Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay: Which Is Better in 2025?
Which is better Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay? In this guide, we explore Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay to help you decide which is the best choice for your trip.
Cat Ba and Ha Long Bay are UNESCO World Heritage-listed areas off the North coast of Vietnam, recognised for their stunning natural beauty. Cat Ba Island can be visited independently, but to see Ha Long Bay, you have to take a cruise.
When comparing Cat Ba or Halong Bay, it’s essential to consider what kind of experience you’re looking for.
If you’re short of time, an overnight cruise from Hanoi is the quickest and easiest way to enjoy the incredible scenery in the Halong Bay area. But if you have more time, it’s worth spending a few days on lovely Cat Ba Island and taking a day trip to Ha Long Bay and Lan Ha Bay, where there’s less pollution and far fewer people and cruise boats on the water.
Ultimately, the choice between Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay comes down to personal preference.
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I’ve travelled throughout Vietnam alone and explored the Halong Bay area on two separate occasions. On my first visit, I booked a popular Halong Bay overnight cruise. The next time, I spent several days on Cat Ba Island and took a day cruise on stunning Lan Ha Bay that included kayaking through flooded sea caves and swimming in the clear water.
I also enjoyed an overnight cruise on the quieter Bai Tu Long Bay, which neighbours Halong Bay and stayed in Halong City near the cruise port.
In this article, Cat Ba vs Ha Long Bay, I’ll compare my experiences and look at the pros and cons of each to help you plan the best itinerary in Vietnam.
TIP: This Halong Bay overnight cruise from Hanoi is similar to the one I did and includes Lan Ha Bay and cycling on Cat Ba Island.
Is Ha Long Bay Worth Visiting?
Some say it’s overrated, but Ha Long Bay is one of Vietnam’s most popular tourist destinations. Ha Long Bay is breathtaking! Dense clusters of small islands rise from calm green waters. The area’s extraordinary natural beauty draws millions of visitors every year.
The stunning karst landscape is also known for its geological significance and is recognised by UNESCO as a World Heritage site. Halong Bay is a wonderful place to include in a Vietnam itinerary and should not be missed.
But, in recent years, Ha Long Bay has suffered from overtourism and become inundated with cruise boats catering to the large volume of tourists. The water is not so clean anymore, and the sites are often overcrowded, even in the low season.
The small islands and caves I visited on my Ha Long Bay overnight cruise were crowded with tourists from other boats, even though it wasn’t the high season. I went to Vietnam in January, in winter.
I joined a long queue to climb to the viewpoint on Titop Island, and the cave we visited was very crowded. I saw rubbish and bilge water from the cruise boats and decided not to swim in Ha Long Bay.
But there are lesser-known alternatives to the standard Halong Bay cruises that follow less visited routes to neighbouring Bai Tu Long Bay and Lan Ha Bay. They are also part of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed area of Halong Bay and are just as beautiful but cleaner and without the tourist crowds of the famous Halong Bay.
Ha Long Bay vs Lan Ha Bay: Which Cruise is Better?
TIP: If you’re trying to decide on a cruise to Lan Ha Bay or Ha Long Bay, I loved the Lan Ha Bay day cruise from Cat Ba Island with kayaking and snorkelling.
Of the three cruises I did in the Ha Long Bay area, the Lan Ha Bay day trip was the best. The scenery was incredible, the kayaking was the best in the area with flooded sea caves and pristine beaches.
The lunch was tasty, and the water was clean, clear, and perfect for swimming. It was a bit cold in January, but I enjoyed swimming in Lan Ha Bay. We spent a full day surrounded by stunning scenery in the beautfiul UNESCO area.
Cat Ba Island
Cat Ba Island on the other hand, is the largest island in Lan Ha Bay, a neighbour to the famous Ha Long Bay. Lan Ha Bay is part of the Halong Bay area and the Cat Ba Archipelago was recognised separately by UNESCO as a World Heritage site in 2023.
If you’re choosing between Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay, Cat Ba Island offers a wider range of activities and easy access to the Halong Bay area via Lan Ha Bay.
While it’s easy to get to Halong Bay with a cruise package from Hanoi, Cat Ba Island has more to offer. The island is covered by lush forests, and the Cat Ba National Park has hiking trails, viewpoints, caves, fishing villages and a good selection of beaches to enjoy.
Cat Ba is a good option for independent and budget travellers with more time to spend in the area.
