Lan Ha Bay · 3 Days, 2 Nights · Vietnam
Lan Ha Bay Cruise, 2 Nights
Two nights at anchor among the karst of Lan Ha Bay: a cave by bamboo boat on the first afternoon, Viet Hai village by bicycle and Ba Trai Dao beach on the middle day, a last kayak before brunch.
- 4.8 / 5 622+ Reviews
- 3 days Duration
- 600,000 dong Hai Phong's fee for an adult's sightseeing route with two nights on the Cat Ba archipelago bays, from 1 January 2026
- 148 km By road from Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi to Tuan Chau Marina, where the three-day ships check in
- Free Cancellation
The Experience
What the Three-Day Cruise Includes
Two nights in a balcony cabin, every meal on board, the bicycles, the kayaks and the bay fees; the bus from Hanoi is extra.
Highlights
- Two nights on board, check-in at Tuan Chau Marina
- Dark and Light Cave by bamboo boat on day one
- Viet Hai village by bicycle or electric car on day two
- Kayaking and swimming at Ba Trai Dao
- Balcony cabin with a bathtub; taxes and sightseeing fees included
What's Included
- Tour guide
- Entry and sightseeing fees in Halong
- 2 nights accommodation
- Meals onboard (Day 1: L, D + Day 2: B, L, D + Day 3: B, L). Vegetarian and vegan meals are available upon request
- Tender/speedboat transfer
- Small local boat transfer to Cat Ba Island on Day 2
- Welcome drink
- 24-hour room service
- Cycling at Viet Hai Village
- Cooking demonstration
- Entry and sightseeing fees
- Tai Chi
- Kayaking/Bamboo boat
- Squid fishing
- Jacuzzi or mini pool
- Sunset party
- A bottle of water per person in each room
- Standard accommodation for 2-3 people per room (if you wish to change this)
Good to know: Check in at Tuan Chau Marina; the round-trip shuttle from Hanoi's Old Quarter is US$25 a person. · A cabin takes up to three guests; children's prices depend on age. · Surcharges apply at Christmas, New Year and Tet. · Not Included: Meeting point at Tuan Chau Marina. Optional transportation to/from Hanoi Old Quarter, Ninh Binh, or Hanoi Airport is available upon request for an additional fee, Use of Executive Suite - like the main photo (+$130 per person), or President Suite (+$220 per person), Drinks, A separate bed for the child, Request an extra room, Spa treatments, Surcharge on Christmas; New Years; Tet holidays
Three Days, Step by Step
From the marina at Tuan Chau into Lan Ha Bay, two nights at anchor, and back.
Day 1: Tuan Chau to the Cave
Check in at Tuan Chau Marina in Ha Long at about 11:30 (the round-trip shuttle from Hanoi's Old Quarter is US$25 a person). A tender takes you to the ship; lunch is served as it sails into Lan Ha Bay, then the Dark and Light Cave by bamboo boat and a swim.
Evening at Anchor
Sunset and happy hour on the sundeck, a Vietnamese cooking class, dinner, then squid fishing or the bar. The ship anchors in the bay for the night.
Day 2: Viet Hai and Ba Trai Dao
Tai Chi and breakfast, a tender to Cat Ba, then about 4 km through Viet Hai village by bicycle or electric car. Lunch on board, an afternoon of kayaking and swimming at Ba Trai Dao beach, and a second night at anchor.
Day 3: a Last Kayak, Then Back
Tai Chi at sunrise, a kayak among the islands, check-out and brunch while the ship sails back. You land at Tuan Chau at about 11:30; the shuttle reaches Hanoi at about 15:30.
Photo Gallery
The Ship, the Village and the Karst
Cabins, decks, kayaks and the islands.
Book Your Experience
Check Availability & Prices
Select your preferred date and time. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before departure.
Plan the Two Nights
The Three-Day Cruise, One Question per Page
One night or two, the price, the best two-night cruises, the route day by day, the road from Hanoi and the weather.
Prices are each page's featured tour: GetYourGuide checked November 2026. Cruise prices are per adult sharing a cabin unless a card says otherwise; the bus from Hanoi is often extra.
