Situated in North-East of Vietnam(150km from Hanoi), the Bay is in the Gulf of Tonkin which comprised ofregions of Halong City, the township of Cam Pha, and a part of theisland district of Van Don. It abuts Cat Ba Island in the southwest.Toward the west is the coastline 120km long. The site is 1553 sq.kmwith 1969 islands of various sizes, of which 989 have been named.

Viewedfrom above, Halong Bay resembles a geographic work of art. Whileexploring the bay, you feel lost in a legendary world of stone islands.Halong bay is also a region of highly-concentrated biological diversitywith many ecosystems of salt water-flooded forests, coral reefs, andtropical forests featuring thousands of species of animal and plantlife.

Aesthetic value

Thepermanent beauty of Ha Long is created by three factors: stone, waterand sky. Ha Long’s island system is multicolored with a variety ofshapes and can be regarded as a water-color, a work of art. Theislands, scattered all round, have different shapes which provoke theimagination: Dinh Huong (Incense Burner) implies spiritualsignificance, Ga Choi (Fighting Cocks) the symbol of Viet Nam tourism,Con Coc (Toad) recalls the passage of time, waiting thousands of yearsto seek justice in Heaven. There are islands that resemble aresplendent throne, a Vietnamese mother’s curved back carrying herchild, a roof, an old man, a human head and so on.

Withinthe bigger islands are great attractions. Dau Go Cave (Wooden Stakes)dazzles the senses with many huge stalactites hanging poised in mid airand stalagmites growing majestically upwards. Then there is Thien CungGrotto (Heavenly Palace) with its small, narrow entrance, but insidelooking like a marvelous palace, and many other caves each has its ownattractions and beauty.

HaLong’s sea is always the same, blue, smooth and still. Ha Long has itsown beauty by seasons. In Spring, buds of trees burst on limestoneislands. In Summer, it is cool and clean with many sparkling sun raysreflecting from the sea’s surface. In Autumn, especially at night,moonlight illuminates the mountains so they appear like gold, inlaidinto the earth. In Winter, with pervasive frost, Ha Long is glamorousas “a floating flower basket on smooth wave” (by writer Nguyen Tuan).

Karst geomorphologic value:

HaLong Bay is a mature karst landscape developed during a warm, wet,tropical climate. The sequence of stages in the evolution of a karstlandscape over a period of 20 million years requires a combination ofseveral distinct elements including massive thickness of limestone, ahot wet climate and slow overall tectonic uplift.

The bio diversity value

Bio-diversityis an important natural resource and needs to be preserved andconserved to maintain the ecological balance of the whole region.Bio-diversity is the general term used to reflect diversify andabundance in nature and includes all living things.

Thetotal number of plant species living on the rugged islands in Ha LongBay is still not known, as many islands remain unexplored. There areprobably over a thousand species of plants, the distribution of whichis not uniform. Instead, several different communities (species ofplants that always grow together) are found, such as: mangrove,seashore plants, those of the slopes or sheer cliffs, the summit plantsand those that grow around the mouth of caves and in gullies. .

In2002 a survey on assessing and auditing Ha Long Bay’s bio-diversity wasconducted by management authorities and researchers. They surveyed 9areas in Zone 1 of the World Heritage and all sites had maintained itsbio-diversity and species diversity, and more new species werediscovered.

Evaluation and Praises

Throughoutthe ages many famous men, from both home and abroad, when faced withthe beauty of Halong’s sky and water have sung its praises in differentways, especially in poems.

In the 15th Century, Nguyen Trai (1380 – 1442), a great national poet visited Halong and spoke of:

“The way to Van Do has so many mountains
Nature has produced a wonder in the immense space
The vast blue sea looks like a grandiose mirror
Reflecting innumerable black mountains”.

Over 100 years ago, the French Journalist John Rey praised Ha Long:

“In the brilliant light of the tropical sun, the sea surface, dark andlight, here and there in the shadow of limestone mountains, is reallyan indescribable, fanciful scene. Sunset looks like a flaring fire,throwing all the islands into a fairyland.”

Nowadays,many domestic and international politicians, poets, culturalcelebrities and tourists make the same comment when they visit HalongBay: “If you haven’t visited Ha Long Bay, you haven’t been to Viet Nam.”

Inrecent years, Halong Bay has been honored to welcome many internationaldelegations, including the leaders of many countries of the world.