Cat Ba vs Ha Long Bay: Pros & Cons
| Cat Ba Island Pros | Cat Ba Island Cons |
| Stunning scenery | Harder to get to than a Halong Bay cruise |
| UNESCO World Heritage listed area | A long taxi ride from Haiphong airport to the ferry port and a scenic ferry ride to the island plus a taxi to Cat Ba Town |
| Easy access to Ha Long Bay area on a day cruise | Long distance from Cat Ba Town to the ferry ports |
| Easy access to Lan Ha Bay | No Grab on the island / only local taxis |
| Lan Ha Bay has the best Kayaking through sea caves | Very busy with tourists in the high season |
| Cleaner water for swimming | Accommodation can be overpriced with limited facilities (I was disappointed with my hotel) |
| A choice of beaches | Cat Ba Town Beach was a construction site for new accommodation in January 2025 |
| More comfortable and cheaper accommodation options are available | A Typhoon damaged the island & building repairs were in progress all over Cat Ba Town |
| Sleep on land rather than a cruise boat | |
| Better choice of activities – hiking, swimming, snorkelling, kayaking, rock climbing, fishing, fishing villages, exploring caves and the island’s viewpoints. | |
| Better for independent travel – Plan your own activities | |
| Good facilities for tourists with cafes, restaurants, and bars |
| Ha Long Bay Pros | Ha Long Bay Cons |
| UNESCO World Heritage site | Overnight cruises start and end around midday, so you have only 24 hours to enjoy Halong Bay |
| Cruise through stunning scenery | Sites can be overcrowded even in the low season |
| Easy access from Hanoi with transfers included in cruise packages | Overtourism |
| Sleep on board the cruise boat | Polluted water |
| Sunrise and sunset on Halong Bay | Travelling with a large group |
| All-inclusive cruise package that includes meals, accommodation and activities | Extra charge for drinks on board the cruise boat |
| Guided tours of the main sites included | Everything is organised and pre-planned by the tour company |
| Everything is organised and pre-planned by the tour company | |
| Option to stay in Halong City and take a day cruise to Ha Long Bay |
Cat Ba vs Ha Long Bay: Best Things to Do
In the comparison, Cat Ba vs Halong Bay, Cat Ba wins. The island is largely a National Park and offers a wider range of activities from adventure sports to beautiful beaches and scenic cruises.
I stayed for 3 days on Cat Ba Island and enjoyed hiking, kayaking and exploring. Here are some of the best things to do on Cat Ba Island.
- A Day cruise to Lan Ha Bay & Ha Long Bay was my favourite way to see the Ha Long Bay area. Lan Ha Bay is stunning! It’s also cleaner and quieter than Ha Long Bay, and the kayaking was the best in the area.
- Lan Ha Bay was my favourite place to kayak, and I liked it better than kayaking in Ha Long Bay or Bai Tu Long Bay. In Lan Ha Bay we paddled through four flooded sea caves, swam from the cruise boat in a secluded cove and passed many pristine, untouched beaches.
- The hike to the Cannon Fort is another fun thing to do on Cat Ba Island. The Cannon Fort has a strategic position at the top of the mountain and an amazing view over the bay and islands. It’s around 2 kilometres from Cat Ba Town and is a lovely place to be at sunset.
- Hiking in the Cat Ba National Park is another highlight. I walked up the mountain through the lush jungle to the lookout points at the top of Ngu Lam Peak, the highest mountain on Cat Ba Island. The 2-kilometre (1.2-mile) hike took just over 2 hours.
- A longer walk through the jungle to the Viet Hai Village is a more challenging hike, 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) long and takes around 4 hours.
- Explore the Trung Trang Cave, a series of caverns and tunnels that run for around 1 kilometre inside the mountain on Cat Ba Island. The caves were very quiet when I was there, but they’re well-lit, with a paved walkway that’s easy to navigate. The cave entrance is around a kilometre from the National Park entrance and the start of the Ngu Lam Peak trail.
TIP: Buy a combined ticket and visit Trung Trang Cave and hike in the National Park on the same day,
- The Hospital Cave is interesting to visit. It’s a natural cavern with 17 rooms, used to hide and treat wounded soldiers during the war with America.
- Cat Ba Island has many lovely beaches and islets within easy reach. Cat Ba Town has several beaches and there are many more around the island. It’s possible to kayak to beautiful beaches on Freedom Island and Vanboi Island.
- Catching the public ferry from Cat Ba Island to Halong City is another highlight of visiting Cat Ba. The scenery is stunning at the Gia Luan ferry port, and the beautiful landscape continues on the hour-long trip as the ferry passes through Halong Bay on the way to Halong City.
