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This was a great experience and I recommend you book it but here’s a few details so you know what to expect. We’re from the UK and booked for one night in December.
The boat itself is very impressive. Our room, an Elite Senior Suite, was wonderful with huge, comfortable bed, a good bathroom and a balcony easily big enough for two of us to relax on.
I assume access to the bay and the places the boats each stop are well “regulated”. I say this because, everywhere we stopped, Elite of the Seas seemed to have the best view possible, with other boats waiting behind us.
You will be fed, a lot, quickly, and the western food is pretty average. We were seated immediately on boarding for a six-course meal and a few hours later, had eight courses at dinner. To me this was a shame. It might sound impressive but, with a small kitchen, they’d have been much better to focus on three courses, cooked well. None of the dishes were particularly bad but there was nothing here I’d eat again, given the choice. You’ll also be overly attended to through the meal, with the itinerary and anything else you can enjoy on the boat repeatedly explained. The staff are trying very hard to please, though it’s ultimately to a fault. I wouldn’t let this put you off (in a way it was fun) but don’t go expecting anything other than the appearance of fine dining.
Breakfast and brunch on the second day were Vietnamese and very good.
The main activity on the first day is kayaking off the back of the boat. It’s excellent fun and we were also able to jump off the back of the boat and swim, with the water being warm enough and seemingly clean. Sadly, on our cruise we saw rubbish/trash in the water but the area where we stopped for this activity was clean, with the staff actively clearing small amounts of rubbish as we stopped.
We chose to kayak a little later than it was scheduled to start, which gave us time on both the roof deck and the stunning pool completely alone, surprising given there are 30+ rooms. We also skipped the second day activity, a visit to a cave, to have this quiet time again. I’m sure we missed out in a way but for us it was worth it; we’ll visit other caves, I don’t think I’ll ever have the exclusive use of a luxury yacht again.
On leaving we were pressured quite heavily to leave five star reviews, even asked by the staff if they could see us post them, so I’m writing this second review a few days later. It’s obviously not the staff’s fault so it’s a shame the company puts pressure on them to do this.
In summary: absolutely worth it and a five-star experience, even if some elements definitely could be improved. Consider skipping or timing the activities tactically to get some time away from the staff and...
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Absolutely amazing experience. The food was exceptional, they offered two menus for dinner, Vietnamese and Western. The Vietnamese one is really out of this world, 8 courses and very authentic tasting! We were on the three night two day cruise, perfect length of time. Activities are well planned and not too packed in. The evening activities ( happy hour, drone photography, hands on cooking demo) were great, the squid fishing especially fun. If you catch one, they cook it up for you the next morning! Rooms are spacious, with en suite bathrooms and a bathtub overlooking the bay. But what really blew me away was the service. Alee, our personal 'butler' was friendly, chatted to us and personally made sure we had the best experience possible! Harry, who oversaw all activities, was exceptional, and answered all the questions we had. Anna was absolutely lovely, and made friends with the kids, and me! She went out of her way to come down and go squid fishing with the kids, and she was constantly looking out for them and keeping them company. Overall, an absolutely AMAZING experience, genuinely one of the best experiences I've ever had! The staff are absolutely lovely and friendly, activities well planned, food lovely, rings spacious. Only thing that was a little sad to see was all the rubbish in the bay, but this is out of their control and they take you to a place with less garbage to swim, so when we swum we...
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A beautiful 2 nights and 3 day stay with Elite! Worth staying for 2 nights for the full experience. Amazing pool and bar setting and top deck views, this boat truly stands out from all the others in Ha Long Bay!
Lots of activities throughout the day, you can get involved with as little or as much as you like. Fireworks on the weekend, squid fishing, live music entertainment to keep you busy in the evenings.
Thank you to our butler, Ryan, for really looking after us during our stay. It makes the whole trip extra special!
And thank you Tony for all your hard work keeping everything smooth throughout our stay.
Everyone’s hard work and amazing customer service is really recognised and appreciated.
Couple things to note:
you will be fed a 8 course (roughly) meal as soon as you get on the boat before you enter your room, so no time to freshen up before hand. floor 1 for the rooms was fine; and our room was great but you must request the better rooms or you can get a blocked view on the balcony, we already knew this through research. the turn over is quick, some people do one night. You are on the boat for less than 24hrs if you book one night, there’s waiting around at the port and a speed boat to get on and off the cruise. It’s quite a timely process to stay for only 24hr, so I would recommend the 2 nights and 3...
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