Phu Quoc Island Attractions – 11 Out Of Best Places To See

1. Long Beach (Bãi Dài)

Bai Dai, one of the most enjoyable Phu Quoc island attractions, is situated on the west coast of the main island of Phu Quoc and just about 10 minutes from the Phu Quoc International Airport. Clean and clear water, the golden sand beach, gorgeous sunsets, and swaying coconut palms really make Long Beach a dreamland of every photographer.

On the other hand, here tourists can snorkel, swim, kayak, and more. For those who want to relax on the beach and have suntan, they could opt for one of so many resorts found along the beach which offer sun loungers. For more relaxation, tourists can also enjoy a lovely massage on the beach for just a few dollars offered by one of the seasoned masseuses.

In addition, there is a wide variety of places for travelers to drink, eat and party on off the shore as well. Because of the development of tourism in this island, recently there is a constant stream of local beach vendors patrolling the sands peddling their products and services, such as cold beverages, fresh fruit, coconut juice, and even fresh seafood.

This is also the place where you could find some of the pearl farms; and further down the road, you can also witness more real images of the other industry of this island – fish sauce. To make fish sauce, fresh anchovies are caught off the coast and then left to dry on those large wicker mats.

To access Long Beach, it is easy for tourists to walk on foot from Duong Dong (Dương Đông), but a bicycle or a motorbike is essential for them to reach a few of the remote stretches flung out towards the island’s southern end.

2. Ganh Dau Beach (Bãi Gành Dầu)

Ganh Dau beach is an ideal place for tourists to observe the sea eagle flying high above them. Under the water, you will find a variety of fish and marine species like crabs, clams, parrot fish, and so on. Especially, hard coral is abundant in this beach. From the shore, visitors could see two different islands, including Fortuneteller Island (Hòn thầy Bói) and Ban (Bần) Island (Hon Ban). In addition to enjoying the great view and comfortably swimming, tourists could also rent a boat and then take a simple tour along the coast, or snorkel at two points. Thanks to the convenient conditions for water sports like healthy hard coral and calm water, it is very ideal for you to snorkel here. Basing on the season as well as ocean currents, you could also rent a boat to see the two islands mentioned above

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Ganh Dau beach

Though by the Ganh Dau village, there is another beach facing Cambodia, it is not as clean and nice as Ganh Dau Beach because that beach has become a parking place for fishing boats.

3. Sao Beach (Bãi Sao)

Located on the east side of the island, Sao Beach is another beach that attracts a large number of tourists worldwide annually. In reality, Sao Beach ranks high amongst best beaches in Vietnam as well as Southeast Asia. Also known in Vietnamese as Bãi Sao, this beach is about 7 kilometers of white sandy area. Being famous for the white sand, Sao Beach features with warm, calm and distinctive turquoise clear blue color. The sand here is a little slope but no sudden drop. Besides, because the ocean here is rather shallow, it is safe for non-swimmers and children to play around. Moreover, during low tide, tourists could see sand ripples that resemble a sand bar. This destination is also great for photo taking, especially during low tide in the morning.

Sao beach

Before being discovered and renovated for tourism, a few years ago, Sao Beach was pristine. However, nowadays, the development of tourism in this region also affects somehow to the environment surrounding

Under the water, there are a lot of types of small fish, shell fish, a small squid and needle nose fish. For those who want to snorkel, there are some areas at the north and south end of the beach which are ideal for snorkeling. In September and October, tourists will find a variety of starfish near the seashore. Sometimes, you can even see a sea urchin, yet they might be rare here.

Today, though Sao Beach is different than it used to be several years ago, it is still one of the most attractive Phu Quoc island attraction tourists cannot skip. Visiting here, tourists will find a few high quality beach front resorts, tour operators, bars, water sport operators, kayaks, wind surfers, powerboats, fishing boats, beach vendors and more.

4. Cua Can Beach (Bãi Cửa Cạn)

Unlike other beaches in Phu Quoc Island, Cua Can Beach might be the wildest one which resembles the arched sand bar with the Cua Can (Cửa Cạn) River on one side and the ocean on the other. This is a small beach divided by Cua Can River. Tourists could observe the beach by navigating their way through Cua Can (Cửa Cạn) Town. Cua Can beach itself is as beautiful as the sunset there. There are many stilt houses established above the ocean and river.

the fishing boat in Cua Can beach

Visiting Cua Can Beach, tourists can also drift down the Cua Can River by hiring a fisherman to take them down that river and into Phu Quoc National Forest. A few kayaks for rent are available here during the high season. Another activity for visitors to enjoy is fishing. You can do it by hiring a fisherman to take you to the Cua Can River or to the sea or simply fish off many wooden bridges with local people.

