Things to do in Halong City

Ha Long Bay - the World's heritage is famous around the World for its magnificent seascapes. But today we are not going to mention that stunning bay, this article is all about the things you could do and visit on the shore of Halong city.

1. Halong Travel Map

2. Weather

North Vietnam has a distinct winter and summer seasons, the cool but mostly dry winter will run from November to April, and the summer will last from May to October, and the time from July to September is usually the wettest months of the year. Therefore, tourists need to visit Ha Long Bay from March to May and from August to October.

3. Shopping site

Aside from sightseeing tours, places for shopping, as well as trade centers, are also attractive destinations to tourists. The below list will reveal some of them.

Ha Long Marine Entertainment and Trade Center complex: It is located at Ha Long Marina urban zone as well as a state-of-the-art mixed-use cuisine, shopping, and entertainment area.

Bai Chay trade center: It is located at Bai Chay area of Ha Long City, and a place for tourists to find all things they are in need

Vincom Center Ha Long trade center: With a European architecture design and an area of up to 36,000m2, it is the biggest trade center of Quang Ninh Province and a place that you cannot miss whenever you visit the city

4. What to eat and Good restaurants in Halong

Whenever visiting any tourism destination in any nation in the world, most travelers spend much time to explore and enjoy the wild wonders of cuisines there. Being favored with gifts of Mother Nature, the bay is very famous for its variety of fresh and delicious seafood like crab, prawn, squid, and snail as well as plenty of Vietnamese traditional food. And the below list will show some most popular ones

Squid sausage (Cha muc): It is the most popular food of Quang Ninh and also in the top 50 specialties of Vietnam. Its juicy flavor and attractive aroma of this dish perfectly go with boiled rice or sticky rice (xoi) or steamed rice cake (banh cuon)

Horseshoe Crab (Sam): Its meat can be processed into a lot of different foods such as crab salad, steamed crab, fried crab, etc.

Prawn, lobster and oyster: At Ha Long, prawn and lobster are the most valuable and delicious choices with two popular cooking methods of steaming and breaded frying. You can really enjoy a steamed portion that is mixed with other additional ingredients like beer or lemongrass to remove the fishy smell. In addition, another choice for tourists comes from an oyster, which is rich in terms of nutrition and provides a plethora of energy of a body, and it can be eaten with a lemon slice or grilled with cheese

If you are looking for good restaurants to enjoy these foods, the below list will provide you with some options

Panorama Restaurant: Being located at 168 Ha Long Road, Bai Chay Ward, Ha Long City, it is opened for serving breakfast from 6:00 am to 9:30 am, from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm for lunch, and from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm for dinner.

Kim Hang Restaurant: Being located at 123 Ha Long Road, Ha Long City, it is opened from 7:00 am to 10:00 pm everyday with the menu focusing on coastal specialties and unforgettable taste

Phuong Vi Restaurant: Being located at  Ha Long Road, Bai Chay Ward, it  is also another choice for tourists thanks to unique menu compared with others.

Cua Vang Restaurant: It’s opened from 6:00 am to 12:00 pm daily to serve various high-quality seafood with good hygiene, and all dishes are cooled in clay pay in order to keep natural flavor

Linh Dan Restaurant: Being located at 104 Bai Chay Road, it’s well-known for its great food and reasonable price

Co Ngu Restaurant: It is opened from 6:00 am to 12:00 pm daily to serve special dishes such as roasted oyster or shark fin. It can accommodate nearly 600 guests at the same time, and has an architecture that is similar to the Vietnamese palace in Hue.

5. Sightseeing

A place, which is described as a fairyland of the lower world, where tourists can admire natural limestone mountain, very beautiful caves possessing strange stalactite systems, wallow in romantic seaside resorts, and enjoy new experiences over activities at local fishing villages

Bai Chay beach: You cannot miss this place whenever you visit Ha Long, it’s an artificial sandy beach with a length of over 500 meters and a width of 500 meters. It also has hotels possessing full amenities as well as good restaurants along streets

Co To Island: It is considered one of the most beautiful islands in the northern region of Vietnam. It is very popular with very green seaside resorts combined with a simple natural landscape, promising unforgotten moments of swimming in the sea and relaxing mind at resorts.

Tuan Chau Island: Being cover by pine forests, the island has an area of 2.2km2 and is endowed with very white and fine sand, and one of the most touristic destinations in Ha Long

Yen Tu Mountain: For over 200 years of Buddhism in Vietnam, the famous name of Yen Tu Mountain has been associated with the name of Buddhist King Tran Nhan Tong, who founded the Truc Lam Zen sect bearing the typical Buddhist culture of Vietnamese people. Over time and through the historical vicissitudes, it still retains a gigantic treasure of Buddhist from 700 years ago with dozens of pagodas, hundreds and thousands of ancient precious relics containing valuable spiritual and ideological values.

Cai Bau Pagoda: It is located on the mountain and overlooks Bai Tu Long Bay with thousands of beautiful limestone islets. Visiting the pagoda, tourists are not only impressed by charming landscape but also by the peaceful atmosphere of a fairyland. 

Quang Ninh Museum:  Being built on the inspiration of coal, the specific mineral of Quang Ninh, Quang Ninh Museum and Library Architecture is picked up as a perfect cultural construction and the stable highlight with the total investment capital of over VND900 billion, becoming an attractive destination to both local people and tourists. The outside of the building is entirely covered with a black color like a giant mirror, reflecting Ha Long’s sky and sea image and leaving first memorable impression to visitors.

Truc Lam Giac Tam Zen Monastery: Truc Lam Giac Tam Zen Monastery, one of the largest Zen monasteries in Quang Ninh Province is located near the beautiful beach of Dai on Bai Tu Long Bay in Quang Ninh Province. It is known as a Zen place attracting a large number of Buddhist pilgrims and a popular tourist destination with a beautiful landscape formed by nature and harmonious architectural works.

Sun World Amusement Park: That modern complex offers you endless thrilling rides and activities in the theme park and water park. Relish the beauty of Ha Long Bay and relax in the Mystic Mountain Palace. It covers an area of up to 24ha with two main parts, including seaside entertainment area and a one on the top of Ba Deo Mountain, both of them are connected each other by a unique Nu Hoang cable car system.