Edwina Kiyoshi Blog

With so many tour operators and travel cafes / agencies operating tours to the vast Halong Bay, confusion tends to arise. It’s especially so when the price for the tour packages can range from USD $16 to over USD $100. Here is my observation and guide on how to best enjoy and get the best value out of the Halong Bay trip.

Disclaimer: This article is solely based on my observation and experience on the time of my visit. It may be incorrect or becomes incorrect as time passed.

How’s the tour behind the scene works?
To understand how a tour in Vietnam usually works, different between tour operator and travel agent must be understood. Tour operator basically operates the tour, while travel agent, or travel cafe usually just an agent or reseller for the tour operator. In Vietnam sense, Sinh Cafe (original) is a tour operator, and all other hotels, hostels, travel cafes, travel agents that usually also carry the name ‘Sinh Cafe’ are just the agent or reseller for Sinh Cafe.

Travel agents earn money via commission for each tour package sold. But sometimes you may be charged out ridiculous price if you give travel cafes such an opportunity. Beside, you have no control on the quality of the tour too, as the travel cafes can just promise anything, but cannot deliver as it’s not them who operate the tour. Worse is they just have the intention to get your business with all sweet words.

According to Ha, whose husband Culi Cage owned Wide Eyed Tours, even tour operators sometimes also ’sell’ their travelers to other operators, if they cannot have enough customers to start a profitable tour. In this case, again, you will have no control of the quality of the tour, and the itinerary might be different too.

Which is the ‘Real’ Sinh Cafe?
Frankly speaking, I also not sure. If you search for ‘Sinh Cafe’ in Google, the search results will have plenty of Sinh Cafes.

Of which Sinh Cafe Vietnam is believe to be ‘genuine’ Sinh Cafe.

I used to email Sinh Cafe - Open Tour or Sinh Cafe Travel - TransVietnam (depends on which website you go to), their response was pretty fast. I believe they’re the same company with Sinh Cafe Travel & Tour or Vietnam Open Tour. They did give me a very detailed itinerary of their Halong Bay tour, with description of what will be done on first boat trip and the second boat trip on second day for USD $30, reasonable price if all itinerary is done. Too bad we didn’t try it out as it’s too late when we reached Hanoi.

Hanoi Tourism Service Company (Torseco Hanoi) is the parent company of Sinh Cafe. But the price on their website is not cheap either.

All contact details can be found on their website respectively.

What is Open Tour?
It’s a bus service that run throughout Vietnam everyday, of which you can stop at anywhere as you like that the bus goes through, and stay as long as you want before continuing the trip. In Hanoi, Open Tour is used widely as Sinh Cafe to attract travelers.

I have limited budget, which tour should I take?
I met an Israelite Netidrori who said it’s possible to get a tour to Halong Bay for 3 days 2 nights with 1 night on sleeping on boat for USD $16. I believe it’s the cheapest price in town. He himself paid USD $28 just for the single room at another travel agency. What happened was he was assigned to sleep with another guy! Only after complaint that he managed to get to cabin to himself. So, that’s your expectation if you choose lowest price.

The travel cafe is Eco Tours, located at No 9, Luong Ngoc Quyen Street, Hoan Kiem district. Phone no. is 84-4-9260815 or 9260715. Mobile no. is 09 12 227701. Email is ecologicaltours@fpt.vn.

Is small group matters?
A lot of guide books stressed on ’small group’ of the tours in order to enjoy more of the tour. It may be case during peak tourism season. I found the small group and big group on bus journey to Halong Bay is totally useless. The fact is, in small group, you will ride smaller minibus. In big group, most likely you will ride bigger bus. On junk may be it’s better to be in small group, the only different is is it really the case.

Any mid-budget tour to Halong Bay?
Try Sinh Cafes that listed above, or travel operators that listed in various guide books. I don’t suggest to book via your hotels or travel cafes, as you may pay mid-range price to get the lowest quality tour.

ODC Travel did email me with their itinerary. 2 days 1 night overnight on boat at Lan Ha Bay costs USD $35.

Or you may try Wide Eyed Tours whose we met the owner’s wife, who also so coincidentally has a friend that Adeline also known in Singapore. She said they use Hai Ao Junk in Halong Bay, and charge mid-range price. They are located at 40 Luong Ngoc Quyen.

I want the best!
Yes, the various guide books list numerous of them. The most famous must be Handspan Adventure Travel Vietnam. Or you may book directly with the junk operator in Halong Bay itself. This way you may save some commission that earns by travel agency, but you have to figure out the way to go to Halong City yourself.

Is it possible to go straight to Halong Bay and book the boat from there?
Yes, I had been approached by several people to take up their boat when at tourist wharf in Halong City. One people quoted me about VND 60,000. But I am not sure if it’s a junk or a boat, how long is the duration or what’s the itinerary. I guess if you want to overnight on boat, it’s better to take a tour from Hanoi.

So, Rob went a little crazy and smashed up the house…

Big deal! It's not like anyone needs that mansion, anyway! The show is over!At the start of this, our Surreal Life Fame Games season finale, we see Ron and Pep plotting. It seems unimportant at first, but as we'll see, it has disastrous results. Remember it.

