Luxury 2-Day Lan Ha Bay Cruise

Nice boat, just that activities were really curtailed. Good way to experience ha long bay.. however food was just about average for vegetarians

From the moment we boarded the cruise till we left with fond memories everything was wonderful and well arranged. We had opted for vegetarian Indian meals and all meals were excellent and delicious. Staff was courteous and polite. Rooms were spacious and clean. Live band and all activities were enjoyable. Highly recommended if you are looking for proper Indian meals and excellent stay.

The cruise was wonderful from the start. Once we stepped in the cruise, the staff were super attentive and made sure we enjoyed every thing the cruise had to offer. All the meals were excellent, especially the dinner with so many options. My kids enjoyed the “cooking” class and even received certificates of completion for attending. We got to enjoy the snack they made from the class. The views were breath taking!! If you can you must do the cruise as a once in a lifetime experience.

We took the overnight trip to Lan Ha Bay and Cat Ba island. This trip started well with a call from Paradise to our guide checking we were on time. We were welcomed at the centre but there was a little confusion over which electric bus we were to catch - no problem but seemed a little less well organised than we expected. We were amongst the first on to the transfer boat and there was quite a lot of waiting for the rest of the passengers to join us. Then the transfer to our boat was not by speedboat and took around an extra hour. The consequence was there was quite a lot of wasted time. It was not what we expected not really 5* or even 4* service. The return at the end of the cruise was by speedboat although it was probably a bit less comfortable as the boat is noisy. Once on the boat everything was handled efficiently, The cabin was large and comfortable and well fitted although the bed was rock hard and certainly didn't suit by back. Sadly, I had a very poor night's sleep. When we sat down for lunch we were extremely disappointed as there was virtually nothing for my partner to eat at the buffet as she is allergic to seafood and generally prefers a vegetarian diet although she does eat some fish. Even the salads contained seafood. Our travel agent says that they always provide notification of food requirements so this was particularly disappointing. However, once we explained, they quickly provided a number of vegetarian dishes for her which were fine. The choices for dinner were Ok for her too. We took the trip to Cat Ba island which we enjoyed and which was reasonably well organised. There seemed to be some staff confusion about which buses we were to use to return and which tender we were going to board but they sorted it out between them. Dinner was served and was well presented and tasty although the beef I had, whilst cooked as requested, was tougher than I had expected. When we finished our meal, I noticed that other diners had left their beef so I suspect it was the beef rather than the chef. One small issue we had was the salt cellar was blocked and whilst we asked for a replacement, that was clearly forgotten. What was more disappointing was that it still hadn't been replaced at breakfast, which had the additional minor issue that the table appeared to have been used by someone else and we had to ask for cutlery. The live entertainment was good but sadly we were the only people in the bar listening - we felt guilty about leaving. The canoe trip to the cave was enjoyed by my partner - apparently it was not that well taken up. Overall, the boat, restaurant and cabin were great and the views amazing. Our return to land was via speedboat - much quicker - but it wasn't to the Paradise centre. There was then some confusion as to where people had to go but for us a call to our guide sorted that out. Unfortunately we had a very dull day but that gave everything an extra air of serenity - just not the best for taking photos! We completed a feedback form on the boat and were promptly given a refund of our extras so it is obvious they want to deliver a first class service. Our overall view is that the long initial transfer and the issues with food meant that we did not have a 5* experience and were rather disappointed. We felt as if some additional commentary on the area might have been appropriate too even though we, as we expect others would, previously did our homework.

Lovely cruise around Ha Long Bay. We did the two day one night option and really enjoyed the cruise. The rooms are a great size with a lovely balcony area. They had a few different excursions off the ship and some entertainment on the ship. We did the cooking demonstration and had a lot of fun with that. Everyone on board is very helpful and friendly. Would recommend if you have a chance.