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Lan Hạ Bay is the least climbing-like crag of this Vietnam trip: you take a boat first, then walk in from the beach. Some routes are on the limestone walls behind the beach, some grow straight out of the water — the latter are deep water soloing (Deep Water Solo, DWS), with no rope and no fixed points, so if you fall off, you fall into the water.
This article settles two things: whether a winter trip is worth it (the answer: sport climbing is, deep water soloing mostly is not), and whether you should find your own boat (the answer: don't).
What kind of crag
Vịnh Lan Hạ is the sister bay south of Ha Long Bay. theCrag's crag description puts it this way: "The Lan Hạ Bay area, roughly 1,600 limestone karst islands rising from the water in the Gulf of Tonkin off the north coast, part of a World Natural Heritage site. The rocky islands mix jungle-covered rock with steep exposed faces. Not all of these walls are good rock, but there is a lot of excellent climbable rock. Many walls that rise straight from the water are ideal deep water soloing ground; the other faces look out over uninhabited beaches, which makes a unique and isolated sport climbing paradise."
- Scale: 326 routes across 40 subareas (October 2026), grades from 4a to 8a+.
- Two ways to climb: sport climbing on the sand (about 120 routes, 13 walls, 4a–8a) and deep water soloing on the water (more than 230 routes, 24 cliffs, 4a–7c+). Cat Ba Island itself has another 178 routes, covered in the Cat Ba article.
- Deep water soloing is the signature of this place. The first developers were Lynn Hill, Todd Skinner, Scott Milton, Paul Piana, Greg Child and Arnaud Petit in the late 1990s and early 2000s; Greg Child and Andy Parkin opened the early traditional multi-pitch lines in the bay, and Neil Gresham, Tim Emmett, Seb Grieve, Grant Farquhar and Chris Lindner all came too. Tim Emmett and Klem Loskot appear in Big Up Productions' Dosage Vol III, and Chris Lindner appears in The Players.
- Who it suits: people with DWS experience who want to see karst seascapes. You can also come without DWS experience — sport climbing on the sand is no different in kind from ordinary sport climbing.
When to go
This is the only crag in the series decided by the tide rather than the climate.
theCrag's season description splits in two: "The winter months are the ideal time for sport climbing, with cool temperatures (15 to 20 °C) and low rainfall (5 to 25 millimeters a month)"; "The downside of winter is the unfavorable tide, which makes deep water soloing unpleasant and only possible now and then".
- Deep water soloing needs a tide above 2 meters to be done safely. In the original text: "To do DWS safely in the bay you need more than 2 meters of tide, and days with a high tide during daylight hours are far more common in summer than in winter."
- The good window is spring, April–May, and autumn, September–November: "The weather is usually good, and usually there are more than 15 days in a month when you can do DWS."
- So the winter call is: sport climbing on the sand goes ahead as planned, deep water soloing is a matter of luck. Both the Cat Ba and the Lan Hạ operators advise you to "write and ask about the current tides, and schedule your trip around them."
| Month | Sport climbing | Deep water soloing | Other |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov–Dec | Cool and dry, the most comfortable | The tide is short on most days | Fewest visitors |
| Jan–Feb | Cool, low rainfall | Occasionally possible | Less sunshine |
| Mar | Starts to get hot | Starts to become possible | More rainy days |
| Apr–May | Hot | The season when both work | More than 15 days when you can do DWS |
| Jun–Aug | Hot and humid | The tide is high enough | Rainy days are frequent, but most of the cliffs overhang, so moderate rain does not affect DWS |
| Sep–Nov | Back to cool | The other double-win season | — |
Water temperature and water quality in the wet season change how it feels, but the conditions that actually change the decision are the tide and the weather window. The Cat Ba description adds a reminder: "Spring and autumn are the ideal times to enjoy both DWS and sport climbing walls."
Getting there
Public transport
There is no land route to Lan Hạ Bay. Every option you can think of is a boat leaving from Cat Ba town.
- First get to Cat Ba Island: a bus from Hanoi (300,000 VND) or a private charter car (2,000,000 VND including the ferry, 2.5 to 3.5 hours). The details are in the Cat Ba article.
