Is it better to visit Quy Nhon or Phu Quoc?

Quy Nhon and Phu Quoc are two great beach destinations in Vietnam. Phu Quoc is a famous island located in the southern tip of Vietnam, Quy Nhon is a less popular city located in central Vietnam. Both have beautiful beaches, which are perfect for summer vacation.

In this article, I will compare the similarities and differences between Quy Nhon and Phu Quoc, to help you decide which place is better for your visit.

I have traveled to both Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon, so I give you some recommendations based on first-hand experiences and personal perspectives.

Should you visit Quy Nhon or Phu Quoc?

Phu Quoc is a popular beach holiday for both local Vietnamese and international tourists. Quy Nhon is a popular beach city for locals but still untouched by international visitors.

From my perspective as a local Vietnamese, I would recommend Phu Quoc for first-timers to Vietnam who want a great combination of pristine beaches and tourist amenities. Phu Quoc is a more tourist-friendly and developed island with many more entertainment options for all visitors.

Phu Quoc also has a great selection of luxury beachfront resorts, so if you’re after relaxation in a world class hotel, Phu Quoc has better choices for you.

Quy Nhon is a better place to visit if you prefer a quieter, less commercialized destination with a more local feel and authentic Vietnamese beach experience. You can explore colorful fishing villages and less crowded beaches.

Quy Nhon is located in Central Vietnam, between Nha Trang and Da Nang/ Hoi An, making it an ideal stop if you are backpacking around Vietnam, or traveling between north and south Vietnam by train.

The weather is also an important factor when deciding whether to visit Phu Quoc or Quy Nhon. In my opinion, Phu Quoc is a better choice if you’re traveling from November to February. This time is the dry season in Phu Quoc, while Quy Nhon still has cool winter weather.

I enjoyed my visit to both Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon. My favorite things to do in Quy Nhon are wandering around the city center, visiting Quy Nhon Beach, Eo Gio, Ky Co Beach, Linh Phong – Ong Nui Temple, and the colorful fishing villages.

In Phu Quoc, I enjoyed beach hopping, exploring different beaches such as Long Beach, Sao Beach, or Ham Rong Beach. Phu Quoc, in my opinion, has more beautiful beaches than Quy Nhon.

I also like to explore the night market, taking the cable car to Hon Thom Island, visit the Coconut prison, and taking the tours to different farms like perl farm, pepper farm, bee farm, or the fish sauce factory.

Best accommodations in Quy Nhon:

Best Places to Stay in Phu Quoc:

Location and How to Get There

Phu Quoc is located far south of Vietnam, close to Ho Chi Minh City. Quy Nhon is located in Central Vietnam, close to other coastal cities like Nha Trang, Da Nang, and Hoi An.

If you travel between Quy Nhon and Phu Quoc, you’ll likely need to layover in Ho Chi Minh City. You can take airplanes, or the combination of airplanes, and road transport such as trains and sleeper buses.

Both Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon have an airport. Phu Quoc international airport has more frequent flights than Quy Nhon Airport.

Phu Quoc is around 45 minute flight from Ho Chi Minh, and a 2 hour flight from Hanoi. Quy Nhon is around a 1.5 hour flight from Hanoi and a 1 hour flight from Hanoi.

Phu Quoc airport is located around 14km south of the main town, Duong Dong. Quy Nhon airport is Phu Cat airport, located 30km north west of Quy Nhon City Center.

In addition to the air, you can reach Phu Quoc by sea. There are ferries from mainland Vietnam in Ha Tien and Rach Gia to Phu Quoc. The boat ride is around 3-5 hours.

Quy Nhon can be reached by road. The city has 2 train Stations, Dieu Tri Train Station and Quy Nhon train station. You can take trains to Quy Nhon from major cities in Vietnam such as Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi, Nha Trang, or Da Nang.

Quy Nhon vs Phu Quoc Accommodations

Both Quy Nhon and Phu Quoc have dozens of hotels and resorts for all preferences. Phu Quoc, as the more developed and touristy island, has a wider range of luxury world class resorts. If you want a luxury holiday, Phu Quoc has a better option for you to choose from.

Accommodations in Phu Quoc are usually more expensive than in Quy Nhon. With a similar amount of money, I can book a quality 4-star hotel in the city center of Quy Nhon or a 3-star hotel in Phu Quoc.

Most accommodations in Quy Nhon are located in the city center and along Quy Nhon Beach. There are some nice hotels and resorts along Bai Xep, which is located around 13km south of Quy Nhon.

