Emperor Cocktail & Dinner Cruise, Nha Trang, Vietnam

One of Nha Trang’s main attractions is it’s beaches. They’re quite beautiful, but I wouldn’t compare them to the beaches in say Fiji, Turks and Caicos, or the Maldives. They’re nice, but not that nice. I see reviews online about “white sandy beaches” in Nha Trang, and that’s just not the reality of it. The sand is probably beige at best, and the water is murky, not clear.

That said, you still get some great views of the ocean, and the beaches are still nice to walk along and swim in. There are also a lot of water activities you can do, such as snorkelling, scuba diving, parasailing, and more. Oh, and theres TONS of sun in Nha Trang, and the clear blue skies are gorgeous!

One of the things that’s pretty popular to do in Nha Trang is a boat cruise, which is what we did on this particular evening.

We chose the Emperor Sunset Cocktail and Dinner Cruise, which is a 3 to 3.5 hour cruise around Nha Trang Bay with a dinner buffet, and with a stop in the bay not far from the Vinpearl resort and Sun Wheel.

Emperor Dinner Cruise Info

• Address: Nha Trang Port, 46 Trần Phú, Lộc Thọ, Thành phố Nha Trang, Khánh Hòa
• Hours: Nightly 17:00 - 20:30
• Cruise price on the website:
  • Adults: $90 USD
• Official website: emperorcruises.com
• Official Facebook page: facebook.com/emperorcruises

Note: The website’s price for the cruise is quite high in my opinion. My wife booked our tickets from a discount broker online, which, at the time we bought was about 50% cheaper than booking on Emperor Cruises directly. Prices change of course, but I’d recommend searching online for deals first before booking directly on Emperor Cruises’ website.

The Cruise

From the website:

On arrival at the port you are greeted by the Experiences Manager with a welcome drink. Introduction to Nha Trang Bay, the locals, the food, the culture, the emperor, safety precautions, and the Emperor Cruises Junk. Start cruising through the spectacular landscape of Nha Trang Bay as the sun sets.

Cruise through Nha Trang Bay at night while sipping cocktails and wines on the sundeck as you are entertained by musicians playing against the stunning backdrop of stars, the moon, and the city lights.

Experience the gastronomical pleasure of a 5-course seafood dinner on board while being serenaded and served by the Emperor Cruises team.

End your romantic dinner by having drinks or cocktails at the lounge or on the sundeck before heading back to Nha Trang Port and returning to the mainland, where your transfers will be waiting to drive you back to your hotel.
emperorcruises.com

Well, all of the announcements on our cruise were in Vietnamese because my wife booked the Vietnamese language one, so I can’t comment on the “Introduction to Nha Trang Bay, the locals, the food, the culture, the emperor” part, but there certainly wasn’t any transfer waiting to drive us back to our hotel at the end of the cruise.

Prior to the cruise, we had visited the National Oceanographic Museum, which is right around the corner from the port, so we just walked over. If you enjoy aquariums and marine life, you can always do like we did and checkout the museum before the cruise.

The actual boat wasn’t quite what I was expecting, although I’m not exactly sure what I was expecting to be honest, but I suppose it had that “old world” charm to it.

After boarding the boat though, I actually found the interior to be quite nice and cozy.

Buffet and Views on the Deck

Shortly after everyone boarded, the boat set sail, and everyone headed to the top deck to enjoy the views and take photos. The also have a professional photographer on hand who took really nice photos of us, and oddly … there was no extra charge for it!

While the photographer was taking photos of anyone who wanted, and guests were taking their own photos, the staff were setting up a small snack buffet in the middle of the boat.

I wasn’t much of a fan of the snacks, and while I thought there were bottomless drinks (the website states “Complimentary cocktails, mocktails, fruit juice, house wine, local beer”), they told us we only get one free drink for the whole evening, and that was it. False advertising? Misunderstanding? I’m not sure, but I wasn’t too happy about that.

After the boat had been sailing for a while, we stopped in the middle of the bay, and the boat anchored there for most of the evening.

The views were honestly amazing. The sunset was gorgeous, and there was a nice cool breeze for most of the evening. Considering Nha Trang’s hot and sunny afternoons, the relaxing breeze and views were very welcome.

Lobster Dinner

I don’t recall exactly how long we remained on the top deck before dinner began being served, but it had to have been at least an hour or so.

Dinner was, appropriately enough, a lobster dinner.

They first served some garlic bread along with the “one” free drink we got. I had some champagne, but also ordered a glass of white wine, which I had to pay for.

Next came a nice fresh and zesty salad and some prawn crackers.

But of course what we were waiting for was the lobster!

The lobster was ok, but I’ve had better. It was a bit overcooked, and so the meat was a little bit tough. It wasn’t bad though, and I still enjoyed it, but it wasn’t the best lobster I’ve ever had.

Lastly, they served some flan, which was really delicious.

It was probably at some point around desert that we started heading back to the port, and that wrapped up our cocktail and dinner cruise.

Cruise Verdict

I’m not entirely sure if I’d recommend this cruise or not. One the one hand, the views were really fantastic, and it was certainly a nice and relaxing evening. On the other hand, the food was just ok, and the “one free drink” thing was a bit of a let down.

If you’re getting a discounted price, like from an online travel/broker site, then I think it’s probably worth it. But I don’t think I’d recommend it at the full price directly on the Emperor Cruise site, as I just don’t feel their price is justified.