Both Hoi An and Phu Quoc are famous tourist destinations in Vietnam. Hoi An, located in Central Vietnam, is best known for its ancient town with historic buildings, larn-tern lit streets, and tailor-made clothing.
Phu Quoc, located in South Vietnam, is best known for its white sandy beaches, tropical climes, luxury resorts, and several entertainment options.
In this article, I will compare Hoi An and Phu Quoc to help you decide which place is better for your visit. I will outline the differences and similarities of their locations, accommodations, beaches, cultural attractions, day trips, nightlife, shopping and food.
I’m a local Vietnamese who traveled to both Hoi An and Phu Quoc, so I hope to give you the best suggestions based on my personal experiences and local knowledge.
Is it better to stay in Hoi An or Phu Quoc?
Hoi An is generally better known among foreign tourists than Phu Quoc. Many of my foreign friends know about Hoi An with its ancient town, old wooden houses, lantern streets, and tailor shops.
In my opinion, I would recommend Hoi An for first-timers to Vietnam who want to enjoy a good mix of a range of attractions and amenities. You can explore the unique historical sites, enjoy the food, explore the nearby beaches, and have clothes custom-made by a tailor.
Hoi An is also an excellent location to explore Central Vietnam. You can easily take a day trip to Da Nang and Hue. You can visit iconic attractions such as Ba Na Hill, Golden Bridge, My Khe Beach, or Dragon Bridge.
Phu Quoc is a better choice for those who just want a relaxing beach holiday in a luxury resort with some cultural attractions and activities. It’s a short flight from Ho Chi Minh City, making it a great weekend escape.
The weather is also an important factor for deciding whether to visit Phu Quoc or Hoi An. I would recommend avoiding these places during their storm season. Hoi An’s peak rainy season is often from September to December, Phu Quoc is from July to September.
So if you need to choose either Phu Quoc or Hoi An in November, or December, I would recommend choosing Phu Quoc. And if you’re visiting these places from July to August, maybe consider Hoi An instead.
If you have enough time, you can consider visiting both Hoi An and Phu Quoc. Each place has a different experience and it’s great to visit them all. If not, I recommend visiting Hoi An for the first-time in Vietnam, and on the next return, you can visit Phu Quoc.
My recommended resorts in Phu Quoc:
- Luxury: Regent Phu Quoc
- Mid-range: Camia Resort & Spa
- Budget: Sea Star Resort
Best hotels in Hoi An:
- Luxury: La Siesta
- Mid-range: Hoi An Historic Hotel
- Budget: Square Villa
Location and How to Get There
Hoi An and Phu Quoc are located in different parts of Vietnam. Hoi An is located in central Vietnam, close to Da Nang and Hue. Phu Quoc is located in South Vietnam, around 45 minutes flight from Ho Chi Minh City and a 2 hour flight from Hanoi.
Phu Quoc has an international airport, so it’s easily accessible by air. Additionally, you can reach the island from mainland piers at Ha Tien or Rach Gia. The boat trip is around 1.5 to 3 hours depending on your starting piers and type of boats.
The closest airport to Hoi An is Da Nang airport, located around 45 minutes taxi ride away. You can easily grab local taxis or ride share services such as Grab Taxi to get from Da Nang airport to Hoi An ancient town.
Located in mainland Vietnam, Hoi An is easily accessible by road. There are long distance buses and trains from all over Vietnam to Hue. If you take the train, you’ll need to get off at Da Nang station, then catch a taxi to Hoi An.
There are direct flights between Da Nang and Phu Quoc. The journey is around 1.5 hours. You can book with Vietjet. If there are no direct options available, you’ll be likely to transit at Ho Chi Minh City.
Hoi An vs Phu Quoc Accommodations
A popular tourist destination, Hoi An and Phu Quoc have a wide range of accommodations for all budgets. Hoi An has more boutique hotels while Phu Quoc has more luxury beachfront resorts.
If you want a luxury stay on the beach, Phu Quoc is the place to go. If you want cozy family-run hotels, Hoi An has lots more options for you to choose from.
In Hoi An, the majority of the accommodation is located in the old town and An Hoi island. You can find historic hotels, family-own guest houses, and several luxury options. Staying in this area, you can easily walk to top restaurants, bars, cafes, and attractions.
Hoi An ancient town is also very close to the beaches, only a 10 minutes taxi ride away. You can find some good beach resorts at the charming An Bang and Cua Dai Beach if you want to stay right on the beach.