Robin corrals the remaining Lifers and tells them that today's challenge is to film a 30-second commercial for GoldenPalace.net. He gives them a bare-bones script and tells them that they can do whatever they want with it — adding to it, rearranging it, whatever. Rob immediately starts violently tearing it and making spitballs that produce welts on the faces, arms and backs of his competitors. How's that for rearranging? Just kidding. He doesn't do that. But he would.

 

The celebs get to work:

A stressed-out Pepa says that she gave herself a pep talk. Does that surprise anyone? It's not like she'd give herself a salt talk.

They then film their commercials. Ron hits a wall when he's told to add three words ("I just won money at a casino") so as not to misrepresent what GoldenPalace.net offers (which, apparently, is experience, not money).

Ron's not exactly the type of actor who has to rely on perfect line-readings, you know?

Everyone seems to do pretty well. A funny outtake occurs when Traci says, "It's a great place to learn and [messing up]…f***!" A great place to learn and f***? Just like high school!

They complete their commercials and find that they'll watch them be scrutinized by a focus group via a two-way mirror.

First up is Rob, who speaks with the manic verve of that guy with all the question marks on his suit that tries to sell you that big book of rebates on late-night TV.

Rob's commercial is loved. One girl says Rob is hot. An older woman says, "He's young, he's now, he's hip, he's got the tattoos." What more could you ask for? People also like his energy.

Then, it's Ron's turn.

Everyone knows Ron and his porn. One woman says Ron is very well known for his "well-endowedness." that woman is, however, not known for her linguistic endowment. Ron is sleazy-looking, says one person. That seems kind of appropriate, though, as this ad is for an online casino. Have you been to Atlantic City recently?

Then, there's Traci:

People think she is convincing and hot. One guy says her boobs were distracting. Dude, are you gay?

Finally, there is Pep.

She is savaged. People don't believe her. The same guy that took issue with Traci's boobs thinks that Pep tried to be sexy and failed. In an interview, Pep lets this roll off her shoulders, saying that she knows she's cute. "Are you gay?" she wonders. Exactly, Pep. Exactly.

In the end, Traci wins.

This means that she will automatically be in the final two. Traci is elated.

She's like a bird, but she won't only fly away because she has a competition to win.

The other three remaining contestants are now forced to turn on each other. Each one has to choose someone to kick out. Scheming ensues.

Versus:

Those are Ron's words. Basically, he's playing both sides. He decides that what he'll do is vote for himself to be kicked out. That way, if Rob votes for Pep and Pep votes for Rob, it'll be a three-way tie and, in theory, they'll have to play another game that won't involve backstabbing. That plan is foiled, however, when it comes time for the elimination and Robin gives each player two tokens, each with one of the other players names on them. By the challenge's design, Ron cannot vote for himself. Yikes.

Ron votes for Rob, basically because he's the bigger threat. You understand his line of reasoning, but it really sucks that swore up and down the Ron (whom he's been friends with for years) that they had an alliance. Rob confronts Ron all sassy and hands-on-hippy.

And then, Rob explodes and blows up any semblance of sympathy you might have for him. He tears the house apart.

He has to be restrained…

But, unfortunately, no one brings him his blankie. That probably would have done the trick. That's to say: GROW UP, DUDE.

Rob leaves the competition with a bloody hand…

…and less dignity than you ever would have thought was possible. Whatever, at least his exit was memorable.

Ron and Pep immediately are thrust into the series' final Back to Reality game. They have to play it on the busted set, which is actually sort of hilarious.

Nothing says A-listed like smashed light bulbs. The Back to Reality game they'll be playing is…

Basically, they have to go through and rank where each member falls on a list of Google hits. Ron cleans the floor with Pep. Here's the final ranking, btw.

Search for yourself and you'll find that these rankings have gone down considerably since last year, when this show was filmed. Tragic.

Pep leaves.

And then, the final challenge. Robin drops Ron and Traci off in front of an alley. Classy. He tells them to walk down and they'll meet their fate.

Their fate is a Fremen! Not really, but it would be so awesome if this show closed out with the two of them high on spice, their eyes filled blue instead of with stars. Traci says she didn't know whom the cloaked figure was. Was it Chyna? Was it Verne? Because, really, they'd look exactly the same if they were hidden under a cloak. The statures are the same, it's the faces that are different.

Anyway, the real person under the cloak turns out to be:

That's kind of awesome. Kathy does the sensitively insensitive thing well.

There's a funny bit where Traci gets inspiration from the ghost of Verne. He's supposed to be Yoda-like…

…but again: FREMEN.

Kathy puts Ron and Traci through some final challenges. The criticizes Ron's outfit.

Next time, he should bring a boa, too.

Kathy has them deliver fake Oscar speeches. Ron gets to do his patented name-dropping one last time.

You know it's bad when even the producers stop counting.

Kathy sees how they deal with heckling. Then, Kathy dances with them.

Traci's dance involves the robot…

…shockingly, the lameness factor does not disqualify Traci.

She has each one plead their case one final time before setting them in front of two doors. One leads to the prize money, and the other leads to…another alley? Something.

We never find out where Ron goes because we're too excited celebrating Traci's win!

Say what you will: Traci wanted this bad, and she fought hard for it.

In her acceptance speech, she even thanks the hookers that took part in one of the challenges. Who else would do that. Traci has a heart of gold. In her exit interview, she calls the experience "surreal." Uh, yeah, babe. That's the point.

And…scene!

Welcome to Funwithblogs.net. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging!