Number of flights continuously increases, Phu Quoc tourism flourishes at the end of the year

Spectacular breakthrough

On Christmas Eve (December 24), a direct flight of Jin Air carrying nearly 200 tourists from Seoul to Phu Quoc, marking the 6th direct flight from Korea to the Pearl Island, successfully landed.

Số chuyến bay liên tục tăng, du lịch Phú Quốc khởi sắc cuối năm- Ảnh 1. — Phu Quoc Airport crowded on December 29. Photo: Facebook Phu Quoc Today News.

In the Korean market, Phu Quoc is surpassing Da Nang and Nha Trang to emerge as a favorite destination for Korean tourists thanks to its beautiful seascape and year-round mild climate.

In winter 2023 alone, from October, three of Korea's largest airlines will jointly operate new and reopen direct flights to Phu Quoc, including Korean Air, Jeju Air and Jin Air.

In general, the international market currently welcomes 12-15 incoming flights/day. Phu Quoc International Airport is busy all day.

This figure is a leap compared to the same period in 2022. According to October 2022 data, there are 5 international routes operating in Phu Quoc, with a frequency of 8 flights/day.

At that time, Phu Quoc International Airport was in the top 5 airports with the largest number of passengers and the most effective among 29 airports in Vietnam.

Mr. Huynh Quang Hung, Chairman of Phu Quoc City People's Committee, said that the end of 2023 marks the time when the number of visitors to Phu Quoc increases dramatically, especially international visitors.

"On average, Phu Quoc welcomes 2,000 to more than 2,500 international visitors per day, of which Korean visitors account for more than 50%," he said.

Explaining this, Mr. Hung said that Korean tourists really like Phu Quoc because the direct flight time is only 4-5 hours, suitable for tourism . In addition, Korean tourists coming to Phu Quoc will also find it warm and can swim in the sea all year round.

Số chuyến bay liên tục tăng, du lịch Phú Quốc khởi sắc cuối năm- Ảnh 2. — Korean tourists enjoy experiencing the VUI-Fest Bazaar night market at Sunset Town, Phu Quoc.

In addition to international flights, the number of domestic flights to Phu Quoc is also showing signs of recovery, with some days welcoming more than 30 domestic flights to the Pearl Island.

This is a positive signal amid the general gloom of the domestic aviation industry as there is a gradual shortage of large aircraft.

According to the preliminary assessment of Kien Giang Department of Tourism, from now until the end of the 2024 Lunar New Year holiday, the room occupancy rate in Phu Quoc is quite high in the 4-5 star segment, with 5-star standards reaching an average of 60% or more, with some establishments having been booked up to 97%.

The 4-star segment is concentrated in centrally located facilities, near entertainment areas, with an average booking rate of 35% to 80%.

The number of room reservations is expected to continue to increase, as many resorts in Phu Quoc have announced that they are fully booked during the 3 peak days of New Year 2024.

Số chuyến bay liên tục tăng, du lịch Phú Quốc khởi sắc cuối năm- Ảnh 3. — Domestic and foreign tourists watch fireworks every night from the show Kiss of the Sea.

This shows that efforts to revive Phu Quoc tourism have begun to show positive signs. Currently, international visitors to Phu Quoc City are exempted from visas for 30 days.

Every day, the "Pearl Island" welcomes about 24,000 visitors, with over 20,000 staying on the island. In addition to Korea, international visitors are recorded from many countries such as Thailand, Malaysia, Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Czech Republic, Poland, the US, Mongolia, etc.

Seize the moment

It can be said that new tourism products have contributed to increasing the attractiveness of Phu Quoc tourism, leading to quantifiable effectiveness.

According to Mr. Huynh Quang Hung, the large investment of economic groups is the condition that tourists are interested in and come to Phu Quoc in recent times. "We have inaugurated Cau Hon, a night market by the sea, and a number of high-end resorts in the Sunset Town area," he said.

To increase the attractiveness and uniqueness of Phu Quoc, helping the destination increase its "resilience" and attract more tourists, Sun Group has invested more than 4,000 billion VND in the entertainment complex that was launched on December 21 in Sunset Town.

This complex is attracting tens of thousands of tourists to Phu Quoc to check-in, have fun and enjoy every day.

Số chuyến bay liên tục tăng, du lịch Phú Quốc khởi sắc cuối năm- Ảnh 4. — The entertainment complex at Sunset Town is a magnet attracting visitors to Phu Quoc.

The complex includes the Kissing Bridge, the VUI-Fest Bazaar, the world's leading modern multimedia technology show, the Kiss of the Sea, with a 7-minute fireworks display every day, making Phu Quoc the only island in the world with a technology show combined with fireworks every night.

In particular, all attention is focused on the Kiss Bridge, with the expectation that it will become a new tourism symbol, attracting global tourists to Vietnam, similar to what the Golden Bridge in Da Nang has done.

Just four days after its official launch, the bridge with its unique design consisting of two branches that do not "touch" each other but are 30cm apart has been praised by CNN and American television channel Cheddar News, predicting that it will become a new "hot spot" for Vietnamese tourism.