Five parts of one island
Phu Quoc is 574 square kilometres and it does not look the same at both ends. These five pages describe the parts that are worth your time, including where they have been overbuilt.
The five areas
Phu Quoc runs about 50 kilometres from Ganh Dau in the northwest to An Thoi in the south, and the drive between them takes ninety minutes. That distance is why "Phu Quoc" as a single description is useless: the south is a construction site with excellent beaches, the north is pepper farms and forest, and they have almost nothing in common.
| Area | What it is | Worth | Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| An Thoi archipelago | Fifteen islets off the southern tip | One full day | Nov – Apr |
| Duong Dong | The main town, market, harbour, night market | Two evenings | Year round |
| Northern Phu Quoc | Pepper country, Ganh Dau, Rach Vem, Bai Thom | One or two days | Year round |
| Southern beaches | Bai Sao, Bai Khem, Sunset Town | One or two days | Nov – May |
| The national park | Forest, streams, the Ham Ninh ridge | One day on foot | Jun – Dec |
How to put them together
The mistake almost every first itinerary makes is to alternate ends of the island: south on day one, north on day two, south again on day three. That is three hours in a vehicle you did not need to spend.
- Two days: the southern beaches and the An Thoi islands. Nothing else fits. The two-day tour does exactly that.
- Three days: add the north as a single day. Do not split it.
- Four days: add the national park, which sits between the two ends and is a natural day four.
- Five days: add the east coast, and leave one day with nothing in it. That is the difference between seeing an island and being on one.
If you only have one day and you are trying to decide between the boat and the road, the season decides it: An Thoi from November to April, the north the rest of the year. When to go has the month-by-month version.
Where to base yourself
| If you stay in | You are close to | You are far from | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duong Dong and Long Beach | The market, food, the airport, sunsets | The far north | First visits, one to four nights |
| Ong Lang | Quiet beach, west coast sunsets | Everything else, 20 min drive | Couples, longer stays |
| An Thoi and Sunset Town | The boats, the cable car, the southern beaches | The north, an hour away | Boat-heavy trips |
| Bai Khem and the southeast | The best swimming beaches | Town, food, the north | Resort holidays |
| Ganh Dau and the northwest | Forest, the theme parks, empty coast | Everything, 60 – 75 min | People who want quiet, with a car |
Where to stay goes into what each area actually costs and what the trade-off is. In one line: stay in Duong Dong or Long Beach on a first visit, because everything is within 40 minutes and you will not spend your holiday in a vehicle.
Not sure where to base yourself
Tell us how many nights you have and what you want to do. We will tell you which end of the island to sleep on.
What Phu Quoc is not
Three things people arrive expecting, that are not here. Better to know now.
- It is not undeveloped. The south has been built on hard since 2018 and parts of it are a construction site. The north is a different story, which is why three of these five pages are about the north and the middle.
- It is not a diving destination in the serious sense. Shallow, warm, easy, good for learning, and honestly described on our diving page.
- It is not a party island. Duong Dong is quiet by 23:00 outside a small strip. If nightlife is the point of the trip, this is the wrong island.
Questions travellers ask most
How long does it take to drive across Phu Quoc?
An Thoi in the south to Ganh Dau in the northwest is about 65 km and takes 90 minutes on the main road. Duong Dong to An Thoi is 45 minutes; Duong Dong to Ganh Dau is 60 to 75. The east coast road to Bai Thom is slower than the map suggests.
Which part of the island has the best beaches?
The southeast — Bai Khem and Bai Sao — for fine sand and shallow calm water in the dry season. The west coast for sunsets and for swimming in the rainy season, when the wind is the other way round. Ong Lang for quiet.
The northern beaches at Bai Thom and Rach Tram are the emptiest and the least convenient, which is the same sentence twice.
Is it worth renting a scooter?
If you are confident on one and you have an appropriate licence, yes — the main roads are good and the island is small. If you have never ridden one, Phu Quoc is not the place to learn. Getting around covers the licence position and what it actually costs.
Do we need a guide to see the island?
For the beaches and Duong Dong, no. For the national park, effectively yes, because the trails are unmarked and the permit has to be arranged. For the pepper farms and fish sauce houses, a guide is the difference between a walk past some plants and understanding what you are looking at.
Read next
Tell us what you want out of the island
Dates, party size and the places you care about are enough to start. You get a draft route and an indicative price, not a brochure.