The majority of food, accommodation and other life-support systems
for Halong Bay are to be found in the sorry/dismal town of Halong
City, the capital of Quang Ninh Province. In recent years this once
peaceful outpost has been developed into a pleasure den for package
tourists (both domestic and foreign, with a large following of border
hopping Chinese). All in all Halong City is, aside from some impressive
views of the bay, well, yuck!
Unless you plan to partake in the sleazy joys of this cheesy attempt
at replicating Thailand’s Pattaya, there is no good reason
to visit Halong City other than as a launch pad for boats.
