HaLong Bay you have not yet seen the most beautiful place in the world.

HaLong Bay in Vietnam one of the greet natural wonders of the world.

                   

                                                  Halong Bay Cruise

HaLong Bay is as attractive and beautiful throughout the four seasons: spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Traveling on small sailboats among hundreds of limestone islands, one may visit the amazing Surprise Cave, the floating fishing village, and see how the locals live are top of the list of things to do here. On Titop Island, one may swim and relax on the beach or enjoy a kayaking program to the nearby Luon Cave and much more.

And what about the important question of where to sleep? Newvisiontour is offering wonderful programs. A luxury cruise from the harbor and across Ha Long Bay, Travelers may experience Asian or Western cuisine, precisely sea food, and also have a session with a massage therapist, unwind in the sauna, take a sunbath and relax on the expansive deck, experience squid fishing, movie night, and a cooking demonstration.

Other attractions during your stay in Ha Long, beside exploring HaLong Bay Cruise  itself, if to visit the Royal Park in Halong City, Water Music, a circus performance by dolphins, sea lions, crocodiles, and much more.

The experience of visiting Ha Long Bay is unforgettable, where you will see something that will stay in your mind and eyes for years. You will enjoy meeting Vietnamese people and tasting their delicious food, you will have fresh air all day and night, especially if you wake up early in the morning and watch the sun rise on the deck coming slowly through the islands.

Be sure not to miss visiting HaLong Cruise in your lifetime. Just try to watch images and videos of this stunning and marvelous place and imagine being there experiencing the beauty and kindness of Vietnamese people. You will be booking your trip in no time.

Halong Bay Cruises – Seven Wonders of Nature newest addition

The 7 Wonders of Nature campaign started four years ago in 2007, over 440 locations from over 220 countries were included in the initial search to find the 7 best wonders of nature. After years of debate and research, 28 final candidates were chosen and the results were finally published on November 11th 2011. The voting results are currently being checked, validated and independently verified to confirm the winners and the final results are expected in early 2012 during the Official Inauguration ceremonies. The winners will join the new 7 wonders of the world and become part of history and remain in the memory of humankind forever.

Ha Long Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, located in Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam. The bay features thousands of limestone karsts and isles in various sizes and shapes. Ha Long Bay has 120km-long coastline, an area of around 1,553km², including 1,969 islets, most of which are limestone.  The core of the bay has an area of 334km² with a high density of 775 islets. The limestone in this bay has gone through 500 million years of formation in different conditions and environments.  The geo-diversity of the environment in the area has created biodiversity, including a tropical evergreen biosystem, oceanic and sea shore biosystem. Ha Long bay is also home of 14 endemic floral species and 60 endemic faunal species.

Ha Long Bay is a popular travel destination with lots of attractive activities. Tourists can stay on a modernized version of a junk, a classic Asian sailing vessel, overnight and visit the floating village of Nui Ngoc, as well as many fascinating limestone caves. The water inside the caves is so clean and clear that the sea bottom and its various corals and creatures become visible. The fresh seafood is always a treat and the on-board chef’s prepare amazing meals. If tourists are more interested in exploring the most remote corner of Halong Bay on their own, kayaking in Ha Long will meet their expectations. The only companions on a kayaking trip in Ha Long Bay will be the rocks, local fishermen, sea birds and the occasional monkey. A morning swim and diving off the second story of the Junk, is also a favorite activity for many of the tourists that visit each year. The sea is blue, the sun is yellow and the sand is white. Many small isolated islands are available for tourists to sunbathe and swim on and around.

Since Ha Long Bay is a very famous travel destination not only in Vietnam but also all over the world, the tourism industry here is well-developed. Tourism services are high quality, the roads to Ha Long Bay from Hanoi are very developed, the boats are well maintained and comfortable. The onboard rooms vary to accommodate the budget conscious travelers as well as the luxury traveler looking for a private tour with their family. Traveling to Vietnam and taking a cruise on Ha Long Bay will be a well deserved treat and an experience that will not be forgotten.

HaLong Bay - visitors will certainly have memorable moments in your life

Cruise in HaLong Bay looks like lively picture. HaLong Bay in VietNam owns the beauty of world wonder. According to the legend, HaLong Bay is surrounded by many islands as pearls released by dragon. Therefore, it attracts many tourists coming here to both explore the legend and admire the majestic beauty. Here are some famous places such as Hon Trong Mai, Hon Con Coc, Sung Sot Cave, Thien Cung Cave, Soi Sim Islet…     

   

First off, visitors should visit Soi Sim Islet. Soi Sim is an small island which is located in the west of Ha Long Bay.  It's about 12 kilometers far from Bai Chay tourist wharf and about 700 meters from Ti Top Island. This is a land - island with two peaks around 100 meters high, a dimple in the middle, and slopped to the southwest.

