Emperor Cruise

Emperor Cruise is a ten-suite boat, and from October 2026 it sails Bai Tu Long Bay, north-east of Ha Long, boarding at Tuan Chau as before. The smallest suite listed is 35 square metres. On the two-night programme the middle day leaves the ship altogether, by day boat, for Thay Cave and the Cong Dam area.

The guest reviews we draw on were posted before the move. We lean on them for the ship, the suites, the crew and the food. The few that talk about stops or pacing describe the old Ha Long route, and we say so where they appear.

Ten cabins, and the arithmetic closes

Ten cabins. Of the boats we list in Bai Tu Long Bay, the middle one has 16 cabins and only three carry fewer than Emperor (cabin counts as of 14 October 2026). The grade breakdown adds up to exactly ten: two Hanoi/Saigon suites of 35 square metres, two Signature suites of 35 to 43, four State suites of 50 split across the main and upper decks, and two Royal suites of 70 up top. The operator names them Classic (Hanoi and Saigon), Signature (Do Son and Lak Lake), State, and Royal (King and Queen), so the grade name you are quoted may change with the seller.

One four-star guest describes comfortable cabins with a decent bed and a tiny bathroom, so if the bathroom matters, ask for its size along with the suite’s.

Booking sites date the boat to 2017 and give her a steel hull. The operator, part of Lux Cruises Group, gives her a length of 58 metres, a beam of 12 and three decks. Every suite has a balcony and a jacuzzi tub, and the facility list runs to a spa, a gym, a kids’ club and a library.

What the cabins cost

These are the highest rates the halongbaytours.com listing published on 6 August 2026, per cabin for two on the one-night trip: Signature suite $380, State suite $450, Royal suite $520, and $730, $860 and $1,020 over two nights. Treat those as the top of the range. That reading predates the route change, so ask whether the figures still stand.

Those three names match the grade breakdown above, so on that listing’s figures the $380 buys a Signature suite of 35 to 43 m² and the $520 a 70 m² Royal suite on the upper deck. The two 35 m² Hanoi/Saigon suites are not on that sheet. If the smallest room is the one you want, ask for it by name, and get the deck and the room number in writing when you book. The operator was offering 30% off the cruise for stays from 1 October to 20 December 2026 and from 1 January to 28 February 2027, booked by 20 October 2026.

Halved, the $380 Signature suite is $190 each for two sharing. Plan against the cabin table and the date on it.

What guests say when they are unhappy

The low reviews are few, and the most instructive one is about weather. Posted in April 2026, it comes from a guest who booked Emperor for a honeymoon, saved for months, and got about two hours on board before a storm stopped the port issuing sailing permits. Everybody was moved onto Heritage Cruise, the same company’s other ship.

The three-star reviews carry the rest of the criticism. A group of ten on the old Ha Long three-day trip found the range of activities thin for the length of the booking, and had difficulty following their guides in English, while describing the staff as keen and attentive in the same breath. Another guest calls the Vietnamese seafood lunch exceptional and the Western dinner weak, which suggests ordering off the local end of the menu. One five-star guest found the old one-night programme a little packed.

The move does not change who decides about storms. In Quang Ninh the provincial agriculture and environment department recommends a suspension, the maritime port authority decides whether to issue sailing permits, and that decision covers Bai Tu Long as much as Ha Long. Our Bai Tu Long page explains why this bay tends to close first. The operator’s terms are strict. The port authority rules by 11:00 on the day; pull out before that ruling and you get nothing back. When the authorities permit day trips but not overnights, the charge is $180 a person for lunch and a day on the water. On a two-night trip the permit for day two comes at 08:00, and if it is refused the boat is back at the marina by 10:30 and you are charged for one night. Transport booked through Emperor is not refunded. Read those terms before you pay, particularly for July through September.

What the good reviews say about the room is specific. Two guests describe a bath positioned for the view, and one writes about seeing the bay from the bed through the big glass window. One mentions being lent traditional clothes for dinner. Photos of the dining room show white tablecloths, and the sun deck carries orange sails above the loungers.

Where does Emperor sail from October 2026?

Bai Tu Long Bay. The operator announced on 22 September 2026 that the boat would move there from October, and frames it as a return to what it calls the first bay of the company’s story. Boarding stays at Tuan Chau, through the Emperor lounge at 28B Tuan Chau International Marina, where guests gather between 11:00 and 11:30 to board at 12:30.

On the one-night programme the afternoon goes to Thien Canh Son, a cave set on top of a limestone mountain, visited from about 15:00 and followed by kayaking. Early next morning, at 07:15, a tender or day boat takes you out to Vung Vieng. Local fishermen then row you round the floating village in their bamboo boats. You are back on the ship by 08:15. Check-out is at 09:30, and on both trips you are ashore at Tuan Chau at about 11:00.

The two-night programme keeps both, with the village row on the final morning, and spends the middle day off the ship on a day boat: Thay Cave from 08:30, which the operator calls one of the largest in the bay, then the Cong Dam and Hon Xep nature area before lunch, eaten on the day boat between 12:30 and 15:00. Neither stop appears on the one-night trip, and that is now our reason to take three days. The old argument rested on Viet Hai village, which the new route does not visit. Our two days or three guide covers the cost side of that choice.

On 9 October 2026 the operator’s own website was still selling the old Ha Long packages next to the new ones. Ask whoever sells you the trip which route runs on your date, and get it in writing. Tripadvisor already lists the boat as Emperor Cruises Legacy Fai Tsi Long, while many older reviews sit under Emperor Cruises Legacy Halong.

Who it suits

Couples on an occasion, on two nights, buying a specific room on a specific deck from a boat with nine other cabins on it. It sits properly among the small boats and in the luxury bracket, and it also appears on our best-value page. For the rest of the fleet on this bay, see our Bai Tu Long cruise guide. If the bay itself is still an open question, start with the three-bay comparison.

Who should look elsewhere

Anyone travelling between July and September on fixed dates. A permit suspension keeps every suite in port, and under the operator’s weather terms a day cut short by the authorities is still charged.

What else should you know before booking?

The Hanoi transfer is extra. The operator’s D’Car limousine vans, eight seats, collect door to door between 08:00 and 08:30 for $45 a person round trip. The fare covers meals, water, tea and coffee, afternoon tea and canapés, the cooking class, a Vovinam martial-arts session, the gym, kayaking, the bamboo boat, sightseeing tickets, the lounge, the tender and a butler; drinks beyond that are extra.

On the operator’s terms for one to three cabins, cancelling more than 30 days out is free, 16 to 30 days costs 30%, 8 to 15 days 50%, 4 to 7 days 70%, and inside three days the full fare, on a 30% deposit. A first child under 5 sharing the bed is free, a second pays 40%, children from 5 to 11 pay 70%, and one extra bed per suite is allowed for a child under 12.

Where these facts come from

The route, times, lounge, length, decks, suite names, sizes and counts, inclusions, transfer and cancellation, child and weather terms come from emperorcruises.com and luxcruisesgroup.com, read on 9 and 14 October 2026. The launch year and hull are from halongbaytours.com, besthalongcruises.com and halongbaycruises.com, and prices from the halongbaytours.com listing, all read on 6 August 2026. Guest remarks are from reviews posted before the route change.