16 Best Sights in Phu Quoc Island, Mekong Delta

It's hard to describe exactly what the Kiss of the Sea show is other than a grand spectacle involving stunning visual effects set to music. One of Southeast Asia's largest multimedia art displays, the 30-minute show projects 3D images onto a cascading curtain of water with fire, lights, dance and acrobatics (performed by 60 international artists) all culminating in a spectacular fireworks display. There is a loose storyline narrated in English but it takes a back seat to the incredible effects in this futuristic performance venue built over the sea

Part lighthouse, part religious building, Dinh Cau Temple is worth visiting while exploring Duong Dong town, its marina, and the night market. Occupying a rocky outcrop, the temple was constructed in the 1930's to honor the goddess of the sea, who could protect sailors and fishermen.

Local tours often stop in at one of the pungent fish sauce factories, several of which are concentrated along the river in Duong Dong Town. It's possible to visit without an organized tour, although an English-speaking guide may not be available and without explanation, you're just looking at a hot, odorous shed full of giant wooden vats. Try Khai Hoan on Hung Vuong Street ( 0297/384–8555).

Airlines that fly out of Phu Quoc do not allow fish sauce on board due to risk of breakage, but it is usually possible to buy it at the airport departure lounge.

With palms, powdery white sand that is regularly cleaned, and an ocean that seems to change colors throughout the day, this beach on the southeastern tip is what you'd expect from a tropical island. A few seafood restaurants offer loungers, and sometimes the grandiose JW Marriott Phu Quoc, occupying the southern end of the beach, allows outside guests to purchase day passes. There is also a difficult to traverse access road to the beach beside Phu Quoc Prison. Amenities: food and drink. Best for: walking; swimming; families.

More of a series of coves than one long beach, Ong Lang can be pretty with its rocky outcrops and narrow strips of white sand. Hotels such as Mango Bay Resort and Phu Quoc Eco Beach Resort front the beach, so wonderful views can be enjoyed from their in-house restaurants or by purchasing a day pass. For public access, follow signs to Mango Bay and look for the "public beach" sign just south of the resort. Amenities: food and drink. Best for: snorkeling; solitude; sunsets; swimming.

This family-run organic bee farm west of the national park has staff as sweet as their harvest. Guided 30-minute tours of the peaceful garden and orchards are free (advanced booking recommended), while souvenirs, honey products, and a menu using farm-fresh ingredients are available at the little open-air café.

Phu Quoc is renowned for its pepper, and a guided tour of this family pepper farm, operating since 1998, includes samples of its tasty products, such as chili salt and pepper tea, made with red peppercorn, cinnamon, and honey. Morning and afternoon cooking classes can also be booked, where you learn to prepare and eat four different dishes. Their café has a short menu of simple Vietnamese dishes and island specialty ruou sim (rose myrtle wine).

Covering the northeastern area of the island, Phu Quoc National Park comprises of dense forest, mangroves, and wetlands that supports many flora and fauna. At the time of writing, the interior is not accessible and any explorations, either independent or guided, are limited to the periphery in designated areas. With the island rapidly developing, trails and access can change from one day to the next, so check the latest before setting out. Rough roads spidering through the forest in Ganh Dau, northwest of the park border, give a taste of the park's wilderness.

Built by the French to detain dissidents and later used by the American-backed South Vietnamese government, the prison, also known as Coconut Tree Prison, is a chilling record of the island's dark history. Like the other famous prison-turned-museum in Con Dao, life-size mannequins and archive photos bring to life the horrific caging, torture, and execution methods inflicted on thousands of men, women, and children. The prison is at the southern end of Phu Quoc.

This is a popular spot for tour buses given the number of restaurants that front the fine white sand, as well as the umbrellas and water sports available for rent; the water gets crowded and noisy with Jet Skis and banana boats buzzing around. Once one of Phu Quoc's dirtiest beaches, businesses now clean their section but pile the trash off to the side. Entrances 1 and 2 offer free access and parking, while Paradiso Beach Club at entrance 3 charges for use of its facilities. Amenities: food and drink; showers. Best for: sunrise; water sports activities.

Dating back to 1932, this small, colorful pagoda sits on top of a hill 4 km (2½ miles) east of Duong Dong Town. Access is via 40 stone steps, and it's more of a working temple than tourist destination.

Completed in 2019, this sprawling development of resorts, restaurants, entertainment, and mostly empty shopping venues occupies Phu Quoc's entire southern tip. Sunset Town (Thi Tran Hoang Hon) is a mock-Mediterranean city, with recreations of Italy’s iconic constructions such as the Colosseum and Venice’s St. Mark’s bell tower. From there, the world’s longest three-wire cable car soars 7.9 km (4.9 miles) and nearly 50 stories over the An Thoi archipelago to Hon Thom Island, home to Aquatopia Water Park with its water slides and wave pools and a beach. Opened in 2023, the Kissing Bridge features two 400-meter bridges that stretch over the ocean and nearly meet, so couples on either side can reach across for a photo op.

Built to look like a town taken straight from the Amalfi Coast, Sunset Town must be seen to be believed. It would be incredibly kitschy if the illusion weren't so well done, complete with pastel shop houses of differing heights, cobblestone streets and even a bell tower. There's a small, man-made beach here with free water puppet shows and nightly fireworks. Guests can also stroll the lively night market for cheap eats and street performances. A visit here is best paired with a day trip to Hon Thom Island via the cable car or the nightly Kiss of the Sea show

It is a 20-minute walk through rainforest to reach this small but picturesque waterfall, which is far more spectacular in the rainy season; water levels are very low at the end of dry season, around March to May, and it may not be worth visiting. Like so many nature tourist sights in Vietnam, the park has been built up with kitschy animal statues, an artificial pond, flowers, and food/drink vendors.

Boasting golden sand, swaying palms, and Phu Quoc's best sunsets, Long Beach (not to be confused with Bai Dai, which also translates to "Long Beach") stretches for nearly 20 km (12 miles) along the island's western coast, from just south of Duong Dong Town down toward the southern tip. The section north of the airport is Phu Quoc's central hub, with the greatest concentration of hotels, restaurants, cafés, and bars—and overdevelopment. The area has become densely packed, and smaller hotels have been engulfed by large resorts so it can be quite crowded, even more so now that the beach is disappearing due to coastal erosion. Be aware that some resort "beachfronts" have been reduced to unsightly sandbags. Amenities: waterfront food and drink; water sports. Best for: sunsets; partying.

The nearly 50-hectare amusement park formerly known as Vinpearl Land has rides, a waterpark, an aquarium, and shows. The park is part of Vinpearl's sprawling mega-development that took over Bai Beach, on Phu Quoc's northwestern coast, which includes a golf course, casino, several resorts, restaurants, an excess of empty shops, and a zoo featuring exotic animals. Free shuttle buses run regularly between it and Duong Dong Town.