If you want to eat something out, then there are some street side restaurants scattered around the area for you to opt for; and the food here is very affordable but still very delicious and basic.

5. Dinh Cau Rock (Cau Temple) (Đền Dinh Cậu)

This odd shaped rock lies at Duong Dong River’s mouth. It is said that no trip to Phu Quoc Island is complete without visiting this little oddity.

Dinh Cau temple

Actually, this is the most popular Phu Quoc island attractions majorly because it is situated near the Long Beach – maybe the most worth-visiting Phu Quoc island attractions that no tourists can overlook.

Dinh cau temple

Dinh Cau Rock is often mentioned to as “the symbol of Phu Quoc as well as Phu Quoc locals”. Before every fishing trip, Phu Quoc locals come to this temple to burn those incense sticks and then pray for a safe trip.

Here, you can see spectacular sunsets that is great for taking photos. At the base of the temple, you can relax on a plastic chair, then order sugar cane juice and witness the sunset

6. Vung Bau Beach (Bãi Vũng Bầu)

Vung Bau Beach, also known as Circling Beach, lays in-between Cua Can (Cửa Cạn) Beach in the south and Long Beach in the north. It is about 10 kilometers from Duong Dong town. Actually, this 4.5 kilometer-in-length beach is rather remote that makes travelers feel like they have the area all to themselves, but it is still close enough to several resorts if they want to stay overnight or grab something to eat.

White sand, calm clear blue water and thick tall grass developing close to the seashore make this a private and peaceful beach, so many foreign tourists who make a trip here might not feel the demand to take swimwear. For those who are looking for some adventure, there is dive shop along the major road that will take them to the nearby islands for a small fee.

The green around this beach is interesting, with a variety of coastal flowers, a mixture of tall grass, and a good mixture of coconut palm trees and poplar. Thanks to the calm and clear sea here, the water’s color is a great combination of different shades of blue. The slope into the sea is rather low, thereby making it a safe place for children as well as non-swimmers alike to play around and exit the ocean without any fear. Underwater, you might find conch, starfish, and perhaps a few sea urchins, so it is better for you to be careful when placing your feet on the ocean floor

7. Rach Vem Beach And Rach Tram Beach (Bãi Rạch Vẹm Và Bãi Rạch Tràm)

These are two little-known beaches in Phu Quoc Island. Located in remote north area of Phu Quoc, calm and quiet, these beaches are wonderful and the forested hills backdrop is spectacular. Nonetheless, Rach Vem (Rạch Vẹm) Beach and Rach Tram (Rạch Tràm) Beach are “working” ones where fishermen along with their families reside.

These beaches are situated in Rach Tram Village – a small fishing village which belongs to Bai Thom (Bãi Thơm) commune and is just 800 meters in width and 2.5 kilometers in length. It is an ideal place for tourists to experience the local life, mainly for cultural experience. There are a few crab farms as well as seafood processing “plants” here. Tourists when visiting these beaches will also see Cambodian coast here, how those local fishermen work and live, and how a variety of seafood is processed for consumption and sale. However, if you have a chance to talk with local people here, it is not a good idea to mention about the Cambodia-Vietnam war as well as Pol Pot’s regime because this issue is rather sensitive here.

Some fun activities to do for tourists are fishing, trekking, and hiking. You can ask local fishermen to take you out for fishing either in the river or in the sea for a small fee, yet you might need to be able to speak Vietnamese or Khmer (Cambodia). For hiking or trekking, a few small trails taking you into the forest are available here. It is really worth exploring for both domestic and international tourists.

8. Ham Ninh Fishing Village (Làng Chài Hàm Ninh)

Situated about 20 km northeast of the Duong Dong Town, Phu Quoc district, Ham Ninh village is well-known for its wonderful natural scenery as well as peaceful life of local fishermen. Actually, no one knew when this village was built, just know that, whilst Phu Quoc Island deserted, some people from land go to the exploitation of marine resources, and then built up the village.

sunset in Ham Ninh

In fact, fishing used to be the sole method of earning living of locals in Ham Ninh village, yet recent years, thanks to the development of tourism, tourist service becomes a main source of their income, like from selling seafood or handmade souvenir for travelers.

