Planning a trip to Halong but still hasn’t decided where to go yet? You should surely know that there are a bunch of great things to do in Halong apart from cruising. From beautiful sightseeing spots to mighty mountain ranges, modern amusement complex, and traditional pagodas, Halong has it all. Thus, the article below will suggest several interesting itineraries for 2 days exploring the best parts of Halong.
This mini itinerary will give you plenty to see and do in four days around Northern Vietnam. Take in the historic charm of Hanoi before seeing the spectacular limestone karsts of Halong Bay and Ninh Binh.
There’s so much to see and do in Halong Bay. To make your trip a bit easier, we’ve compiled three different 3-day itineraries for a trip to Halong Bay.
If you’ve got 5 days to explore Northern Vietnam and you’re not quite sure what to do, we’ve got your back. This itinerary will take you from the ancient streets of Hanoi to the towering mountains of Halong Bay to come to an end in the hills and mountains of Sapa.
You could easily spend a week in Hanoi and Halong bay without feeling bored. However, for most people with limited time, a few days would be good. For example, a 3 days in Hanoi and 2 days in Halong bay itinerary would cover most of both destinations.
Seafood & Specialty
Restaurants
Accessibility to
Halong Bay Area
Seafood & Specialty
Halong Bay has been known for its beautiful and poetic scenes for a long time. However, it also attracts visitors with a beautiful and vast sea area with abundance of all kinds of delicious seafood and specialty. There are not only fish, shrimp, crab, squid but also many strange sea creatures that many travelers can’t be known. The seafood will be cooked in many different ways, always bringing travelers with a change in taste from Halong seafood.
Cha Muc
Cha Muc (a dish made from cuttlefish)
Ha Long Cha Muc is famous across the three regions of Vietnam. It has been considered the cuisine brand of Quang Ninh Province. Cuttlefish used to make the dish are big and fresh, caught in Ha Long waters. Cha Muc in this area is pure, so it always has the typical delicious and crispy taste. After being prepared, cuttlefish will be minced, added pepper, fish sauce and shaped into pieces of proper size, dropped into a boiling oil pan and fried until they are yellowish brown on both sides. The fresh pieces of Cha from the stage of putting into the frying pan smell very good. The crispy and sweet Cha Muc served with the banh cuon and the sour, sweet and spicy taste of dipping sauce will make an unforgettable impression on diners.
Grilled Oysters
Like lobster, oyster is one of the famous seafood in Halong. Oysters live on the sandy beaches, seaside quagmire. Oyster, which is a nutritious food, has a hard-shell and a red bowel.
The most delicious oysters are the ones living in brackish water. There are many ways of processing such as baking oysters, cooking with porridge but the best way is boiling or steaming because these ways can help maintain the nutrition and taste.
After being rinsed, oysters will be grilled in charcoal fire immediately after it is ordered. Therefore, the dish is always served hot. After drinking the clear and greasy oyster fluid, tourists should dip the meat in salt mixed with lemon and chili, a simple but tasty dip sauce.
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One – Dried Squid
One-sun-dried squid (Mực một nắng, Muc mot nang) is an amazing seafood which has won the hearts of most of the people, even with strict gourmets.
Squid in Co To is famous for being tasty with a more distinctive flavor than those caught in other areas.
Although there are many kinds of squids, bigfin reef squid (Mực lá) is the best ingredient for making One-sun-dried squid. They must choose freshly-caught squids which have just been caught from the sea and make Muc mot nang right away.
One-dried squid can be used to prepare many tasty dishes such as grilled one-dried squid with salt and chili, fried one-dried squid, one-dried squid grilled by charcoal, one-dried squid stir-fried with tamarind…
Tu Hai
It is also called “Oc voi voi”, a highly economic seafood that is widely raised in Van Don Island District. This dish is tasty, sweet, crispy and nutritious. You can prepare a lot of delicious dishes from “Tu hai” such as: Steamed Tu hai; Grilled tu hai; Tu hai stir-fried with tamarind sauce….
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Fried Sea Snails With
Chili Sauce
Halong has many kinds of sea snails; each kind has its own processing and its own taste. But fried sea snail with chili sauce is the most attractive dish.
To cook this dish, people wash snails, then put them in a pot, add chili sauce and cook without adding water. Without adding cooking oil, they just sprinkle more shredded lime leaves on this dish. When completed, snails fried have passionate fragrance and are fuming. Snails turn pink with red dots, yellow dots and look nice. This dish tastes greasy, spicy hot, usually added with herbs. When drinking beer, it would be great if snails are served with.
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Sa Sung
In Quang Ninh, Sa Sung in Quan Lan Island, Van Don District is famous for being the most delicious in Viet Nam. Fresh Sa Sung can be used to cook with lolot leaf, stir-fried with celery and leek or kohlrabi, or to cook porridge. Dried Sa Sung can be dry-fried, grilled and served with beer or alcohol, or used to sweeten broth of noodles.
Lobsters
Lobster is available in many places but if you go to Halong to enjoy it, you will have an unforgettable impression.
Lobsters have a variety of different weights, depending on the number of customers that the restaurant can serve. Lobsters can be processed into many dishes such as steamed lobster, fried lobster with salt, lobster salad, etc. Steamed lobster is the most popular dish because it keeps the full flavor of the sea. Steamed lobster is decorated with onions and herbs, served with soy sauce or fish sauce. This dish is delicious and nutritious so it is commended as one of the best specialties in Halong bay.
Khau Nhuc
This is a dish that is processed very carefully with the main ingredients – pork combining with many different types of spices. The finished “Khau nhuc” must have a yellow, soft, fatty color like cockroach, fatty taste of fatty meat, aromatic spices and sweet five-spice powders. “Khau nhuc” meat can be served with rice, bread or white sticky rice.
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Hoanh Bo Soaked Wine Rice
Wine is made from local specialty – glutinous rice. No pounding sticky rice is cooked then incubated. When fermented and soaked to the point, people enter the fermented leaves that are taken from Hoanh Bo forest, after a long time it turns into alcohol which is put into the jars to drink slowly. Hoanh Bo soaked rice wine is sour, slightly sweet, which stimulates digestion that is very good, especially in the summer.
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Cà sáy Tiên Yên
“Cà sáy” is the hybrid of duck and cairina, through processing of Tien Yen people, the flavor becomes doubly delicious. Tien Yen people process “cà sáy” and make its specialized sauce which has the fragrant flavor of Cai Rong, Van Yen, Cat Hai fish sauce, the sweetness of Quang Tay “xá xị” and the mild pungency of Tien Yen ginger grown on home soil.