The 15 Best Boat Trips in Vietnam

1.Ha Long Bay Day Cruise – Swimming, Meal, Kayaking

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 7,415 reviews · from $41Our pick

Escape Hanoi for a full day on Ha Long Bay. Cruise among limestone islands, visit Sung Sot Cave, kayak or take a bamboo boat through Luon Cave, swim or hike on Titop Island, and enjoy lunch plus a sunset snack. Guides such as Sunny, Alex, Ken, and Tom add humor and local insight.

“My partner and I had a great time! Our guide, Sunny was amazing! He gave us lots of informations about the Vietnamese culture, which we loved. The cruise was really fun! The view is amazing and all the activities were really cool. The only thing which wasn’t as amazing was the food on the cruise… But other than that, I would highly recommend it! Thank you, Sunny!”

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2.Basket Boat Ride in the Coconut Forest

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 4,956 reviews · 50 minutes - 3 hours · from $3Best value

You’ll spend about 50 minutes in a two-person basket boat with an English, Vietnamese, or Chinese-speaking guide. Expect coconut-lined waterways, crab fishing, net casting, photos, and optional boat spinning. Early morning slots are quieter, while hotel pickup can stretch the outing to several hours.

“Quick smooth pickup/return from our hotel, and trip lasted about 2 hours in total. We had a really fun time in the basket boat ride in Coconut Forest - lots of fun photo stops from our guide, who also videoed our boat spinning too (the spinning itself was an extra 150,000vnd for 2 people, which was well worth it) They also had a professional photographer stationed on the water, and it was only 100,000VND for all the digital photos! Really recommend trip for anyone in Hoi an.”

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3.Ninh Binh Full-Day Tour from Hanoi to Hoa Lu, Tam Coc & Mua Cave Via Boat & Bike

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 4,384 reviews · from $33Top rated

Travel from Hanoi to Ninh Binh by air-conditioned bus for Hoa Lu’s royal temples, a 1.5-hour Tam Coc bamboo boat ride, a buffet lunch, and a short village bike ride. Finish with nearly 500 steps at Mua Cave. Guides such as Sunny, Linh, and Viet are known for lively storytelling.

“Scenery is beautiful but the tour was painful. Typical tourist trap bus stop followed by half an hour of being lectured about tips which was also brought back up at the end. The boat ride is very slow and you don’t have an option to paddle Read more”

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4.Amanda Cruise – Ha Long, Lan Ha Bay – All Inclusive 2D1N & 3D2N

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 4,358 reviews · from $56

Spend two days aboard Amanda Cruise between Hanoi and Ha Long Bay, with a private sea-view cabin, meals, kayaking, cave visits, swimming, Tai Chi, cooking, and squid fishing. Guide quality varies, so confirm your boat, route, cabin, and transfer details before paying.

“Highly recommended: although the room has no terrace, it has windows from where the views are beautiful. Varied activities, very friendly and professional staff and comfortable boat.Auto-translated”

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5.Cooking Class Hoi An:Local Market, Basket Boat, Fishing & Cooking

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3,660 reviews · from $28

Spend 4.5 hours in Hoi An shopping at a local market, riding a bamboo basket boat through Cam Thanh’s nipa palms, trying net fishing, and cooking four Vietnamese courses. Guides such as Hai, LyLy, Lily, and Li lead hands-on classes with recipes to take home.

“Absolutely great value for money, our host and chef was fantastic, he was very friendly, funny, and informative. very clean and professional kitchen. Coconut boats were a hoot. Great fun and learnt a lot.”

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6.Cozy Bay Halong 5-Star Day Cruise, Buffet, Cave, Kayak, Swimming

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3,512 reviews · from $48

Spend 11 to 12 hours traveling from Hanoi to Ha Long Bay by shuttle bus, then cruise for five to six hours with guide-led visits to Sung Sot Cave and Titop Island, plus kayaking or a bamboo boat, buffet lunch, and a sunset party. Guides such as Minh, Duc, Binh, and Tim are praised for clear service.

“So much that is good but we were super impressed with our tour guide (Minh) who made contact with everyone the night before departure and so no last minute worries about pick up points and times”

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7.2-Day Halong & Lan Ha Bay 5-Star Cruise with Balcony

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 3,300 reviews · from $188

Travel from Hanoi by limousine to a 5-star boat in Halong and Lan Ha Bay. You get a private balcony cabin, meals, kayaking, swimming, cave visits, spring-roll making, tai chi, and squid fishing. Cruise schedules vary, so your cave or beach stops depend on the boat assigned.

