Sharing some great and useful Cat Ba travel tips specifically for families with young children planning a trip to Cat Ba this summer:
1. Should you choose a 2-day/1-night or 3-day/2-night Cat Ba trip for families with young children?
Although Cat Ba Island isn’t too far from Hanoi (only about 3.5-4 hours away), my advice is to allocate 3 days and 2 nights for your family trip instead of going one day and returning the next, so that the children have time to rest. If your family can only arrange a 2-day/1-night trip to Cat Ba, you should choose to go at the beginning or middle of the week (Sunday to Thursday). Also, going at the beginning or middle of the week means cheaper hotel rooms and better service compared to the busy weekends.
Choose a 3-day, 2-night trip to Cat Ba to have time to relax and experience the Lan Ha Bay tour.
On weekends (Friday – Sunday), the volume of people and vehicles heading to Cat Ba is very high, often causing traffic jams and ferry delays. Although the travel time from Hanoi to Cat Ba under favorable conditions is only 3.5-4 hours, if there are ferry delays, it can take an additional 3-4 hours (or even more). Imagine if you only have 2 days and 1 night, go on a weekend, and there’s a ferry delay: you leave Hanoi at 8 am but don’t arrive at your hotel until the afternoon. The next day, you haven’t had time to visit Lan Ha Bay or explore the most interesting places in Cat Ba before you have to rush back early for fear of getting stuck in a ferry delay like the first day. Therefore, most of your time will be spent traveling instead of resting, relaxing, and sightseeing. Going like that is nothing short of torture; it’s exhausting and hard on the children.
2. What transportation options are best for families with young children traveling to Cat Ba?
As mentioned above, ferry congestion is the biggest concern for tourists visiting Cat Ba. This causes considerable inconvenience and negatively impacts the mood of visitors. In my previous article, I shared 4 ways to get to Cat Ba quickly and avoid ferry congestion from Hanoi and a guide to traveling from Hai Phong to Cat Ba quickly and economically. Readers can find the most convenient transportation option for themselves.
Choose the right mode of transportation to avoid ferry congestion.
For families with young children departing from Hanoi, if the group is large, I recommend booking a private 16-seater van for pick-up and drop-off to save time and effort for the children. Currently, the price for a private 16-seater van from Hanoi to Cat Ba for 2 days and 1 night is 7 million VND, and for 3 days and 2 nights is 7.5 million VND. To avoid ferry congestion, the rental company will arrange two 16-seater vans: one will pick up the group from their home in Hanoi and take them to Dong Bai ferry terminal. The group will buy ferry tickets and walk onto the ferry with their luggage (ferry ticket is 12,000 VND/ticket) or take the Cat Ba cable car (60,000 VND/ticket/one way). You can book cable car tickets in advance via hotline: 0967165966 to save time. On the other side of the island, a private 16-seater van will pick up the group and take them back to their hotel in Cat Ba. The return trip will be similar.
If you don’t want to book a private car, you can book a Cat Ba car + cable car combo departing from Hanoi to save costs.
If you are traveling by private car and must take a ferry, you should check the latest Dong Bai ferry schedule and ticket prices beforehand to plan your travel time accordingly, or take the Tuan Chau – Cat Ba ferry (the advantage of the Tuan Chau – Cat Ba ferry is that it doesn’t experience congestion like the Dong Bai ferry. However, the travel time is quite long (about 1 hour) and the ticket price is quite high). You can refer to the latest Tuan Chau – Cat Ba ferry schedule and ticket prices for details.
The Dong Bai Ferry Terminal has been newly renovated and is spacious and modern.
Tourists travel to Cat Ba Island by cable car.
Another suitable option is to book a round-trip limousine from Hanoi to Cat Ba. Besides the advantages of quality and convenient services, limousines have a limited number of seats (11 or 26 seats), so the number of passengers is not as crowded as other vehicles, thus avoiding a cramped or stuffy feeling. This is also a popular choice for tourists due to its safety in the current pandemic situation. You can visit Hanoi – Cat Ba Limousine to book tickets in advance to avoid the situation of the vehicle being fully booked before peak season or having to travel at undesirable times.
- Tourists departing from Ninh Binh/Nam Dinh/Thai Binh, please choose Limousine to Cat Ba departing from Ninh Binh – Nam Dinh – Thai Binh.
3. Tips for booking Cat Ba hotels for families with young children.
The most important thing for families when choosing a hotel is a convenient location and space for children to play. Parents should book hotels in central tourist areas of Cat Ba, such as on 1/4 Street, Nui Ngoc Street, or Tung Dinh Street, for easy access to sightseeing. Family rooms (with two double beds) are recommended for comfort. If the family needs a spacious and quiet environment for children to play and relax, a homestay is a good option. Most homestays in Cat Ba are located within the Cat Ba National Park, 5-7 km from the town. While not as convenient for travel, they offer a greener, closer-to-nature environment and gardens for children to play in. (See Top 5 Beautiful and Amazing Homestays in Cat Ba with Stunning Views)
Choose a hotel with spacious rooms and a convenient central location.
When booking, be sure to ask about check-in and check-out times. Most hotels in Cat Ba have a check-in time of 2:00 PM and a check-out time of 12:00 PM. However, you can ask the hotel for an earlier check-in or later check-out time if your room is still available (the hotel may charge an extra fee, so you should ask beforehand).
4. Tips for Choosing a Suitable Lan Ha Bay Tour for Families with Young Children
In a previous issue, I wrote a comprehensive and detailed article titled “Review of Lan Ha Bay Tours” and “Top 5 Most Beautiful Cruises in Cat Ba for Visiting Lan Ha Bay.” You can refer to it to decide whether or not to book a Lan Ha Bay tour.
Kayaking in Lan Ha Bay offers many exciting experiences for children.
However, depending on the weather conditions on that day, parents should consider whether to choose a one-day or half-day Lan Ha Bay tour. A one-day tour takes you to the furthest points of Lan Ha Bay. A half-day tour is shorter (3.5 hours) and takes place in the afternoon. The half-day tour mainly focuses on the core area of Lan Ha Bay, offering activities such as swimming, kayaking, banana boat racing, and enjoying a sunset party on the cruise ship. If there are strong southerly winds, rough seas, and high waves, a one-day tour can be quite tiring and prone to seasickness for young children and women. If you still decide to take a one-day Lan Ha Bay tour, you should choose a VIP cruise instead of a regular wooden boat tour so that your children have more space and privacy to rest. You can refer to the tour prices and itineraries for a one-day Lan Ha Bay tour.
- For those wishing to take a half-day tour, please choose the Lan Ha Bay Half-Day Tour – Morning Departure or the Lan Ha Bay Half-Day Tour – Afternoon Departure.
If you prefer not to travel independently, you can book the Cat Ba 2 Days 1 Night Tour – Hotel Accommodation, the Cat Ba 2 Days 1 Night Tour – Cruise Accommodation, or the 3 Days 2 Nights Cat Ba Tour organized daily by Bee Lucky Homestay Travel.
For those wishing to stay in a 5-star hotel on Cat Ba Island, you can choose the Flamingo Cat Ba Combo or the Mgallery Cat Ba Combo.
One of the most famous tourist attractions in Lan Ha Bay is Monkey Island. Previously known locally as Cat Dua Island, it was renamed Monkey Island after becoming a wildlife conservation area under the management of Cat Ba National Park. This is a favorite destination for tourists visiting Cat Ba Island because, in addition to observing and playing with the monkeys, visitors can relax in the crystal-clear waters of the island’s pristine natural beaches or go trekking to enjoy panoramic views of Lan Ha Bay from above.
