Helicopters high over Halong Bay, Vietnam
Your visit to Vietnam’s Halong Bay, a cruising Mecca for half a century, can now be enjoyed from above. The Northern Vietnam Helicopter Company will now provide scenic flights over the famous bay, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Vietnam.
Flights will start at $125 (3,920 baht) for a 12 minute flight – that will take you over six tourist sites, including Thien Cung cave, Titop island and Bai Tu Long Bay.
You can choose to take flights up to 40 minutes in length which will cost you $396 (12,400 baht) which will take you over 17 different landmarks around the Bay.
Halong Bay was added to UNESCO’s World Heritage List 25 years ago and is filled with more than 1,600 limestone islands and islets, a similar landscape to Phang Nga Bay, north of Phuket in Thailand.
Two Bell 505 helicopters service the Halong Bay Scenic Flight service. Flights depart from and arriving at Tuan Chau island, which is about 170 kilometres from the country’s capital Hanoi. The helicopters will carry up to three passengers per flight and promise breathtaking views thought large windows adapted for the scenic flights.
Hai Au Aviation is also operating scenic flights over Halong Bay, this time by seaplane. The 25 minute flights takes off and land from the water at Tuan Chau Island Marina. The costs for the scenic flights by seaplane are also up around the $120 (3,750 baht) mark, depending on the season and includes views of Dau Be Island, Cong Do Island and Bo Hon Island.
