How to get to Phu Quoc Island?

Phu Quoc is a small island located in the Gulf of Thailand, near the border with Cambodia. This is a common destination for people who after intensive sightseeing in mainland Vietnam, want to spend a few lazy days on wide, sandy beaches, among paradise greenery. Below I will present you the most popular ways to get to the Vietnamese island of Phu Quoc.

How to get to Phu Quoc by plane?

By plane from your country

If your plan for Vietnam is limited only to visiting the island, I have good news for you. When flying to Phu Quoc from Poland, for example, you are not required to have a visa. But beware, this only applies if you don’tt have a stopover on the Vietnamese mainland. If your stopover is in Ho Chi Minh City, for example, you must then have a visa. You can find out more about visas, but also vaccinations or airline tickets in my post HOW TO PREPARE FOR A TRIP TO VIETNAM. Of course, depending on your nationality, the rules may vary. Check the applicable entry conditions on your country’s government websites.

More and more travel agencies are expanding their offer to include this paradise island. I know that air connections are not particularly favorable and usually stop at the continental part of the country. That’s why I’m giving you a solution here: look for charter flights. You will certainly find such connections on the website of the Rainbow polish travel agency in the Charters tab. You can also click HERE.

Domestic flights

If you want to get to Phu Quoc from one of the cities in Vietnam, great! You can easily find connections from the largest cities such as Hanoi, Da Nang or Ho Chi Minh City. As a rule, these are scheduled flights of low-cost airlines such as VietJet Air. The offer of Vietravel Airlines or Vietnam Airlines will be more expensive. Anyway, I guarantee that you shouldn’t have any major problems finding a domestic flight.

You can buy the cheapest tickets from Ho Chi Minh City, due to the shortest distance from the island. More expensive, of course, will be flights from Hanoi.

By ferry from the mainland

Many people choose to get to the island using ferries that run regularly from several coastal cities in Vietnam.

One of the most popular cities is Ha Tien, which is both a border city with Cambodia. In addition, looking at Google Maps we can clearly see that ferries depart from this city. Well, indeed they do, but as is often the case – the devil is in the details. The problem arises when we want to get to Ha Tien. It’s a small town with not many buses. Getting there by land can be a bit problematic. You won’t find many options to get there from larger cities like Ho Chi Minh or Can Tho. Instead, I propose a different solution.

How to get to the port city?

If you want to get to Phu Quoc from the previously mentioned cities, go to the port city of Rach Gia. You can buy tickets via the website 12go.asia.

• You can buy a Kumho Samco bus ticket, Ho Chi Minh – Rach Gia route, for 9,90 EUR per person (as of November 4, 2023), buses run several times a day,
• Bus ticket from Vu Linh Limousine company, route Can Tho – Rach Gia you will buy for 6,20 EUR per person (as of 04.11.2023), buses run practically every hour. This was also our choice, and I must mention here the added benefit of getting us to the port itself. At the terminal station, where many of the company’s buses stood, the driver asked us where exactly we wanted to go. We pointed out the port and one of the drivers simply take us there at no extra charge.

How to get to Phu Quoc?

Once you get to Rach Gia (with the option of getting there from Can Tho, which I highly recommend) and you manage to get to the port, you have two options again:

• Buy a ticket for Phu Quoc on site, in the building next to the ticket offices. There is literally one building there. Have your passport with you!
• Buy the cruise in advance, also via the 12go.asia website – that’s what I did. Even if you purchase in advance, go to the ticket office and make sure everything is correct. In our case, the hours on the website were slightly different from those given at the port. In addition, the lady at the ticket counter will print you the correct tickets. Remember that on the website you get a confirmation of purchase, but not a ticket. (Of course, this solution can change, but it is always worth making sure at the ticket counter nonetheless).

A ferry ticket from Rach Gia town to Phu Quoc Island costs from 66 PLN (15,20 EUR) for economy class, to 104 PLN (24 EUR) for tourist class. It’s a bit more expensive, as from the port of Ha Tien, where you would pay 50 PLN (11,50 EUR) for economy class, or 68 PLN (15,70 EUR) for tourist class. Ha Tien is located closer to the island.

Once there, the helpful Vietnamese will certainly show you which pier the ferry departs from. However, if you can’t find one, the lady at the cash register will also help you.

*All prices are from 12go.asia.

Important!

Don’t be fooled by the suggestion on Google Maps regarding the port where the ferry from the mainland to the island arrives. The map shows that the ferry goes to the pier in the northern part of the island. It’s usually not true! Most ferries terminate at Bai Vong Port in the south-eastern part of the island.

In the port, right next to the main entrance, you can eat an inexpensive meal. In our case it was a portion of noodles, rice with egg and Banh Mi – a Vietnamese crispy baguette with vegetables and herbs. And for dessert we ordered delicious and sweet iced Vietnamese coffee with condensed milk.

There are chairs and toilets in the port building. If you expect a long wait, all your needs will be met on site.

How to get off Phu Quoc Island?

Exactly the same way you got in. As for the airplane, the matter is obvious. If you plan to return by ferry, you can return to both Rach Gia and Ha Tien. In our case, the return was to Ha Tien, because we planned to continue our journey to Cambodia. And this solution was perfect! Return tickets are exactly the same prices.

If this is your first time, read my post about the PROS AND CONS OF THE ISLAND!. You will know what attractions are worth visiting, what problems may await you and what development plans the state has for the island ;).