- Second, take a basketboat out from Cat Ba town. This is what theCrag tells independent climbers: "To explore the sport climbing potential of the bay you will need a basketboat with a boatman, as well as permits to access the beaches. Both can be arranged at the Asia Outdoors shop." That text is out of date — Asia Outdoors has closed, the operators now are Cat Ba Climbing and Langur's Adventures, the theCrag Cat Ba Island page has been updated and the Lan Hạ page has not.
- Town bus: for The Cave, take route 14 from Cát Hài, every 30 minutes, 13,000 VND (2026 price), and get off at the cable car station near Ha Sen Road.
Driving
- To Cat Ba Island: a private charter from Hanoi or Noi Bai airport costs 2,000,000 VND including the ferry; from Hai Phong or Cat Ba airport you can take the direct drive plus ferry (1,300,000 VND, ferry ticket included), a split journey (1,000,000 VND, ferry ticket not included), or a speedboat plus car.
- On the island: motorbike or e-bike (bikes and e-bikes rent for 150,000 VND), taxi 80,000 VND.
- No vehicles inside the bay. The boat is the vehicle.
Parking
- Cat Ba town: park the motorbike in town; the operators' shops (Cat Ba Climbing at 120 Nui Ngoc Street, Langur's Adventures in town) are the meeting point, and that is also where you get the permits.
- The beaches: the boat lands straight on the sand, so there is no parking problem; you carry the gear off the boat yourself.
- The crags on Cat Ba Island itself: Fisher Valley parking is at the junction at the north end of the reservoir; Hidden Valley is a 5-minute drive out of town to a car park, then a 10-minute walk up a steep slope. The details are in the Cat Ba article.
Rules before you go
Legality is the biggest thing here, and it has to be spelled out.
The Cat Ba page gives this its own paragraph: "Climbing or doing DWS in the bay brings more trouble. Climbing in the bay is still illegal, and harbor police regularly enforce this, which means climbing at The Face or doing DWS at Le MeKong carries risk; some climbers get there and get away with it, but others are driven off quickly by harbor police. Boat operators who run from Cat Ba Island out to the bay (The Face and the rest) also risk losing their boats."
The same paragraph has two more important sentences: "Please understand that this is a situation the locals are actively working to change", and "Please do not bribe officials".
The practical conclusion is clear: go with a licensed operator's route, do not find your own boat. theCrag gives specific reasons for doing DWS independently: it is hard to find the walls, "You can't start a climb from the water, because there is a groove at the base of the cliff: you need a boat", and "you need personal familiarity with these cliffs to avoid climbing at too low a tide, or hitting the submerged rocks".
The boat operator's license is tied to your choice. Use an unlicensed basketboat driver and the risk is not only yours.
Deep water soloing is not "sport climbing without a rope". Falling in is the norm, not the accident: the depth of the water, whether there are submerged rocks, underwater coral and rock, and your ability to get back on the wall after a fall are all part of the ability. The Cat Ba operators specifically call out one wall the other companies don't use, Sea Face: "It can be climbed normally and safely even at low water. No coral reef, and the water is deep enough for the climber to jump off."
DWS needs less gear than you think. The Cat Ba description says: "You can bring what you want, or bring nothing. You can rent everything at Cat Ba Climbing." But the same paragraph mentions the current situation: "Since Asia Outdoors closed, renting gear is a bit difficult. Cat Ba Climbing has some gear to rent, but the quantity is limited, so write ahead or ask in advance to confirm."
Bolts age fast at the seaside. The ethics field on the Lan Hạ page says: "Even stainless steel bolts usually only last a few years before they rust. All effort should go into rebolting old routes (and equipping new ones), using the best techniques (titanium bolts glued with Hilti RE-500)."
A helmet is required. Every subarea page on Cat Ba repeats it: "Considering that rockfall can happen outdoors at any time, please understand that climbing anywhere on this island requires a helmet."
