Bay or Hạ Long Bay is in northeastern Vietnam . More specifically, Ha Long Bay is located in the Gulf of Tonkin, in Quáng Ninh province. Kayaking in Halong Bay Vietnam

We went kayaking while surrounded by breathtaking views

profile - Halong Bay Vietnam trip
Annika profile – nearly every moment of the Halong Bay trip included a backdrop this striking

Ha Long Bay in Vietnam - sunset silhouette

Scale and size of Halong Bay Vietnam

The limestone islands were huge! For example, this below photo shows the impressive scale.

Halong Bay Vietnam limestone
this photo gives you a sense of the scale – by Ms Saigon
Jumping off the boat in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam
Jumping off the boat – so much fun! (more fun jumping photos of these to come)

Vietnam - Halong Bay - view from the boatSeveral of the islands are hollow, with enormous caves. However, others support floating villages of fishermen, who ply the shallow waters for 200 species of fish.

beautiful sunset in Vietnam - Visit50.comHalong Bay is a Unesco World Heritage Site

Sarah's view from the boat
Sarah’s view from the boat
here's a photo of me from just outside a cave
my view from just outside a cave
portraits at Halong Bay - Annika and Lisa
my new friends Annika and Lisa – view from the boat

It’s often compared favorably to Guilin in China (photos coming soon!) and Krabi in Thailand. Lonely Planet called Ha Long Bay in Vietnam even more spectacular. While Halong Bay can be a bit of a “tourist trap,” it’s so beautiful that it’s worth the tradeoff.

boat rowing at Halong Bay Vietnam

Where is Halong Bay Vietnam?

Halong Bay is in Vietnam, about 105 miles east of Hanoi, Vietnam’s largest city. Take a 3 hour bus ride from Hanoi to Halong Bay.

floating school in floating village

This is a floating school in their floating village, Vietnam

Getting to Halong Bay Vietnam:

Fly to Hanoi, Vietnam, and book a tour. This will be easily the best way to do it and comparatively it’ll be hassle free.  There’s a huge range in pricing and service – agents will promise the world and offer terrible service. Choosing a tour company.

Halong Bay, Vietnam panorama

Flying to Hanoi:

The closest airport is Noi Bai International Airport, 25 miles (40km) north of Hanoi. If you can’t get a direct flight, head to Bangkok, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur or Singapore, and then catch a connecting flight.

Halong Bay limestoneThis photo gives you a sense of the scale of the limestone pillars – by Ms Saigon

Halong Bay, Vietnam limestone pillar
Halong Bay Vietnam from the lookout Photo credit 

Map of Vietnam –

Vietnam map

Where to get more Halong Bay Vietnam info:

If you’re going to Vietnam, both wiki-travel and Lonely Planet have a wealth of info.

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6 thoughts on “Halong Bay Vietnam photo tour”

    1. Thanks Natasha! It was so beautiful! I liked your photo tour of Halong Bay as well.
      People say it’s a tourist trap but I loved it.

  1. Todd what a cool experience dude. We never made it up that far north although we did visit Ninh Binh which has some similarities. We loved Vietnam. What a warm people and beautiful place.

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