Cat Ba Cat Co Do Son Hai Phong Lan Ha Bay Trang Kenh

Cat Ba, Do Son, and Trang Kenh are attractive tourist destinations on the weekend in the northern port city of Hai Phong.

Do Son: As one of the well-known beaches in the north of Vietnam, Do Son is a small peninsula formed by the stretch of Rong Mountain to the sea. Ranges of mountains and hills with forests of pine trees cover this lovely beach. In addition to that natural beauty, the human-made infrastructure here is admirable with restaurants, hotels, houses, roads and water supply as well as a perfect electricity supply system. 

The zigzag roads along the mountains and pine forests make the beach a rare beauty in the tropical region. It is considered “a tourist resort”, only 20 kilometers away from Hai Phong City and 123 kilometers from Hanoi. The sea resort town is composed of three zones, each having bathing beaches, and hills and forests. Around the hills are French-style constructions looking towards the sea. 
Since 1975, many large hotels and guesthouses have been set up over the town and Do Son has become a weekend sea resort for Vietnamese and foreigners. Immediately upon setting foot in Hai Phong, the French turned Do Son into a summer resort for their expatriate community and the Vietnamese upper class. On summer days, Do Son is alive with tourists from all over the world. They mainly come here to spend time on the beach, relax, and hike. From Do Son, tourists can conveniently sail to Cat Ba Island, to Ha Long Bay, to Dien Bien, Long Chau, and Hon Dat Island. If you visit Hai Phong, Do Son is a must-see place that should not be missed.

 Trang Kenh: A beautiful mountain landscape, Trang Kenh is also noted for its historical and archeological importance. The attraction belongs to Thuy Nguyen district, about 20 km from Hai Phong downtown and accessible by a rented motorbike or taxi ride. Among the famous mountain peaks in Trang Kenh complex is U Bo. A myth has it that at this peak, Tran Hung Dao – one of the most famous military legends in Vietnam – commanded the naval battle against the Chinese aggressors in the 13th century and successfully protecting the sovereignty of Vietnam. From U Bo Peak, visitors can capture the entire panorama of the Bach Dang River. The silence of the river, the immensity of the sea and the resonating mythical stories … all make this a fascinating place to visit. 

According to archaeologists, Trang Kenh was a jeweler’s workshop for as long as 4,000 years. As times progressed, the site was used for various purposes, including acting as a revolutionary base for Hai Phong civil and military forces during the struggle against the French colony. 
 Cat Ba - the pearl island is a well-known archipelago with a spectacular array of sea and island scenery. It covers an area of 20,000 ha in the Northeast of Hai Phong, making it the biggest island out of the 366 islands on the Lan Hạ Bay. It takes about one hour by high speed hydrofoil to go to the island, or by land about 60 kilometers passing two ferries. Right from the moment of setting foot on Cat Ba gangway, you will be carried away by the immense blue sky, sight of mountains and fresh salty air from the ocean. 

This natural dose of “massage” is likely to relieve all the dizziness from your long trip. If you are not on a package tour, make sure to call and reserve your hotel in advance, for the island accommodations are rather limited for visitors, especially during the summer. If you can, try to get one that faces the ocean and is near the mountain. Visiting the popular beaches of Cat Co and Cat Dua, tourists can enjoy the blue, warm water, so clear that you can see the golden sand beneath. If you prefer something more quiet and calm, you can hire a motorboat or kayak to sail to the small islets, where there Cat Trai Gai, Duong Gianh and Hien Hao beaches are located. The mountain adjacent to Cat Co Beach has a tunnel and several fascinating caves and grottoes, such as Hang Luon, Khe Sau, Trung Trang, Gia Luan and Kim Cuong. Unlike the well-lit caves of Ha Long Bay, visiting these caves and grottoes gives you a better feel of being an explorer or conqueror of natural wonder and mysteries.
 Coming out of the caves and grottoes in late afternoon, you will be thrilled by the sunset over Lan Ha Bay. Against the background of a golden horizon and the dark blue sea, the heaving islets become multiform, the white sea-gulls hover and sea-eagles make circles in the sky, an experience that you cannot afford to miss while on Cat Ba

