Halong Bay tops new world wonder poll

Halong, Vietnam’s world natural heritage, gained the highest growth in votes in the poll for the seven new world natural wonders on www.new7wonders.com last month.

The bay currently takes the lead in the poll, followed by South Korea’s Jeju Island.

On www.new7wonders.com, Halong Bay always took the lead in the last several days.

In May, Vietnam promoted its advertisement and canvas for the bay with many activities held in Vietnam and abroad.

Vietnam and South Korea have joined hands to vote for Halong Bay and Jeju Island. On website http://www.jeju-halong.com, the Vietnamese page, there are over 3,600 votes for the two landscapes.

The poll for the new seven world natural wonders is now in the last stage with 28 candidates. The winners will be announced on November 11, 2011.

Updated review

Huong Hai Junk cruise with overnight stay was absolutely wonderful

Photo taken from Titov Island

Date of review: May 10, 2011 

My husband and I went on a Halong Bay tour with an overnight stay on board a Huong Hai junk. The boat was small with only 6 cabins with ensuites which gave it a lovely personal touch. Our Vietnamese guide named Man went out of his way to ensure our trip was enjoyable. The food was delightful, all fresh seafood and the boat had a lovely dining room with windows all around to enjoy the view. The open top deck had lounges for each guest and we lay there mesmerised and watched the sun set as our little boat sailed ever so quietly past the mountains, so very beautiful and tranquil. We were taken on a cave tour and fish farm tour in the bay. It was incredible value for low cost.

Source: TripAdvisor.com 

Reviews of Huong Hai Junks

“Huong Hai Junk - Excellent!” by Sisabell, Victoria, BC, Canada.

Scenery from Titov Island 

This will be a long review as there are a lot of positive things to say about this company. We booked this company after doing quite a bit of research on the Internet. There are a lot of junk boats and we had trouble choosing which company to use. After finally deciding we booked through an agency (Tonkin Travel, who also booked all of our hotels for a better price than I could get. I would also highly recommend using them.) 


The shuttle picked us up from our hotel as arranged and drove us on the four hour trip to Halong City. When we arrived the port was very chaotic but we didn’t have to worry about it as the representatives from the company were very organized and quickly got us on a tender and out to our junk boat. When we arrived on the boat we were greeted with a chilled towel and a welcome drink before we were shown to our cabin. We were very impressed with the boat. The cabin was all wood, had a nice sized window, and was very clean. We had our own bathroom in our cabin with a western toilet, sink and a shower. The bed was comfortable and had nice linens. There were seven passenger cabins on our boat and three staff cabins. The dining room was on the floor above the cabins and was very beautiful. There was an area outside the dining room where guests could sit and chat. (I noticed some other Huong Hai Boats also had sundecks above the dining room, ours didn’t. Next time I will request a boat with a sundeck.) From what I could tell some of their boats were not as nice, but I believe that there were two prices and we had paid for the more expensive room. We met people staying on the less expensive boat and they had no complaints at all. For us what really stood out on our two night trip was the incredible food. There was so much food we couldn’t eat it all! It actually got to the point where we felt bad because we couldn’t eat anymore and they had clearly put so much effort into the cooking and presentation.

We went on the three day/two night trip and strongly recommend that you do the same. We went kayaking on the second day, which was the highlight of our entire trip to Vietnam. With the kayak you can reach places that the junk boats are too big to go. 

The final thing I wanted to say was that the crew were wonderful. They made sure we were safe, happy, and definitely never went hungry! They do not expect a tip at the end of the trip, but certainly deserve one. 

One glitch, was on the shuttle ride back to Hanoi, the driver had not received the correct information about which hotel to drop us off at, and his English was not good enough for him to understand when we tried to explain this to him. Therefore we were dropped at a place that wasn’t our hotel and had to make our own way to our hotel. Make sure the driver has your correct hotel written on the list before you get in the van with them (the representatives at the pier should be able to sort this out for you). Despite this small glitch, I highly recommend this company. When we return to Halong Bay we will definitely use them again.


By a guest from Northampton


We have just completed a 3 day 2 night cruise with Huong Hai Junks which was excellent fun.

We found it expensive but that said we did go for New Years Eve which is an added cost.

The drinks onboard have to be paid for and are costly compared to the prices in Hanoi and the exchange rate used also higher if you are paying in anything other than dollars.

The cabins are a fair size but not as big as the web site says but they are comfortable and have showers and power.

The food is superb but only if you like seafood, if not you must remember to say this upfront to avoid disappointment. The staff are very attentive and meet all schedule times for meals and activities.

We had a great time and this is a trip that must be taken if you are in Vietnam.


***
We appreciate your compliments on our service. Your happiness is also ours. We assure that we shall do better and better to make you more satisfied. Your sincere assessment contributes to the improvement of our service quality. Huong Hai Junks is still doing best with a view to showing you an impressive image of Halong Bay with friendly people and ideal destination in your travel plan. We hope you will come back one day and discover other beautiful sites in our hidden charming country. Vietnam always warmly welcomes you. 


We'd be thankful if you could send us your review after the trip to e-mail: info@halongdiscovery.com.


Thank you very much for joining us!


Source: tripadvisor.com

In the Itinerary (Part 3)

Titov Island (Đảo Ti Tốp) (Panoramic view of Halong Bay from Titov Island's peak - Source: fotopedia.com)

Titov Island is situated about 7-8km south-east of Bai Chay. The island is noted for a beautiful crescent-shaped beach that's popular with swimmers and water sports enthusiasts. You may also hike 420 steps up to a pavilion at the summit for a panoramic view of Halong Bay. It also displays sand that has been washed to a snowy white by the tide.

Small though it might be, Titov Beach wins kudos for its quiet and airy atmosphere, its clean and clear waters, as well as its alluring landscape. At present, there has a bar in the island which also provides swimming costumes, floats and lukewarm shower. Fresh water was carried to the island from inland.