Updated: 11/23/2019
Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc) is a beautiful island located deep in the Gulf of Thailand, belonged to Kien Giang (Kiên Giang) province in Vietnam (Việt Nam). In the southern coast of Vietnam, Phu Quoc Island – the largest island of Vietnam, is also the largest island in this population of 22 islands. Crystal clear water, unique seafood, and peaceful streams are great advantage of Phu Quoc tourism.
I. Plan A Journey To Phu Quoc Island
The most frequently visited time of tourists is from April to September. However, in dry season, from October to March the following year, this is the most beautiful time of Phu Quoc Island. In general, you could visit Phu Quoc at any time of the year as the annual average of temperature in Phu Quoc is about 28 degrees Celcius.
A disadvantage is that streets in Phu Quoc has few trees so on sunny days, you had better prepare hats, long sleeves, and long pants in advance in order to avoid direct sunlight.
II. Transportation: Vehicles And Moving In Phu Quoc
1. Airway: since 12/2012, Phu Quoc International Airport has opened, creating opportunities for domestic and international airlines to expand routes to the island.
- Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City – Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc): Vietnam Airlines operates daily flights with 17 flights with ATR planes and 1 flight with Airbus airplane. VietJet Air operates 1 flight per day with Air Bus aircraft. Jetstar Pacific Airline holds 02 flights per day to Phu Quoc at 11:15 and 18:05. Flight time is 50 minutes.
- Hanoi (Hà Nội) – Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc): Vietnam Airlines operates 1 flight per day with Airbus airplanes from Hanoi to Phu Quoc, departing at 8:40 and arriving at 10:45. The flight in the opposite direction departs from Phu Quoc at 11:35 and arrives at 13:40. Jetstar Pacific Airlines and Vietjet Air also offer flights from Hanoi to Phu Quoc. VietJet Air operates 2 flights per day, Jetstar Pacific Airlines hold 01 flight per day from Hanoi to Phu Quoc at 15:45.
- Can Tho (Cần Thơ) – Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc): Vietnam Airlines operates 1 flight per day with ATR airplane, departing from Can Tho to Phu Quoc at 13:00 and arriving at 13:45. Flights in the opposite direction depart from Phu Quoc at 11:35 and arrive at 12:20.
From the airport, it takes about 20 minutes by taxi to arrive in Duong Dong (Dương Đông) / Dinh Cau (Dinh Cậu) zone. Phu Quoc has two largest taxi companies, which are SASCO and Mai Linh, both firms use meter, and are relatively safe and convenient for tourists.
2. Road And Sea:
- Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City – Rach Gia (Rạch Giá) – Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc):
Roads from HCM City to Rach Gia:
From the pickup point on Le Hong Phong (Lê Hồng Phong) Street, District10, there are buses:
– Mai Linh. Tel: +848 39292929
– Phuong Trang (Phương Trang):. Tel: +848 3833 3468
Or if departing from Mien Tay bus station, there are buses, such as Kumho Samco, Ba Dung (Ba Dũng), Tuyet Hon (Tuyết Hon), Chau Ha (Châu Hà).
- The bus will arrive at Rach Gia (Rạch Giá) station (Kien Giang (Kiên Giang)). Fares: 120,000-150,000 VND / ticket / trip, about 6-7 hours of running time.
- You should choose the bus with 45 seats to help you take a comfortable rest. In order to save time, you should choose the bus departing from 10 pm so at 5 am, it will arrive in Kien Giang.
Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City – Ha Tien (Hà Tiên) – Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc):
Roads from Ho Chi MInh City to Ha Tien: The buses from Saigon (Sài Gòn) to Ha Tien (Hà Tiên) include:
- Phuong Trang (Phương Trang) bus: 170,000 VND / ticket
Departure time:
* Mien Tay (Miền Tây) Bus Station: 7:15 am, 8:45 am, 9:45 am, 6 pm, 6:45 pm, 7:15 pm.
