Recently updated on November 4th, 2019 at 02:47 pm
Halong Bay is a famous tourist destination of Vietnam and is recognized as a world natural heritage site. To visit Halong Bay you need to go to Hanoi where Noi Bai airport is located about 30km from the center of Hanoi city. And from here you will have many ways to go to Halong Bay by many different means.
If you want to learn more about Hanoi and Halong Bay, please read the following articles:
- Hanoi travel guide: Things to know about Hanoi.
- Halong Bay travel guide: Things to know about Halong Bay.
Normally, tourists will choose to travel by car with the travel time being shortened from 4 hours (formerly) to 2.5 hours (currently) thanks to the new highway connecting Hanoi and Ha Long was inaugurated at the end of 2018. So for those who do not have much time but still want to visit Halong Bay – a natural heritage of the world, you will still have enough time to visit Halong Bay in a day.
How to get from Hanoi to Halong Bay?
Here, we will suggest you the most popular means of transportation so you can travel from Hanoi to Halong Bay easily:
Motorbike
- How? Rent motorbike
- Price: from US$5 – US$10/day
- Travel time: over 4 hours
- Suitable for people who have experience with traffic in Vietnam and travelers prefer adventure
For those who prefer adventure, like exploring the scenery, the lives of the locals or those on a tight budget, motorbikes will be the most suitable choice to go from Hanoi to Halong Bay.
There are 2 routes for you to choose from, with a travel time of over 4 hours:
- Hanoi – Bac Ninh – Halong via Highway 18 with a length of 167km
- Hanoi – Hai Duong – Halong via Highway 5 with a length of 160km
How to rent a motorbike in Hanoi
Renting a motorbike in Hanoi is very easy, you can easily find in the old town area there will be a lot of motorbike rental shops. Depending on the time that you are in Vietnam, choose the appropriate rental form such as daily, weekly…. And, of course, if you rent for a long time, the renting motorbike will be cheaper than you just rent a motorbike for a day.
Staff or owners of motorbike rental shops can speak English very well, so if you have any questions or need further advice, do not hesitate to ask them.
The procedure for renting a motorbike is that in addition to the deposit and the rental fee, you need to provide an additional copy of your passport.
Tips
- Comply with road traffic safety laws.
- Bring a travel map or an internet-connected phone to use directions applications like Google Maps.
- Ask to borrow a helmet from the store to ensure your safety when traveling on the road.
Local Bus
- How? You need to go to the bus station to buy tickets
- Price: from US$5 – US$10/ticket
- Travel time: over 3 hours
This is also a good choice for travelers who have a limited budget with tickets costing about US $ 5 – US $ 10 and travel time of about 3 hours and maybe longer because they will pick up more passengers at the stops.
Tips when buying bus ticket:
The best way is that you should go directly to the bus station to buy tickets. You can refer to the list of bus stations with Hanoi – Quang Ninh route below:
- My Dinh bus station
No. 20 Phạm Hùng, Mỹ Đình 2, Nam Từ Liêm District, Hanoi. - Nuoc Ngam Bus Station
No. 1 Ngoc Hoi Street, Hoang Mai District, Hanoi. - Giap Bat bus station
No. 6 Giai Phong Street, Hoang Mai District, Hanoi. - Gia Lam bus station
No. 9 Ngo Gia Kham street, Long Bien district, Hanoi.
Notes:
- Most of the staff at the bus stations cannot speak English or communicate very little in English, so you need to use body language or simply use a translation app languages on smartphone like Google Translate.
- The nearest bus stop to go to Halong Bay is Bai Chay bus station and it is about 10km from Tuan Chau port so you need to call a taxi, “om car”, or use Grab to book your ride to Tuan Chau port.
Tourist Shuttle Bus
- How? Book online or ask the reception at homestay, hotel in Hanoi or cruise company.
- Price: from US$10 – US$50/ticket/way.
- Travel time: about 2.5 hours.
- The most suitable means for tourists.
With Shuttle Bus, you will be picked up early in the morning at your hotel in Hanoi Old Quarter or an appointment location (Hanoi Opera House) to take you down the cruise ship port. After finishing your tour in Ha Long, you will again get a shuttle bus to take you from the cruise ship port back to Hanoi. Travel time is about 2.5 – 3 hours and each car will carry about 8 – 15 guests.
Tips:
- When you book overnight Halong cruise you can ask them more about shuttle bus service, they will give you a combo including cruise and shuttle pick up/drop off from your hotel Hanoi with best price.
Private Car
- How? Taxi or book directly with cruise company.
- Price: about US$80/car (4 seater car with AC)/way, the bigger car will cost you more.
- Travel time: about 2.5 hours.
If you want a private trip, renting a private car to take you to Halong Bay is a reasonable choice. With this type of transportation, you will have a flexible and comfortable travel schedule.
Tips:
- Should negotiate prices before using this service.
- Many Halong cruise companies offer this service, you should ask them directly for best price.
Seaplane
This is one of the fastest ways to move to Ha Long and the cost is also the most expensive. You will only take about 45 minutes to 1 hour by seaplane. With this form of transportation, you will have a panoramic view of Halong Bay from above, this will be an extremely wonderful and memorable experience.
How to book tickets: book at seaplane.vn or book directly with Halong cruise company.
Tips:
- Hai Au Aviation is the only airline providing this service and for more information and to book this service, please visit seaplane.vn.
- Some Halong cruise companies also offer a Seaplane + boat combo at a much better price than you order each service separately.
Train
- You need to move to Yen Vien station, Hanoi to take the train to Ha Long.
- Price: about US$3.5 – US$5/ticket
- Travel time: over 6 hours.
Traveling by train would be very suitable for travelers who have plenty of time and admire the beautiful scenery along the way. The train will depart from Yen Vien station, Hanoi to Halong station at 4:55 am early in the morning and return to Hanoi at 13h50 every day, the time for each turn is about 6 hours.
How to buy a train ticket from Hanoi to Halong:
- Buy tickets directly at Yen Vien station with the address of Yen Vien, Gia Lam, Hanoi.
- Buy tickets on dsvn.vn this is the official train ticket page of Vietnam Railway.
With some information and experience to travel from Hanoi to Halong Bay in the article, we hope you will find the most suitable way for you to get to Halong Bay and have a perfect trip here.
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