Hanoi – Halong Bay Muslim Cruise 2 Days – 1 Night

Halong Bay Halal Cruise, 2 Days 1 Night: the short version

You leave Hanoi in the morning, you are on the water by lunchtime, you sleep in a balcony cabin on the bay, and you are back in Hanoi by mid-afternoon the next day. Every meal on board comes out of a kitchen that cooks halal, and you choose which ship you sleep on. As of October 2026 three cruises in Halong Bay and Lan Ha Bay hold a current halal certificate from Halal Vietnam — Catherine Cruise, Diana Cruise and Lyra Grandeur Cruise — and a fourth, Mon Chéri Cruises, is between certificates while its renewal is processed and cooks in the same halal kitchen meanwhile. This programme runs on all four. You can read the halal certificates in full on Hanoi Muslim Tours — certificate numbers, issuing body, standards and expiry dates, not just a badge.

Two days is the shortest overnight that is worth doing. A day trip gives you about four hours on the water and a long drive at both ends. One night gives you the bay at sunset, the bay at dawn, and the quiet two hours in between when the day boats have all gone home. If you have a third day, the 3 days 2 nights halal cruise adds Cat Ba Island and Trung Trang Cave.

Your 2 days on the bay, hour by hour

Day 1: Hanoi to Lan Ha Bay

Pick-up in the Old Quarter between 8.00 and 8.30, then roughly two and a half to three hours on the expressway to Tuan Chau International Port in Ha Long. Boarding is around noon. Lunch is served as the ship moves out, and the first afternoon is kayaking or a bamboo boat around the Dark and Bright Cave and the Frog Pond, with swimming when the sea allows. Sunset is on the top deck. Dinner is on board, then optional squid fishing off the stern once it is dark.

Day 2: dawn on the water, back to Hanoi

Sunrise tai chi on the sundeck for anyone awake, then breakfast. One more cave or beach depending on the ship’s daily programme, then check out and a late brunch while the ship cruises back to Tuan Chau. You are on the road by early afternoon and back in the Old Quarter around 14.30 to 15.00.

The four halal cruises in Halong Bay — choose your ship

The itinerary above is the same on all four ships. What changes is the cabin, the route and the price. Mon Chéri is the default on this page because it was the first cruise in the bay to build a dedicated halal kitchen and it is the one most of our guests book. The other three are a straight upgrade: tell us which one and we rewrite the quote.

Mon Chéri Cruises — the original halal kitchen

Two sister yachts working Halong Bay and Lan Ha Bay. Cabins start at the Ocean Suite Balcony, 35 m² on the lower deck with a walk-in shower and a private balcony, and run up through the Elegance Suite Balcony at 40 m² with a bathtub, the Mon Chéri Suite Terrace at 55 m² with a jacuzzi tub, and the President Suite Terrace at 90 m². Connecting cabins of 70 and 80 m² and a 70 m² family cabin with one double and two single beds suit families travelling together. On board there is a four-season jacuzzi pool, a small golf area, a kids’ room, a spring-roll cooking class and morning tai chi. Mon Chéri runs a dedicated halal kitchen; its certificate is in renewal at the time of writing, which is why we describe the kitchen rather than the paperwork. If a current certificate matters to your group, book Catherine, Diana or Lyra Grandeur instead and we will say so plainly.

Catherine Cruise — both halal standards, and the only prayer room

Ninety metres long, five decks, launched in October 2023, 39 cabins and up to 117 guests. Every cabin has a private balcony and a bathtub facing the bay. Entry level is the Premier Suite at 40 m², of which there are 32, including triple and connecting versions; above that sit two Royal Suites at 56 m², four Grand Suites at 85 m² and a single 200 m² Villa President Suite with its own sundeck and butler. The ship has two restaurants, a 55 m² spa for men and women separately, the first Himalayan salt-rock sauna in the bay, a four-season infinity pool, two soundproofed 40 m² karaoke rooms, a mini-golf course on the sundeck and a kids’ corner. For Muslim travellers the important detail is on paper rather than on deck: Catherine is the only cruise in Halong Bay certified against both OIC/SMIIC 1:2019, the general halal food standard, and OIC/SMIIC 6:2019, the standard for the premises where halal food is prepared. Its current certificate runs to 26 July 2028. On deck, the detail that matters just as much: Catherine is the only one of the four certified ships with a dedicated prayer room on board, and it has a lift between decks — which makes it the one ship of the four we recommend without hesitation for grandparents, or for anyone who cannot manage stairs.