* Ha Tien (Hà Tiên) bus station: 8:30 am, 9:30 am, 10:30 am, 8:30 pm, 9:45 pm, 10:30 pm.
* In Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City:
– Switchboard: 0838.309.309
– Office 328A Le Hong Phong (Lê Hồng Phong) Street – District 10 – Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City
– Office 260 Le Hong Phong (Lê Hồng Phong) Street – District 5 – Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City
- Kumho bus: 190,000 VND / ticket
* Route Ha Tien – Ho Chi Minh City
– Departure time: 07:50 am, 11:00 am, 1:00 pm, 8:20 pm, 9:10 pm, 10:30 pm. Telephone for bookings: 077.3.959797 – 077.3.959696
* Route Ho Chi Minh City – Ha Tien
– Departure time: 9:30 am, 11:00 am, 3:30 pm, 8:30 pm, 9:30 pm, 11:00 pm. Telephone for bookings: 08.3.7527878 – 08.3.9225112 – 08.3.9225113
- Tuan Nga (Tuấn Nga) bus: 165,000 VND / ticket
* In Ho Chi Minh City:
– Switchboard: 0946 79 00 55 – 0962 57 11 99
– Office 7 Pham Huu Chi (Phạm Hữu Chí) Street – Ward 12 – District 5 – Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City.
– Ticket desk at Mien Tay (Miền Tây) Bus Station – Ho Chi Minh (Hồ Chí Minh) City.
* In Ha Tien (Hà tiên):
– Switchboard: 0773. 95 45 45-0969 19 11 77
– Branch in Ha Tien bus station.
Take the ferry from Ha Tien to Phu Quoc: Start at Thanh Thoi (ThạnhThới) ferry terminal (Ha Tien), stop at Da Chong harbor (Bai Thom (Bãi Thơm), Phu Quoc). The ferry has large accommodating capability, and can carry all kinds of cars. It takes 2 hours to go by ferry. It is about 20km from Da Chong (Đá Chồng) ferry terminal to go to the center of Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town, you can go by bus or “xe om” (it is quite hard to find a taxi in this area).
Speedboat Ha Tien – Phu Quoc: it takes about 1 hour 15 minutes. Some ships to choose from are Superdong and Ngoc Thanh.
- Move In Phu Quoc: There are three main roads:
– Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street: The road has the most hotels and resorts in Phu Quoc Island. You can find many beaches along the road. Tourists can go from the beaches of this resort to other resorts in comfort, and the length of this free coast range is over 10km. Tran Hung Dao Street is also the way to visit the gallery – Coi Nguon (Cội Nguồn), Ngoc Trai, Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc) prison, Yen (Yến) Cave.
– 30/4 street – The dining road in Phu Quoc: There are many restaurants and cafes, but you can try seafood at roadside kiosks with better prices in the night market. This road leads to Sung Hung Co Tu (Sùng Hưng Cổ Tự) Pagoda, Tranh stream (Suối Tranh), Ham Ninh fishing village, Bai Vong wharf. You can also go to An Thoi (An Thới) to visit Sao Beach, Khem (Khèm) beach through this road.
– Hung Vuong (Hùng Vương) Street: This road creates road junction with 30/04 street. Go straight to the first intersection, you will find Nguyen Trung Truc (Nguyễn Trung Trực) Street, from which if you turn left, you will find an airport, and if you turn right, you will go to Da Ban(Đá Bàn) excoriation, national parks, Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu), Ong Nguyen (Ông Nguyễn) temple, Vung Bau (Vũng Bầu) tourism zone…
III. Attractions In Phu Quoc
1. Northern Area Of The Island
The northern area of Phu Quoc Island is a rich land with primary forest ranges and rich flora and fauna along with numerous beautiful beaches hidden behind the forest. Coming to this area also means coming to unspoiled nature. Here, your journey of discovery includes:
- Khu Tuong (Khu Tượng) pepper garden: pepper in Phu Quoc is famous for its bolder taste in compared with those in other places. On the road from Duong Dong (Dương Đông) to Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu), looking along the roadside, you will see many beautiful pepper gardens. After visiting, you could also buy
- Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu) cape: The cape jutting into the sea attracts tourists by unspoiled natural and featured beauty. From here, you could see the Cambodian’s sea zones. Ganh Dau has a bow-shaped beach stretching about 500 meters. Also, this is a place for tourists to enjoy great seafood.
