Bai Chay Market

Halong Bay’s Bai Chay Night Market is a popular market among tourists and locals due to the wide array of products and the lively atmosphere. There are over a hundred open-air stalls selling items like handicrafts, accesories, clothes, souvenirs and many more. Bargaining is common here and you’ll find the prices very affordable

Bai Chay Commercial Center is a market that’s a bit smaller compared to Halong Market. It’s very much a local shopping area, with few tourists so this is the place to go for the authentic Vietnamese shopping experience. Go to Bai Chay Market for fresh produce and cheap clothes. The opening hours vary slightly depending on weather so go early in the morning or afternoon to ensure you have time to walk around.

Shopping price in Halong is not too expensive for famous destination. You can buy clothes, souvenirs with just a little bit expensive more than other local places in Vietnam. Eating at Halong restaurants is also quite affordable price. However, like many other destinations, you also need to ask about the price before deciding to buy or rent something.

Firstly, we must mention Squid Sausages. This famous specialty is cooked with fresh squid. What made special flavor to fried squid is the hands pounding technique, instead of grinding as many other places. After adding spices, the patties are fried on a pan with boiling oil. It makes the squid sausage crunchier and more delicious. Despite the relatively high price, 300.000 – 450.000 VND per kg, tourists still try to buy in the market when they come here.

You also should to try ¨Ngán¨. You will be surprised with its name that means ¨boring¨ in Vietnamese. However it is considered as the most delicious dish in Halong. ¨Ngán¨ is a mollusk with bivalve like clams, it can be processed in various ways: grilled, steamed, cooked soup, fried with noodles or vegetables. ¨Ngán¨ can also be used to make wine. The wine which is processed by ¨Ngán¨ has its own scent from the sea. If you would like to buy fresh ¨Ngán¨ or wine, you can go to Cai Ram market, Vuon Dao market.

It is very strange when you hear about Sa Sung – a kind of sea worn. It lives deeply in the sand and is available only in Quan Lan island (Quang Ninh Province), so this is a quite expensive dish in Halong Bay. Fresh ¨Sa Sung¨ can be stir-fried with garlic or dried, grilled, roasted to eat while drinking alcohol. In addition, it is also used to make spices for noodle soup.

Another famous seafood dish in Halong is Snail. Halong has different kinds of snail so that if you hear about it, you have to ask to repeat or need a pen and paper to record because it is hard for you to remember: hương snail (Flavor), đĩa snail (plate), vặn snail (twisted), Gai snail (prickle), … Served with snail is the special sauces to make that dish tastier.

It is a pity when you travel to Halong without enjoying Tu Hai. If you try it once, surely you will not forget the typical taste of this seafood. Tu Hai can be steamed, make salad, cooked soup, grilled, etc. The appetizer with steamed Tu Hai has cool and sweet taste and it can be said that this is the most delicious, nutritious dish.