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How long does the dinner cruise on the Perfume River last?

The dinner cruise on the Perfume River usually lasts around 1.5 to 2 hours. That’s enough time to drift along the quieter parts of the river, get a full meal in, and catch the whole live ca Huế performance without feeling rushed.

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The boat doesn’t go far — this isn’t some long-haul journey. You’ll board at Toa Kham wharf, somewhere between 6:00 and 6:30 pm, depending on how punctual the boat crew is (don’t count on it being exact), and you’re usually back on land by 8:00 or 8:15.

There was a time in March 2025, I hopped on one with a couple of friends from Hanoi. We thought it would be a short cruise, but we ended up just sitting there longer than expected, sipping tea after the meal, listening to the đàn tranh. Nobody rushed us. The boat kind of lingered mid-river for a bit. That silence was something. Not awkward — just… full.

If you’re on a private boat, you can stretch it out a bit. The owner we booked through (her name was Tina — found him via a random Facebook post) let us stay till around 8:45 because there was no next trip scheduled. Cost us 1,200,000 VND for six people. He even threw in some free fruits at the end.

But if you’re doing the basic public cruise, it’s usually closer to 90 minutes. Enough to eat, listen, look around, and still have time to walk by the riverbank afterward.