Location: Ganh Dau commune, Phu Quoc district, about 15-20km to the north of Duong Dong town.
- Contemplate sunset at Dinh Cau (Dinh Cậu): Dinh Cau cape is a famous landmark of Phu Quoc. In particular, contemplating the sunset at Dinh Cau is something that any visitor traveling to Phu Quoc should also not skip.
Location: at Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town, about 5 minutes of walking from Duong Dong Market.
- Thom (Thơm) Island: Hon Thom island complex is located in the north of Phu Quoc. Here, you could snorkel to see coral reefs, see aquaculture zones of fishermen or pearl farms and visit famous squid fishing village in Phu Quoc.
Location: from Phu Quoc pier, it takes 30 minutes to move to Thom Island.
- Tranh stream (Suối Tranh): the stream is made up of many small streams, squeezing through forest and ravines and has water from June to September annually. Here, you will find beautiful natural landscape with mountains, flowers, seas and rivers, which are interesting sites for camping.
Location: located in Ham Ninh mountain range, northeast of Phu Quoc. From Duong Dong Town, go to the route Duong Dong (Dương Đông) – Ham Ninh (Hàm Ninh) – for about 10km, you will reach Tranh Stream.
- Da Ban (Đá Bàn) Stream: having large and flat boulders like a table, the name of Da Ban derives from that. This is one of the places you should not miss when visiting Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc) National Park.
Location: From Duong Dong town, ascend following the direction of North Island, then take the path with the signage of Da Ban (Đá Bàn) Stream.
- Da Ngon (Đá Ngọn) Stream: with 7 waterfalls, Da Ngon stream is majestic – this is still a secret for tourists who love adventure and exploration. From November to April the following year, it is the ideal time to visit Da Ngon stream because the rocks become slippery in rainy season.
Location: located in the northeast of Phu Quoc Island.
- Long Beach (Bãi Dài): here, you can soak up with the sea. The white sandy beach here was voted as one of 10 unspoiled and beautiful beaches in the world by the BBC. Long Beach has the coastline of 1,500m in length. Along the coastline, there are tall trees growing in straight rows.
Location: at the northeast of the island. It takes about 1 hour to ride a bike from the center of Duong Dong (Dương Đông) Town to Long Beach, following the direction of Chen Sea Resort, Chez Carole and Mai Phuong (Mai Phương).
- Nguyen Trung Truc (Nguyễn Trung Trực) temple: the temple was built in Phu Quoc to commemorate the hero contributing to the country and nation – Nguyen Trung Truc. Every year, on August 28 of lunar calendar, Phu Quoc residents flock here for his anniversary.
Location: about 25km from Duong Dong, towards Ganh Dau direction.
- Coi Nguon (Cội Nguồn) Museum: this is the 9th private museum in Vietnam and considered as a place keeping the stories about Phu Quoc Island. Coi Nguon Museum holds more than 3,000 artifacts, including 300 sets of precious folders about Phu Quoc presented in different languages, including Chinese, Vietnamese, English and French. Besides, there are art exhibit areas, souvenirs area, areas of Phu Quoc countryside traditional bungalow, reservation areas of sea eagles and other rare animals.
Location: Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) Town, Phu Quoc
2. Eastern And Southern Of The Island
Phu Quoc Island is low land mixed with secondary forest. This is home to the population of the island. Some beautiful beaches such as Truong beach, Khem (Khèm) beach, Sao beach, and Gieng Ngu (Giếng Ngự) are mentioned as a unique charm of Phu Quoc island. The journey of discovering the Southern area of the island includes:
- Sao beach: this is one of the most beautiful beaches in Phu Quoc. It owns creamy white sand stretching over 7km, with curve-hugging shape similar to the moon. During peak season, Sao beach is crowded by tourists so if you want to go swimming, then you should go early in order to rent a hammock for a rest.