In Phu Quoc, you can find budget hotels and guest houses in Duong Dong, the main town of the island. The luxury beachfront resorts are located along Long Beach, Bai Khem, or a bit further south from the main town in Ong Lang Beach or Bai Dai Beach.

If you’re traveling into the high season, make sure to book your accommodation well in advance. The high season in Phu Quoc is from December to April. The high season in Quy Nhon is from February to August.

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Phu Quoc or Quy Nhon for Nightlife

Both Quy Nhon and Phu Quoc have laid-back nightlife, nothing compared to the big cities like Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City. These places are famous for a relaxing beach holiday. If you want a beach destination with a bit busier nightlife, you probably better go to Nha Trang or Da Nang.

Phu Quoc, in my opinion, has a bit more nightlife in Quy Nhon. You can explore the night market in Duong Dong, as well as a selection of beach clubs, bars, restaurants along the beachfront of Long Beach and on the lower part of Tran Hung Dao street, running parallel with Long Beach.

Outside of the main area, the nightlife is pretty quiet. You will mainly eat and drink at your resorts, or use a taxi to get to the main area around Duong Dong town and northern part of Long Beach for more nightlife.

Quy Nhon nightlife is centered around the city center, the Nguyen Tat Thanh Square, and along Quy Nhon Beach. You can find some restaurants, beer bars, and street stalls mainly serving local food.

Phu Quoc or Quy Nhon for Shopping

Shopping is not the big thing in either Phu Quoc or Quy Nhon. They don’t have big modern shopping malls, just traditional markets and small family-run shops. You can easily find typical Vietnamese souvenirs and local specialties in both places.

The shopping hub of Phu Quoc is around Duong Dong town and the lower part of Tran Hung Dao Street. The town is home to the massive Phu Quoc night market, where you can find a variety of souvenirs and a section for street food and seafood.

You can find bargain products at the night market. Another place I like to shop is the King Kong Mart on Tran Hung Dao street. This supermarket has many travel essentials and local specialties like honey, pepper, fish sauce, cafe, and dried seafood.

Additionally, there are many farms you can visit around Phu Quoc. These farms often have onsite shops where you can buy direct from the farm. I recommend checking out Ngoc Hien Pearl Farm, Pepper farm, fish sauce factory, bee farm, or sim wine farm.

In Quy Nhon, you can shop at many local markets and Quy Nhon Night Market. These are great places to observe local daily life and buy cheap clothing and accessories, as well as local street food like grilled meat, and snacks such as banh xeo, shellfish, and snails.

Phu Quoc vs Quy Nhon Food

You can easily find local restaurants serving Vietnamese food in both Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon. For international dishes, you likely need to dine at your resort. In Phu Quoc, however, I saw a section of restaurant serving Korean dishes on the lower part of Tran Hung Dao street.

Both places are coastal cities, so you can try a variety of dishes from fresh seafood. There are many beachside restaurants and street food stalls at the night market serving both grilled and steamed crab, squid, and clams.

Some local dishes you can try in Quy Nhon are Banh xeo, Bun Cha car, Nem Nuong. Famous dishes in Phu Quoc are Bun Quay which is Phu Quoc style noodle with seafood.

Ngo Van So Street, located near Quy Nhon Beach, has dozens of street food stalls to try. Other places such as Ngoc Han Cong Chua, Phan Boi Chau, and Bach Dang Street also have a wide variety of restaurants to eat local food.

The food scene in Phu Quoc is centered around Duong Dong town. There are a selection of restaurants located in the town and along the lower part of Tran Hung Dao street. You can also find many street food stalls and seafood restaurants inside Phu Quoc night market.

There are also many beachfront restaurants serving beautiful meals at sunset. I stayed at Dusit, Seashell resort, and Sea Star resort, they have beautiful seafront restaurant.

Quy Nhon or Phu Quoc for Beaches

Both Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon have a wide range of beaches for swimming, sunbathing, taking a walk, watching the sunset, and enjoying watersport activities such as jet skiing.

Phu Quoc, in my opinion, has more beautiful beaches. Bai Sao Beach and Long Beach are my favorite beaches on the island.

Bai Sao, located on the south eastern coast of the island, has white fine sand and crystal clear water, ideal for swimming and other water activities like jet skiing.

Long Beach, located on the west coast of the island, is the longest beach of the island, around 20km long. The beach is packed with luxury resorts and is a great spot to watch the sunset.

Other beaches on Phu Quoc are Ong Lang Beach, Ganh Dau Beach, Bai Thom Beach, or Starfish Beach. You can take a boat ride to Ham Rong Beach where you can see many red starfish appear right on the shore.