Diana Cruise — the largest halal-certified ship

Fifty-six cabins and up to 112 guests, the biggest halal-certified ship in the bay. Diana Junior and Diana Senior sit on deck one at 34 m², Diana Executive on deck two at 36 m², Diana Premier on deck three at 38 m², and two 55 m² Halong Suites and two 55 m² Lan Ha Suites take the stern. Every cabin has a wide balcony and a bay-view bathroom with a separate jacuzzi tub and walk-in shower, and that 34 m² entry cabin is the largest entry-level cabin of the four ships. The on-board programme leans traditional — a rowing boat through the Dark and Bright Cave, night squid fishing, kayaking, swimming, and a Dong Ho folk painting session, which is a genuinely good hour with children. Every cabin includes an in-room foot soak. Diana holds a Halal Vietnam certificate against OIC/SMIIC 6:2019, valid to 6 January 2027. Diana also has two lifts, the only one of the four ships with more than one, which is worth knowing if anyone in your party struggles with stairs.

Lyra Grandeur Cruise — the newest and the most to do

Thirty-three cabins from 32 to 92 m², every one with a private balcony or terrace and a bathtub facing the water. Entry level is the Oasis Suite at 32 m²; at the top are two La Suite de Lyra at 57 m² and a 92 m² Owner Suite, both with jacuzzi tubs and signature service. Lyra is the ship to choose if your group wants things to do: a Nordic-style sauna, a 360-degree observatory deck, complimentary drone photography when the weather allows, an inflatable water slide and a floating sea pool, a four-season infinity pool with a heated jacuzzi, a gym, a mini-golf area, a billiards and table-football room, and a movie night with popcorn. On the longer sailings Lyra also visits Viet Hai village by bicycle or electric car and the Three Peach Beach. Its Halal Vietnam certificate runs to 29 December 2026 and is due for renewal, so ask us to confirm the status on your travel dates.

How halal food works on board

On a 2 day 1 night programme you eat four times on the ship: lunch and dinner on day one, breakfast and a late brunch on day two. On all four ships those meals come from a kitchen that cooks halal, with no pork and no alcohol in the cooking. What differs is the paperwork behind it, and we would rather you knew which is which than discover it on board.

Two standards matter. OIC/SMIIC 1:2019 is the general requirements for halal food. OIC/SMIIC 6:2019 is the particular requirements for the places where halal food and beverages are prepared — the galley, the stores, the handling. A ship certified against 6:2019 has had its kitchen audited; a ship certified against both has had the food and the kitchen audited. Catherine holds both. Diana and Lyra Grandeur hold 6:2019. None of the four holds OIC/SMIIC 9:2019, the halal tourism services standard, and we will not claim otherwise.

Seafood is the backbone of every menu on the bay, which makes halal catering easier here than almost anywhere in Vietnam. If anyone in your group needs more than halal — no shellfish, gluten-free, vegetarian, a nut allergy — tell us when you book and we pass it to the ship in writing, not verbally at check-in.

Prayer, qibla and modesty on the water

Catherine Cruise has a dedicated prayer room on board — the only one of the four certified ships. If praying in a proper space matters to your group, that single fact decides which ship you take, and we will say so before you ask. On Mon Chéri, Diana and Lyra Grandeur you pray in the cabin, which works better than it sounds: entry-level cabins run 32 to 40 m² with clear floor space, and the direction to Mecca from Halong Bay is west-north-west. Bring a prayer mat and use a qibla app; the ship moves slowly enough that the bearing holds.

On modesty: the pools and the sundeck are shared space. If your group would rather swim privately, the practical answer is a charter — Mon Chéri charters at 18 or 24 cabins, Catherine from 25 cabins — which gives you the whole ship, the whole pool and the whole dining room. For a family group of 20 or more this is often cheaper per person than you would guess, and it removes the question entirely. Ask us for a charter quote.

Halong Bay or Lan Ha Bay: two different routes

These are two halves of the same UNESCO site, inscribed in 1994 and 2000 and extended in 2023 to include the Cat Ba archipelago under the name Ha Long Bay – Cat Ba Archipelago. Halong Bay proper is the postcard: the biggest karsts, the famous caves, and the most other boats. Lan Ha Bay, on the Cat Ba side, has smaller islands, clear water, working fishing villages and perhaps a third of the traffic.

