There are many things about traveling that I love: the feeling of ultimate freedom and not having any plans and responsibilities, meeting new people from different cultures, eating delicious food from tiny street stalls, being able to fit everything I own into a backpack and move to the next exciting place… Something else that definitely stands out for me (I know I said it before in my posts about the Azores and Bohol in the Philippines, but I’ll say it again):
Exploring a place on a scooter!
Ending my Vietnam trip discovering Phu Quoc this way was definitely a good choice and certainly one of the highlights of the month I spend in this amazing country!
Sightseeing Phu Quoc: itinerary day 1 – Southern Loop
Itinerary: Kinh Bac Hotel – Ho Quoc Pagoda – Sao Beach – An Thoi – Dinh Cau Rock and Temple – Kinh Bac Hotel
View from our hotel ‘Kinh Bac’.
The Ho Quoc Pagoda complex is very new, build only in late 2012. A peaceful place and beautifully located: on a small hill overlooking the ocean.
View from the Ho Quoc Pagoda, not a bad place for some contemplation.
Sao beach: white sand and a beautiful blue ocean. Now, if they just clean up all the trash it will be a perfect beach.
It’s the same at An Thoi, a cute fisher village, if not for the piles of trash… The owner of our hotel did tell us the government is working on cleaning up the beaches and the ocean. I really hope they do!
The Buddhist temple on the Dinh Cau rock is dedicated to to Thien Hau, the Goddess of the sea. Photo by www.phuquocguides.com.
Sightseeing Phu Quoc: itinerary day 2 – Western Loop
Itinerary: Kinh Bac Hotel – Duong Dong – Ganh Dau – Jungle hike – Kinh Bac Hotel
Riding from Duong Dong to Ganh Dau, I love ocean views…
Delicious street food in Ganh Dau. Can you believe this entire meal costs only 30.000VND!
Riding on dirt roads and hiking in the jungle, very much fun!
Vietnamese version of ice cream: frozen condensed milk, jummie:-)
Sightseeing Phu Quoc: itinerary day 3 – Eastern Loop
Itinerary: Kinh Bac Hotel – Ham Ninh – Kiki Coconut – Bai Thom – A beach bar near Duong Dong – Kinh Bac Hotel
Enjoying the views on the road to Ham Ninh.
Relaxing @ Kiki Coconut: fresh lemon juice, ocean view and a hammock. What more do you need in life:-)
This is the ‘normal’ dirt road, but be warned: between Kiki Coconut and Bai Thom there are large stretches of road that are marked as ‘adventure road’. And adventurous it is! Crossing rickety bamboo bridges and dried up streams with huge rocks, we bounced over the road.
We couldn’t help but laughed at our clumsiness, because we encountered several Vietnamese families (four people on a scooter) who did not seem to have any difficulties driving around the countless bumps and potholes:-).
Update November 2017: a reader informed me that unfortunately the adventure road is no more… The road is undergoing construction and will be paved soon. It will make the loop a lot quicker, but also less fun. Hopefully the beautiful views will remain!
More beautiful ocean views at Bai Thom.
Local fishermen at a beach near Duong Dong.
A sensational sunset…
Exploring the island on a scooter was very much fun! You can download our 3 day Phu Quoc itinerary below.
I had a fantastic month in Vietnam! Check my posts about the costs of traveling in Vietnam and things to do in Vietnam for more information about traveling in this wonderful country with its impressive history, friendly people and delicious food! 
Prianka
I’ll be visiting Phu Quoc in mid-December and I cannot wait! Beautiful beaches + amazing Vietnamese food sounds like heaven!
Lotte
It is a little paradise indeed:-) Enjoy your trip!
Phap
Most of the roads on Phu Quoc are now paved. My favorite journey is riding up from Ham Ninh village to Bai Thom, but they will also pave this soon because there is a new resort being built up in Bai Thom by a Thai developer… so see it while you can!
Lotte
Oh no! My favorite road was the adventure road, exactly the part you describe between Ham Ninh and Bai Thom… Such a shame the roads will al be paved soon:-(
Samuel Mozilo
Very informative post and the photos in the post were awesome. I loved the post, just wished I could be there when I close my eyes…
Lotte
Thanks Samuel! Phu Quoc is great, I hope you get to visit soon:-)
Peter Machin
We have just ridden the ‘Adventure Road’ section of this itinerary on the eastern loop and sadly it is no more. It’s just a nasty construction site for the new resort road. We are sat on the beach at Kiki Coconut right now which thankfully is still lovely. It’s very quiet, we are the only ones here on Nov 1st which is the start of high season.
By next year the adventure road will be paved but right now whilst under construction I would avoid it!!!
Lotte
Hello Peter,
Thank you for letting me know! And how sad the adventure road is no more and the big construction projects on Phu Quoc continue… I will adjust it in my post. Glad you at least got to experience the peace and quiet at Kiki Coconut!
Lotte