Halong Bay Cruise Review: Era Cruises

Hi, everyone! It’s been two weeks since I saw Maksim Mrvica LIVE and stood beside him… Gosh, I wish I could turn back time. Not sure when he will return to Malaysia 🥲

Luckily, long before the concert, I already booked a Vietnam tour that included a 2D1N Halong Bay cruise with Era Cruises. The trip cheered me up a bit…

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Theresia Clara (@agirlnamedclara)

I used to ponder, why do I like the ocean but am not a fan of beaches? 🌊🤔

I just can’t stand sitting on a beach for hours, doing nothing under the hot sun. Okay, there may be beach umbrellas but the weather would still be hot.

Plus, my skin is sensitive to heat. And I have no intention to have tanned skin.

So… what kind of holiday suits me?

I get the answer after my trip. I like cruise holidays!

My stay on Era Cruises wasn’t my first cruise experience. Before this trip, I boarded a budget cruise in Europe and the experience was just okay.

My room was super small and was like, five levels below the deck. The food… was edible. Basically, I got what I paid.

So, what if you want to experience staying on a luxury cruise but have a limited budget?

Let’s go to Vietnam! Among all Halong Bay cruises available, I highly recommend Era Cruises.

By the way, this isn’t a paid post, guys… I just want to share my experience with fellow conscious spenders. Plus, I personally stayed on the cruise, so it’s a legit review 😉

💖 Want a 10% discount on Vietnam trips? Click below and enter my discount code: 💖

CLARA10

After choosing the date on the website, click “Add Promo Code / Voucher” and enter CLARA10.
The price shown is in AUD. This code is valid for all tours.

Why You Should Choose Era Cruises for Your Halong Bay Trip

When you google “Halong Bay cruise”, you will see many options. The standard cruises look beautiful in the pictures and seem like good deals.

But if you’re looking to experience staying on a luxurious Halong Bay cruise, don’t be swayed by those options. Aim high!

Here are some reasons why you should choose Era Cruises:

• It’s a small, luxury cruise with 20 rooms (not too crowded)
• The rooms are spacious (the biggest among other cruises, according to the staff)
• You get your own jacuzzi, overlooking Halong Bay
• There’s a balcony with beach lounge chairs, overlooking Halong Bay
• The food is great
• There’s a small gym
• The decks and bar are huge
• It’s very comfortable, nice interior design
• Warm hospitality

Can you guess what my mom and I liked the most about our room on Era Cruises?

The balcony! Although the Terrace Suite was the cheapest room, we still got a spacious balcony that fit two beach lounge chairs.

The temperature in Hanoi and Halong Bay in mid-February was still chill, it was around 18°C. My mom and I just sat there, enjoying the beautiful scenery while sipping jasmine tea 🍵⛵

I have no idea which other cruises had this kind of balcony in their rooms. When I was relaxing there, some cruises passed by and I saw none.

Some of them had no balcony or a balcony for each room but that’s it — no chairs or tables. Some had simple chairs and tables only.

My mom, sister, and I were so happy that the tour that we joined chose a great luxury Halong Bay cruise for us!

From its website, the rooms in Era Cruises start from around RM1,000 (around 300 USD)/person, per night. It has some packages, such as 1 Day, 2 Days 1 Night, and 3 Days 2 Nights.

I’m not sure how much my tour operator paid for us, though…

Also read: “That’s Amore: Some Love Lessons for This Week”
Also read: “M/S Gabriella: How Overnight in a Cruise Feels Like”

Halong Bay Luxury Cruise: The Interior Design of Era Cruises

The one thing that I realised after my stay on Era Cruises was: if there weren’t many activities, choosing a luxury cruise will help to curb your boredom.

I stayed for 2 Days 1 Night and although there were some activities like kayaking, swimming, cooking class, squid fishing, morning tai chi, and visitting dark & bright cave, at some point… we felt bored.

Unlike other cruise holidays where you could island hop and explore different towns, I feel it’s better to go for luxury Halong Bay cruises so you could relax and enjoy yourself to the max.

Nice and comfortable interior design do help, guys… For example, you would enjoy sitting for hours on the deck, restaurant, and lounge.

What about having a spa onboard?

💖 15% OFF ALL TOURS! Click below and enter my discount code: 💖

CLARA15

Click “Add Promo Code / Voucher” and enter CLARA10 when you checkout at onelifeadventures.com

Also read: “Nice Trip: The Mademoiselle of Monte Carlo”
Also read: “Starbucks What? One Fine Day in Capri, Italy”

Alright, now you’ve seen the room, restaurant, and balcony beside the restaurant. Next, I’ll show you the lounge, decks, bar, and gym 😉

Yes, friends, GYM.

Although it was small, it had enough equipment like a few dumbbells, a treadmill, a yoga mat, and a bicycle. Oh, it also had AC. Yaaay!

💖 15% OFF ALL TOURS! Click below and enter my discount code: 💖

CLARA15

Click “Add Promo Code / Voucher” and enter CLARA10 when you checkout at onelifeadventures.com

Besides nothing much to do, another minus thing about boarding Era Cruises was the WiFi. It was only available in the lounge area!

When there were many people, you could imagine how slow the WiFi was. Nevertheless, when boarding a luxury Halong Bay cruise, it was good to put the phone away #digitaldetox

So, what do you think about Era Cruises? Would you board this cruise for your Halong Bay trip?

Also read: “Vitamin Sea in Porto & How Financial Goals Saved Me”
Also read: “Digital Detox Trip: Nature Edition in Raja Ampat, Indonesia”
Also read: “Ba Na Hills, a Beautiful French Resort in Da Nang, Vietnam”