Four Three-Day Lan Ha Bay Cruises
Two nights on board, or one night on board and one in Ninh Binh: what each three-day cruise does on the middle day, what it adds to the price and who it suits. Prices from the listings, with the month they were checked.
| Feature | THIS PAGE Carnival, 2 nights on board | Marvel Travel, 2 nights on board | Ninh Binh + 1 night on board | Vega Legend, 2 nights on board |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What You Pay | From $266 per person (checked November 2026) | From $306 per person (checked November 2026) | From $220 per person (checked November 2026) | From $360 per person, two sharing (checked November 2026) |
| Nights on the Water | 2 | 2 | 1 (the other in a Ninh Binh hotel) | 2 |
| Leaves From | Tuan Chau Marina, Ha Long | Tuan Chau, Ha Long | Hanoi, by road via Ninh Binh | Hanoi hotel pickup, then Tuan Chau |
| From Hanoi | Shuttle US$25 a person, round trip | Limousine US$25 a person, both ways | Included | Included |
| The Middle Day | Viet Hai by bicycle, Ba Trai Dao kayak and swim | Viet Hai by bicycle, Ba Trai Dao kayak and swim | Ninh Binh is day one; day two is the bay | Viet Hai, a Hai Quan Peak trek, two caves by kayak |
| Added at Booking | Taxes and fees included | VAT US$25, peak season US$20 a person | Ninh Binh fees included | Drinks only |
| Best For | Two quiet nights in a balcony cabin | Ao Ech and the cave by bamboo boat | Seeing Ninh Binh in the same three days | Walkers: a forest trek on Cat Ba |
| Check dates | See Marvel's 3 days | See the Ninh Binh combo | See Vega Legend |
Other Three-Day Cruises
More Ways to Spend Two Nights
Another balcony ship, a Ninh Binh combination, a trekking cruise, and the one-night cruise for a shorter trip. One card per cruise.
AO ECH, VIET HAI, THE CAVEThree Days on a Balcony Ship: Ao Ech, Viet Hai, the Caves
Marvel Travel's three days and two nights on a balcony ship from Tuan Chau, with a limousine bus from Hanoi's Old Quarter or Ninh Binh at 8:00 to 8:30 if booked (US$25 a person, both ways). Day one: kayaking and swimming at Ao Ech in Lan Ha Bay, sunset, a spring-roll class and a seafood dinner. Day two: a day boat to Viet Hai village by bicycle or electric car, lunch on the day boat, then kayaking and swimming at Ba Trai Dao. Day three: the Dark and Bright Cave (or Trung Trang Cave) by bamboo boat before brunch, back in Hanoi at about 14:00. All meals and entrance fees included; government VAT of US$25 a person, a US$20 peak-season charge (1 October to 30 April) and US$170 for a single cabin are added.
NINH BINH + 1 NIGHT ON BOARDThree Days: Ninh Binh, Then One Night on the Bay
Carnival's three days that spend only one of the two nights on the water: day one is Ninh Binh by limousine from Hanoi (Hoa Lu, a boat through the Trang An caves, about 500 steps up to the Mua Cave viewpoint) and a hotel night there; day two is the bus to Tuan Chau, lunch sailing into Lan Ha Bay, the Dark and Light Cave by bamboo boat, sunset, a cooking class and a night on board in a balcony junior suite; day three is Tai Chi, kayaking and brunch, back at the port by about 11:00 and on to Hanoi. The transfers, the Ninh Binh entrance fees and six meals are included; one dinner in Ninh Binh and drinks are not.
CAT BA TREK, HANOI PICKUPVega Legend: Three Days with a Cat Ba Trek and Kayaks
Vega Travel's three days and two nights on the Vega Legend, with hotel pickup in Hanoi's Old Quarter at 8:00 to 8:30 on a shared bus or minivan and boarding at Tuan Chau at about 12:30. Day one: lunch while the ship passes Frog Lagoon and Ba Trai Dao into Lan Ha Bay, then two-person kayaks through narrow passages and, tide permitting, a tunnel grotto into a hidden lagoon; sunset, a cooking class and a seafood barbecue at anchor. Day two: a tender to Cat Ba, a bicycle ride to Viet Hai village, then a 2.5 to 3 hour forest trek to Hai Quan Peak, lunch ashore, Bat Cave (the Military Hospital Cave), and kayaking through Tai Keo and Luon caves. Day three: a swim or fishing from the ship and lunch on the way back, in Hanoi between 15:30 and 16:00. Meals, guide, kayaks and the bay entrance fees are included; drinks are not. Priced per person: one guest alone pays far more than each of two sharing.
SHORTER: 2 DAYS, 1 NIGHTTwo Days, One Night: Lan Ha and Ha Long, Balcony Cabin
BAT Group's two days and one night from Tuan Chau Harbor in Ha Long (the shared bus from Hanoi's Old Quarter is US$25 a person for the round trip). Lunch on board as the ship crosses into Lan Ha Bay; the afternoon is the Dark and Bright Cave by kayak or bamboo boat, or kayaking and swimming at Ba Trai Dao or Tra Bau, chosen by the captain for the weather and tide. Sunset, a cooking class, dinner at anchor and squid fishing; the next morning Tai Chi, then kayaking at Ao Ech or a cave on Cat Ba before brunch and the return. Junior suite cabin with a private balcony, all meals; a solo traveller pays US$80 more.