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autumn Ba Be lake Ban Gioc beauty Cat Ba charming Ha Long Bay Mu cang chai Ngo Dong river Northern sunset tea hills

Northern Vietnam  really a charming beauty
Terraced rice fields in Yen Bai, tea hills in Thai Nguyen, rocky islands offshore Quang Ninh and ancient villages are typical images of northern Vietnam.
Let’s look at some photos:

Terraced rice fields (Mu Cang Chai district, Yen Bai province)

Ban Gioc waterfall (Cao Bang province)

Ba Be, Vietnam’s largest natural lake (Bac Kan province)

Tea hills Thai Nguyen province

Halong Bay- UNESCO World Heritage site (Quang Ninh province)

Sunset in Cat Ba

Yen Phu street in Hanoi

Ngo Dong river in autumn

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Cat Ba Hai Phong Island national park Quang Ninh touching indochina Tourism Tourist traveling to Vietnam Vietnamese Package Tour VISA visa on arrival visa to vietnam

Cat Ba Island is the largest island in Halong Bay. While the vast majority of Halong Bay's island are uninhabited vertical rocks, Cat Ba actually has a few tiny fishing villages. The terrain is too rocky for agriculture and most residents earn their living from the sea. Life has always been hard here and, not surprisingly, many Cat Ba residents joined the exodus of Vietnamese boat people in the 1970s and 1980s.

Although the island lost much of its fishing fleet this way, the overseas Vietnamese have sent back large amounts of money to relatives on the island, thus financing the new hotels and restaurants that you'll see.

There is very little motorized traffic and, indeed, very few roads. Compared with the tourist carnival at Bai Chay, Cat Ba is still very laid back, despite about a ten fold increase in hotel rooms since 2006.

About half of Cat Ba Island which has a total area of 354 sq km and 90 sq km of the adjacent inshore waters were declared a national park in 1986 in order to protect the islands divers ecosystems.
These include subtropical evergreen forests on the hills, freshwater swamp forests at the base of the hills, coastal mangrove forests, small freshwater lakes and offshore coral reefs. Most of the coastline consists of rocky cliffs, but there are a few sandy beaches tucked into small coves. The main beaches in Cat Ba Island are Cai Vieng, Hong Xoai Be and Hong Xoai Lon.

There are also numerous lakes, waterfalls and grottoes in the spectacular limestone hills, the highest of which rises 331 m above sea level. The growth of the vegetation is stunted near the summits because of high winds. The largest permanent body of water on the island is Ech lake, which covers an area of three hectares. Almost all of the surface streams are seasonal; most of the Cat Ba's rainwater flows into caves, and follows underground streams to the sea, creating a shortage of fresh water during the dry season. Although parts of the interior of the island are below sea level, most of the island is between 50 and 200 m in elevation.

The waters off Cat Ba Island are home to 200 species of fish, 500 species of molluscs and 400 species of arthropods. Larger marine animals in the area include seals and three species of dolphins.

Stone tools and bones left by humans who lived between 6000 and 7000 years ago have been found at 17 sites on the islands. The most thoroughly studies site is Cat Beo Cave, discovered by French archaeologist in 1938. which is 1.5 km from Cat Ba Village.

Getting there and away to Cat Ba Island

Cat Ba Island is 40 km east of Haiphong and 20 km south of Halong City. A great innovation for getting there are 108 seat russian built hydrofoils. the air-conditioned water rockets reduce the Haiphong - Cat Hai- Cat Ba Journey to just 2 hours. Vietnamese Package Tours can arrange 2 day 1 night trip to Cat Ba Island from Hanoi.
An Alternative way to reach Cat Ba Island via the island of Cat Hai, which is closer to Haiphong. A boat depart Haiphong and makes a brief stop in Cat Hai Island, before continuing to the  port of Phu Long on Cat Ba Island.

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