Emergency numbers: police 113, fire 114, ambulance 115; national search and rescue center 020 7008 5000 (24 hours, Vietnamese only). At sea, rescue is slower than on the island — sort that out in your own head before you go.
Routes by level
YDS and V-grade conversions follow the Mountain Project international grade comparison chart and are approximate; "approx." marks grades the sources give without a/b/c (such as 4 or 5+). The original grade is the one that counts.
The four tier tables in this section are the sport climbing routes on the sand and on the walls. The deep water soloing routes and the way you choose them are completely different — the tide, falling in and the depth of the water decide everything. See the next section.
Beginner: up to 6a (YDS 5.10a and below)
The short routes on the sand are concentrated at Mit Beach and Moody's Beach: Mit Beach has only 7 routes, the longest 20 meters; Moody's Beach has 6, the longest 23 meters. The Tiger Beach side is longer but steeper.
| Route | Grade | YDS | Length / Pitches | Sector | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Khong Co Gi | 4c | 5.6 | 15 m | Moody's Beach | theCrag 1 star |
| Mao De | 5a | 5.7 | 22 m | Moody's Beach | theCrag 1 star; theCrag lists it as a signature route of Lan Hạ |
| Do It For Billy Joel | 5a | 5.7 | 21 m | Moody's Beach | theCrag 1 star |
| Honeymooner's Delight | 5c | 5.9 | 12 m | Moody's Beach | theCrag 1 star |
| Tarzan House | 5a | 5.7 | 15 m | Mit Beach | theCrag 1 star |
| Zoom Zoom II | 5b | 5.8 | 10 m | Mit Beach | theCrag 1 star |
| Team Work! | 5c | 5.9 | 10 m | Mit Beach | theCrag 2 stars |
| What Now? | 5c | 5.9 | 10 m | Mit Beach | theCrag 1 star |
| Little Red Scooter Gang | 5b | 5.8 | 25 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 2 stars |
| Burn it up | 5c | 5.9 | 28 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 1 star; the route carries a snake warning |
| Sheep sheep sheep | 5c | 5.9 | 12 m | Tiger Beach Right | no stars on theCrag |
| Ichibon | 5c | 5.9 | 14 m | Tiger Beach Left | no stars on theCrag |
| Abandoned Rice Woman | 6a | 5.10a | 27 m | Tiger Beach Left | no stars on theCrag |
| Photo solo no more | 5b | 5.8 | 12 m | The Face | no stars on theCrag |
| Renate | 5c | 5.9 | — | Van Boi Trong | no stars on theCrag |
| Mu | 6a | 5.10a | — | Van Boi Trong | no stars on theCrag |
Intermediate: 6a+ to 6c+ (YDS 5.10b–5.11c)
Tiger Beach Right is the most complete wall at this level: 11 routes from 5c to 7b, 12 to 38 meters long. The description of Burn it up is worth reading: "After Typhoon Capricorn the jungle died, leaving only bare trunks, and those are the fruits it produced. Between the storm and the wildfire, this route was born." It is also a good warm-up route, "spending more time in the shade than the other routes".
