With blue sea, Lan Ha Bay, floating fishing villages and beautiful coastal roads, Cat Ba is a suitable destination for a 3-day 2-night trip from Hanoi. Tourists can combine relaxation, swimming, kayaking and exploring the life of fishing villages with a cost of nearly 4 million VND/person.
April, May and September, October are usually more favorable for tourists to explore Cat Ba because the weather is not too sunny. Meanwhile, July and August are likely to have storms, so tourists need to follow the weather forecast before the trip.
Move
From Hanoi, tourists can drive motorbikes and cars to the Got ferry terminal area and then park their vehicles to take the ferry or high-speed train.
Another option is to go to Cat Hai station, then take the cable car to Cat Ba Island. If you do not need to bring a car or motorbike to the island, tourists can choose this option for more convenience. Cat Ba Island is not too big, you can travel by electric car, taxi or rent a motorbike daily.
In addition, you can also choose to take a round-trip passenger car, the total travel time is about 3 hours 30 minutes - 4 hours.
Schedule
Day 1: Hanoi - Cat Ba, Cat Co beach swimming
At about 8 am, tourists depart from Hanoi by passenger car. For those who choose a combo round-trip car combined with cable car, the car will stop at Cat Hai station, then everyone will take the cable car to the island. After that, tourists continue to travel 20km to the center of Cat Ba by car. The car will drop off guests at the homestay or hotel area.
Afternoon is an ideal time to start exploring Cat Ba. You can drive around the central area, stop by Tung Thu beach to take photos, check-in, have fun, swim and watch the sunset at Cat Ba beach in the Green Island project.
In the evening, tourists have dinner, stroll around the center of Cat Ba, admire the island's atmosphere at night and then return to their accommodation to rest.
Day 2: Butterfly Valley and watch the sunset in Lan Ha Bay
The second day can start by going to the sea to welcome the sunrise on the road connecting Cat Co 1 and Cat Co 3. After that, visitors will have breakfast and move to Butterfly Valley, about 6km from the center of Cat Ba.
This area is a large valley with green lawns, suitable for walking, taking photos, sitting in coffee and relaxing in nature.
In the middle of the day, tourists return to the Cat Ba center for lunch.
In the afternoon, the journey continues with a sunset viewing tour lasting about 3 hours. At about 3 pm, the bus picks up passengers to Beo wharf to board the yacht. Leaving the wharf, the boat slowly passes through Cai Beo floating fishing village before entering the spacious and poetic space of Lan Ha Bay.
The boat will stop at an area on the bay for tourists to kayak and freely swim. After a period of diving, tourists enjoy afternoon tea and wait for the sunset on the bay.
In the evening, tourists return to the Cat Ba center to have dinner, stroll or rent a bicycle to explore the central area.
Day 3: Exploring Cai Beo floating fishing village - Hanoi
On the morning of the last day, visitors can go to Beo wharf to rent a private boat to explore and take photos of Cai Beo floating fishing village.
The boat can take guests on a separate itinerary, stopping at beautiful locations to take photos or visiting floating rafts. If you need to enjoy seafood, visitors can also ask the boat owner for advice and take them to the rafts for selection.
The interesting thing about this journey is not only the scenery but also the opportunity to learn about the lives of people attached to the sea. You can talk to raft owners about farming, fishing and daily life on the water.
Sitting on the boat, gliding through floating houses in the middle of the sea, many tourists cannot help but be impressed by the peaceful and unique scenery of the fishing village.
By noon, tourists return to homestays to check out, have lunch and then get on the bus back to Hanoi, ending a 3-day 2-night journey.
Eating
Coming to Cat Ba, tourists can easily find many culinary choices, from fresh seafood dishes to popular dishes, suitable for many tastes and spending levels.
If you love seafood, Oc Ba Tau buffet is a worthwhile address with many snail dishes, hotpot and grilled food. Reference price is about 399,000 VND/person on weekends, excluding drinks.
For tourists who are not too passionate about seafood, Cat Ba still has many other dishes to change the taste such as Quang Ngai banh xeo, banh mi, banh uot... Snacks such as coconut ice cream, butter ice cream are also suitable choices for afternoons or evenings strolling around the town.
The Cat Ba central market area concentrates many popular rice restaurants and seafood restaurants, convenient for tourists to choose from. Among them, No 368 rice restaurant has meals with prices of about 40,000 - 50,000 VND/meal, suitable for those who want an affordable meal.
Cost
The total cost of a 3-day 2-night trip with the above schedule is less than 4 million VND/person.
In which, round-trip bus combined with cable car is about 700,000 VND/person; sunset tour on Lan Ha Bay is 500,000 VND/person, motorbike rental is 200,000 VND/person and accommodation is about 600,000 VND/person. The cost of food and expenses depends on the needs of each tourist.
