I will be travelling between Guangzhou / Guilin / Nanning and Hanoi this Spring.
I really enjoy regular / cheap passanger river boats.
There used to be a boat from Suzhou to Guilin and one from Guangzhou all the way to Nanning.
Do they still run?
Are there any coastal boats (not tourist cruises) that might do Guangzhou / Behai / Sanya / Hanoi ?
Any information and possible web links for relevant sites will be much appreciated
Suzhou- Guilin. I'm unaware of a "Suzhou" in Guangdong province. As for the Suzhous in Jiangsu or Anhui provinces, I don't believe there has been a navigable waterway connection in decades, if ever.
Guangzhou - Nanning. Also unaware of any passenger service that has existed in the past 30 years, though the Xunjiang-Yujiang-Yongjiang River system remains navigable and still carries a lot of barge traffic. It would be a hoot to be able to either get passage on a tug or barge (or series thereof), or get hold of a small motorboat and do this trip...but getting permission from the authorities to do it, and persuading providers of dock space and fuel to give you any along the way, might be a challenge.
There is ferry service from Guangzhou to Hainan Island and from Hainan to Beihai. Try this but doublecheck for latest information: http://www.freesanya.com/arrival/detail.php?id=4
I don't think there is currently any regular ferry service from any of the coastal Chinese ports to Vietnam (Halong/Hanoi). There used to be something from Beihai to Halong, but only for Chinese nationals. Cruise ships (which you don't want) might occasionally do this as an itinerary plan.
... There used to be a boat from Suzhou to Guilin and one from Guangzhou all the way to Nanning...
I am interested to know which waterway the boats used?
Thank you kindly, for your speedy reply.
Excuse my spelling mistake in writing "Suzhou" ... it was WUZHOU.
Wuzhou to Guilin on the Li river was running an over-night ferry even in the late 90s.
I only managed to travel once all the way from Guangzhou to Wuzhou in 1989. I seem to remember changing ferries and a bus ride between the two rivers?
I am happy that at least the Hainan ferry has survived.
Any other suggestions for ferry travelling in South East China?
I agree with poster#1’s saying: “Xunjiang-Yujiang-Yongjiang River system remains navigable and still carries a lot of barge traffic.” Based on your 1989 experience, I would believe that you have the required language skill to make enquiries once you are near the ports.
In the eighties, I could not find any information regarding passenger ships sailing from Hong Kong to Guangdong; could only gather the information in Hong Kong. Once I was at a North Eastern point of China, standing on the shore of a seaside village, a local pointed out a small boat sailing towards South Korea, telling me that that was the way to reach South Korea.
I am pretty confident that some boats are plying the waters between Fangchenggang and Mongcai.
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