Please help with shore excursions if you've visited (or researched) Surabaya (Indonesia) or Halong Bay (Vietnam)

[alwayscruisetime]

Thank you for reading this far!

 

17 ports of call in Indonesia, Malaysia, Far East, and I've found something to do in each.  Maybe I'm just worn out, but there seems to be very little to do in Surabaya - as evidenced by the cruise line offering only 2 options - a (poorly reviewed) city tour by bus, and a car rental.  I'm thinking we'll just jump in a cab and ask to see the flower/farmer's market or a beach.  Anyone have any input?

 

At Halong Bay the thing to do is the junk cruise, but it's hard to differentiate between all the different vendors offering them, so I hoped someone had some personal experience (either good or bad!) to help me discern.  Hard to tell, too, if I need transportation to get to their office only to be bussed to a different dock where the cruise starts?

 

Thanks so much