Vietnam’s Phu Quoc Island Intends to Challenge Phuket and Bali as Region’s Top Tourist Destination

• 9 June 2021
• Construction Focus
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The Vietnamese government and private companies have recently expressed their ambition to further develop Phu Quoc island to become the region’s leading tourist attraction, challenging other island paradises such as Phuket in Thailand and Bali in Indonesia, reported Nikkei Asia.

Phu Quoc used to be famous for only its fish sauce production before 2013, but things changed after the Vietnamese government decided to allow the private sector to transform this island into Vietnam’s last paradise.

Since then, at least US$16 billion has been invested in the tourism-related sector. Vietnam’s biggest conglomerate Vingroup alone has invested over US$2.8 billion in budling a gigantic theme park, casino and golf course, hotel, among others. (Read more)

Sun Group, a leading Vietnamese real estate company, has also built an over-the-sea aerial tramway that is one of the world’s longest, a theme park and other facilities.

Many more projects are also underway while some more are in planning.

Le Khac Hiep, vice chairman of Vingroup, Vietnam’s biggest conglomerate, said in April that the island is on its way to becoming a prominent regional resort destination.

Meanwhile, Doan Van Tien, Vice-Chairman of the Phu Quoc People’s Committee, has also similarly expressed his intentions to have the island compete with Thailand’s Phuket and Indonesia’s Bali.

However, analysts believe that this ambition is not easy as Vietnam has never been known for its resort islands. Besides competitors such as Phuket and Bali, Vietnam has to also compete with other famous destination such as Cebu and Boracay in the Philippines.

The COVID-19 crisis has also been threatening the tourism sector, making Phu Quoc’s dream further delayed. Therefore, Vietnam needs to rely on efforts to promote cooperation with airlines and offer discounts to attract visitors at an early stage.

Travel experts say the island’s movers and shakers will need to rely on down-to-earth promotional efforts in cooperation with airlines, travel agencies and other leisure concerns, according to Nikkei Asia.

In 2019, the number of tourists visiting Phu Quoc was at over 5.1 million, an increase of 27%. However, this year the island is expected to welcome only about 3 million, mostly domestic travellers.

• Projects Development
• Tourism and Travelling