From a cow blocking the runway to a resort paradise
“I used to live in Vietnam and run humanitarian programs here. During my visit to Phu Quoc more than a decade ago, my plane had to circle the airport three times to chase free cows off the runway. At that time, the island only had 3 hotels, which of course was "okay". But a few weeks ago, my wife and I took a helicopter flight from Ho Chi Minh City to Phu Quoc. A taxi was waiting and took us along the ancient town of Duong Dong, passing through a narrow street with many houses. row with a courtyard and then straight to La Veranda, the first 3-star resort in Phu Quoc," said Chuck Searcy, an American veteran, in an article in the newspaper. LA Times 2015 is a testament to the story of Phu Quoc's magical development journey.
An Thoi Port nearly 2 decades ago
When Mr. Searcy first set foot in Phu Quoc, the island captivated many travelers with its beautiful, pristine beaches such as Khem beach, Sao beach, Thom beach... However, this is still just a destination for tourists. Sightseeing, swimming, eating seafood for 1-2 days at most and then returning. Even many roads in Duong Dong Town at that time were still red and muddy. People's lives are still too busy, just clinging to the sea to make a living, now on the South beach, tomorrow on the Chuong beach, in temporary shacks by the sea. Poor fishing villages like An Thoi at that time did not yet have electricity.
Until the American veteran returns and "there are no more cows blocking the runway", tourists to Phu Quoc can travel by car from Vong beach speedboat station (Ham Ninh commune) or the international airport. From Phu Quoc (Duong To commune) to the island district center, Duong Dong town or up to Cua Duong, Cua Can, Bai Thom, Ganh Dau communes in the north of the island and then down to Duong To commune, An Thoi town in the south. male. All are pristine asphalt.
Nearly 10 years after Searcy's second arrival, Phu Quoc has transformed once again, completely erasing the image of a poor "fishing village" to reach a new throne: the luxury resort paradise of Vietnam. Asia. From having no luxury hotels or resorts, by early 2, Phu Quoc had the "world's most classy new resort" JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay designed by "resort king" Bill Bensley on the South Island, put the island on the list of destinations for billionaires and world famous stars.
From a lackluster position, the South Island entered an unprecedented "era" of luxury tourism with a series of high-class projects and products such as the super luxury double-sea resort Premier Village Phu Quoc Resort in Ong Doi Mui; Sun World Hon Thom Nature Park classy experience complex with the world's longest cable car line; The Kiss Bridge Phu Quoc Proposal caused a global media fever... The latest is the first night market in the world that "dares" to organize fireworks displays every night to light up the sparkling Sunset Town with thousands of experiences.
"Certainly now I won't be able to recognize Phu Quoc anymore," Searcy said and was constantly amazed as he watched the images of top-class amusement parks and resorts covering the "Pearl Island".
Phu Quoc has transformed into an island that owns the most classy buildings in the world
“A world of difference” is also how Mr. Doan Anh Dung said when remembering the time he first came to Phu Quoc in 2019. “My first impression was traveling by ATR 72 propeller plane landing at the airport. old Duong Dong airport. Phu Quoc at that time had wild but very beautiful tourist attractions such as Sao beach, Khem beach with blue sea and white sand in the South of the island, and even Ba Keo beach with golden sand in Duong Dong, although small but still very impressive. However, tourism infrastructure is extremely modest.
Although Tran Hung Dao street along Long beach is central, there are only a few names such as Saigon - Phu Quoc hotel, Hoa Binh, Thien Hai Son... the rest are mainly motels, small accommodation establishments, Popular restaurants, grocery stores. Places farther from the center such as Truong beach in the south, or the routes to the North of the island are mainly red soil and forests. Even Tran Hung Dao street still has many sections that are not completely paved. The alleys were full of rocks, tree roots, and tall reeds, so people and tourists fell every day," Mr. Dung recalled.
Four years later, Mr. Dung's family moved to Phu Quoc and started opening a homestay for tourism business. “Now Phu Quoc has everything, from electricity infrastructure to internet, as fast as the mainland. The resorts and entertainment areas are super luxurious and genuine. International tourists are everywhere. Every few days, Phu Quoc is praised as the most beautiful and classy in the world. International tourists are also amazed by unique experiences such as going to the market to watch fireworks. I can't believe that everything can change so miraculously in just over a decade", Mr. Doan Anh Dung admired.
Miraculous transformation thanks to the mechanism
The report of the People's Committee of Kien Giang province affirms that Decision No. 178 in 2004 of the Prime Minister played a pioneering role, paving the way and shaping the development direction of the "Pearl Island" of Phu Quoc. If in previous years, Phu Quoc was just a district-level administrative unit with the agricultural economy playing the leading role, and a strange name for domestic and international tourism, then now the island has expanded its reach. become one of the regional and international tourist attractions.
Phu Quoc's economy is developed in the direction of trade and services, with tourism as the main focus. In 2022, the city's total budget revenue will reach 5.079 billion VND, an increase of 112,83 times compared to 2004, accounting for over 69% of Kien Giang province's budget revenue. In 2023, the total budget revenue of Phu Quoc City is estimated to reach 7.813 billion VND, an increase of over 2.700 billion VND compared to 2022 and accounting for 51,7% of the total budget revenue of Kien Giang province. In particular, in the past 5 years, Phu Quoc City has not only had autonomy from revenue sources but also regulated the budget of Kien Giang province.
Closely following Phu Quoc's development journey, Associate Professor-Dr. Tran Dinh Thien commented that over the past 2 decades, Phu Quoc is the coordinates of change that create the strongest difference and class in Vietnam, one of the The main motivation was thanks to being given a special "mechanism shirt".
Mr. Thien cited that Phu Quoc was previously just a pristine island separate from the rest of the country. Since 2004, when Decision 178 was issued, the vision for Phu Quoc officially changed. Although it is just an island district, Phu Quoc has an international airport. In Vietnam at that time, no district had an international airport, and it was continuously expanding its flight network to many countries, connecting directly with the world. Electric cables were also pulled to the island. This is an unusual event. After that, Phu Quoc was recognized as the first island urban area in Vietnam. Thanks to that, the island has more mechanisms and more attention, which means a very different development vision for Phu Quoc, unlike any other locality.
“The State has given Phu Quoc an institution, given Phu Quoc a vision and development orientation that allows Phu Quoc to have the conditions to organize a completely new development worthy of its potential and strengths. It is this driving force that has paved the way for "eagle" businesses to come from all over. This is the second source of motivation to help Phu Quoc reach the current world-class level," Associate Professor-Dr. Tran Dinh Thien commented.
On October 5.10.2004, 178, the Prime Minister issued Decision No. 2004/2010/QD-TTg approving the overall development project of Phu Quoc island, Kien Giang province until 2020 and vision to 20. The project confirms set the goal of making Phu Quoc a "sea-island eco-tourism center; Center for exchange, trade and high-quality services nationally, regionally and internationally; has an important position in terms of security and defense." To date, the project has been implemented for XNUMX years.