Location: Sao beach is located about 30 km away from Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town.
- Khem (Khèm) Beach: the beach is still pristine, with white and fine sand. However, there is a minus point of this beach is that there are many garbage along with leaves, making the beach not clean enough. In return, seafood at Khem beach is very great. There are different types of grilled fish and herring salad which are quite cheaply. At Khem beach, you should also visit pearl farms which are also very interesting.
Location: Located in the southern area of Phu Quoc Island, 25km from Duong Dong, about 5km from An Thoi (An Thới) port.
- Ham Ninh (Hàm Ninh) fishing village: the daily life in Ham Ninh fishing village almost retains the primitive feature with makeshift bamboo-walled cottages. The main occupation in this village is still pearl diving, catching holothurians and crabs. Visit Ham Ninh, don’t miss contemplating sunrise in the early morning or enjoying new moon at night.
Location: Located in the east coast of the island, about 20km from Duong Dong town to the northeast.
- Barrel house of sauce production: Here, you could learn traditional methods of compositing fish to create the unique taste of the famous Phu Quoc fish sauce. Tourists could also buy the fish sauce right in this place.
Location: Phung Hung (Phụng Hưng) Sauce – Duong Dong – An Thoi Axis line, opposite to Phu Quoc prison
- An Thoi (An Thới) archipelago: An Thoi archipelago contains 15 large and small islands located along the southwest. The sea is very clear and deep with the depth of about 30 meters in some places. This island is very suitable for tourism activities such as nature exploring, sightseeing, fishing, squid fishing, snorkeling and scuba diving. Some large islands in this archipelago are Dan (Dân) island, Dua (Dứa) island, Roi island, Thom (Thơm) Island, etc.
Location: south of Phu Quoc island
- Nail Island (Hòn Móng Tay): this is nearly an absolutely pristine island, because of no resident living here and no intervention of convenient service from the mainland. Nail Island is an ideal place for outdoor activities like camping, swimming, or exploring wildness with stretching grasslands.
Another interesting activity you cannot skip when visiting Nail island is to go scuba diving the rich coral ecosystem with 17 types of hard and soft types of coral and many types of anemones with various brilliant colors. Those coral reefs with different shapes, sizes and colors will surely leave a great impression on tourists about a trip to the “desert island”.
- Gam Ghi (Gầm Ghì) Island
This is located in the most remote place in the southern area of An Thoi archipelago. Gam Ghi island attracts visitors with pristine beautiful beaches, cliffs with bizarre shapes, white sand. The world beneath the ocean is diversifying with thick and wide coral reefs. The density of coral reefs here are rather thick that just simply facing down the water can also helps you see the coral.
- May Rut (Mây Rút) Island
May Rut is located in the southern area of Phu Quoc island, about 3 miles from the center of An Thoi town. The beach in May Rut island is relatively pristine with stretching white sandy beach, clear blue water reflecting the extremely poetic bent coconut rows.
Besides, the beach in May Rut island has a diversifying ecosystem with more than 100 species of hard and soft corals, 125 species of fish, 150 species of mollusks and many precious marine species like dugong, sea turtle,…
- Pineapple tree prison (Phu Quoc prison): coming to Phu Quoc prison, you will be able to witness the ruins of American war and learn barbaric torture methods here in 50 years ago.
- Location: Located in Cay Dua (Cây Dừa) hamlet, An Thoi (An Thới), the southernmost area of Phu Quoc Island.
IV. Explore Phu Quoc
Visiting Phu Quoc you will give you a chance to experience lots of exciting recreational, unique activities.
