A featured route that combines Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba Island, covering all the best of these areas have to offer. Comfortable cruising and limestone cave visiting in the centre of World Heritage Site, kayaking in sleepy Lan Ha Bay and hiking in the National Park of Cat Ba are all on the menu. Are you active people who dedicate to exploring Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba Island? Then this trip is exactly what you are looking for!

Day 1: Hanoi – Ha Long Bay (L, D)

Am:   Be picked up at your hotel from 8:00 (we may do several pick-ups) for 3.5 hours bus ride through the country side of the Red River Delta to Ha Long City. Upon arrival, aboard Halong, fresh seafood lunch (vegetable menu available) would be served while the boat is creeping out.

Pm:    A short tender ride from your boat in the middle of the bay to an island for the famous Surprising (Sung Sot) Cave, followed by another island visit (Titop Island) and swimming on its sandy beach. As the sun sets over the anchorage area, it is your own time to lean back on our well designed deck with your favorite drink. Dinner will be served with typically local seafood. Overnight on boat.

Day 2: Ha Long Bay – Cat Ba Island (B, L, D)

Am:   Morning breath taking in the serene Heritage Site then breakfast before leaving Halong cruise for an active day on another site of the bay. A local support boat will take us to a sleepy water area of Cat Ba National Park, where you grab the paddle and make your own strokes to discover parts of Lan Ha Bay. It is your time to go exploring labyrinth of limestone cliffs that rise out of the sea, paddle through floating houses and deserted lagoons and wild sandy beaches from our sleek ocean kayaks.

Pm:   Lunch (on beach is at tidal permission) on boat, relax and swim from your own private beach. More kayaking to other parts of the bay, by now you are pro kayakers, seeing other amazing limestone karts formations from the water up close and personal, in ways many people can only imagine!

When you get tired, leave your kayaks behind to take a transfer boat to Cat Ba Island. We then drive you to Cat Ba Eco Lodge, an ideal jungle lodge that compliments the local culture, perfectly in tune with the surrounding environment.

Day 3: Cat Ba Island – Hai Phong – Hanoi (B, L)

Am:   After your breakfast, options arise to:

• Relax and do some reading at the lodge
• Rent a motorbike (at your expense) from the lodge and drive to see the town
• Stick to our original itinerary: be guided to hike Cat Ba National Park (2 hours hiking) after a short bus ride from the lodge. Physical reward and magnificent view!

Pm:   We take a hydrofoil boat ride from Cai Vieng Pier to Hai Phong City, and then 2 more hours drive back to Hanoi. Trip ends at your hotel around 17:00.

Highlights:

• Comfortable cruising in Ha Long and Lan Ha Bays
• Kayaking in unspoiled areas
• Hiking Cat Ba National Park
• Fantastic photo and great swimming opportunities

What to bring:

• Original passport
• Insect repellent, camera and sun gears (dry bags provided while kayaking)
• Swimming suits (warm clothes in winter)
• Money for drinks (on boat and at Cat Ba Eco Lodge)