In Phu Quoc, you can find budget hotels and hostels in the main town, Duong Dong town. This is where restaurants, shops, and night markets are located.
There are luxury resorts located a bit outside of the main town, in areas such as Long Beach, Ong Lanng Beach, and Khem Beach. If you want relaxation and luxury, these resorts are ideal places to stay.
If you are traveling into these places in the high season, make sure to book well in advance to have the best quality hotels. The peak season in Phu Quoc is from November to April and the peak season in Hoi An is from February to April.
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Hoi An or Phu Quoc for Nightlife
In my experience, Hoi An has a bit livelier nightlife than Phu Quoc. The nightlife in Hoi An is concentrated around the Thu Bon river, between the old town and An Hoi island. There is a night market as well as many bars, cafes, and restaurants in this area.
You can take boat trips along the river, release a lantern and make a wish. You can find street food or do some shopping at the night market on Nguyen Hoang street. You can also watch a cultural show at the Lune Center for the Performing Arts.
Phu Quoc is a large island, and the nightlife is a bit spread out with the beach bars, clubs, along the beach as well as a lively nightlife market in Duong Dong town.
If you stay in Duong Dong town, you can easily walk around town for restaurants, bars, and the nightlife markets with lively street food stalls, seafood restaurants, and souvenir shops.
If you stay outside of the main town, there is not much nightlife except the resort’s onsite restaurant and bar. Many big resorts have good beach clubs and bbq on the beach where you can enjoy meals and drinks and a romantic sunset.
Hoi An or Phu Quoc for Shopping
Both Phu Quoc and Hoi An offer visitors unique shopping experiences. Hoi An is known for its custom clothing tailoring, textiles, handicrafts, lanterns, and arts. Phu Quoc is known for its local specialties such as pearl, fish sauce, pepper, sim wine, and honey.
Hoi An is famous worldwide for custom-made dresses, suits, shirts, shoes at great prices, often ready in a day or two. If you want to make custom clothing in Vietnam, Hoi An is the place to visit.
The old town has many small boutiques, artisan shops, and tailor shops to do your shopping. Additionally, you can shop at the Central Market and the night market for more options.
The shops in Phu Quoc are centered around the main town Duong Dong. There is a large night market in the heart of the town where you can buy local specialities as souvenirs. The King Kong Mart on Tran Hung Dao Street is also a popular destination to shop on the island.
You can also buy local products on Phu Quoc from the farm itself when you take the tours. The tours usually take you to Pearl farm, Sim wine farm, honey farm, pepper farm, and fish sauce factory.
Hoi An vs Phu Quoc Food
Each place is known for their unique local dishes. The regional food in Hoi An and Central Vietnam is more nationally known than local food in Phu Quoc.
You can find both Vietnamese dishes and international cuisines in both places, though Vietnamese food is more and international cuisines are often served in big resorts.
Seafood is popular in Phu Quoc and the beaches areas of Hoi An such as Cua Dai and An Bang Beach.
I prefer the dishes in Hoi An such as Banh My Hoi An, Com ga Hoi An, or Cao Lau. There is a good mix of traditional, vegetarian, and affordable food in Hoi An.
Most restaurants and cages and street food stalls are located in compact areas, so it is easy to find good and trendy places to eat on foot.
Popular dishes in Phu Quoc are seafood and Bun Quay. There are restaurants along the main road Tran Hung Dao street, inside the main town, and at the night market. The resorts also often have multiple restaurants for its guests.
There are also many BBQ seafood at the beach at sunset where you can enjoy fresh seafood right on the sand at the most beautiful time of the day when the sun goes down.
Hoi An or Phu Quoc for Beaches
Phu Quoc is a better known destination for beaches, but Hoi An also has peaceful beaches for enjoying water activities.
Phu Quoc has a wide selection of white sandy beaches on the west coast and south east coast. The longest beach on the island is Long Beach, which is around 20km long, stretching all the way from Duong Dong town to An Thoi.
North Long Beach is where you can find affordable accommodations, restaurants, bars, and shops. South Long Beach is a section of the luxury 5-star resorts.
Other beaches on the island are Ong Lang Beach, and Cua Can Beach located north of Duong Dong Town. To the east coast, you can explore Bai Khem Beach and Bai Sao Beach.
Bai Khem is home to world-class resorts such as New World or Marriott. Bai Sao is one of the most beautiful beaches on the island with fine white sand and crystal clear water.
