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Northeast Vietnam

Why Go? Ba Be National Park ...... 89 Northeast Vietnam’s top ticket is Halong Bay, and while Con Son & Den visiting the World Heritage site is an essential experience, Kiep Bac ...... 91 the region also showcases craggy limestone peaks, tropical Haiphong ...... 91 forests, caves, waterfalls and historic sights. Halong Bay ...... 94 To the south of Halong Bay is Cat Ba, a verdant island Halong City ...... 98 renowned for its hiking, biking, sailing and world-class rock climbing. To the east, Bai Tu Long Bay continues nature’s Cat Ba Island ...... 99 spectacular show all the way to the Chinese border, and Bai Tu Long Bay ...... 108 Quan Lan Island is emerging as a destination for pioneer- Mong Cai & the ing travellers. Chinese Border ...... 110 Looming above the coast, the karst connection continues Lang Son ...... 111 into Cao Bang province, and the brooding mountains are Cao Bang ...... 112 one of Vietnam’s most idiosyncratic landscapes. With Sapa Ban Gioc Waterfall & and northwest Vietnam fi rmly on the tourist map, head Nguom Ngao Cave ...... 115 northeast instead to explore remote backroads and the sub- lime lakes of Ba Be National Park. China-bound travellers can access two important border B e s t P l a c e s crossings at Mong Cai and Dong Dang. to Eat W h e n t o G o » Big Man Restaurant (p93 ) Halong City » BKK (p 93 ) °C/°F Te m p Rainfall inches/mm 40/104 » Bamboo Café (p 105 ) 32/800

» Vien Duong (p 106 ) 30/86 24/600

20/68 16/400 B e s t P l a c e s to Stay 10/50 8/200

» 0/32 0 Monaco Hotel (p 92 ) J FDNOSAJJMAM » Nam Cat Island Resort (p 105 ) Feb–Apr The Jun & Jul Peak May– Sep The » Whisper of Nature (p105 ) weather is often season for Viet- region is impacted cool and drizzly, namese tourists; by tropical » Suoi Goi Cat Ba Resort with fog making busy on Cat Ba storms, which (p 105 ) Halong Bay visi- Island, especially may disrupt bility low. on weekends. Halong Bay tours. 88 History through the northeast. The most recent Dominated by the Red River basin and the occurrence was in a 1979 attempt to pun- sea, the fertile northeast is the cradle of Viet- ish the Vietnamese for their occupation of namese civilisation. Until very recently, Viet- Cambodia (p 112 ). Thousands of ethnic Chi- nam has had challenging relations with the nese also fl ed from this region in the 1970s neighbouring Chinese. China occupied the and ’80s. country in the 2nd century BC, and were not More than three decades on, border trade vanquished until the 10th century. is surging ahead and Chinese tourists fl ock Any time the Chinese wanted to advance to the region during summer. upon Vietnam’s aff airs, they could do so

NORTHEAST VIETNAM VIETNAM NORTHEAST 040 km Hang Pac Tra Linh CAO Bo Ban Gioc 0 20 miles BANG Waterfall Nang Na Giang Thang Trung River Hen Lake Khanh C H I N A 3 Quang Yen Cao GUANGXI Ga River Cho Bang m Ra Na Phac To Nanning Ba Be (20km) National BAC Park KAN 4A BA BE NATIONAL PARK Bac Kan Pingxiang

Phuong Dong Dang Friendship Hoang Pass 2 1B Lang Son THAI Cave NGUYEN LANG SON 1 4B Nui Coc Thai Nguyen Dongxing Reservoir Mong Cai BAC Tam Dao GIANG Tra Co Beach Hill Station 16 Tien VINH 136 QUANG Bac River Yen Vin Thuc PHUC Vinh Luc NINH Island Yen Giang Nam 2 HANOI Den Kiep Bac d R Re iver Van Don Island Con Son 18 (Dao Cai Bau) BAC Pagoda Cai Rong NINH Halong Ba Vi HANOI City Co To Island Mountain (Dao Co To) Ha Dong Cam Pha Bai Tu (1287m) 6 5 Hai HA Duong Cat Ba Long TAY HAI Island Halong Hoa Binh HUNG Haiphong Bay Quan Lan Island Perfume YEN DUONG (Dao Canh Cuoc) Pagoda HA HAIPHONG Lan Ha NAM Bay HOA 21A THAI BINH BINH Gulf of 12A 1 Thai Tonkin Binh

Northeast Highlights 1 Escape Halong Bay’s 3 Explore Lan Ha Bay 5 Board a boat to glide (p 94 ) tourist buzz by gently (p100 ), an emerging area through lakes and rivers, and kayaking into hidden lagoons of gorgeous islands and spend the night with a local and grottoes beaches with superb rock Tay family in Ba Be National 2 Hike, bike and climb climbing and sailing Park (p89 ) your way around the great 4 Pioneer your own route 6 Check out the crazy outdoors in Cat Ba Island’s around the off -the-beaten- karst scenery of Cao Bang (p 101 ) fascinating national path islands of Bai Tu Long (p112 ), and the province’s park Bay (p108 ) waterfalls, caves, lakes and historic sights