The Cua Van Floating Cultural Center was established in May 2006. It is a special project within the Ha Long Ecomuseum project. It is also the first floating cultural center model in Vietnam dedicated to the fishing community.
Cua Van Floating Cultural Center – a floating museum on Ha Long Bay
The floating cultural center is located in the heart of the heritage site. Illustrative photo: La Nghia Hieu.
Located 30 km from Bai Chay Wharf, Cua Van Fishing Village has long been regarded as the capital of fishing villages. With its floating rafts, fishing boats, and sincere, simple-hearted people, the village creates a distinctive character unlike that of any other fishing village in a different coastal region.
Cua Van Floating Cultural Center. Photo: Kinh te do thi.
Cua Van is also attractive because its fishermen have a distinctive culture, pursuing the profession of conquering the open sea and following a life lived on boats and floating rafts, only anchoring at the shore of some island when they die.
Tourists take a boat tour of Cua Van. Photo: Quang Ninh Newspaper.
Cua Van residents are born and raised at sea, accustomed to “eating waves and speaking with the wind.” They unite to face the fury of the open sea, defeat invasion plots, and preserve every inch of the nation's borderland.
Photo: Quang Ninh Newspaper.
Therefore, this place was chosen to build the Cua Van Floating Cultural Center, a branch of the Ha Long Ecomuseum, with the aim of preserving and safeguarding the cultural values of the fishing village. It is also a representative model for the fishing communities living at sea.
A courtship singing performance. Photo: VOVTV.
The floating cultural center was established with the goal of preserving and introducing cultural features that are not only traditional but also contemporary, not only representative but also part of everyday life; disseminating, promoting, and educating fishing communities and tourists about preserving the landscape and environment.
Hundreds of paintings about Ha Long then and now. Photo: Thanh Nien Newspaper.
At the same time, it serves as a place for cultural exchange between fishing villages and between fishing villages and tourists; a place that attracts pupils, students, and researchers; a place for exhibiting and presenting various forms of indigenous culture; and, in particular, a place that helps create jobs and improve the socioeconomic well-being of the people of Cua Van Fishing Village.
An explanation of the history of Cua Van Fishing Village. Photo: Thanh Nien Newspaper.
When visiting the Cua Van Floating Cultural Center today, tourists gain a more comprehensive view of the lives of fishermen in the Ha Long Bay region, past and present, through more than 1,200 documents, photographs, and artifacts. The artifacts are displayed under five themes: fishermen's livelihoods; the material life of fishing communities; aquatic life and human existence; spiritual beliefs and life; and for today and generations to come.
A dragon boat racing performance. Photo: Thanh Nien Newspaper.
The exhibition themes give visitors a broader view of the lives of the fishermen of Cua Van Fishing Village, with their distinctive characteristics that have existed from the past to the present and formed a unique identity.
A fishing boat model. Photo: Bien phong Newspaper.
Amid the fresh surroundings of Cua Van Fishing Village, visitors can tour the museum, take part in bamboo-boat rowing and kayaking, and explore the scenic beauty of Ha Long Bay, a heritage site. More than ten fishermen's houses have been retained for preservation, helping visitors gain a fuller sense of the fishermen's lives and daily activities.
A model of an altar inside a boat house in Cua Van. Photo: Bien phong Newspaper.
Moreover, visitors can enjoy folk songs, courtship singing, hat dum, and sea shanties performed by the children of the fishing village's fishermen… There are two fixed performance schedules each day: from 9:30 to 11:30 and from 13:30 to 15:00, offering visitors a novel experience when they come to the heritage area of Ha Long Bay.
Some fishing village utensils. Photo: Bien phong Newspaper.
The Cua Van Floating Cultural Center is a unique model for preserving and promoting Vietnam's fishing village culture to domestic and international visitors. In this way, it brings marine culture closer to the public and strengthens love for the country’s forests and seas.
