Bustling international flights bring tourists to Phu Quoc

According to the Department of Tourism of Kien Giang province, the province currently welcomes tourists from more than 150 countries and territories. Many direct flights from Korea, Taiwan (China), Malaysia, Thailand connect to Phu Quoc. In addition, many charter flights from Kazakhstan, Czech Republic, Poland, USA, Mongolia, Singapore, Uzbekistan... regularly bring tourists to Phu Quoc for tourism.

Thanks to that, in the first 8 months of 2024, Kien Giang welcomed over 665,000 international visitors, reaching 97.8% of the yearly plan; of which, Phu Quoc welcomed over 653,000 visitors, reaching 98.1% of the yearly plan. During the September 2 holiday alone, the whole province welcomed 15,572 international visitors, an increase of 171.4% over the same period in 2023; of which, Phu Quoc welcomed over 15,000 visitors.

Nearly 300 Taiwanese (Chinese) tourists took a flight to Phu Quoc International Airport on August 30, 2024 and had a 5-day vacation in Phu Quoc.

According to Director of Kien Giang Province Department of Tourism Bui Quoc Thai, the number of international tourists to Phu Quoc is forecast to continue to increase from now until the end of 2024 due to the upcoming peak season and year-end holidays for the international tourist market. In addition, the resumption of many international flights from countries in Northern Europe, North America, Central Asia, etc. will contribute to increasing the number of international tourists to Kien Giang.

Director of Kien Giang Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Center (KITRA) Quang Xuan Lua said that Phu Quoc is a wonderful tourist island for international tourists. The pearl island is highly evaluated and ranked by the world's leading travel organizations and magazines such as CNN, TripAdvisor, Flight network, International Living and most recently Travel + Leisure ranked Phu Quoc as the second most beautiful island in the world after Maldives. This is a significant catalyst to help the pearl island reach more international tourist markets.

“Starting from October 28, the national airline of the Republic of Kazakhstan - Air Astana will launch a new route, departing from the capital Almaty to Phu Quoc with a frequency of 2 flights/week; then increasing to 4 flights/week from December 2024. This shows that Phu Quoc is increasingly attractive to tourists from the Central Asian region,” said Quang Xuan Lua, Director of the Kien Giang Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Center.

Flights from Almaty to Phu Quoc will depart every Monday and Wednesday, and take passengers from Phu Quoc back to Almaty on Tuesday and Thursday. With Air Astana opening a direct flight to Phu Quoc, along with the locality directly benefiting from this source of high-spending tourists, Vietnamese tourists will also benefit as Kazakhstan has exempted visas for Vietnamese citizens from June 13, 2023. Therefore, Vietnamese tourists can choose flights to Phu Quoc from major tourist centers such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, etc. to have fun, then start their journey to explore the Central Asian country by this route.

A corner of Khem beach (Phu Quoc city).

According to the Kien Giang Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Center, this is not the first time a Central Asian country has opened a direct flight to Phu Quoc. Previously, Uzbek and Mongolian tourists arrived in Phu Quoc on many flights in late 2023 and early 2024.

“Phu Quoc City has beautiful sunshine, calm seas and cool weather, so it is suitable for tourists from Central Asian countries to escape the cold. Not only that, the end of the year is the time when Phu Quoc City prepares to launch many new tourism products such as pool parties, EDM in Hon Thom; a show combining jetski & flyboards with drums, lion dances and giant kites at Hon Bridge. In particular, Phu Quoc is one of the unique places in the world that has fireworks every night, making it a favorite destination for many international tourists,” said Quang Xuan Lua, Director of the Kien Giang Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Center.

Ms. Tatyana - a tourist from Kazakhstan said that she likes to travel to Phu Quoc because the islanders are friendly, the food is delicious, and the seascape here is beautiful. "The cost in Phu Quoc City is very reasonable for a long stay. In addition to the advantage of a hot and humid climate, suitable for avoiding the cold, the fact that all international tourists are exempt from a 30-day visa when coming to Phu Quoc is also a competitive advantage for Phu Quoc tourism," Ms. Tatyana said.

According to Director of Kien Giang Province Department of Tourism Bui Quoc Thai, it is forecasted that international tourists to Phu Quoc City in 2024 could nearly double compared to 2023, with a large number of tourists from the markets of Korea, Taiwan (China), Russia, and Central Asian countries.

“To continue attracting tourists, the province will promote, advertise, and introduce tourism products and services to international markets; support businesses in building a system of restaurants serving typical cuisines of various countries in Phu Quoc, entertainment, shopping, wedding tourism, golf tourism, MICE tourism, etc. to suit the needs and interests of many tourist segments. The province is determined to maintain existing domestic and international flights to Phu Quoc, and at the same time coordinate with airlines to open new routes,” said Bui Quoc Thai, Director of Kien Giang Province Department of Tourism.

In the coming time, Phu Quoc will continue to coordinate with the Kien Giang Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Center and businesses to launch many stimulus programs, incentives, and appropriate discounts so that domestic and foreign tourists who come to visit and relax will have more impressions of the land and people of the island.

Deputy Secretary of the City Party Committee, Chairman of Phu Quoc City People's Committee Tran Minh Khoa

Article and photos: TRUNG HIEU

Source: https://www.baokiengiang.vn/du-lich/hang-khong-quoc-te-nhon-nhip-dua-du-khach-den-phu-quoc-22205.html