I had a wonderful 4 nights and 3 full days in Phu Quoc island, so in this article, I will show you how I spend 3 days in Phu Quoc leisurely. In general, you can see most things in Phu Quoc in two full days, you can spend the rest of your holiday just relaxing and enjoying the beaches.
Phu Quoc is a famous destination in Vietnam known for its white sandy beaches, crystal clear water, and many luxury hotels and resorts where you can relax and unwind. It is a great place for relaxing, swimming, sunbathing, enjoying water sport activities, and staying in all-inclusive beach resorts.
How Many days in Phu Quoc is enough?
In my opinion, 3 to 4 days is a good amount of time in Phu Quoc. This will allow you to see some cultural attractions, enjoy the beaches, try some local seafood, do some shopping, and just relax.
Depending on your interests, you can spend 1 day exploring the North, 1 day exploring the South, 1 day for cable car/island hopping. Many agencies offer 1 full day guided tour to see all the major points of interest of Phu Quoc.
Here are my 3 full days leisurely itinerary in Phu Quoc:
- Day 1: Take a guided sightseeing tour to the South, to visit some highlights such as Pearl Farm, Sim wine factory, Pepper Farm, Ho Quoc Pagoda, Sao Beach, Phu Quoc prison, Fish Sauce Factory, and Sunset Town.
- Day 2: Rest in the morning at Dusit Resort, enjoy buffet breakfast, do some swimming at the hotel’s private beach and swimming pool. Afternoon, take Grab to get to An Thoi cable car station and take a cable car ride.
- Day 3: Take a guided sightseeing tour to the North, where I visited a Bee Farm, kayaked along Can River, visited Rach Vem Fishing Village, Starfish Beach, Ham Rong Cape, and Ganh Dau Beach. The tour also drives through Phu Quoc National park.
Here another suggestion for 3 full days in Phu Quoc:
- Day 1: Take guided tour sightseeing the north and south 1 one day to see all major points of interest on the island.
- Day 2: As on day 1, you had a full day outside, you can rest at your hotels, swimming, sunbathing at your hotel’s beaches and pool. Go out for a drink and dinner in the area nearby the hotel.
- Day 3: Take a guided tour that includes a cable car ride to Hon Thom island, and island hopping to some of the most famous islands of South Phu Quoc where you can snorkeling, sunbathing, swimming, and just chill out at the beach bars.
If you have an international driver license and you are confident with your driving skills, you can consider renting a motorbike and explore the island at your own pace. The motorbike rental is very affordable, it is only 120,000 to 150,000VND/day. If you are scared of driving like me, you can simply take a guided tour or Grab to get around.
Phu Quoc is a year-round destination. The peak season for foreign tourists is from December to March (the dry season – most pleasant weather time of the year), the lowe season is April (the hostest month of the year), while May attracts lots of Vietnamese tourists. The rainy season is from May to October.
With 3,4 days in Phu Quoc, I recommend staying in Duong Dong or Long Beach to make the most of your visit. Duong Dong is the main town of the island, located in the central part of the island’s west coast. It is a great base to explore the island. Many tour agencies pick you up from this area for free.
For a budget travelers and peaceful stay, Sea Star Resort is a great option. It has an incredible beach with lots of shaded coconut trees, sunbeds, and stunning sunset views.
With a mid-range budget, Dusit resort and Seashells is the place to go. I stayed in both and prefer staying in Dusit more as it has a balance of beaches, location, and amenities. Seashells is a good base if you want to stay close to Phu Quoc night market.
I took a Vietjet flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Phu Quoc. From Phu Quoc international airport, I used Grab to get a taxi to Sea Star Resort Phu Quoc. It costs 120,000VND.
I arrived at my hotel around 3pm, I just rested, and took a quick look at the hotel’s beach. The beach is very clean with white sand and lots of shaded coconut trees and sunbeds. I sat down in a sunlounger for a bit, enjoying coconut from the hotel’s beach bar and mango from a vendor nearby.
After that I went out to explore a bit of the area outside the hotel. Sea Star is within walking distance to Tran Hung Dao Street which is the main road on the island, lined with restaurants, cafes, and shops. Many shops are targeted to Korean tourists, making me feel this part of town is a Little Korean Town.
I walked all the way to Kingkong Mart, which is located at 141A Tran Hung dao Street. It is a popular supermarket where you can find many Korean products as well as local Specialties. You can find souvenirs from this shop.
After some shopping, I headed back to Sea Star resort for a sunset view from its private beach. The Sunset is breathtaking. I had dinner here from the restaurant. They also have BBQ on the beach.
You can watch my video here about top things to do in Phu Quoc and and continue reading for more detail of Phu Quoc Itinerary:
How to Spend 3 to 4 days in Phu Quoc: A Leisure Itinerary
Day 1: Southern Phu Quoc
You can spend a full day exploring South Phu Quoc. This is the more developed area of the island compared to the North. It is home to famous beaches like Sao Beach, Khem Beach, cable car station, Sunset Town, as well as cultural attractions like Coconut Tree Prison and Ho Quoc Pagoda.