Similar to Bai Sao Beach in Phu Quoc is Ky Co Beach in Quy Nhon. This beach is located around 20km north of Quy Nhon City center, offering white fine sand and crystal clear water. It’s accessible by boat or by a winding road.

The main beach in Quy Nhon is Quy Nhon Beach located in the city center. This beach has a nice beach road where you can take a walk or cycle. It’s popular around sunrise and sunset time where locals hang sound for swimming and exercising.

Other beaches in Quy Nhon are Bai Xep, Quy Hoa Beach, and Queen Beach, south of the city center, as well as the rocky Eo Gio beach.

Historical and Cultural Attractions

Both Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon have some interesting cultural attractions. Quy Nhon has some ancient Champa ruins, Cham Towers, Buddhist temples, and colorful fishing villages. Phu Quoc has a prison that is related to wartime history, Buddhist temples, and fishing villages.

Cham Towers (Thap Cham) is a popular attraction located right in the city center of Quy Nhon. It’s home to the twin towers with beautiful architecture of the ancient Champa Kingdom.

Linh Phong – Ong Nui Temple located 25km north of Quy Nhon is also a good place to check out for its peaceful atmosphere and stunning views of the city and the sea.

If you are taking a taxi to this temple, I recommend you ask the driver to wait for you, as it can be hard to get a taxi back to the city center.

When visiting Eo Gio Beach, make sure to check out Nhon Ly fishing village where you can walk around the narrow white and blue alleys, watch local life, and take photos.

In Phu Quoc, I recommend visiting Phu Quoc Prison (Coconut Prison), which was the detention center during the Vietnam-American War. The prison was built by the French during French colonial time and also used in the Vietnam-American War.

Other historical and cultural attractions in Phu Quoc are the Dinh Cau Temple in Duong Dong town or Ho Quoc pagoda north of Bai Sao Beach.

In terms of a fishing village, you can visit Rach Vem fishing village, where you can see local life in the floating house and how they grow fishes and seafood. There are nice restaurants on the floating houses and stunning views of the sea.

Entertainment

Quy Nhon is more about the beaches, natural, local atmosphere, and some cultural attractions. Phu Quoc has a great mix of both cultural, natural, and entertainment.

The island has more commercialized, developed tourism infrastructure and large entertainment areas for families with kids and people of all ages such as VinWonders/Safari, and amusement park on Hon Thom island.

Phu Quoc vs Quy Nhon Island hopping

From either Phu Quoc or Quy Nhon, you can take a boat ride to nearby islands for more secluded beaches.

Phu Quoc is surrounded by smaller islands, perfect for day trips. The islands here tend to have crystal-clear waters, great beaches, and fun water activities like snorkeling and diving. Hon Thom, Hon Xuong, and Hon Mun island are popular islands near Phu Quoc.

To reach Hon Thom, you can take the cable car ride from An Thoi. This 15 minutes cable car ride above the ocean offers stunning views of the sunset town and the crystal clear water.

In Quy Nhon, you can take a boat trip to Ky Co Beach or Hon Kho island, which often have more beautiful beaches than the mainland.

Cost of Living: Which one is cheaper?

The cost of living in Quy Nhon is generally cheaper than Phu Quoc. Phu Quoc is more of a resort island while Quy Nhon has a more local atmosphere.

Accommodations, food, and drink in Phu Quoc is usually more expensive than in Quy Nhon. If you’re a budget traveler, it’s better to choose Quy Nhon.

Quy Nhon vs Phu Quoc Weather

While Phu Quoc has warm weather all year around, Quy Nhon has a bit of a chilly winter time, which is usually from December to February. The weather is cool at this time but it’s not as cold as North Vietnam though.

Both Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon have two distinct seasons, the wet season and the dry season. The dry season is usually from January to July in Quy Nhon, and from November to May in Phu Quoc.

The rainy season is generally from August to December in Quy Nhon, and from May to October in Phu Quoc. Storms can happen during the wet season, usually September to November in Quy Nhon, and July to September in Phu Quoc.

The best times to visit Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon are in their dry season. The ideal time for pleasant weather in Quy Nhon is March and April. The ideal time to visit Phu Quoc is from December to March.

Historical Influences

The history of the names “Phu Quoc” and “Quy Nhon”

The name “Quy Nhon” was created by Nguyen Hoang Lord in 1602, meaning a land where talented people gather. It was formerly named Hoai Nhon by Emperor Le Thanh Tong in 1471, when he integrated this land of Cham Kingdom into Dai Viet.

