Lan Ha Bay Day Trip from Hanoi: Kayaking, Lunch & Cruise

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/49

Duration12h–13h

GroupUp to 99

LanguagesEN · VI

PickupAt your hotel

A 3.5-hour drive unlocks Lan Ha Bay's limestone islands and a full day on the water

You get picked up from your Hanoi hotel, driven 3.5 hours to Beo Pier, then spend the afternoon kayaking, swimming and exploring Viet Hai Village from Serenity Cruise. Lunch, welcome drink, water equipment and a bilingual guide are all included. The return bus reaches Hanoi around 8:30pm.

12h–13h

Step-by-step itinerary

Lan Ha Bay full-day cruise and activities

Pick up from Hanoi Old Quarter hotel
Travel to Hai Phong via 5B expressway
Cross sea from Tan Vu to Lach Huyen port
Transfer to Beo Pier on Cat Ba Island
Drive scenic road to Cat Ba Pearl Island
Cruise past Cai Beo ancient fishing village
Welcome on board Serenity Cruise with drink
Enjoy buffet lunch on cruise
Sail to Viet Hai Port and disembark
Take electric car or bicycle to Viet Hai Village
Experience fish-foot massage and village walk
Kayaking and swimming in Lan Ha Bay
Relax on top deck with drinks
Attend small sunset party with fruit and tea
Return to Beo Pier and board bus to Hanoi
Arrive back at Hanoi Old Quarter

The Experience

Someone leans back on the top deck with a cold drink in hand, watching the limestone cliffs slide past. That person is you, around 3pm, after the morning's drive north from Hanoi and the boat ride out to Serenity Cruise. The journey to get here takes time — a bus pickup from your hotel in Hanoi Old Quarter around 7am, then the expressway to Hai Phong, a short ferry crossing, and a final bus to Beo Pier — but that distance is what keeps Lan Ha Bay quieter than the more famous Ha Long. The cruise itself doesn't start until you're already out there, which means no wasted hours in a port town.

Once aboard, the itinerary moves steadily. Welcome drink and a briefing from your guide, then the boat heads toward Viet Hai Village, a 7,000-year-old fishing settlement with floating houses tucked against the mountainside. You'll have time to walk through it by electric car or bicycle, or sit with a local resident if you want to talk. By 1pm you're back on the boat for lunch — a buffet served in the restaurant area — and then the captain picks the best spot for the afternoon's water activities. That means kayaking, swimming in the bay itself, or sliding off the top deck into the emerald water. Life jackets are provided and recommended. The whole thing has a rhythm to it: move, stop, swim, move again.

Around 3:40pm the boat turns back toward Beo Pier, and you spend the last stretch on the rooftop with fresh fruit and tea while the sun drops. The bus ride back to Hanoi takes until about 8:30pm. It's a long day — thirteen hours door to door — but the Lan Ha Bay day trip from Hanoi spreads that time across water, villages, and activities instead of cramming everything into a rush. Your guide speaks Vietnamese and English, the boat has separate areas so you're not crowded, and the transfer is included both ways.

What’s included

Your day includes hotel pickup in Hanoi Old Quarter, round-trip bus and ferry transfers to Beo Pier, entrance to Lan Ha Bay, a welcome drink upon boarding Serenity Cruise, a guided visit to Viet Hai Village, buffet lunch on the boat, kayak and swimming equipment with life jackets, water activities (swimming, kayaking, boat jumping, water slide), fresh fruit and tea during the return journey, and a bilingual Vietnamese and English-speaking guide throughout.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Serenity Cruises

Is this one for you?Book this if you want a full Lan Ha Bay experience without arranging your own transport or timing the village visit and water activities yourself — the fixed schedule and included transfers mean you leave Hanoi in the morning and return in the evening with nothing else to organize.