                      

                                                  Fishing boats of fishermen on Halong bay

Talking about the name “Soi Sim”, the local people said that in the past, the major plant on the island was Rhodomyrtus tomentosa that is called “sim” in Vietnamese. Therefore, the island was named after that plant, “Soi Sim”.

Soi Sim Island has an area of 8.7 ha. On the island, there are two 200-meter hills covered by a green primeval forest. This primeval forest is home to many species of flora, especially endemic plants. According to the researchers, the reason Soi Sim has many endemic species is that this island has formed hundreds of millions of years ago, then was surrounded by sea. The local people said that previously there were many myrtle grew on the island, then it was named as Soi Sim.

            Visitors swim at Soi Sim beach

Coming to Soi Sim Island, tourists will be impressed by peaceful ambiance and natural beauty of green primeval forest and blue sea. There are two charming beaches on the island with the stretch of white sand and clear seawater. These are the preferred beaches of tourists on the holiday on HaLong Bay. Moreover, from the top of the hills on Soi Sim Island, tourists will have great views to the spectacular scenery of Ha Long Bay Cruise.

One of the best places that Visitors should have pay a visit is Thien Cung Cave and it is certain that you will never forget its magnificence.

Thien Cung Cave

Located about 100m in the northern of Dau Go island, Thien Cung Grotto is  a large cave with well-known beauty of HaLong Bay. It is one of the most recently discovered caves in the bay, but that certainly does not make its interior any less impressive. In addition to the countless stalactites that hang from the high ceiling, visitors are often struck by the breathtaking artwork create by the hands 

Global community focuses on Ha Long Bay Cruises

An international seminar on Ha Long Bay will be held in Ha Long City in Quang Ninh province on July 24.

 

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) held a press conference in Hanoi on July 17 to announce the event, which aims to seek out measures to preserve and promote the values of the World Heritage Site to develop tourism in a sustainable manner.

 

VNAT General Director Nguyen Van Tuan said ever since it was recognised as a world natural heritage 18 years ago, Ha Long Bay has become one of the country’s most visited tourist spots.

The bay was also recently voted as one of the seven new wonders of the world, he added.

 

Tuan said the VNAT and Quang Ninh are working together on advertising campaigns and a series of promotions to spotlight HaLong Bay Cruises  and make it one of the leading tourist destinations on earth.

 

According to the organising board, the seminar will focus on defining the important role of HaLong Bay and its position in the country’s tourist industry as well as current development trends, opportunities and challenges.

 

They will also put forward proposals to ensure the site is preserved for future generations and examine existing management procedures.

 

To date, the organising board has received 20 reports from regional and international academics, researchers and business managers.

 

In 2011, HaLong Bay Tours welcomed over 5.5 million tourists, half of them from overseas.

Halong Bay Overview

Located in the Northern Vietnam province of Quang Ninh, Halong bay covers an area of 1553 km² in the Gulf of Tonkin. Disseminated throughout the site are some 1969 islands, most of them uninhabited, making for a total land area of 562 km².

Two wide channels, in the East and in the West, up to 24 m deep, are usually seen as the bay’s gateways. The central part on the other hand is mostly shallow, depths averaging only 2 m.

UNESCO recognised Halong bay as a World Heritage Site in 1994 and 2000. The total area since then protected spreads on 434 km² and includes 788 islets.

Halong bay (Vinh Ha Long in Vietnamese), means the “bay of the descending Dragon”. Many legends surround the formation of Halong bay, most involving the afore-mentioned mythical animal. The most widespread story tells how a dragon, sent by the Emperor of Jade to support the Viet people fighting against the foreign invaders, helped push away the attackers and in the process, spat jewels that landed in the sea and formed the karst landscape. The Dragon, followed by her children, then decided to settle there and descended to the bay. Mother Dragon made Ha Long Bay her home while her children settled in Bai Tu Long, their tails whipping on the beaches of Long Vi.

