Phu Quoc - Day 2 (Sun World Hon Thom - Phu Quoc Night Market)

During our stay at the Dusit Princess Moonrise Beach Resort, we enjoyed a delightful buffet breakfast for two every morning at Palm Kitchen. It was the ideal way to begin our day, with the wide variety of dishes served every day from 6.30am until 10am. From steaming bowls of traditional pho and freshly baked pastries to tropical fruits, made-to-order eggs, and aromatic Vietnamese coffee, there was something to satisfy every palate.

We went down for breakfast at 8.15am, and my favourite dish was the warm, comforting porridge. Simple yet flavourful, it became my go-to choice each day. It was best eaten with the pork floss, which was slightly salty but went well with the smooth texture of the porridge. While most of the buffet options were enjoyable, the banh mi unfortunately fell short. The bread lacked the crispiness and made it less satisfying.

One of the things I enjoyed about the buffet was the selection of fresh juices, including watermelon, orange, carrot, and grapefruit, which added a refreshing start to the meal. They also offered cashew nuts and sunflower seeds that you don't often see at hotel breakfast buffets.

Banh mi stall

Pork sausage, chicken sausage, grilled bacon, potato fries and sunny side up

Condiments for egg station

Sticky rice with mung beans and Vietnamese pork meatball

Plain dumpling

Fruits section

Bread section

Pastries section

Pastries section

Cereal and fresh juice section

Cheese and nuts

Cheese and nuts

Salad section

Sushi section

Braised pork with eggs and sauté diced chicken

Fried rice and wok fried cabbage with bacon

Stir-fried yardlong bean with beef

Vegetarian section

Hot coffee and chocolate

Tea section

Fresh juice and yogurts

My breakfast

My breakfast

My breakfast

My breakfast

Vietnamese coffee

Vietnamese black coffee

It started to rain heavily at around 9.50am, just as we were preparing to head out for our planned destination to Sun World Hon Thom. Despite the downpour, we decided to stick to our itinerary. The Hon Thom cable car operates in two sessions: from 9am to 11.30am and from 1.30pm to 5pm. So we made sure to get moving before the morning slot closed and took a Grab car from our hotel to Anh Duang Station (Grab fare - 23,296 VND).

My partner had pre-purchased four tickets via Klook for RM 418.60, which was super convenient, and the ticket included entry to the water park. They do not sell single tickets just for the cable car. Each ticket also came with a complimentary drink. You can choose one glass of Sun Kraft beer, a fruit juice, or a fruit tea. These can be redeemed at several outlets on the island, including Koi Cafe, Taste of Vietnam, Mango Buffet, Sun Buns, Slice of Paradise, or Sunny Bros.

This cable car is the world's longest cable car over the sea and the ride took approximately 20 minutes from the mainland to Hon Thom Island. Each cable car can accommodate up to 30 people, and the ride offers stunning panoramic views along the way. Once you reach Hon Thom Island, you'll find both the Aquatopia Water Park and Exotica Park.

We boarded the cable car at 10.55am and arrived at Hon Thom Island around 11.15am. Thankfully, the rain had stopped by then, and the skies began to clear. Our first stop was Aquatopia Water Park. While my partner joined the others on the rides, I took some time to wander around solo. Since certain items like underwear or nappies, zippers, hats, metal buttons or accessories, glasses, jewelry or watches, electronics, shoes, jeans or streetwear, and dresses are not permitted on the water slide, they rented a locker to safely store all their belongings. I took the opportunity to redeem my free watermelon drink, a refreshing treat on a warm day. Later, I met up with the rest of the group for a late lunch after they had spent nearly an hour and a half enjoying the rides.

