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Cat Ba Island, Cat Ba

3.9
#3 of 29 in Things to do in Cat Ba
Island National Park Must See
Explore the nature and local life on Cat Ba Island, the largest island of the Cat Ba Archipelago and home to a diverse marine and terrestrial ecosystem. A national park covers half of the island's surface, where tropical limestone forests, karsts, mangroves, coral reefs, emerald lagoons, and hidden caves harbor indigenous animal and plant life. Visit the small communities living on floating fishing villages to learn about their way of life, traditions, customs, and cuisine. Besides discovering the island by land, you can take a ferryboat or rent a kayak to discover secluded areas and look for adventures. Before you head to Cat Ba, plan trip itinerary details with our user-friendly Cat Ba trip generator, to make sure you see all that Cat Ba has to offer, including Cat Ba Island.
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Cat Ba Island Tours
Lan Ha Bay and Viet Hai Village Trekking and Kayaking Day Trip from Cat Ba Island BOOK WITH VIATOR FROM $138
Cat Ba Island Reviews
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  • August 18, 2017
    An island very curious and a little noisy, it is worth visiting it by Lan Ha Bay and its beaches, also for Ha Long Bay.
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  • August 18, 2017
    Who wants to see the Halong Bay, should definitely go cat BA. Although the island is tourism moderately likely the Bay not in, it was not so much going on. There are also day trips by boat in the Bay and it is certainly more relaxed than Halong directly. Further you can also super driving around with the scooter. But never completely fill the tank can be! You can not so much process and finally the landlord suck it again and put the empty roller the next. (In addition to the tanks. The small "gasoline" stands on the side of the road require exorbitant prices for the litre) fuel. The beaches in the city are within walking distance, you don't really need the shuttle. One should however before 15 / 16: 00, there be, if you want some rest. From then, the beaches (stark) fill up with Vietnamese, because the Sun subsides (and Asians would remain generally rather pale). The "City" beaches are clean right, the water like in the whole Bay rather murky. Outside of the town's beaches we could not make out unfortunately really good beaches. Maybe you're more lucky ;)
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  • August 18, 2017
    Just a short review to tell people not to trust whoever is trying to sell you bus tickets from Cat Ba to Hanoi promising it's going to take 3 hours. This is just not possible. No matter what they tell...  more »
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Best things to do in Cat Ba

Popular
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Kayaking & Canoeing
Cat Ba
Visit for: 4​h
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Monkey Island
Cat Ba
Visit for: 2​h 30​min
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Cannon Fort
Cat Ba
Visit for: 2​h 30​min
Side Trips
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Kayaking & Canoeing
Halong Bay
Visit for: 8​h
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Bai Tu Long Bay
Halong Bay
Visit for: 4​h
Rosa Cruise
Halong Bay
Visit for: 4​h
Hidden Gems
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Lan Ha Bay
Cat Ba
Visit for: 2​h
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Cat Co 1 Beach
Cat Ba
Visit for: 3​h
Fishing Charters & Tours
Cat Ba
Visit for: 4​h
Nearby
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Cat Ba Ventures
Cat Ba
Visit for: 4​h
Cat Ba Climbing
Cat Ba
Visit for: 4​h
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Blue Swimmer Adventures
Cat Ba
Visit for: 8​h
Nature
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Hospital Cave
Cat Ba
Visit for: 2​h 30​min
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Where to stay in Cat Ba

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Though the archipelago as a whole has a reputation for being less touristy than the areas to the north, you wouldn't be able to tell as much by seeing the main town of Cat Ba. The town represents the most popular place to stay, with a number of budget hotels lining the waterfront, and some more exclusive resorts set a short way out of town, filling the space with pools, spas, and restaurants. Many people come here as part of a tour, so accommodations will already be arranged. Some tour boats bring visitors to the hotels on Cat Ba, while others lay anchor for the night, with guests sleeping in cosy cabins aboard the ship.
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20 days in Vietnam & Siem Reap BY A USER FROM HUNGARY March, culture, outdoors, beaches, historic sites, wildlife, fast-paced, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: March, culture, outdoors, beaches, historic sites, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Fast-paced 2 days in Cat Ba BY A USER FROM MALAYSIA December, popular PREFERENCES: December ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular PACE: Medium 1 day in Cat Ba BY A USER FROM MALAYSIA December, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, shopping, wildlife, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: December, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, shopping, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 27 days in Vietnam BY A USER FROM PORTUGAL October, culture, outdoors, historic sites, wildlife, hidden gems PREFERENCES: October, culture, outdoors, historic sites, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Hidden gems PACE: Medium 60 days in Vietnam BY A USER FROM UNITED KINGDOM November, relaxing, slow & easy, hidden gems PREFERENCES: November, relaxing ATTRACTION STYLE: Hidden gems PACE: Slow & easy 10 days in Vietnam BY A USER FROM MALTA February, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, wildlife, popular PREFERENCES: February, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular PACE: Medium 60 days in Asia BY A USER FROM SLOVENIA October, culture, outdoors, historic sites, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: October, culture, outdoors, historic sites ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 60 days in Asia BY A USER FROM SLOVENIA October, culture, outdoors, historic sites, popular & hidden gems PREFERENCES: October, culture, outdoors, historic sites ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular & hidden gems PACE: Medium 60 days in Vietnam BY A USER FROM FINLAND February, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, wildlife, fast-paced, hidden gems PREFERENCES: February, culture, outdoors, historic sites, museums, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Hidden gems PACE: Fast-paced 15 days in Thailand & Vietnam BY A USER FROM INDIA December, culture, outdoors, beaches, historic sites, wildlife, hidden gems PREFERENCES: December, culture, outdoors, beaches, historic sites, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Hidden gems PACE: Medium 6 days in Hanoi, Lao Cai Province & Cat Ba BY A USER FROM INDIA December, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, wildlife, hidden gems PREFERENCES: December, culture, outdoors, relaxing, beaches, historic sites, wildlife ATTRACTION STYLE: Hidden gems PACE: Medium 1 day in Cat Ba BY A USER FROM LATVIA October, relaxing, beaches, popular PREFERENCES: October, relaxing, beaches ATTRACTION STYLE: Popular PACE: Medium
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