| Route | Grade | YDS | Length / Pitches | Sector | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A Walk on the Mirror | 6a+ | 5.10b | 18 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 3 stars |
| Spotlight | 6a | 5.10a | 18 m | Tiger Beach Right | no stars on theCrag |
| Little red scooter gang extension | 6a | 5.10a | 30 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 2 stars |
| 11 Months in the Womb | 6b+ | 5.10d | 23 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 2 stars |
| Uterine prolapse | 6b+ | 5.10d | 38 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 3 stars, 21 bolts; the longest sport route at Tiger Beach |
| Peanut Butter & Jelly | 6a+ | 5.10b | 72 m, 4 pitches | Tiger Beach Left | theCrag 3 stars, 39 bolts; the sector carries a "free-solo fall risk, needs rope ascent technique" warning |
| Barefoot Vietnamese | 6b+ | 5.10d | 18 m | Moody's Beach | theCrag 3 stars; theCrag lists it as a signature Lan Hạ route |
| Routine Heaven | 6a | 5.10a | 23 m | Moody's Beach | theCrag 2 stars |
| Quinn | 6b | 5.10c | 20 m | Mit Beach | theCrag 3 stars |
| World Play | 6b+ | 5.10d | 10 m | Mit Beach | theCrag 3 stars |
| Chicken Wings | 6b | 5.10c | 10 m | Mit Beach | theCrag 2 stars |
| Emma | 6a+ | 5.10b | — | Van Boi Trong | no stars on theCrag |
| Schiff Ahoi | 6b+ | 5.10d | — | Van Boi Trong | no stars on theCrag |
| Figgluise | 6c | 5.11a/b | — | Van Boi Trong | no stars on theCrag |
| Bum Bum Massage | 6b+ | 5.10d | — | Luy Tam Biet | no stars on theCrag |
| Eliza Kom | 6c+ | 5.11c | — | Luy Tam Biet | no stars on theCrag |
Advanced: 7a to 7c+ (YDS 5.11d–5.13a)
The Face has only four routes, but theCrag gives them full stars; it is also one of the most legally sensitive spots — the Cat Ba page lists The Face as one of the places harbor police enforce against. The nine routes on Monkey Wall are all unnamed in the source, so they are not listed here.
| Route | Grade | YDS | Length / Pitches | Sector | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spit & Let Live | 7a | 5.11d | 25 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 2 stars, 13 bolts |
| Snake Skin | 7b | 5.12b | 23 m | Tiger Beach Right | theCrag 2 stars, 10 bolts |
| Bird's Nest Soup | 7b | 5.12b | 13 m | Tiger Beach Left | theCrag 1 star |
| Vietnamese Working Style | 7c | 5.12d | 24 m | Tiger Beach Left | theCrag 1 star, 16 bolts |
| License To Climb | 7b | 5.12b | 25 m | The Face | theCrag 3 stars, 13 bolts |
| License To Climb Harder | 7c | 5.12d | 32 m | The Face | theCrag 3 stars, 17 bolts; theCrag lists it as a signature Lan Hạ route |
| The Face | 7b+ | 5.12c | 30 m | The Face | theCrag 3 stars, 14 bolts |
| Taxi Girl | 7c | 5.12d | — | Taxi Girl | no stars on theCrag; the sector carries a warning flag on theCrag |
| Seui en vol | 7a+ | 5.12a | — | Taxi Girl | no stars on theCrag |
| Ho Chi Minh | 7b+ | 5.12c | — | Taxi Girl | no stars on theCrag |
| Chaos Bang | 7b | 5.12b | — | Taxi Girl | no stars on theCrag |
| Fish Wings | 7a+ | 5.12a | 15 m | Flying Fish Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Bac Ho | 7b | 5.12b | 17 m | Flying Fish Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Squid Legs | 7a | 5.11d | 16 m | Flying Fish Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Bridge Walker | 7a+ | 5.12a | 10 m | Flying Fish Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Saigon Wall | 7a | 5.11d | 18 m | Saigon Wall | theCrag 2 stars, 12 bolts |
| Shaman The Great | 7a | 5.11d | — | Luy Tam Biet | no stars on theCrag |
| Vampire State Building | 7b | 5.12b | 3 pitches | Luy Tam Biet | no stars on theCrag |
| Coalition of the Willing p2 | 7b | 5.12b | 28 m | Pirate's Belly | theCrag 3 stars, 15 bolts |
Expert: 8a and up (YDS 5.13b and up)
Only two 8s exist at Lan Hạ, and they are in two different places.
| Route | Grade | YDS | Length / Pitches | Sector | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giang | 8a+ | 5.13c | 17 m | Flying Fish Wall | no stars on theCrag, 9 bolts |
| Perfect Line | 8a | 5.13b | — | Taxi Girl | no stars on theCrag |
Deep water soloing routes: tides, falling in, and 40 lines
DWS routes use the same French grades as sport climbing, but the logic for choosing one is completely different: what you look at is not the rock quality, but whether there are submerged rocks under that cliff, whether the water is deep enough, and whether coral is exposed at low tide.
