One of the world heritage site in Vietnam, Ha Long bay, is one of the beautiful places on earth. There are thousands of limestone karsts and isles which surround with water in the bay.  Ha Long Bay is located in the Gulf of Tonkin in the northeast coast of Vietnam. This side is considered as the eight natural wonders of the world. Many travellers and backpackers add the Ha Long Bay in their itinerary in the Southeast Asia.

The history

The local people believe in one story about the formation of Ha Long Bay. According to the story, earlier when Vietnam started to develop as a country; they had to fight against colonizer and invaders. To help Vietnamese defend the country, the Gods send a family of dragons. The pack of dragon later become the protectors of the country. Then, the family of dragon spit out jewels and jade. These jewels turned out became islands in the bay and formed a huge wall to protects the land from the invaders. Under the magic spell, numbers of huge rock mountain emerge from the sea to protects the country. After winning the battle, the family of dragon decided to stay in the bay to protects the land and protects the peace on earth. The great island in the bay then becomes the place of the mother dragon is called Ha Long. The dragon children lies is called Bai Tu Long Island and the place where the children dragon rests the tail is called Bah Long Vy Island.

In general, the bay consists of some 1.600 limestones islands which overgrow with thick jungle vegetation. There are also caves in the several large islands; the three large chambers is named cave Grotte de Merveilles by the French tourists in the 19th century. In the cave, there are several large stalactites and stalagmites. Some of Vietnamese are living in the two bigger island, Cat Ba and Tuan Chau, as well as tourists facilities such as beaches and small hotels. Tourists can also visit beautiful beaches in the smaller islands. The local people of Ha Long Bay are living in the floating houses and divide into four fishing village.

To Visit Ha Long Bay

To visit Ha Long Bay, travellers can join in a tour group. There are lots of tour boat and cruises in various package and prices. The difference between one and another is the more expensive the better facilities they provide such as better boat and meals. Travellers can choose according to the budget condition. The package is different from two days or three days tour. generally, in a budget tour is full with the younger travellers while the midrange tour is full with couples and older travellers. However, do not neglect the safety over cheap price. Whatever the cruise package and price, the most important thing is to capture the beauty of the Ha Long Bay scenery.

During February to April, the weather is cool and drizzly while thick fog can make the visibility low. Around May to September usually the tropical storms is quite often and during year-end, it is possible to change the cruise schedule due to the weather condition.

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