“The kayaking was great and the stop in the bay beautiful Guides where super helpful and fun - we played a bit of volleyball”

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8.CuChi Tunnels&Mekong Delta-Boat,TukTuk,Coconut Village SmallGroup

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3,113 reviews · from $32

Spend about 11 hours visiting the Cu Chi Tunnels and Mekong Delta from Ho Chi Minh City. Guides such as Xem, Jackie, Lockie, and Tinh lead the day, with tunnel exhibits, motorboat and rowing boat rides, a tuk tuk or electric car, lunch, fruit, music, and coconut treats.

“Lockie was great with the kids and very informative. He provided interesting history and entertained us with his singing.”

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9.Mon Chéri Cruise 5 star: Unique 2 Days Tuan Chau – Halong bay – Lan Ha Bay

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2,422 reviews · from $195

Board Mon Chéri Cruise at Got Pier for a two-day sailing through Lan Ha and Ha Long Bays. You’ll have time for kayaking, swimming, bamboo-boat cave visits, sunset and sunrise photos, Vietnamese meals, a cooking class, and squid fishing. Hanoi limousine transfers cost extra.

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10.Mekong Delta Boat,Khotcake cooking Coconut Village,SmallGroup

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2,374 reviews · from $16

Spend about nine hours traveling from Ho Chi Minh City to My Tho and Ben Tre by minivan, motorboat, rowing boat, tuk tuk, and bicycle. Visit a bee farm, coconut candy workshop, village canal, and Vinh Trang Pagoda. Guides such as Phong, Tim, Tam, and Niem are often praised for energy and local insight.

“This was such an amazing day!! myself and my husband were picked up from our hotel at 7am after the driver messaged us and pre arranged everything. There were 10 visitors on this tour and our guide was the amazing ‘Tony’. He Read more”

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11.Doris Cruise 5 star cruise 2 days visiting Halong Bay Lan Ha Bay private balcony

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2,338 reviews · from $235

Spend two days aboard Doris Cruise among Halong Bay and Lan Ha Bay limestone islands. You get a private balcony, meals, kayaking or a rowboat, swimming, Tai Chi, a cooking class, and Hanoi Old Quarter transfers. Emily, Mona, and Jessica are praised for warm, attentive service.

“The whole experience was great . Specially Emily treated us very well . She took care the whole group , asked for well being and food and everything . Big thanks 😊”

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12.Mekong Delta Islands Boat & Tuk-Tuk Tour with Tastings

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 2,285 reviews · 9 hours · from $14

Spend nine hours traveling from Ho Chi Minh City to My Tho and Ben Tre by minivan, motorboat, rowboat, and tuk-tuk. You will visit four Mekong islands, taste honey tea and coconut candy, try bánh khọt, cycle through coconut gardens, eat lunch, and hear southern Vietnamese folk music. Guides may include Steve, Phong, Lam, or Little Trung.

“Trung the tour guide was amazing and funny. Good day out and well worth the money.”

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13.Market Tour, Basket Boat Ride and Cooking Class

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 2,208 reviews · from $17

Start at a Hoi An meeting point, often the Ivegan shop, then shop for seasonal produce, herbs, noodles, meat, and fish with an English-speaking guide. Ride a bamboo basket boat through the coconut palms for about 40 minutes before cooking dishes such as bánh xèo, phở, steamed rice rolls, and chè.

“Perfect activity made loads of food and was in a lovely location”

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14.CozyBay Cruise-The Best Small Group 2D/1N inHalong-All inclusive

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2,199 reviews · from $122

Spend one night on a small CozyBay cruise from Hanoi, with meals, a private air-conditioned cabin, kayaking, Sung Sot Cave, Titop Island, a cooking class, and squid fishing. Guides such as Tam, James, and Michael are praised for their friendly help and clear explanations.

“Cabin a little basic but a fabulous small boat experience with a nice group of people. Loved the kayak experience”

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15.Hoai River Boat Trip by Night and Floating Lantern

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 1,988 reviews · 20 min · from $8

Meet your English-speaking guide at the Kazimierz Kwiatkowski bust on Tran Phu Street. You’ll walk five minutes to the Thu Bon River, board a private wooden boat for up to five people, and release one paper lantern each. Guide Linh and Phuoc Ho have been praised for clear communication and smooth arrangements.

“We met our guide who then took us to the river. It was beautiful on the lake and our boatman was very helpful with getting us on and off and also took photos for us. He also lit the candles of our lanterns which we then put on the water. A lovely 20 min trip.”

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