Phu Quoc is the largest island in Vietnam, located in the Gulf of Thailand. The island is known for its stunning beaches and clear waters and is becoming a growing tourist destination. To accommodate its growing tourism industry, Phu Quoc has undergone rapid development in recent years, creating many new hotels, resorts and even a new town. Sunset Town is located on the south-end of the island and has charming characteristics similar to a Mediterranean village. Its narrow cobblestone streets, pastel-coloured buildings, arched doorways and sea views make it the perfect holiday destination..but then why is no one there?
After reading about Sunset Town online as a ‘thing to do’ whilst you’re in Phu Quoc, I made Quinn drive us there so that I could see the picturesque town for myself. The first thing we noticed as we drove into the small town was how quiet it was. If you’ve been to Vietnam, you know that the roads are hectic, even on a small island. But, here, the roads were almost empty, despite it being way into the afternoon. We parked up the bike and decided to look around. The buildings were beautiful; pastel-coloured with shuttered windows, wrought iron balconies and decorative tiles. It was exactly how I had imagined a fairytale village to look when I was younger.
We wandered through the cobbled streets, soon realising that all the buildings were empty. The whole village only had a handful of cafes and restaurants open with few or even no customers sat inside. Whilst the buildings’ exteriors were immaculate, the interiors were all under construction with most having “For Rent” or “For Sale” signs stuck on the door. Although, we didn’t see any construction workers either. There were various restaurant, shop and hotel names written above doors, which made it hard to distinguish whether everything was yet to be opened or if it had all been abandoned some time ago.
As we explored more, the Italian influence became more evident after spotting streets named after Milan, Sorento and Taormina. Famous landmarks, such as the Arc de Triomphe, Pompeii ruins and the Colosseum have also been replicated and incorporated into Sunset Town.
Hon Thom Cable Car
Sunset Town is also home to the Hon Thom Cable Car which connects the island of Hon Thom to Phu Quoc. This cable car system holds the Guinness World Record for longest non-stop three-way cable car. A round-trip ticket on the cable car costs you 150,000VND and it takes about 15 minutes to complete the 8km journey. On Hon Thom island, there are pristine beaches, turquoise waters, a nature park and Aquatopia. Unfortunately, it costs 600,000VND to enter Aquatopia which our budget didn’t allow for so we stayed and explored the rest of Sunset Town instead.
Sunset Town Beach
Sunset Town also has its own beach which was extremely clean with its own designated swimming area.
They also have lockers, toilets and plenty of sun loungers available, arguably, making it one of the nicest beaches on the island.
‘Kiss the Stars’
The beach also sits right next to Sunset Town’s huge projection dome in which they host the daily ‘Kiss the Stars’ show. The show combines water music performance and multimedia art using it’s three projection domes to create a must-see immersive experience.
The answer to the mystery
We stayed and had dinner at one of the few restaurants to choose from. After speaking to the owner, we learned that Sunset Town had only been open to the public for the past year and so it was very much still under construction. He told us that his own business had only opened 3 months ago and that there are several more hotels in the town already open in which you can stay. After looking on Airbnb, I can confirm that this is true and the prices are still reasonable. It made sense that Sunset Town is still establishing itself, but wouldn’t you expect a town which is growing to be bustling with activity and construction work. I would assume that in the first year of opening to the public, a town like this would be packed with tourists and aspiring business owners. It seems strange that somewhere with so much potential, is still so quiet. It’s possible that in the future Sunset Town could be a huge tourist destination. however, while it’s still quiet and hotel prices are cheap, I definitely recommend exploring this enchanting seaside town.
