Exotic location that visits multiple off the beaten path locales, affording you opportunities to see the hidden gems. Breathtaking views around every bend., sunset, and sunrise. Food was inexhaustible and ever available. Exceptional service was on hand at every moment. Our assigned butler for the cruise was 'Sky'. He was always attentive and always anticipating likes, preferences, and offering options or recommendations. He took the trip from potentially great, to exceeding all expectations. Truly, Sky was so attentive and caring , my son adopted him as a member of the family.

We arrived right after the monsoon had blown through and the storm had churned up and or blown debris, garbage and other flotsom into all the swimming areas and beaches. For an area that so many ships and locals depend upon for tourism, I wished an organized effort would have been made to quickly clean up the floating garbage so visitors could see it all pristine and worth traveling halfway across the world. We did not participate in most water activities due to the piles of floating garbage representing a health hazard or worse...hidden dangers, ropes or nets and tarps

Excellent experience but smoking by other guests on balconies really are a menace. Smoking on ships and boats should be banned all together.

The loud music at the pool bar does not suit the profile of guests, and completely detracts from the serenity and tranquility of Halong Bay. Quite, tranquil music would be more suited to the vessel's ambience. To many prepared sauces instead of cooked products used with food. The vessel is known for it's sustainability and food products that do not contain preservative's, colourants and artificial flavourings does not reconcile with it's ethos. I would have preferred cleaner food products made from scratc

Very nice ship, awesome staff

Value for Money has definitely not met my expectations. At this range everything must be perfect. However, there was no flexibility on the 2nd day excursion and you should know that basically you spend your day on a smaller random day boat and not on the ship you booked. While we decided to stay on the Grand Essence to spend time on the pool and other amazing facilities we were disturbed by maintenance carried out on board (should not happen at this pricy range). Further we sometimes had to chase the crew to get some paid drinks, i.e. pool bar was not open at all, sky bar only during happy hour before dinner, etc.

Just an excellent experience overall. The brand new ship was absolutely pristine. It is the largest ship in Ha Long Bay as of February 2024 and it literally stands head and shoulder above all other cruise ships. The meals were excellent and the ship has plenty of entertainment for young children. The aft deck swimming pool is warmed so despite the chilly weather we were able to enjoy an excellent swim. The staff was beyond reproach. Ha Long Bay is a must visit for north Vietnam and the views from the ship are absolutely breathtaking. Well worth the premium if you are looking for a once in a lifetime experience.

The ship's golf simulator was broken at the time of our trip. Some of the staff had a difficult time understanding English but other staff stepped up to fill the gap. The Booking.com listing indicated no reservation fee but prior to boarding the cruise contacted me to demand a reservation fee. This requirement should be made clear on the listing.

Large rooms balcony food was exceptional Staff friendly professional helpful could not do enough.

Too many children very noisy at night lack of parent control. Piano for the children should be relocated to another area not playing during Dinner time.

Brand new ship, Friendly and helpful staff. A large choice of food at lunch.

If you are traveling as a couple and coming from Europe, I do not recommend the ship!!! Choose a smaller luxury ship!!! There are mostly large groups of Chinese and Indians on board. You can barely talk to your partner during meals because of the noise!!! The food is repeated for dinner and afternoon canapés in various modified forms from LUNCH.

All staff were very good. All of the meals were excellent. Dinner was superb. Complements to the chefs. The Service was outstanding Our room was super, we had everything we needed in our room.

This is a review regarding the property. We did actually pay for a cruise plus one night. I have to add that during the night the cruise ship is anchored, we called it a floating Hotel, which of course it was. The cruise itself was disappointing ,as we only saw a very small fraction of Ha Long Bay. As we were expecting to see much more of the Bay. I do not say this lightly as yesterday we hired a private boat to see much more of the bay.

This was a wonderful experience which was very well organised and wonderfully serviced by all of the staff. We were blessed to have Nam assigned to assist and service us in any way possible. He and his colleagues ensured we had an enjoyable and memorable experience which we would have no hesitation in doing again. All of the facilities were first class and the cuisine was exceptional and plentiful. I highly recommend cruising with Grand Pioneers.

The hair dryer in our room was tedious to use as it required holding a button down manually which is impractical for an extended period. There were no spare rolls of toilet paper stored in our room, only the one roll kept at one time. The tissues were small and not particularly soft.

Very friendly staff

No cold juices for breakfast only 3 warm watery ones 🤮 I had to ask for orange juice & was charged for same The beach location that they bring you to is very over crowded & extremely dirty 🙈 For a 5 star cruise to bring you to a dump like that is not good enough

The Cruise on Grand Pioneers was exceptional. This included the accommodation, the food and the activities. What made our stay extra special were the staff, particularly our guest relations guy, Quy - nothing was too difficult for him and he was always so accommodating - and Nhi our butler who was very attentive. I would definitely recommend the 3 day/2 night option. The first day kayak into less travelled parts of Halong Bay was amazing. Loved it.