Cat Ba
On this page
Cat Ba sits at the south-western end of the same limestone archipelago as Ha Long Bay. It earns a page here for one practical reason: it is how you see that landscape without booking a cabin on a boat.
Everything on the site about the island is collected here.
Bus, boat, or the cable car?
Bus to the water, then across. A bus from Hanoi's Old Quarter reaches Cat Hai in about two and a half hours. The crossing from Got pier takes another 20 to 30 minutes by ferry or speedboat.
Since April 2024 there is a third option on that last leg: a cable car near Dong Bai port, about ten minutes across. It runs from the same Cat Hai side the buses arrive at, so it slots into the same journey.
High-speed ferries also leave from Ben Binh in central Hai Phong. That route suits anyone already on that side of the country rather than coming from Hanoi.
How big is the island?
About 285 square kilometres, the largest in the Ha Long archipelago, and roughly half of it is national park. UNESCO extended the Ha Long Bay listing to take in the Cat Ba archipelago in 2023, which is why some sources count 8 World Heritage sites in Vietnam and others 9.
Cat Ba town sits on the south coast. The park and the quiet bays are north and east of it.
What is Lan Ha Bay?
The same karst, on Cat Ba's side, administered separately and far less visited. Cruises of one, two or three days leave from Cat Ba town. Day trips take in kayaking, snorkelling and a stop at a floating fishing village.
Our Ha Long Bay page sets out why that distinction matters: three bays are sold under one name, and the crowding differs sharply between them. Lan Ha is the quiet end of it, and staying here is the cheapest way to reach it.
Cruise or island?
The honest answer depends on which two hours you want. A cruise buys dusk and first light on the water, before the fleet moves, and nothing on land replaces those.
The island buys everything else: a room that does not rock, a choice of boats each morning, the national park. It also buys the freedom to change the plan when the weather turns, which in the north it does.
Where should you book a room?
Not on the seafront. Much of Cat Ba town's waterfront is a construction zone, and a room facing it is a room facing that. Hung Son and the quieter streets behind the front are unaffected.
Rooms are cheap by any standard: roughly 5 to 30 US dollars a night. The saving against a mid-range cruise berth is most of the argument for the island.
Which street, and whether the beaches or Viet Hai suit you better than the town, is the subject of where to stay on Cat Ba.
Dry season, and what the weather can still do
October to April, the dry half of the northern year, and the same window that governs the bay. Summer is hot and hazy, and it is when storms cancel sailings. A day boat argues with weather no better than a cruise does.
October to December tends to give the clearest air before winter haze settles. Our region-by-region calendar covers how the north's year runs against the rest of the country.
The one advantage the island keeps in bad weather is that you are not stuck on a boat. A cancelled sailing costs you a day of the plan rather than the night you paid for, which is a smaller loss.
What else is on it?
A national park, and it is not a token one. The park covers a large share of the island and sits inside a UNESCO biosphere reserve, which the national parks guide sets against the rest of the country's. Trekking, limestone climbing and beaches are all within reach of the town.
Boat trips aside, the island rewards a day on land more than most visitors expect. The park road climbs into forest within twenty minutes of the town. The same limestone that makes the bay photogenic makes the cliffs climbable, and this has been a climbing destination for two decades.
What to do with those days, in what order, is things to do on Cat Ba.
Two nights is the sensible length. On our week in the north Cat Ba is the alternative to an overnight cruise for anyone who would rather sleep on land.
The boats leave from Hai Phong, which almost everyone crosses without stopping. It is worth an evening for the crab noodles alone.
FAQ
How do you get from Hanoi to Cat Ba?
Bus and then water. A bus from the Old Quarter reaches Cat Hai in about two and a half hours, and from Got pier a ferry or speedboat takes 20 to 30 minutes. Since April 2024 a cable car does the same crossing in about ten minutes.
Is Cat Ba better than a Ha Long Bay cruise?
Different rather than better. Cat Ba lets you sleep on land and sail Lan Ha Bay by day, which carries the same limestone as Ha Long with far fewer boats. A cruise gives you the bay at dusk and at first light, which a day boat cannot.
What is Lan Ha Bay?
The bay on Cat Ba's side of the same archipelago, administered separately from Ha Long and much less visited. Cruises of one, two or three days run from Cat Ba town, with kayaking, snorkelling and a stop at a floating fishing village.
Where should you stay on Cat Ba?
Away from the waterfront. Rooms run about 5 to 30 US dollars a night, and much of the seafront is a construction zone — the Hung Son area and the quieter streets of Cat Ba town avoid it.
Is there anything to do besides boats?
Cat Ba National Park covers a large part of the island and sits inside a UNESCO biosphere reserve. There is trekking, climbing on the limestone, and beaches at the edge of town, none of which needs a boat booking.