1. Visit VinPearl Safari
VinPearl Safari is the largest open zoo model of Vietnam with an area of about 500 hectares, bringing together about 130 species with over 2,200 rare animal individuals. Vinpearl Safari is divided in two main sections: the open zoo area for tourists to visit which is in harmony with nature; the semi-wild area (safari park) that have specialized cars served the first-time tourism form of “free animals, confined people” in Vietnam.
Visiting Vinpearl Safari, tourists will experience many exciting activities such as contemplating the panoramic view of the park with modern tram system, enjoying the fascinating performances of animals, practically experiencing in feeding animals, taking photos with rare animals…
2. Phu Quoc Vinpearl Amusement Park
Built on a total area of up to 170.000m², Phu Quoc Vinpearl amusement park includes many attractive entertainment venues such as the water park, aquarium, outdoor playing area, Cinema, cuisine and shopping zone, fairy castle….In addition, Vinpearl Land in Phu Quoc has a dolphin performing zone with a capacity of up to 1,152 seats and the water music stage with a capacity of up to 2,337 seats to meet cultural events of international stature.
3. Discover Dinh Cau (Dinh Cậu) Night Market
Dinh Cau night market is a bustling market located on Vo Thi Sau (Võ Thị Sáu) street, starting from Bach Dang (Bạch Đằng) Street to the T-junction at Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street, stretching over 200m. The market gathers near the beach in the center of Duong Dong town, about 100m away from Dinh Cau (Dinh Cậu). Market opens from 5pm to 9-10pm. There are more than 100 stores spanning both sides of the road, including stalls of souvenirs, handicraft goods, cosmetics, jewelry, and Phu Quoc (Phú Quốc) pearls. The most famous zone in Dinh Cau night market is still the food court serving unique dishes made from fresh seafood for the dinner, like seafood soup, seafood rice…
However, it should be noted that the prices here are quite high. If you want lower prices, you can buy fresh seafood at Duong Dong Market near the ferry at the end of Nguyen Trung Truc Street and bring to Thien Hai Son Resort to have them process, the processing fee ranges from VND 50,000 to 100,000 / kg.
4. Go Diving To See Coral
The diversifying marine ecosystem belongs to An Thoi archipelago, including Nail islet (Hòn Móng Tay), Doi Moi (Đồi Mồi) Islet, and Thay Boi (Thầy Bói) Islet located in the north of Phu Quoc island are ideal places for tourists to explore the ocean world, particularly the coral reefs here that stands at top in Vietnam regarding to the variety level with 17 hard, soft animals and anemone species.
The snorkeling tour is introduced by the hotels and resorts in Phu Quoc to tourists for between 350,000-500,000 VND / person.
5. Go Fishing To Discover Desert Island
This tour will take you to an island or seashore with different fish species such as grouper, tram fish, Lu fish, and horse-head fish. After being caught, fish will be served right on board. While going fishing, you can also organize camping, picnicking and exploring more the surrounding areas. Some sites of interest are Ong Doi (Ông Đội) cape, Dam (Dăm) island, Thom (Thơm) island.
6. Discover The Primary Forest
If you’re an adventure enthusiast, this is your perfect choice. You can book a tour to explore the North Island or visit the Ecological Reserve in Da Ngon (Đá Ngọn) stream or Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu) Ecological Reserve. Some travelers loving adventure may explore on the primary forest their own or hire a local tour guide during their journey of discovery.
7. Go Fishing Squid At Night
When the night falls, it’s time to experience the fun and relaxing moments with local fishermen through night squid fishing activities. It will be great when you can fish the squid under the sea or pick the swordfish by your own. The spoils will be served right on board.
8. Eat: Food, Restaurants, Snacks, Specialties Of Phu Quoc
Ngoc Island in Phu Quoc Island attracts tourists with various seafood specialties and many other unique goods.
9. Herring salad
Fresh herring rolling with different types of veggies, a small amount of crushed coconut, dipped in the great local sauce is a scrumptious dish in Phu Quoc, which is absolutely no fishy. There is just the aroma of wild veggies, fatty taste of coconut and crispy pieces of fish.
