Phu Quoc, with its great potential, coupled with the entry of pioneering investors, is growing rapidly, in line with the Government’s vision, turning into a world-class tourist paradise.

Speaking at an investment promotion conference of the southern province of Kien Giang at the end of July 2019, Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc emphasised the significance to have a vision to turn Phú Quốc island into a world-class tourist and resort centre.

Phúc asked to focus on developing Phu Quoc not to compete with Việt Nam’s localities in attracting resources, but for Phú Quốc to compete effectively and fairly with other countries.

From this statement, it can be seen that the leader of the Government put forward the vision and expressed the determination to turn Phú Quốc into Asia’s leading destination, at an international level.

That vision was made clear when the Government approved Phú Quốc’s planning in 2015. The plan also clearly stated the potential and advantages of the “emerald island” and determines the development orientation to become an international-class destination.

The US news site CNN voted Phu Quoc as one of the 19 best destinations in Asia in 2019. This site also voted Phu Quoc as one of the five best-ever tourist destinations in Asia-Pacific Ocean in the autumn. This list includes Chengdu (China), Fukuoka (Japan), Jeju Island (the Republic of Korea), Phu Quoc (Việt Nam) and Perth (Australia).

The British newspaper The Telegraph once had a detailed article stating 10 reasons “captivating” tourists to Phu Quoc. This page describes Phu Quoc as a “paradise island” made up of 28 large and small islands, diverse ecosystems, sunny beaches, delicious sea food and friendly people.

According to Mai Văn Huỳnh, Secretary and Chairman of Phu Quoc District People’s Committee, the Government has recognised the advantages of Phu Quoc very early, thereby right from the beginning, the authorities invited an experienced overseas consultancy unit to build a “emerald island” plan. Therefore, all directions of Phú Quốc are well-organised, reflecting the Government’s orientation and vision.

However, to take advantage of the natural gifts, Phú Quốc needs huge resources to quickly complete a range of issues such as infrastructure, accommodation and human resources, creating new and attractive tourism products for visitors.

According to the statistics of Việt Nam National Administration of Tourism, the growth of visitors to Phú Quốc reached 36 per cent in 2018 (the growth rate of the whole country was 20 per cent). Accordingly, the total number of visitors to Phú Quốc has reached more than 4 million, international visitors alone numbered 543,000.

If increasing at the current rate, Phu Quoc will welcome about 5.3 million visitors in 2019. The proof is that in the first six months of 2019, visitors to the “emerald island” reached 2.2 million, an increase of 35.1  per cent. With the growth rate of international visitors maintained at 30 per cent per year, it is expected that in 2020, the emerald island will welcome about 1 million international visitors.

The attraction of tourism as well as real estate investment of Phu Quoc comes from the long coastline, abundant nature and favourable weather for year-round tourism activities. The potential and advantages of Phu Quoc are increasingly known by international friends and “materialised” with spectacular growth. The remaining problem is building infrastructure, tourism products and international-class brands to meet the increasing needs of visitors.

Many projects and infrastructure development projects have been completed, while domestic routes and international routes have been opened by many airlines. With a number of good signals from tourism, Phu Quoc is increasingly attracting domestic and foreign investors interested in Phú Quốc’s resort real estate market.

According to the statistics of Phu Quoc management board of economic zones, there are currently about 300 investment projects licenced in Phu Quoc with total capital of VNĐ370 trillion (US$15.95 billion). This agency said that this is an important resource to develop infrastructure, tourism services, accommodation facilities, complex areas and tourism products for the emerald island.

This resource plays an important role in building Phú Quốc to become a leading destination in Asia. It can be sure that the infrastructure as well as the face of Phú Quốc will change dramatically with such large investment resources.

10 years ago, Phu Quoc had almost no five-star accommodation facilities, so it was difficult to welcome large groups of visitors, especially international visitors. However, at present, with the participation of many big investors such as BIM Group, Sun Group, CEO Group and Vingroup, more and more large complexes and resorts in Phú Quốc are being built to bring to Phu Quoc the best resort brands today such as Park Hyatt, InterContinental, JW Mariott, Novotel and Melia. This helps Phú Quốc have more diverse tourism products to meet the needs of visitors.

Leading investors are helping to realise the aspiration and vision to turn Phu Quoc into a world-class tourist paradise.

VNS