15 Best Things to Do in Nong Khiaw, Laos (2024)
April 28, 2024
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How to get to Cat Ba Island from Hanoi
Cat Ba island is a beautiful destination in Vietnam and it is the perfect place to base yourself for a few days in the area if you want to explore the gorgeous scenery of Halong Bay and Han La Bay at a slow pace.
With its limestone mountains, lovely beaches, and lush jungle, Cat Ba will surely steal your heart. There are many things to do on the island, including visiting the Cat Ba National Park, snorkeling, and caving.
If you’re a conscious traveler, consider not staying in the touristic center of the island but opt to stay in a homestay in an authentic village. The atmosphere in the villages is captivating. I stayed in Xuan Dam and fell completely in love with this charming village.
In this post, I’ll let you in about the different ways to get from Hanoi to Cat Ba island. After having spent a few days in the capital, mostly cruising around the city and sampling delicious food at the many amazing vegan restaurants in Hanoi, it was time for another adventure.
I’ll first explain all the ways that you can get from Hanoi to Cat Ba island. Afterward, I’ll tell you what option I picked and what my experience was getting from Hanoi to Cat by my chosen mode of transportation.
Remember, Cat Ba is an island, so this route involves you taking a boat as well. Here we go!
→ Also read: How to Get From Hanoi Airport to The Old Quarter
Getting to Cat Ba island from Hanoi by private car is the most comfortable way but also the most expensive option unless you rent a car and do the drive yourself.
You can book a private car with a driver online and you can ask the driver exactly where to pick you up in Hanoi and where to drop you off on Cat Ba island. This is a very convenient option if you are coming from Noi Bai International Airport and want to get straight to Cat Ba island.
A company that offers private cars with a driver for the ride from Hanoi to Cat Ba is Saigon DMC. During the booking process, you can enter your preferred pick-up location and where you want the car to drop you off. It’s also possible to make stops along the way if this is something you would like.
Traveling to Cat Ba from Hanoi by bus is the most convenient option for travelers on a budget. There are many companies plying this route and both large tourist busses and limousine vans are options to choose from. It takes around three hours to travel by bus from Hanoi to Cat Ba.
Good Morning Cat Ba and Cat Ba Express are the most reputable bus companies offering this bus ride to Cat Ba. Busses leave every day starting from 7 A.M. until 3 P.M. While booking with some companies will require you to get to the bus departure location yourself, others, like Good morning Cat Ba, will offer a pick-up service if you book more than 24 hours in advance.
If you book a bus ticket at your accommodation in Hanoi, you will mostly have to pay an additional fee for the pick-up.
Getting from Hanoi to Cat Ba island by train will be a little more tricky and is less convenient than traveling by bus and will take a little more. Trains are, however, my favorite means of transport, and if the circumstances allow it I will always prefer a train instead of taking a bus.
From Hanoi, make your way to Hanoi to Hanoi Railway station, Gia Lam Railway station, or Long Bien Railway station. There are four daily departures to Hai Phong city and you can check out the timetables and departure stations at BAOLAU. A one-way ticket costs only 85.000 VND.
The train will take you to Hai Phong train station in two and a half hours. From the train station, you’ll have to make your way to Pha Binh port. You can opt to walk to the port since it’s only two kilometers away or you can take a taxi.
From Pha Dinh, several speed boats leave the dock daily to Cat Ba. In Cat Ba, they will drop you off in the center of Cat Ba town directly. Compared to taking the bus, this can be an advantage or a disadvantage. If you are staying in Xuan Dam, for instance, you’ll have to take a taxi to get to the village, which is 10 kilometers from Cat Ba town.
The busses from Hanoi, stop by the village of Xuan Dam and you can ask them to drop you off there.
Another way to get from Hanoi to Cat Ba is by motorbike. A lot of travelers cross Vietnam from the south to the north by motorbike and it surely is possible to get to Cat Ba by motorbike.
With a motorbike, you’ll have three options:
Regarding your motorbike: From what I have heard, it’s possible to take your motorbike on any boat for an extra fee. On the other hand, you can also park it at the dock and collect it when you get back from Cat Ba island.
On the island, it is convenient though to have a motorbike to get around. Sights and attractions are relatively far from one another and it’s not handy to visit them on foot. However, we visited most sights by walking and hitch-hiking and had an enjoyable experience.
There are ample tour packages that include a visit to Cat Ba island. It’s up to you to decide if you actually want to visit Cat Ba island and Cat Ba National Park, or alternatively if you will be satisfied with a cruise of Lan Ha Bay. Lan Ha Bay has the same dramatic features as Halong Bay but is much quieter than its popular sister.