There is one thing that Phu Quoc residents always note diners is that when eating herring salad, they should drink along with “sim” alcohol, as there are much protein in herring and it is also fresh, so taking some alcohol will be beneficial for the digestive enzymes. The sauce of this herring salad dish is very special, which is made from chilies, garlic and roasted peanuts. All of these things are chopped well and mixed together, followed by an addition of genuine Phu Quoc fish sauce, creating an aromatic and unforgettable taste.
10. Ham Ninh (Hàm Ninh) Crab
Having a price range from 200,000 – 500,000 VND/kg, Ham Ninh Crab is famous for its taste. You should not choose the too-big or too-small type. Choose a type of 6-7 crabs per kilogram.
11. Snails Baked With Salt And Chili, Scallops Grilled With Onion, Grilled Squids
These are worth-tasting dishes when visiting Phu Quoc. Made from fresh ingredients, you can enjoy these dishes while blowing and inhaling the pungent, attractive taste of chili. They could be found in most restaurants in Phu Quoc or at Dinh Cau Night Market.
12. Grilled “Coi Bien Mai” (Còi Biên Mai)
Coi bien mai is processed in different ways: sautéed with shiitake, mushrooms, inions and broccoli. However, for those gourmets who want to enjoy pristine taste of the sea, nothing can win over the grilled coi bien mai with salt and chili. The salty taste of the salt, and the spicy taste of chili help elevate the sweetness of Coi Bien Mai (Còi Biên Mai). And just through this way of processing, Coi Bien Mai can keep its brittle toughness.
13. Tram mushrooms (Nấm Tràm)
Tram Mushrooms are just available in Phu Quoc in the rainy season (from April to September). If you visit Phu Quoc in dry season, this mushroom will be dried and stored frozenly which are not as tasty as the freshly picked ones. Fresh mushrooms are often cooked with seafood like shrimp, squid, and fish. Dried mushrooms are sautéed with sea cucumber or abalone. Enjoying the Tram mushroom soup will allow you to feel the sweetness of mushrooms, the fragrance of pepper and the taste will become bolder if you enjoy this dish with the fish sauce of Phu Quoc.
V. Places To Eat
- Huong Bien (Hương Biển) Hotel – 01 FVVo Thi Sau (Võ Thị Sáu), KP2, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town. Many options of buffet here, including Asian, European dishes. The food here is considered tasty and plentiful. You can eat buffet here without having to rent a room. Phone: +8477.3846.113
2. Le Giang (Lê Giang) Restaurant – 289 Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street, Duong Dong Town. Renowned for two breakfast items which are “banh canh ghe” (Bánh canh ghẹ) and shrimp squid noodles.
3. Song Xanh (Sông Xanh) Restaurant – 30/4, Block 1, Duong Dong town. This is an extremely famous restaurant in Phu Quoc. Go to the restaurant, you will enjoy the typical dishes such as Song Xanh herring salad, crab fried rice and mushroom soup. Telephone number: +84773 70 2929 – +84913 848 133
4. Ra Khoi (Ra Khơi) Restaurant – 131 30/4 street, Duong Dong town. The eatery has many delicious dishes with affordable price. You should go to this restaurant to have a dinner with family and friends. Phone number: +84 903952204.
5. Oc (Ốc) 343-343 30/4 Street, Block 1, Duong Dong town. This eatery is rather delicious but quite crowded so service is slow. The food is quite spicy with various cheap options of seafood.
6. Nho (Nhớ) Seafood Restaurant – Located in Dinh Cau night market – Vo Thi Sau (Võ Thị Sáu) street. The restaurant specializes in seafood dishes. Dishes here are tasty and various but quite expensive.
7. Ngheu So Oc Hen (Nghêu Sò Ốc Hến) restaurant – 30/4 street, Duong Dong town. This restaurant is suitable for people who love binge.
