The Best Thing We Did in Asia Was a Backup Plan

I’ll be honest about how we ended up on the Jade Sails cruise: it wasn’t the plan. We were supposed to be in Guilin for a bamboo boat ride. Instead we got turned away at the Vietnam–China land border — they told us we needed a visa we didn’t have, and getting out of that situation turned into the kind of travel-day chaos that’s genuinely frightening in the moment and becomes a story you tell at dinner for years afterward. I’ll spare you the details. The short version: we ended up back in Hanoi, rattled, with an unplanned day on our hands and a bamboo boat ride we’d never take.

So we booked a Ha Long Bay day cruise to fill the gap. I went in with low expectations — when I saw the staff lining up with roses to hand to each guest as we boarded, I braced for something cheesy.

It was the opposite of cheesy. It became one of the two great food experiences of our entire fifteen days in Asia. (The other was dim sum on a boat in Hong Kong — apparently my best meals on this trip happened on water.) I love Asian food more than most people I know, and this lunch earned a permanent place in my memory. Whole crabs. And a clear mushroom soup — the mushrooms were actually translucent, and it tasted divine. I still think about that soup.

The day runs out of Tuan Chau and threads through Ha Long and Lan Ha Bay, the limestone karsts rising out of the water on every side. There’s kayaking and rowboat exploring through caves into hidden lagoons, which is the part most people come for. But what made the day for us was simpler than that. It was about 65 degrees out — not exactly pool weather — and my husband and I were the only two people who used the pool at the front of the ship. We had it entirely to ourselves. We swam off the boat into the bay too. There’s a big floating pad you can sit on if you want to stay near the surface.

What I keep coming back to is how unbothered they let us be. It’s a cash bar, and they let us drink what we wanted and eat what we wanted without hovering. We found a table in a corner that felt almost private. Even the bathroom had a moment — a huge window behind the sinks looking straight out over the water. (I’ll post a picture; it’s worth seeing.)

Worth knowing before you book: the day includes a stop at some shops before the cruise itself, and it was high-pressure and not enjoyable — the one part I’d happily skip. But the boat made up for it completely. If you’re choosing a Ha Long Bay day cruise, this is the one I’d point you to.

We came to Ha Long Bay because a border crossing went sideways in the worst way. I’d go back on purpose — and next time I’d skip the drama and come straight here.

Book the Jade Sails day cruise — it’s the Ha Long Bay day we’d happily do again.

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