A few things you have to know first:
- 2 meters of tide is the safety line. Below that, do not get in the water. theCrag on doing it independently: "you need personal familiarity with these cliffs to avoid climbing at too low a tide, or hitting the submerged rocks".
- There is a groove at the base of the cliff, so you cannot start a climb from the water. That is why every operator insists on a boat.
- Sea Face is a wall the Cat Ba operators have to themselves, with no coral reef and enough depth; the other companies don't use it. If you want to do DWS at low tide, go to them.
- Streak of Lightning (7c+, 12 m, 3 stars) is the most famous deep water soloing route here, and the Cat Ba guide page links straight to a video of it.
- The deeper into the bay a cliff is, the higher the legal and tidal risk. The Face and Le Mekong 1947 are the two places the Cat Ba page names as the ones harbor police enforce against.
| Route | Grade | YDS | Length / Pitches | Sector | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medium practice jump | 4 | approx. 5.4–5.5 | 6 m | Sea Face | theCrag 1 star; the route for practicing jumps |
| Low practice jump | 4 | approx. 5.4–5.5 | 5 m | Sea Face | theCrag 1 star |
| High practice jump | 4 | approx. 5.4–5.5 | 8 m | Sea Face | theCrag 1 star |
| Warmup Traverse | 5c | 5.9 | 25 m | Sea Face | theCrag 1 star |
| The Long Way to Come Home | 6b+/c | 5.10d | 150 m | Sea Face | theCrag 2 stars; the longest route in this sector |
| Vietnamese Viking | 6b+ | 5.10d | 8 m | Sea Face | theCrag 3 stars |
| Duplicate route | 6b+ | 5.10d | 8 m | Sea Face | theCrag 3 stars |
| Hang Ten | 6b+ | 5.10d | 20 m | Sea Face | theCrag 2 stars |
| Cookie Monster | 6a+ | 5.10b | 10 m | Sea Face | theCrag 2 stars |
| Aw Chute | 6a+ | 5.10b | 10 m | Sea Face | theCrag 2 stars |
| Tinh's Crab Walk | 6c | 5.11a/b | 6 m | Sea Face | no stars on theCrag |
| Funky Monkey | 6c | 5.11a/b | 8 m | Sea Face | theCrag 3 stars |
| Sexy Boy | 7a | 5.11d | 10 m | Sea Face | theCrag 1 star |
| Sexy Them | 7b | 5.12b | 10 m | Sea Face | theCrag 2 stars |
| Sexy Man | 7c | 5.12d | 3 m | Sea Face | theCrag 1 star |
| Loco Mexican | 4c | 5.6 | 5 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| Three Brothers Traverse | 5c | 5.9 | 20 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| Dinh-gle Berry | 5b | 5.8 | 12 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| Blurred Lines | 6a | 5.10a | 15 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| Cadeau Noelle | 6a | 5.10a | 17 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| Brotha Man | 6a | 5.10a | 16 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 1 star |
| Also Bootiful | 6a+ | 5.10b | 11 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 3 stars |
| Tinkerbell | 6a+ | 5.10b | 12 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 3 stars |
| Vairghy Bootifool | 6c+ | 5.11c | 12 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 3 stars; theCrag lists it as a signature Lan Hạ route |
| Shizer Happens | 6a+ | 5.10b | 14 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 1 star |
| Pocket Waltz | 6b | 5.10c | 14 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| Don't let go | 7a | 5.11d | 12 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| You like to pinch? | 7a+ | 5.12a | 5 m | Three Brothers | no stars on theCrag |
| You like finger pockets? | 7b | 5.12b | 5 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 1 star |
| You like slopers? | 7c+ | 5.13a | 5 m | Three Brothers | no stars on theCrag |
| Lickity Split | 7a+ | 5.12a | 14 m | Three Brothers | theCrag 2 stars |
