About 20 years ago, Vietnam’s largest island and most popular resort today was completely set aside as a prison for prisoners of war. Apart from the prison itself and a few villages, there was nothing on the island.
Now Phu Quoc is compared to the largest resort in Thailand – Phuket Island. Every year Phu Quoc turns from a wild island more and more into a place for tourism and acquires the appropriate infrastructure. Phu Quoc (Vietnam) what to see matters a little. But everyone who finds themselves in Vietnam for the first time is happy to visit local attractions, despite the fact that they are small in number and of historical value.
In this article, we will tell you about the most popular tourist places in Phu Quoc and the subtleties of visiting them.
Coconut Prison (Phu Quoc Prison)
The Cocos prison in the last century was indeed a prison where thousands of political prisoners lived through their every day with fear. It was the largest detention center for Communist soldiers in the south of the country, designed for 32 thousand people, in some periods their number reached 40 thousand. Since its foundation (1967), the prison has been divided into 12 zones, where up to 3,000 people could be held, and in 1972 2 more similar areas were added. Around each area, there were many barbed wire fences of 10-15 layers.
Now a museum has been built on the site of the old prison, visiting which you can understand how prisoners of war lived. The Vietnamese tried to restore everyday life with the help of realistic figures and show all the hardships of prison life. In recent years, Kien Giang Province has restored and decorated several facilities, such as: 5 rooms, including a cafeteria, a kitchen, and two wardens ‘ houses.
The place is unsightly and creepy. It will be interesting to visit it for those who are interested in the history of Vietnam or world history in general. Many exhibits have already worn out and lost their original appearance, but this rather adds to the attractions of the entourage.
In order to better understand what you have seen, it is optimal to visit the Coconut Prison with a guide. But if you decide to go there on your own, you can find out more information about the stands that describe the history of the prison. Please note that all information is in English.
- Place of interest: 350 Nguyen Van Cu, An Thoi town, Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam (5 km from the main commercial port of An Thoi).
- Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday from 7: 30 to 11: 00 and from 13: 30 to 17: 00.
- Admission is free.
- Official website: http://phuquocprison.org/
Vinpearl Land
Vinpearl Land is an amusement park for the whole family. A similar place already exists in Nha Trang, only there Vinperl is even bigger. Despite the seemingly impressive entrance fee, visiting Vinperl Land is not the most expensive event. Paying for the entrance fee gives you the right to stay in the park all day and ride any attractions an unlimited number of times. This payment method is unusual for many people, but it is very convenient, especially if you are going to the park with your children. In addition, you will only have to pay for food and souvenirs.
The park is divided into several thematic zones:
- amusement park;
- zoo
- aqua park;
- oceanarium (mermaid show daily at 11: 00-11: 10 and 15: 00-15: 10, fish feeding at 10: 00 and 17: 00)
- dolphinarium;
- fountain show (daily at 19: 00-19: 25 and 20: 00-20: 25)
- bowling;
- slot machines for children.
Winpearl Land is fundamentally different from most amusement parks in that there are no queues. The territory of the park is quite large and even at the height of the season there are not so many people to create queues and pandemonium.
- Where: northwest of the island, about 25 km from Duong Dong.
- Opening hours: from 9: 00 to 21: 00. Some areas of the park may work differently.
- Price (water park + safari): adults – 800,000 VND, children 1-1. 4 m tall and people over 60 years old — 600,000 VND, children below 1 m-free of charge.
Official website: https://phuquoc.vinpearlland.com/.
Duong Dong Market
Duong Dong is the largest city on Phu Quoc Island. Almost the entire infrastructure of the island is located here: restaurants, cafes, shops and banks. But for fans of Asian flavor, the most interesting thing is to visit a real Vietnamese market.
The central market of Duong Dong can be divided into two types: day and night. They differ in their assortment, color, and prices. It is better to come to the daytime session in the morning. Here you will find the freshest seafood at affordable prices, exotic fruits, traditional Vietnamese sweets, pearls, Vietnamese souvenirs and much more. If this is your first visit to the Vietnamese market, what is happening around you may be a bit unexpected. It’s noisy, crowded, and far from clean. Be prepared for this.
