We were picked up at our hotel early in the morning by a bus to be taken to Halong. There we were ferried to a small ship that would take us on a two day tour through Halong Bay. The bus ride was a boring 4 hour long drive with one stop at a local (work)shop. Where all other busses also stopped and prices for food and drinks were sky high…tourist trap! We decided to walk around for a bit and found a small shop just around the corner with normal priced for drinks & snacks!
Our ship was a faily small one which looked more authentic than some of the large cruise ships that were also docked at the harbour.