8. Bien Xanh (Biển Xanh) Restaurant: at Ham Ninh (Hàm Ninh) bridge, Ham Ninh (Hàm Ninh) Town. Cool space, sea-overlooking view. The price is rather expensive but you can buy seafood from the market then have them process to save money while still having great dishes.
9. Bien Hai (Biên Hải) restaurant: group 1, Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu) hamlet, Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu) commune. This is a good and cheap spot for eating in Phu Quoc. If you have a chance to visit Ganh Dau Cape (Mũi Gành Dầu), then don’t skip this restaurant.
10. Vuon Tao (Vườn Táo) restaurant: Cua Lap (Cửa Lấp), Duong To (Dương Tơ) commune. The restaurant has very famous, delicious herring salad that you cannot miss. Phone number: +84 77 3847 008 – +84 918 492 821.
11. Trung Duong (Trùng Dương) Marina Restaurant: 30/4 street, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town. Also famous for herring salad, besides the bar also has other seafood such as crab fried rice, hot pot Status, crab roasted tamarind…
12. Zen Restaurant – 30/4 street, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town: This restaurant is very polite, with attractive decorating dishes, dishes quite tasty, affordable, and suitable for families who love quiet space.
13. Gia Tuong Quan – 54 Hung Vuong (Hùng Vương) Street, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town. The restaurant does not offer seafood but only sells the specialties of Phu Quoc forest. There are many strange and delicious dishes that you should enjoy once.
14. Ganesh Restaurant – 97 Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) street, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) Town. This is a restaurant specializing in Indian cuisine. If you have tired of seafood, you can try the fairly delicious dish named Lassi.
15. Quoc Anh rice spaghetti fried fish eatery – 30/4 street, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) town. This is the famous sidewalk eatery which is famous for with “banh canh cha ca”, located next to the Thang Long (Thăng Long) Hotel.
16. Bun Rieu Duc Tan)(Bún Riêu Đức Tấn) – 30/4 street, Duong Dong town: Opposite to Zen restaurant, serving very tasty and cheap vermicelli.
17. Quoc Anh (Quốc Anh) Restaurant: about less than 5 minutes of driving from Phu Quoc airport, located right in the center of Dao Ngoc, on 30/4 street, Quarter 1, Duong Dong (Dương Đông)Town. The eatery serves many specialties of Phu Quoc, such as crab rice, Nam Tram pot-au-feu, and some other breakfast dishes like crab vermicelli, dried seafood pasta, seafood noodles….
VI. Specialties To Purchase As A Gift
- In addition to the tasty food stalls, in Duong Dong Market, there are also available kinds of dried fish, dried squid, “sim” wine (rượu sim) for tourists to buy as gifts for relatives.
- Go to Phu Quoc, you can buy live walruses, dried mushrooms, Melaleuca for alcohol soaking. This is the specialty only available in Phu Quoc. Fish sauce can be purchased at the famous Khai Hoan (Khải Hoàn) fish sauce producer, located at Hung Vuong (Hùng Vương) Street
- Phu Quoc pepper is also very popular. You can buy as a gift for family and friends.
VII. Phu Quoc Travel Tips
You can avoid seasickness when traveling by ship: sit in the fresh air and viewable places, avoid eating oily or acidic food, and drink plenty of water
During the journey to discover Phu Quoc National Park, you should wear long-sleeved clothing, sport shoes for easy transportation.
- If you want a true picnic with friends at the national park, you can bring mini gas cooker (alcohol stove), kitchen cookware.
- In addition, medical cotton swabs, some fast-aid drugs should also be brought along.
- You can go to Thien Hai Son (Thiên Hải Sơn) resort or some resorts along Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street to drink coffee or go for a walk along the beach, visit to the beaches of other resorts in a relaxed manner, without restriction.
