Hanoi to Halong Bay Transportation

There are a huge number of domestic connections, particularly to the ports of Halong City and Haiphong.

Independently from Hanoi. There are 4 main ways to transfer from Hanoi to Halong Bay:

• Mini Bus from Gia Lam (Hanoi) to Bai Chay (Ha Long). Tickets are bought at the ticket counter for 120,000 dong. The ride takes 4 to 5 hour with the bus stopping to pick up passengers along the way. If your bus departs Hanoi later then 10:00am it is unlikely that you will make it to Ha Long in time to catch the last ferry to Cat Ba at 3:00pm. Note: City bus number 34 goes to Gia Lam for 5,000 dong from the following bus stops: Van Mieu, Hai Ba Trung, Nha Hat Lon, Bac Co, Chuong Duong. Be sure to wait for the bus on the side of the road where the traffic is flowing east or north. Otherwise you may end up on a longer than intended ride around the city. Do not attempt to board bus #34 from Dien Bien Phu. The bus will run to the end of the line in the opposite direction before turning around and eventually making it to Gia Lam making what should be a short trip a two hour ordeal. [Sep 2013]
  • From Bai Chay to Ha Long City/Tourist Wharf a motorbike taxi should cost 10,000 to 20,000 dong.
  • From Bai Chay to Tuan Chau Wharf a motorbike taxi should cost 20,000 to 30,000 dong.
  • From Ha Long City to Tuan Chau Wharf a motorbike taxi should cost 20,000 to 30,000 dong.
  • A taxi to any of these locations could be more than double.

• By open bus: US$15 one way, pick up & drop off at Bus Station

• By shuttle bus: Pick up & drop off passengers in the Ha Noi old quarter. 4-6 hours pending on how many stops en route the driver makes to pick up/drop off passengers. Fare about 10 US/ way.

• By Train: take cargo train from Hanoi to Yen Vien (Gia Lam) and then to Quang Ninh. The train starts at 4.30am and arrives at 11am. The terminal at Ha Long City is near the Bai Chay bus station and about 5km away from the harbour. Expect train delays and cancellations without notice. Hard sleeper only, US$10 one way.(not recommend this transport)
• By rent a private car or taxi: Noibai Airport Taxi Companywebsite to take a car from Noibai airport to Halong,or from Hanoi center to Halong bay. It costs you $ 85 usd per car per trip or 150 usd for a 2 days 1 night.

Organised tours from HanoiThere are many package tours to Cat Ba Island from Hanoi, Standards on these vary considerably: while comfortable - or even downright luxurious - boats, excellent food and knowledgeable and enthusiastic guides may be available, most are characterized by long and crowded bus rides, tourist-oriented rip-off trips on boats so slow you could swim faster (to get you to buy more food and drink on board), hard-sell 'add-ons' like brief stops for kayaking, 'water cave' visits, and other shady practices. So if you must visit Cat Ba, simply avoid the tourist port entirely and cross from Haiphong or another port.

From HaiphongCat Bi International Airport in Haiphong is roughly 2.5 hours away from Ha Long city by road. The metered taxi fare is approximately 850,000 VND but you should be able to negotiate a taxi for under 800,000 VND as there are likely to be more than one taxi operator competing for your business.

From Nanning, Guangxi, ChinaFrom Nanning in China's Guangxi province, the Nanning International Tourist Distribution Center (有爱南路10号(中华路口); Yǒuàinánlù shí hào (zhōnghuá lùkǒu); #10 You'ai Nanlu on the corner of Zhonghua Lu) provides daily buses to Halong City (170元, 11 hours) at 08:20.