the city that never sleeps
Business Insider commented that Phu Quoc has many similarities with Phuket or Samui in Thailand, both developing tourism from scratch.
The article describes Phu Quoc as home to rare green turtles that nest on long stretches of white sand beaches and crystal clear waters. The island is 593 square kilometers wide.2The island is mainly covered by a rich forest ecosystem. In 2006, the Kien Giang Coastal and Marine Biosphere Reserve, including Phu Quoc, was recognized by UNESCO as a World Biosphere Reserve. The island has about 45,000 inhabitants who live mainly on fishing, fish sauce production, green pepper cultivation, and pearl farming.
According to the editor of Business Insider, Phu Quoc was originally a rough diamond, but by 2021, this largest island in Vietnam has really developed and taken on a new look. If in the past, Phu Quoc could be mentioned with Bali of Indonesia or Jeju of Korea - islands that promote tourism development based on local culture, now the Pearl Island can be completely compared with Las Vegas of the US or Hainan of China. Thousands of hotel rooms, apartments, townhouses, villas and residential areas have sprung up like a storm on the island, aiming to build Phu Quoc into a "city that never sleeps".
Business Insider also mentioned the Phu Quoc United Center entertainment complex with a variety of interesting activities such as: performances, a recreation of the dreamy city of Venice, gondola rides, bars, clubs, etc. All promise to bring a vibrant and splendid entertainment space to visitors.
In addition, VinWonders Phu Quoc - Vietnam's largest amusement park and Vinpearl Safari Phu Quoc - Vietnam's only semi-open zoo, golf course, conference center, hospital are also amenities that Business Insider considers a step forward in tourism investment on this paradise island.
According to the news site, the opening of Phu Quoc International Airport in 2012 has attracted and developed domestic tourists to visit the island. In 2018, Phu Quoc announced plans to expand the runway and a second passenger terminal to increase the current capacity from 4 million passengers/year to 14 million passengers/year by 2030.
Business Insider commented that most of these projects are aimed at the middle class in Vietnam, with the goal of creating an "international tourist destination without visitors having to leave the country".
current situation
Besides the positive aspects, Business Insider also pointed out the existing shortcomings of Phu Quoc, when tourism has completely changed the appearance of an island that is very wild and peaceful.
The newspaper commented that investors in Phu Quoc seem to have a passion for recreating European-style towns and resorts. Therefore, visitors coming here can feel like they are in Venice, the Amalfi Coast or Paris - or anywhere else but... Vietnam.
These projects may be very suitable and attractive for domestic tourists, but they are not what international tourists are looking for. "International tourists come to experience the uniqueness of Phu Quoc, not to visit a colorful European-style town," said Marco Foerster, director of international business consulting in Ho Chi Minh City.
Business Insider says the conflicting interests of domestic and international tourists are not the only problem Phu Quoc is facing. The island is also in an alarming state under the weight of waste. Nguyen Quynh, project director of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Vietnam, said plastic waste is "overwhelming" the island's ecosystem. "Phu Quoc is seriously lacking in landfills," she said. "If we don't act soon, those mountains of trash will soon become a threat to the island's growing tourism industry."
Sharing with Business Insider, Phan Thanh Huyen, a person living and working in Phu Quoc, assessed that although the rapid development of tourism has brought many jobs to local people as well as developed the education system and hospitals here, the urbanization process has also shown an increase in crime and environmental pollution on the island. "I am afraid that Phu Quoc is no longer as natural as before, there is no longer fresh air, beautiful beaches and green forests," she said.
need a full picture
Business Insider believes that the reasons and purposes for developing tourism in Phu Quoc need to be clarified from the beginning. "There doesn't seem to be a clear master plan for what the island will look like in the future, and when the massive construction will stop," said Jeff Redi, CEO of a travel company in Vietnam.
Previously, the 2030 vision master plan approved in May 2010 aimed to build Phu Quoc into aa world-class ecotourism destinationto match its UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve status. But, in reality, the current changes in Phu Quoc show that things are not going according to plan.
An equally important issue, according to the newspaper, is how people have participated in this development process. A study in May 2019 by two university lecturers Vu Minh Hieu and Vu Minh Toi showed that more than 96% of people (surveyed) said they were not consulted by the government about tourism development plans; nearly 75% said they did not understand the concept of "sustainable tourism development".
"People are the soul of a land. Without local nature and culture, Phu Quoc is just like many other commercial destinations" - Phan Thanh Huyen, a resident on the island shared.
More information
According to the plan, in October 2021, Phu Quoc will be the first destination in Vietnam to pilot welcoming international tourists through the "Vaccine Passport" program. This plan is expected to be piloted for 6 months, starting from October 2021.
The implementation of this plan will be divided into 2 phases. Accordingly, in the first 3 months, Phu Quoc is expected to welcome 2,000-3,000 visitors/month, through charter flights, only serving guests within a limited range and location in a number of large-scale tourist areas and resorts, capable of dividing into separate, safe resorts exclusively for international tourists. From the 4th month, the island is expected to welcome 5,000-10,000 visitors/month, possibly via commercial flights and expanding the range and location of services. Within 6 months, Phu Quoc is expected to welcome 25,000-40,000 international tourists.
Visitors to Phu Quoc must have a certificate of full vaccination against Covid-19 recognized by Vietnam, with the second dose being at least 14 days old and no more than 12 months old from the date of entry. Visitors must also have a certificate of recovery from Covid-19 recognized by Vietnam, with the time from hospital discharge to the date of entry not exceeding 12 months, and must have a negative RT-PCR/RT-LAMP test result within 72 hours before departure.
To go to Phu Quoc, tourists must also register to participate in a package tour program of a travel agency selected by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and Kien Giang province.