But the most interesting thing is the Phu Quoc night market. Here you can not just buy almost all the same products as on the day market, but also eat them without leaving the counter. The Vietnamese will immediately prepare the products you buy. In fact, the night market is a huge cluster of fast food cafes designed for tourists.
- Where to find: Duong Dong City, west coast of Phu Quoc Island.
- Opening hours: daytime – from 7:00 to 16:00, night-from 18: 00 to 00: 00.
Buddhist Temple (Ho Quoc Temple)
Ho Quoc Temple is a Buddhist temple that visitors to the island, as a rule, do not avoid. It is located on a mountain with a view of the east coast.
The temple is notable for its beautiful architecture and spectacular panoramic views. The place is very atmospheric, here you will see quite a lot of statues of Buddha and monks. You can visit it on your own or with a guided tour. Do not wear too open or beach clothes, the place is, after all, religious.
- Area Information: Thien Vien Truc Lam Chua ho Quoc, Phu Quoc Island 920000, Vietnam (southeast of the island).
- Open: from 8: 00 to 16: 00.
- Admission is free.
Phu Quoc Pearl Farm
If you don’t know what to see in Phu Quoc, then the pearl factory is for you. The Pearl Farm is one of the most interesting and frequently visited tourist attractions on the island. The farm is the largest pearl mining site in all of Vietnam. Here you can see how pearls are grown and processed.
By the way, it is thanks to the close location of the farm that the cost of pearl jewelry on the Phu Quoc market is not high. But if you want, you can buy jewelry directly on the farm itself. The price starts from$50.
In addition to viewing the process of pearl mining, tourists are invited to take a tour of the museum, where they will learn about the types of pearls, how to extract them and how to choose the right jewelry from them.
- Where to find it: 5 km south of Duong Dong (marked on the map at the bottom of the page).
- Admission is free.
Pepper plantations
Those who are looking for something else to see in Phu Quoc and just enthusiasts should definitely visit the pepper plantations. The largest of them is the Hutuong plantation. They grow the best pepper in Asia. There are many varieties growing on the plantation. Visitors are even offered free (or for a symbolic amount) to taste the most popular varieties of peppers.
In Khutuong, you can learn how pepper is grown, how and who makes the harvest. How the product is processed, and reach the form in which we are used to using the spice. You can go to such a plantation yourself, but with a guide the visit will be much more interesting. In the on-site shops, you can buy different types of pepper as a souvenir: white, black, green and red (by the way, they all come from the same plant). But those who have visited here recommend buying the same pepper in the city for 2 times cheaper.
- Location: Central Phu Quoc Island.
- When you can see the plantations: daily from 08-00 to 16-30.
Fish Sauce Factory
The fish sauce factory is one of the main attractions of Phu Quoc and Vietnam in general. Without fish sauce, almost no national dish of Vietnam is unthinkable. It is served in all places where you can eat: fast food, cafes and restaurants. In addition to local use, fish sauce from Vietnam is exported all over the world. Many people will be interested to see with their own eyes how this product is made.
In order to understand everything that happens at the factory, you should go there with a guide. He will tell you about all the stages of production of such a popular fish sauce and its history. It is worth considering that the smell in production is quite specific and not everyone will be able to safely transfer such a tour.
On the territory of the factory there is a small shop where everyone can buy as a souvenir the fish sauce itself, produced immediately.
On a note! What attractions to see in Nha Trang on your own, see here.
Phu Quoc Sightseeing Tour
All the notable and interesting places in Phu Quoc can be visited in a couple of days on your own. Tour guides offer tours of all popular places in one day. Not only will you be provided with transport, but they will also tell you in detail about the history and features of all the visited attractions. The cost of such excursions, as a rule, does not exceed$ 20 per person. Extra charge for meals. But if you prefer leisurely walks, studying everything in detail on your own, then, of course, excursions are not for you.
If you are undecided whether to visit the “dubious” sights of Phu Quoc at all, choose at least a few of the most interesting ones and go to see them. Excursions to factories and markets are a way to understand the culture, history and way of life of the country in which you are located. To see the country not as it is presented to tourists, but as real and original. Wondering Phu Quoc (Vietnam) what to see always choose places that reflect the local flavor.