Boating Down Ha Long Bay Vietnam
On my recent dream trip back to visit my home country of Vietnam, we had to visit Ha Long Bay. It is one of the top things to do when visiting Hanoi and is about a 4 hour drive from Hanoi. Ha Long Bay was one of the locations that the movie Kong: Skull Island was filmed and is very beautiful as it features giant limestone karsts in various shapes and sizes. My 3 friends and I figured that this outing would not be wheelchair friendly as it involves transferring to a boat to get to Ha Long Bay and an even smaller boat to float through the karsts limestones. This was something we all really wanted to do so we had to make this a reality.
boat ride through Ha Long Bay… dream come true
Researching online and asking tour companies about a trip to Ha Long Bay we could choose to go on our own or go with a company for 1 day or multi-day trips. We chose a 1 day trip with Fansipan Tours since it included the bus ride there, tickets to Ha Long Bay, and tickets to a bamboo boat ride or kayaking through the bay, and tickets to visit Thien Cung Grotto (Heavenly Cave). We were warned that this trip would be very tough for a wheelchair user to do, but we decided that we should go and make the best of it. We bought the tickets and at $75 USD per person, we thought it would be worth to do.
Shanel and Rob making sure I get on the bus
All 4 of us were pretty excited and was ready for the bus to pick us up at 8am. We knew the bus didn’t have a wheelchair ramp and that there was a few steps into the bus, so my buddy lifted me and carried me to the bus seat. This was going to be a 4 hour bus that included a 20 minute rest break in between at a souvenir shop. The bus ride itself was ok as the seats were all packed closely together with barely any leg room. The views and scenery were pretty good as we got to see other parts of Vietnam that we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. It was also cool seeing the country side and the rice farms too.
so many stairs, so had to be carried onto the boat
When we arrived at Tuan Chau International Marina, we saw that there was over a dozen steps to get into the boat that takes us to Ha Long Bay. Lucky my buddy had help from the locals to help me on the boat. The boat had an upstairs which I could not get to, but the main floor was good enough for me. Traditional Vietnamese lunch of seafood and rice started the tour as we weave in and out through the magnificent karsts. The views were spectacular and I felt like I was in a dream. Was even cool to see the floating fishing village nearby.
delicious included lunch
The first stop was to get into a small bamboo boat or a kayak to float through some of the karsts and caves. I couldn’t get into a kayak, but actually made it on the bamboo boat. My wheelchair would not fit inside the small boat and I don’t have any upper body control to sit on the bench, so someone put in a regular dining chair in the boat and I was strapped to the chair with my belt strap that I brought. This all happened so fast, I didn’t get to bring my roho cushion onto the boat. Regardless, it was an amazing time that I will cherish for the rest of my life. Only 2 of my 3 friends were allowed on this boat with me because they rushed us out. This bamboo boat ride through Ha Long Bay was one of the highlights of my Vietnam trip for sure and lasted about 40 minutes.
amazing bamboo boat ride
The next stop was to visit the caves. Again there was a bunch of stairs to get to the entrance of the caves. I did not bother getting out of the main boat because there were too many wet stairs and tight corners inside. I was a bit bummed that I could not do this portion of the tour, but luckily I got great friends who took a bunch of pictures for me and described what was inside. This lasted about 40 minutes and I just chatted with the staff that remained in the boat. After this, it was time to get back on the bus for the 4 hour drive back to the hotel.
Shanel checking out the caves
Overall, this was a great 1 day option for a tour of Ha Long Bay. The price was reasonable for everything we got. Even though, the buses were not accessible, we managed to make this happen. The included lunch was fantastic and the bamboo boat ride was amazing. Skipping the cave tour was a bit of a bummer but the whole excursion was definitely worth it and I would do this again when I visit Vietnam in the next couple years.
