Where is Cat Ba Island?
Cat Ba Island is located south of Ha Long Bay and west of Haiphong. The island is surrounded by Lan Ha Bay which is equally as beautiful but smaller than the famous Ha Long Bay. Cat Ba is a popular destination for backpackers due to its budget-friendly accommodation, food/ drinks, and activities.
GOOGLE MAPS LINK: https://maps.app.goo.gl/Hu35B8gcRESKfYDz7
During our 6 weeks traveling Vietnam Isabelle created a Google map with our favorite accommodations, activities, restaurants, and cafes. Use this map while you read the article to follow along, and save it for when you are in Vietnam!
What to do on Cat Ba Island?
Isabelle and I stayed on Cat Ba for 5 nights. This is longer than you need but this was after Bangkok and Hanoi, so it felt great to relax on island time. Cat Ba island can be explored in 2-3 days. I think 3 days is perfect if you want some downtime while you’re there.
3-day Itinerary
Day 1
- Cat Ba National Park
- Ding Ngu Lam Loop: This hike takes you to a beautiful view overlooking Cat Ba and the National Park
- Explore the Specimen Room: This room is located by the park entrance in a big building. Isabelle and I only spent a few minutes in here. It was quite eery.
- It was 80,000 VND (3.25 USD) when we went in March 2024
- Trung Trang Cave
- Right down the road from the National Park is Trung Trang Cave. This is a massive cave that you spend 30-60 minutes exploring. It has an exit so if you keep walking you will eventually come out the other side.
- Entrance to the cave is included with your national park ticket, so don’t lose it!
- Lunch in Khe Sâu
- A small town located between the national park and Cat Ba town.
- There is a small homestay called Cat Ba Countryside with delicious food. Stop there for a meal after the park (this is also where I recommend staying).
- Hospital Cave
- Located right outside of Khe Sâu is Hospital Cave. This is a cave that was converted into a hospital and bomb shelter during the American war. It was also used to safeguard Viet Cong leaders.
- The entrance fee is 80,000 VND (3.25 USD) as of March 2024
- Explore the area where you are staying
- We found that there were things to explore no matter where we were on the island. Spend the rest of the day exploring where you will stay for the next few days. Our area in the middle of Kha Sâu had cute restaurants to enjoy and lots of wildlife to look at.
Day 2
- Cat Ba Scooter Loop
- There are two main roads in Cat Ba. One starts at the ferry port in the north, and the other on the west side by Haiphong. A road in the middle of the island connects the two making a loop.
- Rent a scooter and spend your morning exploring places along the loop. No matter where you stay on the island you can easily access these roads. Pictured below is the route with some stops we took.
- You can complete this loop in 1 hour if you drive fast, or spend hours if you stop a lot. The stops:
- Abandoned Resort & Beach
- Mangrove Field
- Sunset viewpoint
- Cat Co Beach 1 & Trail
- Cat Ba Town
- Minh Chau Cave
- Anywhere else you want
- Grab Lunch at a Restaurant along the loop
- Go to a beach you found on the loop
- There are a lot of small beaches located on Cat Ba. If you’re lucky you can find one completely empty and enjoy a private beach.
- Sunset
- Go to the sunset viewpoints on the island’s west side and enjoy the beautiful view. It was cloudy when we were there, but hopefully, you get some sun!
- Dinner with a view
- There are a lot of restaurants in Cat Ba town with a view over the bay. Find one that looks nice and enjoy your evening
- If you like to drink, there are bars scattered throughout the town of Cat Ba you can go to after dinner
Day 3
- Boat Tour
- Our homestay booked a full-day boat tour for us. The tour took us through Lan Ha Bay and Ha Long Bay with stops along the way.
- It was much cheaper to book with our homestay than the options we saw online, so wait until you arrive on the island to book a trip.
- Here is the itinerary for the boat trip we did:
- Leave at 8:30 in the morning
- Head out through a local floating fishing village
- Swim break at an island
- Go kayaking through caves on the bay
- Lunch (which was delicious)
- Cruise through Ha Long Bay
- Stop and visit the monkeys at Monkey Island
- Return to land around 5 PM
- We found this to be the perfect amount of time. We paid 500,000 VND/person (25 USD) which was a good price. There are overnight cruises, but after a day on the water, we didn’t feel like we needed more time in the bay. That being said, our weather was not great, so if it’s 70 and sunny while you’re there a night on the boat might be great.
- Enjoy your last dinner at a local homestay
If you only have 2 days to explore the island then combine days 1 and 2. Isabelle and I spent 4 days there and really enjoyed our time. We ate a lot of delicious food at our homestay and spent a lot of time cruising around on our scooter. We didn’t need 4-days to explore the island but we wanted some downtime after the hectic cities we had been in.
Where to Stay on Cat Ba Island
The three main areas you can stay in Cat Ba are: in town, on the west side, or in the middle.
Isabelle and I stayed in the middle at Cat Ba Countryside Homestay. I recommend this place to every person I talk to now. The family that runs it is amazing, and their food is delicious; we ate there almost every meal. They helped us book our boat tour and a bus out of Cat Ba. The owner even got a semi-automatic scooter (he only owns automatic) so I could practice for the Ha Giang Loop.
If you stay in this area you will need to rent a scooter. It is central to everything, but you cannot walk to many places. Everything is about a 10-minute scooter ride away. The homestay was also super affordable at less than $10 USD/night for a private room and bathroom. (https://www.booking.com/Share-Mua9VT)
If you want to stay in the heart of Cat Ba then in town is the place for you. In town, you’ll have much easier access to restaurants and bars. We never stayed in town but we had breakfast at a hotel called Rustic House which had delicious food, nice staff, and a great view, so it is a place to consider. It is a bit more expensive (800,000 VND/night). There are a lot of nice accommodations in Cat Ba that are very affordable, but in town will be the most expensive.
The west side of the island will still keep you close to town, but far enough to not hear the noise. You will have quick access to the beach too. When we return we will probably stay on the west side of the island.
Transportation
Getting to Cat Ba Island
You can book a bus to Cat Ba or Ha Long Bay from northern and central Vietnam cities. I’ve found the easiest way is to book transportation with the hotel or homestay that you are with. If you book a bus directly to Cat Ba you will most likely go through Haiphong, take a speed boat to the island, and then be bussed into Cat Ba town. From there get a taxi or scooter to your accommodation.
If you take are dropped off in Ha Long you will need to take the ferry from Tuan Châu to the island. The ferry ride cost 60,000 VND ($2.42 USD) and is amazing. You drive through Lan Ha Bay and the views are spectacular. Buy a bus ticket from Tuan Châu ferry port, so when you arrive at Cat Ba you have transportation to town. This bus was full when we went so the people who did not buy a ticket at Tuan Châu did not get on. If your accommodation is on the way they will drop you off.
Getting Around
I highly recommend getting a scooter while you are there. The island is small, but it is not small enough to walk around. Everything seems to be about a 10-minute scooter ride away. You can use taxis, but we found ourselves moving around a lot and the taxi prices would add up and be inconvenient.
Money!!!!
Isabelle and I keep track of all our spending and total costs for the week in Cat Ba. Cat Ba was one of the most budget-friendly areas we stayed in. The graph below shows all of our spending over our 5 days there!
This does not include our transportation to and from the island. Most bus tickets coming and going from Cat Ba are 250.000-500.000 VND depending on where you are going. Our tickets from Cat Ba to Hanoi were 250K each and our homestay booked them for us.
Have Fun!
That is all I have for you, so book your trip and have a blast. Cat Ba was one of our favorite places in Vietnam! Thanks for reading!
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