Indochina Junk

The first charter company with access to the lesser-traveled Bai Tu Long Bay, Indochina Junk offers an intimate Halong Bay experience on their smaller, traditional junk boats.

• The access to Bai Tu Long Bay, which less than 40 boats are able to access (for comparison, 3,000 boats access the neighboring Halong Bay)
• Drifting past limestone karsts (landforms) in the morning with a cup of Vietnamese coffee

UNESCO World Natural Heritage site Halong Bay, with its unique topography and thousands of limestone karsts that jut dramatically out of the water, is a bucket-list destination for most travelers heading to Vietnam. Located in the Quang Ninh province in the northeast of Vietnam, the bay covers nearly 600 square miles and is made up of almost 2,000 islands. The most concentrated areas of islands are Halong Bay center and Bai Tu Long Bay. The former is highly touristed, with more than 3,000 boats touring it daily. In response to this overcrowding and the lack of luxury boats servicing the bay, Indochina Junk launched a fleet of small, high-quality traditional junks to explore the area of neighboring Bai Tu Long Bay, which sees much less traffic.

Indochina Junk operates 14 boats, ranging from the one-bedroom L’Amour junk to the 24-cabin Dragon Legend ships, as well as two-, three-, five- and eleven-cabin boats. Styled with a traditional aesthetic, all of the boats come complete with outdoor decks, a full staff and a culinary team that serves multi-course lunches and dinners.

The boat trips offered range from five-hour tours to three-night cruises and include various scheduled activities, including kayaking around the karsts, visiting the Thien Canh Son cave, and exploring Vang Vieng fishing village, where guests are rowed around on bamboo boats by the local people to visit their fish and pearl farms. While Bai Tu Long Bay is less touristy than Halong Bay, all the Indochina Junk boats follow the same itinerary, so there will be a handful of boats touring the same areas at the same time.

Due to the rise of tourism and subsequent waste production in the region, Indochina Junk is focused on increasing sustainability in the area through their “For a Green Halong Bay” program, which was launched in 2007 and runs projects to collect waste throughout the bay, build new floating schools for the local communities and replant mangrove forests. Guests who wish to can partake in these community service activities.

Travelers that want to experience Halong Bay in the most private and luxurious way. Keep in mind that this experience is not for everyone, as it is a highly touristed area and the itinerary may feel contrived to some. Contact the Indagare Bookings Team for advice on whether the experience is right for you.

The closest gateway city to Halong Bay is Hanoi. From Hanoi, the best way to reach your destination is to drive four hours to Hon Gai International harbor, or (preferably and weather-permitting), take a 35-minute seaplane flight and then drive 40 minutes to the port.