From a geological perspective, the site’s particularities go back millions of years ago, when it was only deep sea. 340 million years ago, the sea slowly became shallower and 26 million years ago, the area became plain land, only to be inundated again about two million years ago. Combined with tectonic activity, a tropical climate and the presence of thick limestone, these regressions and transgressions of sea water shaped the karstic scenery we are given to contemplate today.

Halong bay is of significant interest in terms of bio-diversity. Land and aquatic ecosystems that have developed in the bay include various plant species. They all have high biological capacity and are home to several different creatures, some of them rare and/or nowhere else to be found in the world.

Halong bay is also historically important for Vietnam as home of a specific ancient Vietnamese culture as well as a few national heroes.

Archaeological sites have led researchers to talk about a specific Ha Long culture dating back to about 5000 years ago, however, the area was already inhabited before that. Soi Nhu culture (18000 to 17000 years ago) and Cai Beo culture (7000 to 5000 years ago) are more or less regarded as pre-Ha Long cultures. Relics found in scattered archaeological sites reveal an already advanced stage of marine adaptation and exploitation by these communities, combined with a livelihood of hunting and picking.

Ha Long culture refers to the communities that have been affected from consecutive sea water transgressions between 6000 and 3000 years ago. At the latest stages, what used to be plain land became islands, forcing the populations to make the marine world their own and an integral part of their ways of living.

Today, more than 1600 people live in the World Heritage Area of Halong bay in floating houses within four villages: Cửa Vạn, Ba Hang, Cống Tàu and Vông Viêng.

For more Halong bay information

Halong Bay Maps

• Halong Bay Caves
• Halong Bay Beach
• Floating villages in Halong bay
• Vietnam Tours
• Sapa Tours
• Sapa Vietnam

Quang Ninh attracts 2.2 million foreign arrivals

The northern border province of Quang Ninh has so far this year welcomed 6.4 million holidaymakers, including 2.2 foreigners, up 9 percent and 6 percent respectively.

 

Tourism services generated VND 4,000 billion in revenue, representing a year-on-year increase of 20 percent, the provincial Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism reported.

In the reviewed period, nearly 2.9 million visitors, including 1.2 million foreigners, chose Quang Ninh to stay during their holidays, up 20 and 15 percent respectively.

 

The number of visitors to cultural and historical sites rose 11 percent to 2.4 million. However, those to UNESCO-recognised HaLong Bay Tours fell 9 percent to 2.4 million.

 

The provincial tourism sector expects to have a busy year in early 2013 as many cruise ships are due to dock at Ha Long Bay from now until April 2013.

 

HaLong Bay has been recognised twice by UNESCO for its natural and geological beauty.

Ha Long Carnival promotes ethnic cultures

The rich culture of ethnic communities in the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh and the northeastern region was highlighted at the spectacular Carnival Ha Long 2012 held on May 1.

An event to mark the province’s HaLong Bay Cruises  being listed as one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature, the carnival was the biggest ever since first held five years ago.

Thousands of people, including many foreign tourists, enjoyed performances featuring the hospitality and beauty of local people and land.

Several famous artists, including People’s Artist Quang Tho and pop stars Ho Quynh Huong and Ngoc Anh, took part in the event.

In addition, performances by art troupes from the Republic of Korea, China, Laos and the Philippines create extra cultural diversity at the event.

A vivid parade gathering thousands of ethnic people living in the province took place on the city’s main street alongside the beach.

Unlike other previous carnivals, where most of the performers were professional artists, this year’s event gathered more than 3,000 performers from ethnic San Chay, San Diu, Tay and Dao groups.

The tourists also had a chance to learn about the distinctive cultural identities of different ethnic groups when several traditional festivals and customs were presented.

They wallowed in the festive atmosphere of a traditional wrestling competition of Quang Yen District, or a rice-planting kick-off ritual from women of the Ha Nam Island in Yen Hung District.

While the San Diu group living in Van Don replicated a traditional wedding, the Dao, Hang Bo and San Chay groups presented folk dances.

The carnival became more beautiful with a spectacular fireworks display presented by French artists.

The parade was also joined by a group of 300 local Buddhists, aiming to promote the spiritual culture of the province, considered as a cradle of Vietnamese Buddhism. The 1,068m above sea level Yen Tu Mountain in the province is the place where King Tran Nhan Tong in the 13th century founded the Truc Lam Zen School.

The site attracts thousands of pilgrims every year, contributing significantly to the province’s socio-economic development.

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh, President of the New7Wonders Foundation Bernard Weber and representatives of other New Seven Wonders of Nature participated in the event.
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