Hospital Cave

Cave and Museum in Ha Long Bay

On Cat Ba Island in Halong Bay, Vietnam, you might expect the wilderness to be home to bears and other forest-dwelling creatures. However, the first thing that might come to mind here is quite unexpected—a hospital. Nestled within one of the large limestone caves of the island is what has become known as Hospital Cave. Although no longer in operation, the cave once served as a vital sanctuary where Vietnamese medics tended to the wounded during the war, making it a safe haven amidst the conflict.

The History of Hospital Cave

Decades ago, during the height of the American war, as bombings increased, the Vietnamese needed a secure location to care for their injured. What better place than a massive limestone cave, reinforced with thick concrete walls and concealed from aerial view—or so it was believed.

Visiting Hospital Cave

Admission to Hospital Cave might seem steep at 40,000 VND per person for a visit that lasts just over 10 minutes, with not much to see or read. This was something we were warned about by a fellow guest at ‘Little Cat Ba Homestay,’ but with time to spare, we decided to explore it anyway.

Getting to the Hospital Cave

The cave can be easily missed as there’s only a small path leading to its entrance, opposite a more noticeable parking lot. At the parking lot, a lady issues tickets, and a man at the cave’s entrance collects them and offers guide services. Opting to explore alone, we proceeded into the cave.

Inside, the first two rooms are set up with a wax mannequin dressed as a guard and a cupboard resembling an armory. The other rooms remain bare, though it seems there may be plans to furnish them as several wax figures were seen in plastic bags near the entrance.

One large room, in particular, had an echo that added a cool but eerie ambiance. There’s also a room with a large water tank, though with scant information available, it’s hard to grasp its full history.

The hospital cave stretches over three floors. The ground floor housed the medical facilities and staff, while the second floor was intended for a cinema, now just a flat concrete surface. An intriguing tiny cave required us to crawl through it on hands and knees. Here, we took a light-hearted break, posing with a light bulb amidst the old copper wiring that once powered the cave.

Unfortunately, the third floor was inaccessible, closed off for safety reasons. The route up was marked as slippery and dangerous, and we understood it was under renovation.

Despite the concrete ceilings on the first floor, the upper floors open up to the natural cave arches, which are quite impressive to behold. Exiting the cave is different from entering; the reinforced doors at the exit are reminiscent of bank vaults, giving a formidable sense of closure to the visit.

The Hospital Cave appears in our Complete Guide to Visiting Ha Long Bay!

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