When mentioning tourist destinations in Vietnam, it is Ha Long Bay that most often appears. Ha, Long Bay is indeed the most popular tourist destination in Vietnam. But now travelers are starting to glance at the island next to it that is no less beautiful than Ha Long Bay and less touristy, namely Cat Ba Island.
Cat Ba Island is the largest island in Ha Long Bay. The island offers relaxing natural attractions such aas trekking, hiking, kayaking, canoeing, and playing on the beaches. On this island, there are many hotels, bars, restaurants that are all classified as very cheap.
Many hotels line the beach and the great hotel rates here are very cheap. One of the hotels visited by tourists while on vacation in Vietnam is French Village Danang.
Besides the hotel, there are many restaurants and bars around French Village Danang. One of the favorite bars of tourists near the French Village of Danang. Beer here is very cheap which is around 10,000 – 20,000 dong per glass. Very cheap right?
This beautiful island is 150 kilometers north of Hanoi. To travel there we need to take a travel tour package that is widely offered at hotels, hostels and travel agents in Hanoi. The duration of the tour can be chosen as desired, like 2 days 1 night or 3 days 2 nights.
For a 2 day 1-night tour package it costs 500,000 dong which includes bus and round trip transportation, 1-night hotel including breakfast.
The bus will pick up tourists at strategic locations, for example in the Old Quarter and leave at 8 in the morning. The trip to the port takes about 4 hours. Arriving at the port, the tourists will be taken to a ship that is ready to depart for Cat Ba Island. After cruising for 30 minutes, we arrived at Cat Ba Island.
Cat Ba Island has been approved by the Vietnamese government as a national park and is recognized by UNESCO as Biosphere Reserve The World since 5 years ago. The national park is in the north and center of the island while the southern part of the island called Cat Ba city is the center of tourism and a place for residents.
Cat Ba Island is arguably a paradise for nature lovers. We can choose the destinations we want to visit here, ranging from trekking and hiking in Cat Ba National Park, swimming in Lan Ha Bay and several other beaches, boating to Monkey Island, sailing to Ha Long Bay, playing canoeing, enjoying the beautiful limestone mountains. , or visit historic sites like Hospital Cave and Cannon Fort.
Also, if we want to explore Cat Ba Island, we can rent a motorbike with a cost of 100,000 dongs per 12 hours. Motorbikes can be rented at hotels or rental places in the city of Cat Ba.
One thing that is needed by today’s travelers is an internet connection. Like in many cities in Vietnam, the Cat Ba Island internet connection is very fast and free wifi is available in all restaurants and hotels even in remote areas.
So if you are planning a trip to northern Vietnam, take the time to explore Cat Ba Island. If you want to enjoy Cat Ba Island when it’s quieter, come in winter (January – February). Air temperature ranges from 11-16 degrees Celsius.
While in the summer like now Cat Ba Island is full of tourists both Vietnamese, foreign tourists and from neighboring China.