There are also many other secluded beaches on nearby islands. You can easily take 3-4 islands hopping tours within a day to visit these places for swimming, snorkeling, and diving.
Hoi An is mainly known for its ancient town, but it does have beaches within 10 minutes driving radios. Places like Cua Dai and An Bang are great for swimming, sunbathing, and watching the sunset.
Historical Influences
Hoi An, situated in central Vietnam, boasts a long and well-established history, whereas Phu Quoc has seen most of its development occur only in recent decades.
Early Origins (2nd-15th century)
Hoi An was part of the ancient Champa Kingdom, a powerful maritime civilization in central Vietnam from the 2nd to 15th century.
Hoi An later became part of Dai Viet (Vietnam) in 1306 when Champa King Che Man married Princess Huyen Tran of Dai Viet. The Champa King gave 2 districts of Champa to Dai Viet as the wedding gift. These lands include Hoi An today.
Today, you can visit My Son sanctuary, located 50km from Hoi An ancient to see the ruins of the Champa Kingdom. My Son was the religious and political center of the Champa Kingdom. The area’s known as Vietnam’s Angkor Wat with unique red brick towers, stone pillars, and intricate carvings.
Phu Quoc before the 17th century was a wild and undeveloped land. Its prominent history started around 1671, when Chinese merchant Mac Cuu settled and established villages on the island.
Phu Quoc became a prosperous region under the leadership of Mac Cuu. The island was merged to southern Vietnam under Nguyen Lords in 1708.
From 16th-19the century
Hoi An was under control of Nguyen Lords from the 16th and 17th century. The Nguyen developed the area into one of the most popular trading port towns in South East Asia.
It attracts merchants from all over the world such as Japan, Chinese, Portuguese, French, and India to trade and exchange goods.
Nguyen Lord allowed Japanese and Chinese to settle in the area.Chinese merchants established the Minh Huong community.
These communities built their houses, bridges, assembly halls, and pagodas in Hoi An. These buildings have a mixed blend architecture of Vietnamese, Japan, and Chinese style.
Today, you can explore these ancient houses and attractions such as the Japanese Covered Bridge, Chinese Assembly Halls (Fujian, Cantonese, Chaozhou, Hainan, and Hakka), Tan Ky Old House, Duc An Old House, or Phung Hung Old House.
In the 18th century, after the Tay Son Rebellion in the South, Trinh Lords captured Quang Nam and Hoi An. They destroyed commercial areas. The wealthy Chinese merchants and important Nguyen families moved to Saigon.
Hoi An was retrieved about five years later by Vietnamese and Chinese communities, but the commercial activity was no longer as bustling as before. The traces of the Japanese quarter were inadvertently erased.
In the 19th century, due to the siltation of Cua Co River and Nguyen Dynasty’s policies, Hoi An gradually lost its status as an important port town. All ships moved to nearby Da Nang due to its deep harbor.
Phu Quoc was the refuge place for Nguyen Phu Anh (later became the first Emperor of Nguyen Dynasties) in from 1782 to 1786 to escape from Nguyen Hue and the Tay Son uprising.
French Colonial Period (1858-1954)
Phu Quoc was part of Cochinchina, under control of the French colonial government from 1867. The French built Coconut Prison in 1953 to detain revolutionary soldiers and patriots against France.
The French also established the coconut and rubber plantations and brought Chinese pepper farmers from Hainan to cultivate the land. Dinh Cau rock was built in 1937 during the French colonial period.
During the French colonial period, the French built a modern urban layout in Da Nang, so Hoi An served the western-style transformation.
Vietnam-American War
During the Vietnam-American War, Phu Quoc prison from the French colonial period was used by South Vietnam & US to detain North Vietnamese prisoners of war.
In 1975, Khmer Rouge soldiers briefly seized Phu Quoc and Tho Chu island. A treaty was signed in 1982 to recognize the coast of Kien Giang province Phu Quoc island to Tho Chu Islands are Vietnam’s sovereignty.
Today
Today, Phu Quoc is a famous beach destination in South Vietnam, known for its beautiful beaches, tropical climates, and lots of entertainment activities.
Hoi An is a top destination to explore the historical and cultural attractions with ancient houses and attractions dating back to the 16th-18th century.
Historical and Cultural Attractions
Hoi An, without a doubt, is the best place to go for historical and cultural attractions. Phu Quoc is best known for its beaches but the island also has several interesting cultural sites to explore.
Hoi An was an important trading port town in Southeast Asia from the 15th to 19th centuries. It attracted traders from many places in the world to trade goods such as Chinese, Japanese, Dutch, and Portuguese.