Best Things to Do in Ha Long Bay
- Take a cruise to Ha Long Bay, Lan Ha Bay or Bai Tu Long Bay
- Cruise activities include visiting viewpoints, limestone caves, kayaking, squid fishing, Tai Chi and a cooking class.
- Visit the Halong City Night Market
- Halong City Beaches
- Stay in a luxury hotel or villa in Halong City
Is Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay better? I think the experience is quite different but Cat Ba Island wins because there’s so much more to do. You can also see halong Bay from cat Ba Island on a cruise or by catching the ferry to Halong City.
Halong City is a gateway to Halong Bay and the cruise ports are located there. There’s a selection of cheap luxury hotels in Halong City that make it worth satying for a night or two.
Where to Eat in Cat Ba Town
There are many restaurants and cafes in cat Ba Town, Here are a couple that I can recommend:
Ladybird Cafeteria, a cute colourful café with retro décor and a mix of Asian and Western food
Quiri Pub Cocktail & Restaurant is family-owned and serves local food with a smile.
Where to Stay on Cat Ba Island
Cat Ba Island has a range of accommodation options for all budgets. Unfortunately, I can’t recommend the hotel I chose as it was overpriced and misrepresented online. But there are lots of options in Cat Ba Town. Here are a few:
Mid-Range: Quiri Hotel has a great location by the lake on the outskirts of town. There’s a popular restaurant and bar downstairs and it’s a short walk to the beach and the town centre.
The Cat Ba Wonder Hotel is comfortable and clean with a central location, a 5-minute walk to everything. This hotel gets exceptional reviews for its friendly service.
Upper Mid-range: The May Legend Cat Ba is a 4-star resort with a superb location next to the beach not far from the Cannon Fort. The rooms are clean and spacious and the views are stunning.
TIP: The best place to change money on Cat Ba Island is the “Golden Shop”. It’s a shop that sells Gold jewellery across the road from the market and they give the best exchange rate in town.
Cat Ba Island vs Halong Bay: How to Get There
If you’re tossing up between Halong Bay or Cat Ba Island, how to get there is worth considering. Both Cat Ba Island and Halong City are around 3 hours from Hanoi.
Cat Ba Island is a bit harder to reach than Halong City and the only access is by boat or ferry.
The Halong Bay cruise packages make the trip to Halong Bay exceptionally easy. A hotel pickup in Hanoi and a transfer by bus to the cruise port in Halong City are often included.
TIP: Transport to and from Ninh Binh by bus or private car can also be arranged.
Haiphong is the closest city to Cat Ba Island and can be reached by air, bus and train. From Haiphong, it’s a taxi ride to the Pier and a 30-minute ferry trip to Cat Ba Island. From there, it’s another 30 minutes by car or bus to Cat Ba Town.
How I got to Cat Ba Island from Haiphong
I flew to Haiphong Airport on a domestic Vietjet flight from Danang ( Hoi An) in Central Vietnam and caught a taxi to the ferry port. It took around half an hour to get to Got Pier, where the local ferries leave every 30 minutes. While I was waiting, I was approached by a tout and was able to join a tourist bus bound for Cat Ba Town.
Overall, this was a pretty expensive trip, and it would have been better and much cheaper to get a taxi from the airport to the bus station in Haiphong and a combined bus-ferry-bus ticket to Cat Ba Town.
Arriving on Cat Ba Island, the ferry port is pretty remote. It’s a long way from Cat Ba Town (30 minutes), and there’s no Grab on the island.
The easiest way to get to Cat Ba Island from Hanoi, Ninh Binh or Haiphong is to book a through ticket that includes the bus and ferry to Cat Ba Town. Failing that, take a bus from Hanoi to the Haiphong bus station, where you can get a combined bus and ferry ticket to Cat Ba Island.
You could also catch a train from Hanoi to Haiphong (2 hours), a taxi to the bus station in Haiphong and a bus/ferry ticket through to Cat Ba Town.
Or go straight to the Got Port and take a ferry to Cai Vieng on Cat Ba Island and a taxi or bus to Cat Ba Town.
TIP: I booked my Vietnam travel tickets online with 12Go Asia. I found this service convenient and reliable for purchasing bus, train, ferry and plane tickets throughout Vietnam and Southeast Asia.
Ha Long Bay or Bai Tu Long Bay?