As I mentioned above, you can rent a motorbike and explore at your own pace. In my case, I joined a guided tour, and picked me up from my hotel at Sea Star Resort at 8.15 am, and dropped me off at the hotel at 4pm. They offered free pick up in the Duong Dong area, and extra fee for other areas.
I visited Phu Quoc in late April, which is the low season of Phu Quoc, so only 6 tourists were on the tour. We visited several farms and factories to learn about the products that Phu Quoc is known for. They include Pearl Farm, Pepper Farm, Fish Sauce Factory, and Sim wine farm. They have an onsite shop in each place where you can buy local products if you want.
The highlight of the trip for me is probably Sao Beach, Coconut prison, and Ho Quoc Pagoda.
Sao Beach
Sao Beach is a stunning white sandy beach in the south eastern part of Phu Quoc. It was clean and there were just a few people on the beach during my visit. You can just relax at one of the many rented sunbeds. I found out that sun loungers at the end of the beach have cheaper prices.
You can enjoy swimming in crystal clear water and sunbathing. There are water sport activities such as jet skiing, parasailing, and banana boat. Price is quite affordable. My friend tried jet skiing and paid for 500,000VND for a 10 minutes ride.
There are plenty of restaurants along the beach where you can have a meal and enjoy the view of the ocean. We had lunch at Nha Hang Bai Sao (Bai sao restaurant & resort). Honestly the food wasn’t that good and a bit overpriced, but if you eat here, you’re probably paying for the views and the location.
Phu Quoc prison
Phu Quoc prison, or Coconut prison, was used to detain North Vietnamese soldiers and Viet Cong during the Vietnam-American War.
You can learn about a historical period with human models recreating scenes of torture during Vietnam-American war. There is an underground simulating ancient prison escapes.
Ho Quoc Pagoda
Ho Quoc Pagoda is the biggest Buddhist temple on Phu Quoc Island. It has a huge white Budda overlooking the ocean. You can also spot this statute from the cable car ride.
Sunset Town
Sunset Town, or Mediterranean Town, is a complex of colorful buildings that resemble the architecture of Italian towns such as Amalfi and Sorrento. You can take a stroll around, admire its architecture, take photos with Kiss Bridge or the Clock Tower.
After the tour, I came back to the hotel, enjoy sunset at its private beach. And went out for dinner to a restaurant on Tran Hung Dao street nearby.
Day 2: Cable Car Ride
Phu Quoc has the longest 3-wire cable car in the world, connecting An Thoi to Hon Thom island. The ride is 15 minutes each way, and the return ticket is 650,000VND. You can have stunning views of the sea, the island, and Sunset Town from the cable car.
On day 2 on Phu Quoc island, I had a relaxing and leisurely morning. In the afternoon, I took a Grab bike to get to An Thoi cable car station. It cost me 100,000 VND for 1 way and the ride was 30 minutes from Dusit Resort in Duong Dong to An Thoi.
You can also take a guided tour that combines a cable car ride and the South sightseeing. Or Taking a cable car and island hopping tour, that will take you to several small islands where you can enjoy swimming and snorkeling.
In the late afternoon, I enjoyed the sunset at the hotel, and walked all the way to Dinh Cau Temple and lighthouse. I had dinner at Bun Quay Kien Xay restaurant in Duong Dong Town and finished the day by visiting Phu Quoc night market. If you want to buy goods here or want to get massages, I suggest walking all the way to the end of the street as I found out that everything is cheaper there.
Day 3: Northern Phu Quoc
As usual, I booked a guided tour to see the North of Phu Quoc. This is a less developed part of the island, and occupied by a huge national park.
Some hightlife on the Northern Phu Quoc include Bee Farm, Kayaking along Cua can River, passing by Phu Quoc national park, visiting Rach Vem Village, Starfish Beach, and Ganh Dau beach.
We had lunch at a floating restaurant on Starfish beach, then took a boat ride to Ham Rong Cape where we had more chances to spot starfish. I saw some wild monkeys in the forest too.
The tour guide dropped me off at Seashells Hotel at 4pm and I had dinner at Huong Bien restaurant, then went back to the room to rest, and packed for flight the next morning.
That is my list of 3 to 4 days itinerary in Phu Quoc island. You can basically see most cultural attractions, famous beaches, island hopping, and take a cable car in 2 days, and spend the rest of your vacation relaxing at your resorts.
I stayed in 3 different accommodations on Phu Quoc just for an experience. Star Sea Resort has the most beautiful beach setting, and is a great choice if you have a budget around 50 AUD.
If your budget is around 100-150 AUD, Dusit resort and Seashells are good choices. I prefer more Dusit as it has a balance of beaches, location, room facilities, and breakfast buffet. Seashells is a better choice if you want to stay closer to Phu Quoc night market.
See more:
- Best things to do in Phu Quoc & Travel Guide for first-timers
- 10 Best Family Hotels in Phu Quoc
- 5 Best areas to stay in Phu Quoc
- Best Time to Visit Phu Quoc.
Here are my video to summarize how long you should spend in Phu Quoc:
If you have any question, feel free to comment down below, I’ll try my best to answer it. You can also post it on my private facebook group, where other people can help with your Vietnam travel questions.