Ti Top island

Ti Top Island used to be known as Nghia Dia or Hong Thap Tu in memory of the sailors who died when a French cargo plane crashed in Ha Long Bay. The current name of the island is named by Uncle Ho, after the Russian astronaut Gherman Titov visited Bay in 1962. The Vietnamese felt incredibly honored by the visit, as Titov had just become the second human to orbit Earth the previous year (and just four months after fellow Russian, Yuri Gagarin). Because Titov was so enamored with the sheer beauty of Ha Long Bay, Uncle Ho decided to rename Island No. 48 to Ti Top (the Vietnamese pronunciation of his name) to solidify the friendship between the two icons as well as their respective countries. Titov would later return to the island in 1997, expressing his deep gratitude to the Vietnamese by writing in the island’s guestbook: “My deepest thanks to destiny, which has allowed me to come back to this tiny island.”

One of Ti Top’s key distinctions is that it is one of the very few islands in with a sandy beach, and the only way to get to Ti Top Island is by boat.

Ti Top island is known for its crescent shaped beach, immaculate white sand an with calm waters.

To get to Ti Top Island we had to get into a small boat as the water is too shallot for our main boat to dock.

We have reached the dock and we are disembarking our boat.

The dock at Ti Top Island. So many boats coming to the island.

Bridge leading to island.

View of the Ha Long bay from the dock.

As soon as you walk in the island there is a huge statue of TiTov.

The People’s Committee of northern Quang Ninh province unveiled a monument to cosmonaut hero Gherman Titov on the island on September 14, 2005

The inauguration was held on the occasion of the 65th founding anniversary of the Vietnam-Soviet Union Friendship Association, and on the 80th birthday of Titov.

The beach is quite large with beautiful white sand.

Ti Top beach is the main highlight of the island with pristine white sand, clear water, and small waves, which makes it an ideal place for swimming, and the view is certainty breathtaking.

Walkway around the beach.

Stairs going up to the peak of the island.

You can rent beach chairs and umbrellas if you want to spend some time sunbathing.

Going up to the top.

We are barely up and the view is already breathtaking.

Beside the beach, the second activity is to climb to the top of the island and that is what we are doing.

There are about 400 steps to ascend the peak of Ti Top island. It takes about 20 to 30 minutes to climb up. The stairs are very narrow so we have to pay attention.

As we are going up the view the view just get better.

Ha Long Bay has seen a substantial increase in the number of visitors over the past decade. In 2010, the bay welcomed approximately 1.6 million visitors, while in 2023, that number had rocketed to over 6.8 million. This represents a more than three-fold increase in the number of tourists visiting Bay, making it one of the fastest-growing tourist destinations in Vietnam.

Panoramic view of the bay.

In recent years, the Vietnamese government has invested heavily in improving the infrastructure and facilities in the area, enabling tourists to explore the bay and enjoy its many attractions more easily.

Regardless of the drastic growth in tourism in Bay, the area remains one of the most beautiful and unspoiled regions in the country. This is due in part to the local authorities' efforts to conserve the natural environment and limit the impact of tourism on the local ecosystem. For example, the number of boats allowed to operate in the bay is strictly controlled, and there are strict rules in place to protect the local wildlife and vegetation.

We are about half way up. Vista point with lots of people stopping to take a picture.

Magnificent rock formations dominate the bay's landscape.

The trail is getting even narrower as we are going up.

We finally made it to the top but there are so many people around.

Panoramic view of the peak.

You have to stay in line to be able to get to front.

The view is definitely worth it!

The formation of Bay dates to over 500 million years ago. Over time the bay has gone through countless changes resulting in the magnificent natural wonder we have today. The beautiful ancient marine limestone rocks used to stand at over 3,280 ft. tall. Millions of years of erosion have reduced them to their present size.

According to researchers and respected geologists, the bay we see now was formed roughly 8,000 years ago dating back to a period in our Earth’s history called ‘The Middle Holocene Transgression’. This refers to a ‘marine transgression’; a time when the sea rose to a point much higher than they reach today thus making the shorelines higher and causing flooding.

Cruise boats docking in the bay.

Ha Long Bay and the surrounding area are made up of mainly of thick limestone, just like the famous limestone karsts that can be seen sprouting majestically throughout the bay’s waters. The limestone that is found in Ha Long Bay began forming during the Carboniferous period, around 340 million years ago. At this point, the Earth was much warmer and wetter than it is today, and due to large swamps carbonate sediment moved into the oceans. This resulted in the gradual hardening and thickening of the limestone over many millions of years. This limestone achieved a thickness of 3,937 ft., and these are the famous karsts that we see today.

Thanks to these millions of years of erosion from the rain and the sea, Bay is also home to unique valleys and an impressive maze of caves!

We are done with the visit and we are going down.

Going down and Hoa is taking a little break.

We are now back at Beach.

Panoramic view of the beach. Notice the dog enjoying a warm day on the beach.

The dogs in this area look like they are well taken care and they look pretty healthy.

Beautiful winter day in the bay.

We are now on the boat and heading to our main boat that is docking further in the bay.

As we are leaving the island, you can see the gazibo on the peak of the mountain. We climbed up about 400 steps to the top, and it was worth the effort to get a 360 degrees view of the bay.

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