Two Nights on the Bay
What a Three-Day Lan Ha Bay Cruise Is Like
What the second night buys, which cruises really spend both nights on the water, what the price leaves out, and when to go.
A two-night Lan Ha Bay cruise is three days on a ship among the limestone islands off Cat Ba, in northern Vietnam: two afternoons, two nights at anchor and a whole day in the middle, which a one-night cruise does not have. Carnival’s Hanoi: 3Day 5-Star Cruise Ha Long, Lan Ha & Viet Hai Cycling checks in at Tuan Chau in Ha Long and costs from $266 a person (checked November 2026), with every meal on board and the taxes and sightseeing fees included.
The short answer
Take the second night if you want the middle day. On Carnival’s cruise it goes like this: on day one, lunch as the ship sails into Lan Ha Bay, then the Dark and Light Cave by bamboo boat and a swim; on day two, a tender to Cat Ba, about 4 km through Viet Hai village by bicycle or electric car, and an afternoon of kayaking and swimming at Ba Trai Dao beach; on day three, Tai Chi, a last kayak and brunch on the way back to Tuan Chau. Cabins have a balcony and a bathtub. It has 622 reviews (checked November 2026); the shuttle from Hanoi’s Old Quarter is US$25 a person for the round trip.
Check dates for the three-day cruise
If one night is enough, BAT Group’s two days and one night from Tuan Chau is from $142 in current promotion (usually $182) (checked November 2026): one afternoon stop, sunset, and a short morning before brunch.
Pick your three days
Three Days, Two Nights on Board: Viet Hai by Bicycle
Carnival from Tuan Chau: the Dark and Light Cave by bamboo boat, Viet Hai by bicycle, Ba Trai Dao; taxes and fees included.
Check dates →Three Days on a Balcony Ship: Ao Ech, Viet Hai, the Caves
Marvel Travel: kayaking at Ao Ech, Viet Hai and Ba Trai Dao, the cave by bamboo boat on the last morning; VAT added.
See Marvel's 3 days →Three Days: Ninh Binh, Then One Night on the Bay
Carnival: a day in Ninh Binh and a hotel night, then one night on the ship; transfers included.
See the Ninh Binh combo →Vega Legend: Three Days with a Cat Ba Trek and Kayaks
Vega Legend: two nights on board, Viet Hai, a 2.5 to 3 hour trek to Hai Quan Peak, two caves by kayak; Hanoi pickup.
See Vega Legend →Prices, ratings and review counts from the listings (GetYourGuide checked November 2026; Viator checked November 2026). Vega Legend’s price is each of two sharing; one guest alone pays $650. Operators price by date and season, so treat the figures as the shape of the market, not a quote.
Not every three-day cruise is two nights on the water
“3 days, 2 nights” in a title does not always mean two nights on the ship. Carnival’s Hanoi: 3 Days Ninh Binh, Ha Long & Lan Ha Bay 5-Star Cruise spends day one in Ninh Binh (Hoa Lu, a boat through the Trang An caves and the climb to the Mua Cave viewpoint) and the first night in a hotel there; only the second night is on board. It is from $220 (checked November 2026) with the transfers included, a fair price for two places in three days, but it is one night on the bay, not two. Read the “night 1” line before you book.
Where the three days go
Lan Ha Bay is the water south-east of Cat Ba Island, in the city of Hai Phong; Ha Long Bay, in Quang Ninh, begins to its north, and since September 2023 the two are one UNESCO World Heritage property, Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago (65,650 hectares and 1,133 islands and islets, by UNESCO’s count). The Cat Ba bays’ management board counts 388 islands over 350 km² in the archipelago. The ships on this page leave from Tuan Chau, cross the south of Ha Long Bay and spend the two nights in Lan Ha. The route, day by day follows each stop on a map, and lan-ha-bay-cruise.com sets out how Lan Ha Bay differs from Ha Long Bay and covers the day boats from Cat Ba.
What the price leaves out
| On Carnival’s three days | On Marvel Travel’s three days | |
|---|---|---|
| The bus from Hanoi | US$25 a person, round trip | US$25 a person, both ways |
| Taxes | Included | Government VAT, US$25 a person |
| Season | Christmas, New Year and Tet surcharges | US$20 a person from 1 October to 30 April, plus holiday surcharges |
| A cabin for one | Not stated; cabins take up to 3 | US$170 for a single cabin |
| Drinks | Paid on board | Paid on board |
The two listings, November 2026.
