THINGS TO DO IN PHU QUOC

Published in

DENNIS x LYDIA

4 min readJun 7, 2018

Dennis and I both agreed that Phu Quoc (pronounced “foo kwok”) island is (still) one of South East Asia’s best kept secrets. However, this might change soon since there are already several airlines offering direct flights to Phu Quoc from Italy, UK, Russia, China, and neighboring countries such as Thailand and South Korea. We are suggesting you to visit this island very soon before it gets too commercial.

Below are round ups of things to do on this island:

Beach Hopping

Forget about beach clubs, it is mostly still unspoiled beaches here in Phu Quoc. Sao Beach is one of the tourist favorites for its pristine white sands. Up north, there’s Starfish Beach where you can literally find starfishes on the beach. If you prefer luxury though, the idyllic beach would be the one by the JW Marriott.

Phu Quoc Night Market

The night market is located right by the canal where you can expect lots of sea food to be sold. Stalls that you can expect at the market besides sea food restaurants: ice cream rolls, accessories — mostly pearls, cashew nut snacks with various flavors, fresh pressed juices and sugarcane, coconut pudding. We’ll suggest to bargain every time you buy things (that are not food).

Revisiting Vietnam History

A reminder of Vietnam’s dark past, the Coconut Tree prison is evidence of brutal war crimes. There are plenty of exhibits shown in life-sized figures to mimic what happened during the war against French Colonial.

Hon Thom Island

With the current world’s longest cable car ride connecting Phu Quoc and Hon Thom island, we know that there’s serious business going on in an effort to build Phu Quoc as a tourist destination. In a few years to come, Hon Thom — the Pineapple island will be its center of entertainment as the massive development is ongoing in the island. It is perfect now to make a day trip to Hon Thom from main Phu Quoc island. Things to do there: spending the whole day on the beach.

Sunset and Sunrise

On our first day there, I experienced one of the most beautiful sunsets in my life. We were at the quiet beach of JW Marriott, the sun set on the other side of the island, so what we got was a calming pastel orange-pink shade and we were floating on clear water. It was one of the moments that even a camera couldn’t capture its beauty because it’s a majestic combination of the senses.

The sunrise in Phu Quoc was a little before 6AM. If the adjective for sunset is “romantic”, then for sunrise it’s “optimistic”. Walking by the pristine beach of Phu Quoc during the sunrise is a perfect way to start the day.

Pepper Farm, Bee Farm, and Fish Sauce Factory

Get a glimpse of Phu Quoc’s island commodities first hand by visiting these sites, and there also you can buy them as authentic local souvenirs.

Visit the uninhabited islet and snorkel there

This will be on our list when we return to Phu Quoc again, to see the beauty of untouched underwater nature in Phu Quoc.

Pay a visit to JW Marriott Phu Quoc

Even if you’re not staying there, this site is worth a visit — for a dinner or drink in its restaurants, or visit the night market on Friday night. This hotel is built based on “history” told by Bill Bensley, a renowned architect for award winning luxury resort. When JW Marriott commissioned him to freely use his imagination and build a resort out of it, a place this magical emerged. Now, we are a big fan!

Food, food, food!

Besides delicious Vietnamese food (pho and com tam are my favorite!), the burger in Phu Quoc did not dissapoint! Wish we had more time to go around for culinary treat. However, I found my favorite drink in Vietnam, ice milk — which is literally condensed milk mixed with water and ice, so refreshing for a hot day! Dennis’ — of course Vietnamese coffee.

MORE INFORMATION

To go around: taxis in Phu Quoc would usually agree on a 5 hours package — you can ask your hotel to book this with the taxi company. We got a rate of VND 250,000 for 5 hours in the afternoon, and VND 400,000 for 5 hours at night (because it’s more demand at night).