The town is nowadays no longer a trading town, but it is home to many ancient shophouses, temples, assembly halls, and bridges dating back to the 15th-19th century.
There are Japanese Covered Bridge, Chinese Assembly Halls (Fujian, Cantonese), and Old merchant houses. You can explore ancient temples, and old wooden houses. The town also has many living traditions such as lantern-making, tailoring, folk performances, and lantern festivals.
Phu Quoc has numerous Buddhist temples, as well as a prison, and fishing villages to explore. Most major sites are the Phu Quoc Prison (Coconut Prison), Ho Quoc pagoda, and Dinh Cau Temple.
Day Trips
Hoi An, located on the mainland of Vietnam, offering more day trip opportunities. You can easily take day trips to nearby Da Nang, Hue, Hai Van Pass, Cham island, and My Son Sanctuary. It’s full of cultural trips, island trips, nature trips, and food trips.
Phu Quoc is an island, so you can take island hopping tours to nearby islands such as Hon Thom, Mong Tay, or May Rut Trong. These places offer more pristine beaches than the main island, which are great for snorkeling and diving.
Cable car ride
Taking a cable car ride from Phu Quoc main island to Hon Thom island is one of the best things to do in Phu Quoc. This 20 minute ride on the cable car offers stunning views of the ocean and the surrounding islands and villages.
You can grab a Grab to An Thoi cable car station, buy the ticket at the ticket counter, then get on the cable car to Hon Thom island. On Hon Thom, there are plenty of activities to explore such as watching the shows or enjoying water activities at the Aquatopia water parks.
Hoi An doesn’t have a cable car ride, but you can take a taxi to Ba Na Hill in Da Nang, and try the 20 cable car ride to the top of the mountain with views of the valleys, and waterfalls below. At Ba Na Hill, you can visit the iconic Golden Bridge and the charming French Village.
Cost of Living: is Hoi An cheaper than Phu Quoc?
I personally believe that Hoi An and central Vietnam have cheaper cost of living compared to Phu Quoc. Accommodations, food, and drink are generally lower than Phu Quoc.
If you want an affordable cost of living or are looking for a budget-friendly destination, I recommend visiting Hoi An. The low cost of living is one of the reasons, the countryside of Hoi An is more popular with long term travelers and expats.
Hoi An vs Phu Quoc Weather
Both Phu Quoc and Hoi An have two seasons, the dry season and the rainy season. They have warm weather all year around, with Hoi An generally having a bit lower temperature in early months of the year.
I recommend avoiding visiting these places in their storm season. It’s usually from September to December for Hoi An, and from July to September for Phu Quoc.
The best time to visit Hoi An is from January to August and the best time to visit Phu Quoc is from November to May. As long as there is no storm, you can still enjoy exploration.
Getting Around
Both Phu Quoc and Hoi An are well served with plenty of local taxi and riding share services such as Grab or Xanh SM taxis. You can install these apps, and request a ride from there like Uber in the western countries.
Hoi An bicycle-friendly city, so getting around the old town, the beaches, and countryside are popular ways to explore the city. The old town is quite compact, you can easily explore on foot.
I personally enjoy getting around on foot. And if I feel too tired because of the heat, I will use a Grab Bike for a short ride.
Phu Quoc is a large island (50km long and 23km wide), so it’s best to rent a scooter or take a guided tour to explore the island. I took two guided tours, one to explore the northern part and one to explore the southern part.
I did it myself on the trip to Hon Thom island. I used a Grab Bike to get from Duong Dong Town to An Thoi Cababe Car station, then from there, I bought a cable car to get to Hon Thom.
If you stay within Duong Dong town where restaurants, shops, and night markets are located, you can walk around the town.
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- Hanoi vs Hoi An
- Da Nang Vs Hoi An
- Ho Chi Minh City or Hoi An
- Mui Ne or Phu Quoc?
- Quy Nhon or Phu Quoc
I hope you have found some helpful information after reading my comparison between Phu Quoc and Hoi An. In conclusion, Phu Quoc is a better choice if you want a beach holiday, luxury resorts, and island atmosphere. Hoi An is a place to visit if you want unique cultural experience, good food, tailor-clothes making, and close proximity to the beaches.
Phu Quoc is a great weekend getaway from nearby cities like Ho Chi Minh City. Hoi An is a better place to visit if you want to explore central Vietnam, visiting places like Hue or Da Nang.