The bay fee is the other line to check. Hai Phong’s fee for a sightseeing route through the bays of the Cat Ba archipelago with two nights on the water is 600,000 dong for an adult and 500,000 dong for a child aged 6 or over (under 6 free), in force since 1 January 2026 under the city’s resolution 47/2025. Both cruises above list the sightseeing fees as included. The three-day price page lines up every cruise here with what it adds.
When to go
The ships sail all year, but storms close the sea. Vietnam’s national climate standard puts most storm landfalls on this coast between June and September; in 2026 Hai Phong held boats in port from 16:00 on 3 July to noon on 5 July (storm Maysak) and from 07:00 on 22 August to 08:00 on 26 August (storm Narra), the second time with the Dong Bai to Cai Vieng car ferry to Cat Ba stopped too. A three-day cruise has three days to lose. No sea ban was in force on 1 November 2026. Weather and storms goes month by month.
Getting there
Tuan Chau Marina is about 148 km by road from Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi, and the cruise buses leave the Old Quarter at about 7:30 to 8:30 to reach it before lunch. From Hanoi has the times, what each cruise charges for the bus, and the Ninh Binh route. One night or two and the best two-night cruises help you choose.
Two Nights among the Karst of Lan Ha Bay
Check in at Tuan Chau, take a bamboo boat into the Dark and Light Cave, cycle to Viet Hai village on the middle day, kayak at Ba Trai Dao, and wake up twice at anchor in the bay. Starting from $266 per person.
See datesOther Dates, Other Ships
Overnight Cruises into Lan Ha Bay with Open Dates
Overnight cruises into Lan Ha Bay, with live availability. Times and cancellation terms are on each listing.
Lan Ha Bay Cruise, Two Nights: Questions
One night or two, the price and what it leaves out, the fees, the route, the bus from Hanoi and the weather.
Yes, if you want the middle day. One night gives you an afternoon stop, sunset and a short morning. The second night adds a whole day in the bay: on Carnival's three days, Viet Hai village by bicycle inside Cat Ba National Park and an afternoon of kayaking and swimming at Ba Trai Dao beach. It costs $266 a person against $142 for BAT Group's one night (checked November 2026). See one night or two.
From about US$220 to US$360 a person on the cruises on this site. Carnival's Ninh Binh combination (one of the two nights in a hotel) is $220, Carnival's two nights on board $266, Marvel Travel's $306 (checked November 2026), and Vega Legend $360 each for two sharing (checked November 2026). Read what is added: Marvel adds VAT of US$25 and, from 1 October to 30 April, US$20 a person. See the price.
More, because cabins are priced for two. Marvel Travel adds US$170 for a single cabin on its three days; on Vega Legend one guest alone pays $650 against $360 each for two (checked November 2026). BAT Group's one-night cruise adds US$80 for a solo cabin.
On most three-day cruises here, yes; check the listing. Hai Phong's fee for the bays of the Cat Ba archipelago with two nights on the water is 600,000 dong for an adult and 500,000 dong for a child of 6 or over; under 6 is free (the management board's fee table, in force since 1 January 2026). Carnival and Marvel Travel list the sightseeing fees as included. No published rule says whether a ship from Tuan Chau that crosses into Lan Ha also owes Ha Long's fee, so ask whether your price covers the fees of both bays.
Tuan Chau in Ha Long. All four three-day cruises on this site check in at Tuan Chau and sail south into Lan Ha Bay with lunch on board. Tuan Chau Marina is about 148 km by road from Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi. See from Hanoi.
No. Carnival's Hanoi: 3 Days Ninh Binh, Ha Long & Lan Ha Bay 5-Star Cruise spends the first night in a hotel in Ninh Binh and only the second on the ship. That suits you if you want Ninh Binh too; if the point is two nights at anchor, pick a cruise that says two nights on board. See the best two-night cruises.
Usually Viet Hai village and Ba Trai Dao beach. A tender or day boat takes you to Cat Ba, you cycle or ride an electric car about 4 km through Viet Hai, inside Cat Ba National Park, then kayak and swim at Ba Trai Dao in the afternoon. Vega Legend replaces the beach afternoon with a 2.5 to 3 hour forest trek to Hai Quan Peak and two caves by kayak. See the route, day by day.
Between October and May, away from the fog of February to April. Vietnam's national climate standard puts most storm landfalls on this coast between June and September. In 2026 Hai Phong closed the sea from 16:00 on 3 July to noon on 5 July (storm Maysak) and from 07:00 on 22 August to 08:00 on 26 August (storm Narra). A three-day cruise has more days at sea to lose to a ban. See weather and storms.
Still have questions? Email us at info@lanhabaycruise2nights.com