Vietnam's popular sailing junks face extinction

Traditional wooden vessels to be banned from famous Ha Long Bay due to accidents

A resplendent 27 metre junk with four en-suite cabins and two 12m sails, Cat Ba Imperial was commissioned in the late 1990s .jpeg

A resplendent 24.5-meter junk with four en-suite cabins and two 12-meter sails, the Catba Imperial was commissioned in the late 1990s. (All photos by Ian Lloyd Neubauer)

IAN LLOYD NEUBAUER, contributing writer

August 12, 2023 08:52 JST

HA LONG, Vietnam -- The name might sound trashy and inappropriate, but the vessels known as junks represent one of the most successful shipbuilding designs in maritime history.