Dragon Legend Halong Bay 2-Day Cruise from Hanoi

This tour was excellent, food accommodations and staff outstanding. We enjoyed the activities but also the relaxed environment. I would highly recommend this tour.

We arrived at the tour office a little after 0700. Soon we were in our luxury van on our way to the Dragon Legend. About half way we stopped at a gift shop that gave employment to handicapped people. We saw embroidery, gems, both loose and in very good jewelry, and marble statues varying from tiny to over 3 meters. We arrived at the ship terminal approximately 1100. Our guide “Mr. Smiley” was efficient and friendly. He escorted us to the tender and soon we were aboard the Dragon Legend. After climbing up to the fourth deck we were provided a glass of cold Vietnamese tea and a cold towel. Both were very good. After a brief introduction we were given our room key and asked to be back for lunch at 1230. We had a large room with a shower and a big bathtub. The tub had both fresh and salt water taps. Lunch was a multiple course meal. After lunch we went back to our room and changed into beach clothes to go kayaking. I had 2 place kayak for myself. Our guide led us around an island to the sand beach where the tender was waiting. While we paddled we picked up trash from the water. Some people are slobs. Back on the tender I realized that I had my hearing aids in 😦. I was fortunate that I didn’t get immersed in salt water. Back onboard the Dragon Legend we took photos of the sunset. We had a wonderful massage before a delicious multiple course dinner. We didn’t make tai chi at 0600 but we enjoyed the buffet breakfast at 0715 - 0800. At 0900 we were at another island where Mr. Smiley told us about the cave we were going to see. We climbed about 100 rough stairs and went into the cave through the small opening. Eileen got several photos of the formations in the big chamber. Back onboard we finished packing and vacated our room. Had a buffet lunch and boarded the tender for a short ride to the pier. We were back onboard the luxury coach and on our way back to Hanoi by 1200. We stopped at a village to see a water puppet show. It was delightful. Back at the tour office the manager got us a taxi to take us back to our hotel.

There are two stories that come from travelers who have gone to Ha Long Bay. One is bad Too many boats, I even heard of rats on ships and one is good. Dragon Legend was definitely on the good side. Nice ship I was on the Dragon Legend II which traveled to a less crowded part of the bay. The crew was attentive and fun. Picking the right company makes all the difference in the world. This one may cost a bit more than some of the others but it's worth it.

This was a wonderful trip! The boat was extremely clean and very well taken care of. The activities were well organized with enough time for relaxing, eating, picture taking and even a massage on the boat! The massage was very well priced and they did an excellent job. The food was tasty and plentious. The tour guide wore so many hats but was very effective at his job. Our 14 and 10 year old were with us and they just loved it! We will certainly go back and will stay longer. Excellent tour!

This tour on a large boat/junk the Dragon Legend 2 from Hano was very well organized: pick up at our hotel in old Hanoi was on time and we were driven in a very comfortable van - for 6 passengers only - in 4.5 h to Halong where we boarded the boat for a 24h tour of Halong bay, before being driven back to Hanoi. The boat was large enough to accommodate 40-plus tourists without us feeling squeezed, on the contrary. There are lots of space plus there is a small pool and a large sundeck where we could practice TaiChi in the morning of the 2nd day before breakfast. Food was also very good for the 2 lunches and dinner. We had a nice kayaking experience to see the sunset from a small beach as well as a stop to visit a beautiful cave. Last but not least of the positive points: the team was very welcoming and helpful. The bad point we had was our room! It was on the 2nd floor just above the engines at the aft of the boat and very noisy and shaky during the day when the boat is cruising, while at night, even though the main boat engines were stopped, we could still hear well the engine on the other boat supplying electricity to our main boat. After we complained, they moved the 2nd boat so that we could spend the night in quietness. This issue does not happen with the other rooms which are far enough from the aft and engines, so beware when booking!

The trip was perfect! The pickup at our Hanoi hotel was right on time and the van was new and very nice. The ship was beautiful and the crew members were exceptionally gracious, accommodating, and competent. The food was fabulous! Halong Bay is truly one of the most magical places I have ever seen. I would highly recommend this trip!!!

The boat was absolutely stunning, and the room really spacious and luxurious. Food was plentiful and delicious - there was nothing provided that we weren't happy to eat. There were a couple of times when a choice of activities had been indicated, and when it came to it there was no choice - but we were very happy to do the activities which were happening, so this was not a problem for us.

We were very well taken care of. The bed and rooms were comfy, the food was tasty, and the junk was the nicest of all the ships we saw. The attentive staff made our time enjoyable and easy. Halong Bay is not to be missed. One of our favorite parts of our trip to Vietnam.