Here are a few tours that include Cat Ba island:
2-day Lan Ha Bay and Cat Ba National Park with hiking: This tour includes both visiting the island and the national Park on day one and a cruise of La Ha Bay on the second day. You will spend the night in an eco-lodge on Cat Ba. This might not be the tour for you if wish to spend the night on a boat.
3-day Cat Ba island stay, Lan Ha Bay visit, and hiking: If I would need to pick a tour from all the options out there, it would be this one. This is a similar tour but you will stay on the island for two nights instead of one and you will spend them in an authentic homestay instead of an eco-lodge. There are some incredible homestays on the island and by staying here, your money funnels right back into the local community.
3-day Lan Ha Bay Luxury Cruise + Viet Hai cycle: If you like to go on a cruise, I would recommend this one. Not only does it offers a cruise experience in the bay but it also covers cycling in Viet Hai village, a beautiful village hidden inside Cat Ba National Park.
Here are the websites I personally use whenever I travel to Vietnam:
Booking.com: For the best cheap guesthouses, homestays or small hotels
Hostelworld: To find the best hostels located in the cities
Homestay: For unique immersive homestays in the cities as well as in the Vietnamese countryside
12GO and Bookaway: The best transport websites for long-distance buses and train travel in Vietnam
GRAB: for taxi rides in cities and nearby attractions
Skyscanner: For affordable flights to Vietnam
Eatwith: Dine with locals inside their home for an immersive foodie experience
Withlocals: Experience cities in Vietnam with local people that show you around. This is a good idea if you want to stray off the beaten path!
Viator and Get Your Guide: For (vegan) food tours, street food tours, and tours in general
Get your Visa for Vietnam online through the Evisa website
If you’re looking for travel insurance, the one with the best benefits online is without a doubt Heymondo! It’s very easy to ask for a quote on the website and if you book with this link you’ll get 5% off!
Get access to mobile data straight away when entering the country with a Vietnam E-sim or an Asialink E-sim when traveling through multiple countries.
How to reach Cat Ba island
After considering all the options carefully, and taking into account that I was traveling on a budget, I opted to get from Hanoi to Cat Ba by bus.
Comparing prices this was the cheapest option and, since the bus ride was not that long, I figured this was more convenient than taking the train + transfer + boat + a taxi to get to the village I wanted to get to.
I booked my tickets through 12GoAsia and opted to go with Good Morning Cat Ba. As I was late to book my tickets, this company’s meeting point was close to my accommodation in the Old Quarter of Hanoi and easy to get to. However, if you book with them at least 24 hours prior to the departure, they offer a pick-up at your hotel (in the Old Quarter) that’s included in the price.
On the day itself, the checking of my ticket went smoothly and the bus was a brand-new limousine bus. After leaving Hanoi the busboy gave us some information about the trip and handed everyone a free bottle of water.
After two hours, we arrived at the Got boat terminal on Cat Hai island where we needed to wait for half an hour until the boat would pick us up. At this point, the busboy also asked for everyone’s hotel name. Everyone would be dropped off at the door of their accommodation.
The boat ride only took ten minutes and after arriving on Cat Ba island we were transferred to another bus waiting for us at the pier. My stop was the first on the list and after 15 minutes I got dropped off at the main road near Xuan Dam village. The streets of Xuan Dam were too narrow for the bus to drive all the way to the accommodation, so this was the best solution.
After a 300-meter walk, I reached my accommodation in Xuan Dam.
→ Also read: Bich Dong Pagoda in Tam Coc: A Travelers’ Guide
Spring homestay, Cat Ba
If I have to be honest: I didn’t really like Cat Ba town. Reading Lonely Planet and other blog articles, you will come to the conclusion that I’m not the only one! The town is covered with ugly high-rise buildings and it lacks charm.
For a more authentic experience, I highly suggest staying in one of the local villages. I stayed in Xuan Dam village and loved every bit of my stay. Do note that there are no restaurants in Xuan Dam so you’ll need a motorbike or a bicycle to get to Cat Ba town for food. The homestays do offer lunch and dinner.
Xuan Dam:
Viet Hai:
Cat Ba town:
Lan Ha Bay, Vietnam
There are plenty of things to do in Cat Ba like swimming, snorkeling, kayaking, and hiking in the beautiful mountains.
For more comprehensive information, check out my complete travel guide to Cat Ba National Park.
ENJOY!
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Hi! I am Annelies and this is Travelers & Dreamers, a blog about conscious travel which means traveling in a more mindful way, with a positive impact on the world and yourself!
On this website, I cover different topics like slow travel, plant-based food guides, responsible travel, sustainable packing, eco-travel, and more!
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