Ha Long Bay was declared one of the 25 most wonderful seascapes in the world on the website of NewOpenWorld on May 25.

The bay joins Cox’s Bazaar beach of Bangladesh, the Great Barrier Reef of Australia and Papua New Guinea.

Entering the second phase of the NewOpenWorld’s poll of the seven new world natural wonders are 261 sites. They are divided into seven groups: Group A for extensive natural landscapes; Group B for islands; Group C for mountains and volcanoes; Group D for caves, stone mountains and valleys; Group E for forests, national parks, natural reserves; Group F for lakes, rivers, waterfalls; Group G for sea landscapes and beaches.

In this phase, participating countries have only one landscape in the poll, excepting sites that lie in multiple countries.

In July this year, a vote will be held to choose 77 of the 261. The organising board will then choose 21 before selecting the new seven wonders.

The steering board for voting for Ha Long Bay is encouraging people to vote for the site, which has been selected twice by UNESCO as a world natural heritage.

VietNamNet/TP