Well-known as a coastal city with majestic landscapes, Halong is also rich in resources of fresh seafood and specialities, which are perfect for making gifts for friends and relatives. Therefore, your questions about what to buy in Halong Bay will be solved. This article will help you select the most valuable souvenirs to bring home.
Dried Seafood
Due to the diversity and richness, visitors can hardly choose the delicious food that suits their taste. If you have to choose, here are 3 highly recommended dry seafood to buy in Ha Long, namely dried squid, fried squid, and dried Sa Sung (dried sea worm).
Squid cake is selected by many travellers for its pure fresh squid filled the secrets of traditional seasoning and skillful hand-pounding, creating the fragrant, crunchy flavour of fried squid specialty in Ha Long.
Next, the dried sea worm (Sa Sung) is an expensive specialty in Ha Long since Sa Sung is rare and the cooking process is quite complicated. The locals rinse fresh sea worms many times by using chopsticks head and dry it in the coal stove or charcoal, or stir fry till it turns yellow.
Dried squid in Ha Long has a range of prices depending on the type and length of the squid. To get the dried squid, after fishing from the sea, the fishermen have to remove all the organs, cuttlefish, then sun-dry or dry in different ways until the squid gets dry and hard.
From the original Ha Long squid, you can easily buy many delicious dishes such as grilled squid, mixed stir squid, dried squid with chili sauce, fried squid with pineapple , etc.
Ha Long’s Pearl
What to buy in Ha Long Bay? The most common answer must be Pearl. Nourishing pearls is a traditional occupation in Ha Long Bay and Tung Sau Pearl Farm is the ideal destination to introduce the process of making excellent pearl masterpieces to the tourists. On cruising Ha Long Bay, visitors can have a chance to visit Tung Sau Pearl Farm and listen to the process of making pearls, as well as the characteristics of the color, the shape of pearls cultured here.
Ha Long pearl is saltwater pearl so it has remarkable advantages and differences from the freshwater one. Ideally, if the seawater pearls are hundreds of years old, the fresh water pearls are just from 20-30 years old. Seawater pearls have a natural color, made up of millions of living cells from the son, so each pearl, apart from its main color, converges various colors under each corner of light refraction.
Here, tourists will be introduced to each production stage. Especially, you can freely learn and choose for yourself the beautiful and high-quality pearls that are crafted very sophisticated and splendidly. This is also the unique souvenir worth to buy in Ha Long Bay.
Ba Kich Wine
Besides the mentioned specialties in Ha Long Bay, tourists can also buy the typical beverage, Ba Kich wine. Despite being one of the best specialties in Ha Long Bay, Ba Kich wine is still a strange thing to buy in Ha Long for those who have never been to Ha Long or have not researched about Ha Long tourism.
Ba Kich is a wine that is well soaked from the Ba Kich tuber grown in Quang Ninh Province. Depending on the color of Ba Kich tubers, the wine can have white or purple colors. Ba Kich tuber in Quang Ninh is a perfect combination of traditional rice wine with a specific sweet fragrance of Ba Kich. This is the difference making the characteristics of Quang Ninh Ba Kich Wine.
Usually, when you hear about alcohol, you will probably think of more negative things. But Ba Kich wine is healthy and good for your health. Ba Kich is originally a precious medicinal herb that grows naturally concentrated in the low mountain areas of North Viet Nam, especially in Quang Ninh. In Quang Ninh, Ba Kich tubers grown over 3 years can be harvested, with the same quality as Ba Kich grown naturally. This true herb is suggested to drink as medicinal alcohol with a certain dosage for health boost or healing.
To buy Ba Kich wine as a souvenir in Ha Long, tourist can look up around Ha Long night market, Cai Dam market – heaven for Ha Long specialties. If you want to enjoy the wine directly, visitors can go to any restaurant in Ha Long City.
Ha Long Bay’s Souvenirs
Along with delicious food and beverages in Ha Long Bay, tourists should not miss the unique and creative Ha Long souvenirs made from ocean creatures and coal. In the group of high-end souvenirs, tourist can choose pearl necklaces, pearl-attached bags for female friends.
Additionally, beautiful and unique small souvenirs in Ha Long made from sea creatures such as seashells, snails, .. in the shape of the keychain, necklace with different designs.
Moreover, tourist can buy some handicrafts made from coal, ceramic, and embroidery from Ha Long night markets, Bai Chay shopping center, or other souvenir shops.
You are recommended to bargain when you buy in Ha Long to get your favorite souvenirs at the best price. It is really interesting when you can wander around the market and bring home the best souvenirs of Ha Long Bay.