Ha Long Bay, Vietnam

Ha Long Bay is a unique natural monument that long ago became Vietnam’s main symbol. Millions of years ago, sea waves swept into the coastal plain teeming with limestone cliffs. It is estimated that 90% of visitors to Vietnam name Ha Long Bay as the main goal of their often not-so-close trip. This place is truly unique and one of a kind. Within a relatively small coastal waters area of 1,500 sq. km, 1,969 islands are scattered, of which only 989 have names. In fact, there are two bays here: Ha Long and Bai Tu Long, located to its east. Both are literally strewn with island-tower formations made of limestone and slate. Incidentally, the area protected by UNESCO covers less than a third of the total and counts “just” 775 islands. Only tourist and passenger vessels of small tonnage may enter this fairytale region. In the rest of the bay’s waters, active shipping and marine fishing take place.

Most of the rocks in Ha Long are topped with curly green “caps,” and many of them feature deep karst caves that keep ancient secrets. There are no twins among them-each has its own unmistakable appearance, sometimes so bizarre that local people associate such rocks with legends. Only half of the islands have names, and there are permanent residents on just two. You can admire the bay’s scenery forever-in different times of day, with different lighting and weather, Ha Long takes on a new yet invariably beautiful guise. For a long time, war and political upheavals made it inaccessible to travelers, but now it is Vietnam’s most popular natural monument.

By the way, from this port, cruise companies offer not only trips around the bay, but also excursion programs to Hanoi, Vietnam’s capital.

In Ha Long Bay, two main seasons are identified. From May to October, the warm and humid summer season lasts. The average air temperature during these months is 26.4 °C, but it can rise to as high as 35 °C. If your visit to Ha Long falls in the rainy season, that doesn’t mean rain will pour nonstop. It falls once a day, and usually at night. A much more serious issue is typhoons, whose season in Ha Long runs from August to October. In winter, Ha Long is cool and comparatively dry, with an average air temperature of about 20 °C (it can drop to 15 °C).