Ferries and River Boats in Vietnam

Vietnam has 3,260 km of coastline and the Red River and Mekong deltas at either end. Water transport is essential in places, scenic in others, and a tourist experience repackaged as transport almost everywhere else. This is the practical rundown.

Ha Long Bay cruises

The signature Vietnamese boat experience. Around 500 licensed cruise boats operate in Ha Long Bay and the adjacent Lan Ha Bay. Three product tiers:

Product	Duration	Price per person
Day trip from Hanoi	12 hours door-to-door	800k–1.5m VND
Overnight, mid-range (Bhaya, Indochina Sails)	2 days / 1 night	2.5–4.5m VND
Overnight, premium (Heritage, Paradise Elegance, Stellar)	2 days / 1 night	5–10m VND
3-day / 2-night (Bai Tu Long or Lan Ha, less crowded)	3 days	4–8m VND

Day trips are rushed and not recommended. Pick an overnight at minimum; pick a 2-night if you can. Lan Ha Bay (south of the main bay, accessed via Hai Phong or Cat Ba) is now noticeably quieter than central Ha Long and increasingly the better choice.

Book through the operator direct, or via Klook/Bookaway for refund protection. Cruise quality varies wildly within the same price band — read recent reviews, not glossy brochures.

Cat Ba ferries

To reach Cat Ba Island independently:

• Speedboat from Got pier (Hai Phong side) to Cai Vieng on Cat Ba — 30 minutes, 220,000 VND. Combined bus+boat tickets via Cat Ba Express are 270,000 VND from central Hanoi.
• Tuan Chau – Gia Luan car ferry — connects the Tuan Chau marina (Ha Long) to the northern tip of Cat Ba. 50,000 VND foot passenger, 90 minutes, useful if you're already in Ha Long.
• Cable car from Cat Hai across to Cat Ba — fast and dramatic, 200,000 VND, runs limited hours.

Phu Quoc fast ferries

Two operators run high-speed catamarans:

• Superdong — established, reliable. Routes from Rach Gia (2h 30m, 350,000 VND), Ha Tien (1h 15m, 250,000 VND) and Hon Son.
• Phu Quoc Express — slightly newer fleet, similar prices and routes.

Bookable on Baolau, 12Go and at the harbour. Sailings cut in rough weather September–November; check the day before. Combined with domestic flights into Rach Gia or Can Tho, the ferry is a viable alternative to flying direct into Phu Quoc airport, and it makes a clean ending to a Mekong itinerary.

Mekong Delta boats

Almost every Mekong tour you'll buy in Saigon includes a boat segment. Real working passenger ferries are nearly gone — the bridges built since 2010 killed most routes. What remains:

• Day-trip sampans from My Tho or Ben Tre — wooden boats puttering through coconut-palm canals to fruit orchards. The classic itinerary.
• Cai Rang floating market (Can Tho) — go at 5:30am or it's over. Hire a small motor boat for 200,000–400,000 VND per group.
• Multi-day Mekong cruises (Aqua Mekong, Heritage Line, Pandaw, RV Mekong Princess) — these continue into Cambodia, $300–600 per night, 3–7 day itineraries Saigon to Siem Reap.
• The Tra Su forest boat (Chau Doc area) — 30-minute rowing-boat ride through a flooded cajuput forest. One of the prettier short boat trips in the country.

HCMC river ferries and water buses

Ho Chi Minh City runs the Saigon Waterbus (Bach Dang pier in District 1 to Linh Dong in Thu Duc, 5 stops, 15,000 VND, every 30 minutes). It's a commuter service but cheap and useful for a Thao Dien hotel transfer — get off at Binh An.

There's also a free Thu Thiem ferry for motorbikes and pedestrians from Ben Bach Dang to District 2 — short, working ferry, the last of its kind in central Saigon.

Saigon to Vung Tau

The Greenlines hydrofoil that ran for years was suspended in 2020 and only fragments of the service have returned. As of 2026 the Greenlines DP speedboat is running a limited daily Saigon-Vung Tau route, 90 minutes, 320,000 VND. Bookable on Vexere and at the Bach Dang pier. Check current schedules — the route has stopped and restarted several times.

The road alternative (Saigon-Vung Tau by car along the new Long Thanh expressway) takes about 90 minutes off-peak and is the more reliable option.

Hoi An and Hue river boats

In Hoi An, dragon boats and basket boats operate on the Thu Bon River — evening lantern cruises 100,000–200,000 VND. Pleasant, touristy, take a child.

In Hue, dragon boats on the Perfume River head upstream to Thien Mu pagoda and the royal tombs. 1.5–2 hours, 150,000–300,000 VND per person on a shared boat, 800,000–1.2m VND for a private one. The boats often double as floating gift shops; a polite "no" goes a long way.

Ben Tre and Ca Mau swamp boats

The far south's U Minh Ha and U Minh Thuong national parks have melaleuca-forest boat tours from $20 per person. Quiet, birdy, almost no tourists. Mostly for the dedicated nature traveller.

What to watch for

Life jackets are inconsistent. Wear one on small boats regardless of what the operator says. Phone in a waterproof pouch on river trips. Bring sunscreen — almost all the open boats have no shade. Smaller operators sometimes overload; trust your eyes and walk away if it feels wrong.