To visit Vietnam's most beautiful islands, visitors have to take boat trips, some of several hours in length. To have a smooth trip, tourists need to know the boat schedules as well as the ticket prices.
Take a ferry to Cat Ba Island (Hai Phong)
High speed boats depart at the Binh Wharf every two hours from 8am to 4pm, each trip lasting 50 minutes.
The ferry at Dinh Vu Port departs each 2-2.5 hours. Each trip is one hour long. The ferry operates from 6:30am to 5pm. The ferry at the Got Wharf works from 6am to 6pm, with one trip per 30 minutes.
You can also catch a ferry from the Tuan Chau Wharf in Ha Long City, Quang Ninh.
The fares are from VND50,000 to VND150,000 ($2.5-7) per person.
Get a boat to the islands of Co To, Quan Lan and Ngoc Vung (Quang Ninh)
In the days of big waves, boats are not allowed off the island.
It takes more than two hours by boat to Ngoc Vung Island. There are boat trips from the port of Van Don to the island at 7am or from Cam Pha Wharf at 1pm. The fare is VND60,000 ($3) per person.
It takes about 1.5 hours to go to Quan Lan Island. The Hon Gai - Quan Lan speedboat departs at 10:30am and 2pm daily, running for 50 minutes to 1 hours and 15 minutes/trip.
The Cai Rong-Quan Lan speedboat departs at 8am and 2pm every day, running for 45 minutes only.
The wood boats leave Van Don Port at 7am and 1pm. The fare is from VND80,000 to VND150,000 per person.
The time it takes to go to Co To Island is about three hours. The wooden boats from Cai Rong to Co To depart at 7am and 1pm from Monday through Friday and at 1pm on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. The boats from Co To back to Cai Rong depart at 8am from Monday through Sunday and at 1pm on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. The fares is VND95,000 per person.
Speedboats to Co To depart at 1pm and return to Cai Rong at 8am every day, with fares of VND150,000 per person.
Take a boat to Cham Island (Quang Nam)
Wooden ships transporting both people, vehicles and goods depart at two wharves at the night market on Nguyen Hoang Road and the Cua Dai pier. Starting at 8am, the boats arrive at Cham Island at 10.30 or 11am. The boats come back to the mainland at 11am. The fares is VND50,000 per person.
Canoe trips to Cham Island are only about 20 minutes long and the last trip from the island is at 5pm. The fare is VND150,000 per person.
Boats to Ly Son Island (Quang Ngai)
Ly Son Island is about an hour by speedboat from the Sa Ky Port. In days of heavy wave activity, ships are not allowed to visit the island.
Currently, there are three speedboats named An Hai, Ly Son and An Vinh, which all depart at 8am every day for Ly Son Island. The boats from Ly Son to the mainland also depart at 8am daily. Fares are VND95,000 per person.
Speedboats to Phu Quoc (Kien Giang)
Boats to Phu Quoc Island depart from Ha Tien and Rach Gia (Kien Giang province). From Rach Gia, the boats that go to the island and return to the mainland both depart at 8am. The trip is about 2.5 hours. The fare is nearly VND400,000.
From Ha Tien, the ships also depart at around 8am and the trip is about 1.5 hours long. The fares is about VND200,000.
High speed boats to Con Dao (Ba Ria - Vung Tau)
From Vung Tau, you can sleep one night on a ship and arrive at Con Dao the next morning. The trip begins at 5pm. The fare is about VND400,000 per person.
(Source:VNNet)