Phu Quoc means “Prosperity Land”. “Phú” means rich, fertile, or wealthy, “Quốc” means nation or country. It was named by a Chinese merchant named Mac Cuu, who fled on the island in 1671 after the collapse of the Ming Dynasty in China.

Mac Cuu played a pivotal role in establishing and developing Phú Quốc in the 17th and 18th centuries. The island was formerly named Koh Tral under the Khmer Empire.

Early origins

Quy Nhon

Quy Nhon was an important port city of the Cham Kingdom from the 2nd century to 15th century. The area was home to the Vijaya Citadel, which was the capital city of Cham Kingdom from 11th century to 1471.

Unlike Dai Viet (northern Vietnam) influenced by China, Champa was heavily influenced by Indian culture. They built brick temple towers and had distinct sculpture and art. Champa was a seafaring kingdom, controlling trade routes between China, India, and Southeast Asia.

Today, you can see many Cham Ruins around Central Vietnam, including Quy Nhon. In Quy Nhon, you can visit the Cham Twin Towers, Banh It Towers, Vijaya Citadel, and Canh Tien Tower.

In 1471, Emperor Le Thanh Tong of Dai Viet captured the city of Vijaya, and merged Quy Nhon to Dai Viet. He named the city Hoai Nhon. Champa Kingdom was reduced to a small southern remnant (Panduranga and Kauthara).

In 1602, Nguyen Lord changed the name Hoai Nhon to Quy Nhon. They developed Thi Nai Port into one of the most important trading ports in Dang Trong (southern Dai Viet) at the time.

In the late 18th century, Quy Nhon was an important base of the Tây Sơn uprising. The region was the hometown of three brothers Nguyễn Nhạc, Nguyễn Huệ, and Nguyễn Lữ.

In 1832, Emperor Minh Mạng Changed the name of the area to Binh Dinh.

Phu Quoc

The history of Phu Quoc is pretty modern, starting from the 17th century. Before it, the island was a remote maritime island and sparsely inhabited. When Mac Cuu found it in 1680, he settled there and developed it into an important trade route from a wild, untouched region..

The Mac family was first allied to the Khmer Emperor, he offered the principality of Hà Tiên to Nguyen Lords (who ruled South Dai Viet at the time) in 1708 when Khmer Emperor failed to defend the region from the invasion of Siamese.

Phu Quoc island and the island nearby like Tho Chu island was the shelter place for Nguyen Anh (the future Emperor Gia Long) during the period when he was pursued by the Tây Sơn uprising (around 1783-1785).

French Colonial Period (1858-1954)

Under French colonial rule from 1885, the French expanded infrastructure for the purpose of colonial exploitation. Thuy built Quy Nhon port and Quy Nhon Station (to connect north and south Vietnam).

Some French colonial buildings still stand in Quy Nhon today include the Quy Hoa Leper Village (Quy Hoa Village), Quy Nhon University’s library.

In Phu Quoc, the French built the Coconut prison to detain the Vietnamese political prisoners. They also set up the coconut, rubber, and pepper plantations to turn the island into an, often brutal, agricultural enterprise.

Vietnam-American War (1955 – 1975)

The Phu Quoc prison built during the French colonial period was used to hold more than 40,000 North Vietnamese soldiers and political prisoners by 1967. The prison was known as one of the three hell on earth prison in Vietnam (other two include Hoa Lo prison and Con Dao prison)/

The South Vietnamese forces and US used brutal interrogation methods, including tiger cages and intense torture, resulting in thousands of deaths.

Quy Nhon was an important naval and air base of the US during the Vietnam war. It was the key supply point for the central highlands.

Today

Today, Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon are popular beach destinations in Vietnam. Phu Quoc attracts a large number of both international and domestic visitors each while Quy Nhon remains off the beaten path for foreign tourists. This keeps the city with more local charm.

Getting Around

You can get around Phu Quoc and Quy Nhon by using local taxis or riding share services such as Grab. You can also take guided tours or hire a private driver.

For a short distance within the city center, Grab is a great option. It’s similar to Uber in the western countries. You can even order food from Grab. Using Grab helps to avoid bargaining the price with local taxi drivers.

If you stay in Quy Nhon City Center, you can walk around the city, the beach, and the main square area. The city is also home to many restaurants, beer bars, and cafes.

In Phu Quoc, Duong Dong town is the main hub of the island, so if you stay in this area, you can also easily walk to all tourist amenities such as the night markets, restaurants, and cafes. If you stay in other areas, you will need to take a short taxi ride to visit the night market.

You can consider renting a scooter to explore each place. Otherwise, taking guided tours are a convenient way to see the highlights of either Phu Quoc or Quy Nhon.