During hot summer, when visiting Ham Ninh village, travelers will be able to leave their busy life behind and be lost into the natural, picturesque scenery here. With the turquoise sea here, you may be stunned and try to immerse yourself into the clean, cool water while still contemplating those small fishes swimming beside and seaweeds floating into the blue water

9. Pepper Plantations (Trang Trại Tiêu)

One of the most recommended Phu Quoc island attractions is Pepper gardens. Phu Quoc is well-known for pepper, especially red pepper. The heat and spice of Phu Quoc pepper is very special. Local farmers here do not use chemical fertilizers yet organic fertilizers when processing pepper as in other areas. There are about 385 ha of pepper plantations on this island, majorly in Cua Can (Cửa Cạn) and Cua Duong (Cửa Dương) villages. During the major harvesting period, from February to July, ripe peppercorns are carefully collected by famers’ hands, and divided into 3 types: the red type, the black type and the white type. Today, tourists could easily visit one of many pepper plantations on the island. It is estimated that there are 3 main plantations here which are very easily accessible. If you are going to travel around Phu Quoc, you should not miss visiting a pepper plantation. Those people who are interested in culinary could have a guided tour of pepper plantation to see the complete process in detail.

pepper farm 

10. Waterfalls

Da Ban (Đá Bàn) waterfall: it just takes about 10 minutes from Duong Dong Town to get Da Ba waterfall. Close to the lake of Duong Dong, it is very worth visiting Da Ban waterfall to enjoy your lunch and take a rest after a long day of going sightseeing. Da Ban waterfall might not be as well-known and crowded as Tranh waterfall mentioned below, but it is famous for the diversified flora and fauna. There is a wooden suspension bridge which is very nice to walk on, but if you are not a fan of adventure, you could use the nearby stable wooden bridge. Some activities you can do while visiting Da Ban waterfall include soaking in the stream, picnicking, or observing various animals and plants here, such as wild orchids, wild ginseng, mushrooms, and ferns.

Da Ban waterfall

Tranh (Tranh) waterfall: though it is not the most dramatic waterfall in Phu Quoc, Tranh waterfall still shines its own charms over others. With the peaceful surrounding forest, this waterfall also contains a few other smaller waterfalls as well as streams. Looking into the stream, you can see freshwater shrimps and little fish. Within the forested region around, you can also see exotic mushrooms, wild orchids, and diversified moss and lichens. Here, tourists can throw themselves into some activities like picnicking or soaking into the stream. There are some small shops for snacking that have been built along the trail and sell the quail eggs, drinks, fruits, rice and pork in case tourists get hungry.

 Tranh waterfall

11. Phu Quoc Prison (Nhà Tù Phú Quốc)

When it comes to Phu Quoc Prison, it might not be one of the most renowned Phu Quoc island attractions, yet is still worth a visit. Located in An Thoi (An Thời) town, Phu Quoc prison, aka Coconut Tree prison, was once an active prison established and initially used to the French and by the Americans after that. According to reports, it once housed over 40,000 Vietnamese soldiers who were tortured and beaten there during the period of American- Vietnam war. Nowadays, it becomes one of historical Phu Quoc island attractions and was formally recognized as the special Vietnamese national heritage site. Travelers when visiting this Phu Quoc Prison will witness an actual outdoor prison setup with tiger cages, barb wire, and mannequin prisoners and guards. In addition, you can have an opportunity to go through the escape tunnel which is underground.

Phu Quoc prison

You have discovered 11 out of must-see Phu Quoc island attractions that many experienced tourists, both domestic and international, highly recommend for new ones. To put in simple words, Phu Quoc is an ideal destination for a lot of travel activities that range from ocean, land and aerial tour to fishing, scuba diving, hiking, bird watching, snorkeling, and trekking. On the other hand, you also find a safari zoo, large museum park, and high standard courses. There are no limited ideas and places for tourists to visit here, including the most beautiful beaches of Vietnam, sacred pagodas and temples, historic prisons and large pepper or cashew nut plantations.