| Fish Fingers | 7a | 5.11d | — | Jellyfish Wall | theCrag 3 stars |
| Medusa | 6b | 5.10c | — | Jellyfish Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Rythmic Contractions | 6c | 5.11a/b | — | Jellyfish Wall | theCrag 2 stars |
| Ratatouille | 5c | 5.9 | — | Hang Ca Cave | no stars on theCrag |
| Black Slabbath | 7a+ | 5.12a | — | Hang Ca Cave | no stars on theCrag |
| Vu Luptuous | 7b | 5.12b | — | Hang Ca Cave | theCrag 2 stars |
| A Bridge Tufa | 7b+ | 5.12c | — | Hang Ca Cave | no stars on theCrag |
| Shangri la | 7c | 5.12d | — | Hang Ca Cave | no stars on theCrag |
| Le Mekong | 6c+ | 5.11c | — | Le Mekong 1947 | theCrag 2 stars |
| USA Bomber | 6b+ | 5.10d | — | Le Mekong 1947 | no stars on theCrag |
| Upstream Mekong | 7c+ | 5.13a | — | Le Mekong 1947 | no stars on theCrag |
| Barefoot Overhang | 7b+ | 5.12c | — | Le Mekong 1947 | no stars on theCrag |
| Good morning Vietnam | 7a | 5.11d | — | Fisherman's Way | no stars on theCrag |
| Napalm morning | 7b+ | 5.12c | — | Fisherman's Way | no stars on theCrag |
| Ruff guide to Vietnam | 7a+ | 5.12a | — | Fisherman's Way | no stars on theCrag |
| Apocalypse now | 7a | 5.11d | — | Fisherman's Way | no stars on theCrag |
| Young Grasshopper | 7b | 5.12b | — | Fisherman's Way | no stars on theCrag |
| Stingray Crack | 7b | 5.12b | — | Stingray Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Steve Irwin Tribute | 7b | 5.12b | — | Stingray Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Bia Hoi Tonight? | 7a | 5.11d | — | Stingray Wall | no stars on theCrag |
| Godzuki | 7a | 5.11d | — | Monster face | no stars on theCrag |
| Godzilla | 7b | 5.12b | — | Monster face | no stars on theCrag |
| Vu-Loceraptor | 7b+ | 5.12c | — | Monster face | no stars on theCrag |
| Streak of Lightning | 7c+ | 5.13a | 12 m | Streak of Lightning | theCrag 3 stars; theCrag lists it as a signature Lan Hạ route |
Where to look things up
- theCrag: Vịnh Lan Hạ: the index of 326 routes and 40 subareas; the tide and season description, the legality paragraph, the history and the guidebook information are all on this page.
- theCrag: Tiger Beach Right, Tiger Beach Left, Moody's Beach, Mit Beach, The Face, Sea Face, Three Brothers: the route-by-route list and star ratings for each subarea.
- theCrag: Cat Ba Island: the current version of the legality and season description is on this page; parts of the Lan Hạ page are still from the Asia Outdoors era.
- Cat Ba Climbing, Langur's Adventures: boats and trip prices, tide coordination, gear rental. Write ahead to ask about the tides and the current boat schedule before you leave.
- Guidebook: Grades and route counts here come mainly from online databases; the guidebook is the authority.
- Vietnam Climbing, Luca De Giorgi and Gavi Piper, second edition 2023, 230 pages, ISBN 9781727545128, in English. Sport climbing and deep water soloing around Ha Long Bay and Cat Ba are the bulk of the book, and every copy comes with a Vertical-Life app redemption code.
- The older edition of Vietnam Climbing cited on the Lan Hạ page (published February 2016, 140 pages, covering 120 sport routes on 13 walls and 230 deep water soloing routes on 24 cliffs) is available in the Cat Ba Climbing shop; go by the copy on the shelf for the edition.
References
- theCrag: Vịnh Lan Hạ
- theCrag: Cat Ba Island
- theCrag: Tiger Beach Right
- theCrag: Tiger Beach Left
- theCrag: Moody's Beach
- theCrag: Mit Beach
- theCrag: The Face
- theCrag: Sea Face
- theCrag: Three Brothers
- Cat Ba Climbing, Langur's Adventures
- UK travel advice: Getting help in Vietnam
- Mountain Project international grade comparison