Must – Know Phone Numbers:
Phu Quoc Police: +8477 3846051
Phu Quoc Postal: +8477 3846115
Phu Quoc Hospital: +8477 3846074
Tourism consultation: +8477 3846318
Gas station: +8477 3847602
Phu Quoc Taxi: +8477 3979797 – +8477 3846885
VIII. Accommodations In Phu Quoc
International visitors and tourists who generally focus on selecting the tourist zone along Tran Hung Dao street with many resorts followed the best beach of the town area. If you want to swim at Long Beach, there are several choices of resort which are rather far from the center of Duong Dong (Dương Đông). Similarly, Bai Sao (Bãi Sao) has the My Lan resort, but somewhat being isolated to the area of Tran Hung Dao as well as the town center. If you stay somewhere else but want to swim at the beaches along Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street, you have to go more than 10 kilometers because the beaches are at the end of the road.
The motels, hotels and resorts in the town of Duong Dong are quite plentiful, including both luxury areas and affordable areas for the backpackers. In the peak season you should book 1-2 months in advance.
Some hotels in Phu Quoc you can refer:
- Kim Hoa Resort
Address: 88/2 Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street
- Phu Quoc Vinpearl Resort & Golf
Address: Long Beach (Bãi Dài), Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu)
- La Mer Resort
Address: 118 Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street
- Castaways Resort
Address: 143 Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street
- Arcadia Resort
Address: Ward 7, Tran Hung Dao (Trần Hưng Đạo) Street, Duong Dong (Dương Đông) Town, Phu Quoc
IX. Beautiful Places In Phu Quoc For Taking Photos
1. Long Beach (Bãi Dài)
From the Duong Dong pier, you can board the train to visit Long Beach to mix yourself into the blue water, and contemplate the white sand shore of one of 100 most beautiful beaches in the world. This is an ideal place to take the memorable photo albums for you or for couples.
2. Sao Beach (Bãi Sao)
Bai Sao is about 28km from Duong Dong town and one of the most famous beaches of Phu Quoc because of “picturesque” ocean with blue, translucent water and creamy white sand. The most beautiful time of the beach is from June to October. Though this period is the rainy season, but the water is very and the waves are still.
3. Tranh Stream (Suối Tranh)
Dubbed as “paradise on earth”, visit Tranh stream, you will be surprised by the natural beautiful landscape with flowers, mountains and spring water covered within trees, which create a seductive and romantic scene. Not only is Tranh stream an ideal shooting location, it is also a place for you to have fun excursions.
4. An Thoi (An Thới) Archipelago
Located in the south of Phu Quoc Island, the archipelago has a wild, dreamy beauty, with blue coastline and cliffs on the sand. An Thoi archipelago in the Gulf of Thailand, composed of 15small and big islets is a place you cannot miss in order to have beautiful photos.
5. Ham Ninh (Hàm Ninh) Fishing Village
Ham Ninh fishing village is an ancient fishing village, which has existed for a long time in Phu Quoc. This fishing village almost still remains the pristine look of a traditional fishing village Vietnam. Ham Ninh fishing village has long been a popular tourist destination in Phu Quoc for many domestic and foreign tourists. Today, this fishing village is also the place that many tourists choose to visit when it comes to taking pictures of Phu Quoc.
6. Ganh Dau (Gành Dầu) Cape
Ganh Dau cape, located in Ganh Dau commune, Phu Quoc district, about 15-20km to the north from Duong Dong town. Ganh Dau is a cape jutting out into the northwest sea of Phu Quoc island and has an unspoiled and spectacular natural beauty. With bow-shaped beach stretching about 500 meters, this is the destination of many tourists and young couples for taking photo shoots.
7. Khem (Khèm) Beach
Khem beach or Kem beach, located in the southern area of Phu Quoc island, 25km away from Duong Dong (Dương Đông), 5km from An Thoi (An Thới) Port. The reason for this name is because that this beach has fine white sand like powdery. This is still quite pristine and quiet beach in Phu Quoc, so many visitors recently come to take photograph.
8. The Resorts
Phu Quoc has many beautiful, luxurious and modern resorts. So, you can try to make use of space, beautiful surroundings and wonderful interiors of the hotels or resorts to take pictures.