Should you take a cruise to Halong Bay or Bai Tu Long Bay? I suggest skipping Ha Long Bay and going to Bai Tu Long Bay instead.
I enjoyed a mid-range overnight cruise to Bai Tu Long Bay with Renea Cruises. My cruise went via Halong Bay to Bai Tu Long Bay so you won’t miss out.
On my Bai Tu Long Bay cruise, the traditional wooden junk boat and the activities were very similar to the Ha Long Bay cruise I did on my last trip to Vietnam. The scenery was just as beautiful, but I saw far fewer boats on the water and anchored overnight, and less pollution than Halong Bay.
While there were still too many people on the tiny island visiting the Thien Canh Son Cave, Bai Tu Long Bay was a quieter and more pleasant experience than Halong Bay. The Renea cruise included kayaking around the Cong Do and Cap La Islands, swimming at a secluded beach, morning Tai Chi, squid fishing and a cooking class.
But if you’re not keen on an overnight cruise, consider staying a few days on Cat Ba Island or in Halong City and taking a day trip to explore beautiful Lan Ha Bay. This is the best option for independent travellers on a budget.
Cat Ba Island or Halong City?
If you’re tossing up between Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay, Cat Ba has more to do, and it’s a good place to stay if you have several days to spend in the area.
The main attraction in Ha Long City is Ha Long Bay, and while there’s a wide choice of cheap luxury accommodation, most people pass through Halong City and head directly to the cruise boats.
Where to stay in Halong City
After spending a few days on Cat Ba Island, I stayed overnight in Halong City before my Bai Tu Long Bay Cruise and I can recommend DeLaSea Halong.
Luxury: DeLaSea Halong has 5-star facilities and a central location opposite a night market and a short walk from the beach. I loved staying here and it was substantially cheaper than the accommodation in Cat Ba Town.
I was upgraded to a room with a superb view over Halong Bay, and I enjoyed the pool, the spa and the excellent food and service. DeLaSea Halong is a good hotel choice in Halong City.
But there are lots of options…
The Grand Fleuve Boutique is a 4-star hotel that is closer to the Sunworld cruise port and theme park and gets exceptional reviews.
But Halong City is quiet, empty and a bit soulless. There’s not much in the city besides the Halong Bay cruise ports, a new theme park and a glut of luxury hotels and villas.
I wouldn’t recommend spending much time there, but it was a great stop-over before my cruise.
Final Thoughts: Which is Better, Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay?
Choosing between Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay often comes down to what you want to see and do.
In the comparison, Cat Ba Island vs Halong Bay, Cat Ba Island wins for me. A gateway to lovely Lan Ha Bay, Cat Ba is the perfect place to explore the Ha Long Bay area and enjoy some of the most spectacular coastal scenery in the world.
Lan Ha Bay is stunning with hundreds of islets, secluded beaches and clean, clear water. Even though the construction going on throughout Cat Ba Town is ugly and unpleasant, the island is quite big and has enough to offer that it’s still a better option than crowded Halong Bay.
Cat Ba Island has accommodation for all budgets and when the building works finish there’ll be even more choice of places to stay. There are many Cat Ba cruises and tours to choose from, and the island has all the facilities that tourists need.
Both Cat Ba and Ha Long Bay get pretty crowded in the high season and accommodation can be overpriced on the island so choose a good time to visit Vietnam and book ahead.
But if you have limited time, an overnight cruise from Hanoi to Bai Tu Long Bay or Lan Ha Bay is the best way to see the stunning Ha Long Bay UNESCO World Heritage area.
Both options, Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay, can provide a memorable vacation and, in the end, whether you choose Cat Ba Island or Halong Bay, you will have an incredible experience.
Hue, Phong Nha and Ninh Binh are also a wonderful addition to a trip to Vietnam and both are recognised by UNESCO.
You might also enjoy…
The Perfect 3 Day Hanoi itinerary
Halong Bay Overnight Cruise: What to Expect & is it Worth it?
The Perfect 3 Weeks in Vietnam Itinerary
North Vietnam in 2 weeks – A Trip You’ll Love
An Exciting South Vietnam Travel Itinerary 10 Days
How to Visit Stunning Ha Long Bay in Vietnam
Solo Travel in Vietnam – What You Need to Know
Best & Worst Time to Visit Vietnam
The Best Time to Visit Cambodia and Vietnam
The Ultimate Ninh Binh Travel Guide: Best Things to See in Ninh Binh
Beautiful Vietnam: Is Phong Nha-Ke Bang Worth Visiting?
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