ID
IT
DE
ZH
ES
FRPrograms · Shore excursions
Vietnam Shore Excursions: Port-Day Operations for Cruise Lines and Tour Operators
Dong DMC runs shore excursions at Vietnam's cruise ports, plus Halong Bay and Mekong cruise programs, for cruise lines, tour operators and group planners. Every call is planned backwards from the all-aboard time, delivered under the partner's name, and quoted at net rates.
Short answer: Vietnam's main cruise calls are Ha Long (for Halong Bay and Hanoi), Chan May (for Hue, Da Nang and Hoi An), Tien Sa in Da Nang, Nha Trang, Phu My (for Ho Chi Minh City) and Phu Quoc. Most excursions involve a long transfer, so the port day succeeds or fails on coach staging, guide-to-coach ratios and the buffer back to the ship. Dong DMC plans and runs that day as the ground team of the cruise line or tour operator.
Shore excursions · Halong Bay cruises · Mekong cruises · White-label · Net rates
1. What Dong DMC Runs for Cruise Partners
Three cruise-linked products, sold only through cruise lines, tour operators, incentive houses and group planners. Passengers deal with the partner's brand; Dong DMC is the ground team behind it.
Shore excursions
Same-day port programs for ocean cruise calls: coaches, licensed guides, entrance tickets, meals and the return to the ship, scaled from a single private car to a full ship's manifest.
Halong Bay cruise programs
Overnight and day cruises on Halong Bay and Lan Ha Bay for groups and incentives, including whole-ship charters. Details: Vietnam Luxury Cruise & Yacht.
Mekong cruise programs
Mekong river cruises with the land program around them: gateway hotel, embarkation transfer and post-cruise extension. Details: Vietnam River Cruise Programs.
2. Vietnam Cruise Ports and What Each Port Day Involves
Most Vietnamese cruise ports are industrial or deep-water terminals, not city-centre piers. The distance to the sights sets the shape of the day.
| Port | Serves | Distance to the sights | Planning note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ha Long | Halong Bay, Lan Ha Bay, Hanoi | Bay on the doorstep; Hanoi is a long road day | Bay excursions fit any call length; a Hanoi day needs a long call and an early start. See Halong Bay DMC. |
| Chan May | Hue, Da Nang, Hoi An | About 64 km to Hue, about 45 km to Da Nang | Hue and Hoi An run as separate full-day options; the Hai Van pass road affects timing. See Hue DMC. |
| Tien Sa (Da Nang) | Da Nang, Hoi An, Ba Na | About 10 km to central Da Nang | Short transfer, so half-day programs work well. See Da Nang DMC. |
| Nha Trang | Nha Trang city and islands | Close to the city | Island and beach programs depend on sea state. See Nha Trang DMC. |
| Phu My | Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau | About 80 km to central Ho Chi Minh City, 90 minutes to 2 hours each way | Traffic decides the day; city programs need the widest return buffer. See Ho Chi Minh City DMC. |
| Phu Quoc | Phu Quoc island | Ships usually anchor and tender ashore | Tender time comes out of the excursion; An Thoi port is being upgraded for larger ships. See Phu Quoc DMC. |
Port demand is growing: Chan May received 46 cruise calls with 131,515 passengers and crew in 2025, and expects about 88 calls in 2026 (Vietnam News Agency, February 2026). Entry rules for passengers by nationality are kept on the Vietnam Entry and Connectivity Facts page.
3. How a Port Call Day Runs
A shore excursion is planned backwards from the all-aboard time, not forwards from the gangway.
Before the call
- Excursion menu priced per port, per coach and per passenger
- Coach and guide count fixed from the sales manifest, with a cut-off date
- Guide and vehicle details lodged for port access
- Restaurant seatings and ticket blocks confirmed for the call date
- Weather and sea-state check for bay and island programs
On the day
- Coaches staged at the pier before the first passenger is cleared
- One guide per coach, coach numbers matching the ship's tickets
- Field lead in contact with the ship's shore-excursion desk
- Fixed return time with a buffer before all-aboard
- Post-call note to the partner: headcount, timings, incidents
4. Who We Work With
- Cruise lines and their shore-excursion teams: port programs for ship-sold excursions, delivered under the cruise line's name.
- Tour operators and travel agencies: private shore excursions for their own clients on a cruise, and pre- or post-cruise land programs.
- Organisers and incentive planners: groups that combine a Halong Bay or Mekong cruise with a land program, including whole-ship charters.
Dong DMC does not sell excursions to passengers on the pier or online. Each passenger stays the client of the cruise line or the agency that booked them.
5. Planning Variables That Change a Port Day
Distance and traffic
Phu My to Ho Chi Minh City and Ha Long to Hanoi are long road days. They are offered only when the call is long enough to keep the return buffer intact.
Weather and season
The central coast has its rainy and storm season roughly from September to December. Halong Bay cruising can be suspended when storms are forecast. Each bay or island program has a land-based alternative ready.
Tender ports
At Phu Quoc, tendering ashore takes time out of the excursion, so programs are shorter and start points are planned around the tender schedule.
Volume on one site
When several coaches reach the same site together, ticketing, toilets and lunch seatings become the bottleneck. Coaches are staggered and the order of visits is reversed.
6. Programs We Have Run
- Royal Caribbean sailings, Southeast Asian wholesalers: shore excursions for passengers booked through Royal Caribbean wholesalers in Jakarta and Manila, run under the wholesaler's name. Market context: Philippines partners and Indonesia (Bahasa Indonesia).
- Independent cruise passengers from the United States: private shore excursions for many small FIT parties, each sized to its own call times. Market context: US & Canada partners.
Dong DMC runs 50–70 group programs per month for 800+ travel partners across 20+ source markets, under International Tour Operator Licence 79-168/TCDL-GPLHQT.