Mon Chéri and Lyra Grandeur work the Lan Ha side, which is why their programmes include the Dark and Bright Cave and the Frog Pond rather than the headline caves. Catherine and Diana sail Halong Bay proper. If this is your first visit and you want the view you have seen in photographs, choose Halong Bay. If you have been before, or you are travelling with people who dislike crowds, choose Lan Ha.

Getting from Hanoi to the pier

The prices on this page are for the cruise only. The road transfer between Hanoi and the pier is quoted separately, because some guests are already in Ha Long, some want a shared shuttle and some want a private car, and bundling it hides the difference.

The shared shuttle is a 7-to-18-seat limousine van, picking up at hotels in and around the Old Quarter between 8.00 and 8.30 and dropping back at the same point. Guests staying outside the Old Quarter are collected from the Opera House at 1 Trang Tien. A private car costs more and buys you your own departure time, which is worth it if you are travelling with small children or want to stop for prayer on the way. Both options are in the price table below.

What the 2 day 1 night price covers

Included on every ship: the balcony cabin, the four meals listed above, the welcome drink, bottled water in the cabin, the English-speaking cruise guide, kayaking or the bamboo boat, the cave and sightseeing tickets, the Halong Bay entrance and overnight permit, on-board insurance, and the ship’s own facilities — pool, jacuzzi, sauna, gym, mini-golf, kids’ area, depending on the ship.

Not included: the Hanoi transfer, drinks from the bar, spa and massage, travel insurance, Vietnam visa, tips and personal spending. Our prices are local operator prices with a best price guarantee: we are the company that runs the tour, not a reseller adding a layer.

Child fees differ by ship and are the one thing we will not generalise — one ship charges a percentage of the adult rate, another a flat amount per night, and the cut-off ages are not the same. Send us the children’s ages with your dates and the exact figure goes in your quote.

Best time to cruise, and what happens in a storm

March to May and September to November are the reliable windows: calm water, clear air, comfortable temperatures. June to August is hot and humid but the sea is warmest for swimming. December to February can be grey and cool, and the bay occasionally disappears into mist — atmospheric in photographs, disappointing if you came for the view.

Between July and October tropical storms cross the Gulf of Tonkin. When one is forecast the Ha Long authorities suspend every cruise in the bay for safety — this is a government decision, not the ship’s and not ours. If it happens we offer you another date or an alternative programme, and if the trip cannot go ahead at all we refund you under our Terms and Conditions. Build a spare day into a summer itinerary and a storm becomes an inconvenience rather than a lost holiday.

Why book this halal cruise with Vietnam Muslim Tours

We are Vietnam Muslim Tours – Asia Travel Expert Co., Ltd, an inbound operator licensed in Vietnam, and we hold the contracts with all four of these ships directly. That is why we can tell you which certificate expires when, and why we will say “book a different ship” when the paperwork on one of them is mid-renewal. An agent reselling a bed cannot do either.

Every tour on this site is a sample. Tell us your dates, your group size and your ship in the Tour Inquiry form, or message us on WhatsApp, and you get an exact quote, usually within 24 hours. You can read what our guests say on TripAdvisor.

Prices are per person, twin-share, in the cheapest cabin category on each ship for the travel dates shown, and cover the 2 day 1 night cruise only. They do not include the Hanoi – Halong Bay – Hanoi road transfer, which is priced separately below. Peak dates, Vietnamese public holidays and the Christmas and New Year period are quoted higher. The 1 May – 30 September window is the green season: it is the rainy and typhoon season in northern Vietnam, the bay is quieter, and three of the four ships price it lower — Diana by 10 per cent. Larger cabins, suites, triple and connecting cabins and family cabins, and travel dates not shown in the table, are quoted on request. These are local operator prices with a best price guarantee, quoted for 2027 departures.

Transportation: Hanoi – Halong Bay – Hanoi

The shared shuttle collects from hotels in and around Hanoi’s Old Quarter between 8.00 and 8.30; guests staying further out are collected from the Opera House at 1 Trang Tien. Children under 5 sharing a seat with a parent travel free.

Children

Child fees differ by ship: the four cruises use different methods and different age cut-offs, so we will not publish a single rule we cannot honour on every ship. Send us your children’s ages with your travel dates and the exact amount appears in your quote. One child under 5 sharing a cabin and bed with two adults is free of charge on all four ships.