Day 1: Lan Ha Bay - Cat Ba Island (L/D)
After meeting at Heritage Line’s welcome lounge at the Tuan Chau Marina, we take a quick speedboat transfer to your luxurious floating home before starting our unique journey of exploring one of the wonders of nature – Lan Ha Bay and its main island of Cat Ba. The first highlight of the cruise is lunch, which we serve in Ylang’s nearly 360-degree light-flooded, elegant restaurant. Enjoy a fine menu of tasty local, international or vegetarian dishes freshly prepared by our culinary team.
Relax on the terrace deck or on your private balcony and soak in the enchanting aura, which emanates from the surreal seascape. While we cruise along in the early afternoon, there is time to enjoy Ylang’s vast wellness and spa facilities. Take a plunge in the pool with infinity-like vistas or choose your favourite treatment from an extensive spa menu.
As we reach the shore of a small lagoon on Cat Ba Island, we hop on bicycles (electric cart transfers are also available) for a tour along small paved roads towards Viet Hai village. Little has changed in Viet Hai since the ancestors of the 80 households settled here centuries ago. Situated in a valley within Cat Ba National Park and surrounded on all sides by forest and mountains, the locals are isolated from the island’s other villages and towns. The community is self-sufficient, as the residents provide for themselves by working the farms, fishing, or collecting rain water for drinking. Here you have the unique and authentic opportunity to meet the local inhabitants, learn about the fruits and vegetables grown in the valley, have a glimpse of the local households and try some homemade liquors.
Back on board, there is time for you to partake in our activities offered while we set sail to a tranquil place for an overnight mooring nearby. A tea tasting class is held in the Ylang Restaurant where you may learn about Vietnam’s traditional herbal teas and gain insight into their health benefits. Alternatively, let us pamper you with a spa treatment, opt for a foot massage in the privacy of your suite or gaze upon the beauty of the bay during sunset from the terrace deck.
For dinner, choose from a diverse selection of dishes on the menu as our chef prepares a delectable multiple course meal. Afterwards, we offer in the Wellness Studio a guided “singing bowl meditation”, an ancient Tibetan ritual which invokes a deep state of relaxation, alleviates stress, and promotes a better night of sleep.
One of the best ways to spend the evening is to take a seat under the stars on the terrace deck or on your private balcony to embrace the serenity of this surreal landscape. And if you would like to fully immerse yourself in relaxation, our spa is open until late.
Day 2: Cat Ba Island - Lan Ha Bay (B/L/D)
Wake up early and join our Tai Chi session on the terrace deck to ease your mind and muscles with the first rays of the sun touching the water. Then re-energize yourself from our wide selection healthy or hearty breakfast offerings. Ylang sails towards the southern tip of Cat Ba Island. We board a tender and visit one of a few remaining authentic floating fishing villages near Ben Beo. This fishing village is home to 300 families living in floating houses and earning a living from fishing and aquaculture, much like their ancestors. Get a close view of how the villagers live and work on the water in this unique community.
We then continue on tender towards Ben Beo Pier, where we come ashore and travel a short distance along scenic island roads to Cat Ba National Park. For passengers craving a bit of exercise, we invite you for a leisurely and mindful walk (taking the same path both ways) through this lush, jungle-like forest. Cat Ba National Park is designated as a biosphere reserve and hosts over 1,500 plant species, 78 avian, 20 reptilian and 32 mammalian species including deer, macaques and civets. Or you may opt to stay aboard and take advantage of Ylang’s facilities.
During lunch, Heritage Line Ylang resumes sailing northeast through the stony labyrinth of Lan Ha Bay, eventually reaching a secluded spot in the bay. We head to a natural island beach via tender for kayaking, swimming and optional guided meditation session (snacks and juices are provided). Otherwise, kick back and treat yourself from our wide selection of wellness offerings on board.In the early evening, a food carving demonstration is held in the Ylang Restaurant, where our chef demonstrates the Asian art of shaping and transforming fruits and vegetables into a various decorative items, some which are served during your meals. After dinner, soothe your body and mind and bring your day to a gentle close with another guided “Singing Bowl Meditation” ceremony, or simply unwind on your private balcony while taking in the tranquility of Lan Ha Bay.
Day 3: Lan Ha Bay - Disembarkation (B)
Start the day early again with another open-air session of Tai Chi before having a light snack to go with your tasty, traditional Vietnamese coffee. This morning, Ylang moors in another quiet spot to offer you one last chance to go kayaking or take a refreshing early morning swim - conveniently from the ship’s platform. Enjoy these final moments to fully take in the senses of the bay.
While we pass back through Lan Ha and Halong Bay towards Ylang’s mid-bay anchoring spot, we serve breakfast and leave you some time to savour the moments of this unique journey while relaxing on comfy sun beds on the terrace deck.
