Owning a convenient location, located right near famous tourist attractions, this place is often favored by tourists to combine in a short trip.

Besides the famous beach names in the North such as Quang Ninh, Hai Phong or the UNESCO world natural heritage, Ha Long Bay, recently, many tourists tend to look for places to visit. wild, lesser known. 

These can be mentioned as Co To, Quan Lan or Minh Chau islands, and another name that many tourists give the nickname “sleeping gem” in the heart of Hai Phong. That is Lan Ha Bay. 

Where is Lan Ha Bay?

The geographical location of Lan Ha Bay is very close to Cat Ba Island and Ha Long Bay, and belongs to Hai Phong. Specifically, the bay is located to the east of Cat Ba Island and to the south of Ha Long Bay. Because of this convenient location, many tourists often choose to combine Lan Ha Bay in their trip to the other two famous places. 

The overall bay has an area of ​​more than 7000m2 with many large and small islands with wild beauty, beautiful beaches or old fishing villages. 

The total area of ​​Lan Ha Bay with about 300-400 large and small islands (Photo VietTravel)

To move to Lan Ha Bay, visitors can choose to depart from Hanoi, take a bus to Hai Phong. Then, from Hai Phong, visitors continue to choose 2 forms: cable car or ferry to Cat Ba island. Finally, when arriving in Cat Ba, visitors buy train tickets at Beo wharf and move to Lan Ha Bay. 

This total travel time is calculated to be about 3-4 hours. Therefore, according to travel companies giving advice, the most ideal time for tourists to start their journey to Lan Ha Bay is from around 7-8am. 

What’s in Lan Ha Bay?

As mentioned above, Lan Ha Bay owns pristine beaches, not crowded or too cramped like other famous tourist destinations; jade green sea or white sand beaches stretching, less garbage. 

Therefore, sea activities such as bathing, scuba diving, sup boating, kayaking, or sunbathing are always top favorites. However, in Lan Ha, there are also many other places for visitors to have more experiences when coming here, than just an ordinary beach. 

The clear blue sea in Lan Ha Bay makes many tourists excited (Photo Cat Ba Express)

1. Lan Ha Bay Floating Market

No need to go to the remote Southwest region, visitors can experience the floating market right in Lan Ha Bay. Although it has a smaller scale, mainly made up of fishermen looking after the fish and shrimp rafts here, it also creates a very unique and interesting feature. 

Visitors coming here can buy fresh seafood or dried seafood to bring back as gifts for family and friends. 

2. Cua Van fishing village

Cua Van fishing village is one of the oldest fishing villages in Lan Ha Bay. The village is home to about 300 households, nestled on the Van Gia limestone mountain. 

The first impression of visitors when coming here is the small-sized houses of only about 30m2, with vibrant colors floating on the water in the middle of the bay with boats and boats anchored. This is also a place for fishermen to live, daily activities, and a convenient place for them to catch seafood. 

Cua Van fishing village with colorful small houses undulating on the water (Photo Mytour.vn)

Around the fishing village is clear blue water, no noisy traffic or annoying smoke, all bringing visitors to a completely different space, separate from the modern world out there. It is also because of this that Cua Van fishing village once entered the list of 16 most beautiful ancient villages in the world.

At the fishing village, besides sightseeing, visitors can also directly buy and enjoy the fresh seafood caught by fishermen on the same day. 

3. Nam Cat Island

If the whole area of ​​Lan Ha Bay is called “sleeping pearl”, then Nam Cat Island here is also likened to the name “small paradise in the bay”. The island is located in Khe Sau – Viet Hai area, in the territory of Viet Hai commune. It takes about 15 minutes by train to get here. 

Nam Cat Island has a clear blue beach with white sand about 500m long, surrounded by high mountains, as if protecting and “hugging” this beach in your lap. On the sea surface are 3 wooden stilt houses and 6 guesthouses made from bamboo, serving tourists who want to be in harmony with nature, when waking up in the space of 4 sides is water.

Because of the wildness and clear blue water, tourists often come here to swim, row a boat or visit nearby small islands such as Sen island, Cu island, or caves such as Bat cave, Dark cave.

Nam Cat Island with wild beauty (Photo VnTrip)

4. Luon Cave

Possessing a somewhat strange name, Luon Cave is one of the places that tourists cannot ignore in their journey to discover Lan Ha Bay. The cave is located on Bo Hon island, in front is Con Rua island and on the right is Heaven’s Gate. 

Luon Cave was formed based on the existence of a bow-shaped gate opening at the foot of the island. When coming to Luon Cave, visitors will experience a peaceful natural space after going through the cave gate when traveling by boat. The water here is so clear that many visitors comment that they can look in the mirror. 

The surrounding vegetation also has a fresh green color, combined with cliffs with strange shapes, giving visitors very interesting experiences. The beauty of Luon Cave is also praised as a fairyland or a masterpiece on Lan Ha Bay. In addition to rowing boats with rowers, visitors can choose to kayak or sup through the cave by themselves.

Experience sailing through Luon cave (Photo Mia.vn)

The ideal time to explore Lan Ha Bay

Each season, Lan Ha Bay brings its own beauty. However, the most ideal time and also the time to attract the most tourists is from April to July. Also because it is the peak time, visitors plan to come to Lan Ha Bay at that time. This needs to book accommodation or train tickets, cars quite early. 

For tourists who prefer quietness and privacy, they can choose to go from September onwards. At this time, the bay has fewer tourists, bringing a peaceful and relaxing beauty. 

Photo: Internet (Vinlove.net)