Small locker rental - 50,000 VND (refundable deposit 50,000 VND)

Large locker rental - 100,000 VND (refundable deposit 50,000 VND)

Towel rental - 50,000 VND (refundable deposit 100,000 VND)

Anh Duang Station

Entrance to cable car

Sun World Hon Thom drink coupon

Cable car

View from cable car

View from cable car

View from cable car

View from cable car

View from cable car

View from cable car

View from cable car

Cable car

Welcome performance by the staff

Koi pond

Koi pond

Koi - the lucky scales

Sculpture

Aquatopia Water Park map

Splash playground

Tiny sea snake - starfish race flying fish

Monkey beach

Lost lagoon

Aquatopia Water Park

Aquatopia Water Park

Aquatopia Water Park

Octopus

Locker

Locker rates

Snake fight

Golden waves pearl canyon

Medusa's trap

Paradise Bay

Aquatopia Water Park

Flow rider

Poseidon's revenge

Sea dragon

King & Queen cobra

Redeem free drink here

Watermelon juice

Aquatopia Water Park

After they showered and got changed, we headed to Slice of Paradise Pizzeria for a late lunch. We ordered a pork pepperoni pizza and bolognese. Unfortunately, the food didn't live up to expectations. The pizza was just average, and the pork pepperoni was unevenly distributed, with some slices missing it entirely. I ended up having one of those, which was a bit disappointing. The bolognese was bland, leaving us underwhelmed by the meal.

(Total bill - 380, 000 VND)

Peperoni pork pizza - 190,000 VND

 Bolognese - 190,000 VND

The Exotica Park is just next to the Aquatopia Water Park. The Roaring Timbers is Vietnam's first wooden roller coaster. However, it was closed for maintenance when we visited. So we only rode the Eagle's Eye, which offered an elevated view of the island. While the views were nice, the interior of the ride was stuffy and hot, which made it a little uncomfortable.

Eagle's eye

View from Eagle's eye - Roaring timbers

View from Eagle's eye - Aquatopia Water Park

We took the cable car ride back to the mainland around 3.20pm. The ride back took about 20 minutes and was less crowded than our morning trip. Along the way, we caught a glimpse of the Kiss Bridge, a modern architectural landmark stretching between two cliffs over the sea. Once we returned, we spent some time strolling around Sunset Town, a charming area with Mediterranean-inspired architecture. The Kiss Bridge requires a separate ticket to enter, so we decided to just admire it from afar. It wasn't until we got back that we realized we hadn't even made it to the beach! With everything there was to see and do, we simply ran out of time.

Cable car time: 9am to 11.30am / 1.30pm to 5pm

Exotica Park opening hours: 9.30am to 4.45pm

Aquatopia Water Park opening hours: 10am to 4.30pm

Beach opening hours: 9.30am to 4.30pm

Exit to cable car

Cable car

View from cable car

Cable car

Phu Quoc Brew House

Sunset Town

Kiss Bridge

Sunset Town

Kiss Bridge ticketing counter

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Motorbikes parking area

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Sunset Town

Since we missed out on trying frog porridge the day before, we decided to make it happen that evening. We took a Grab ride from Sunset Town to Cháo ếch Singapore Phú Quốc, which cost 26,624 VND. The ride took approximately 35 minutes. When we arrived around 5pm, the shop was completely empty. We ordered the Singapore braised frog, frog braised with lemongrass, fried frog with fish sauce, and two bowls of plain porridge. They also served free iced jasmine tea.

Unfortunately, we weren't quite satisfied with the food. The fried frog with fish sauce was served with the skin on and was overly salty, while the braised frog lacked that rich, flavourful "umph" we were hoping for. The lemongrass frog did stand out with its strong lemongrass flavour, but overall the meal was just average.

(Total bill - 255,000 VND) 

 

Cháo ếch Singapore Phú Quốc

Singapore braised frog - 75,000 VND

Frog braised with lemongrass - 75,000 VND

Plain porridge

Fried frog with fish sauce - 110,000 VND

Address:

Cháo ếch Singapore Phú Quốc

53 Đường Bạch Đằng, TT. Dương Đông,

Phú Quốc, Kiên Giang 31078,

Vietnam

After dinner, we walked to the Phu Quoc Night Market, just a short 6-minute walk (450m) from Cháo ếch Singapore Phú Quốc. Along the way, we passed numerous stalls selling flavoured peanuts, and what stood out was how generous the vendors were with their samples. They were happily offering tastes to anyone walking by. My partner and his buddy enjoyed them so much that they decided to go for the six-bottle combo deal, which came with five free mini bottles. My partner took three bottles and received two small bottles for free, while his buddy took the other three bottles along with three small freebies. In terms of flavour, my partner opted for caramel and cappuccino.

The selection was impressive with thirty different flavour to choose from, including green pepper, strawberry, sim fruit Phu Quoc, melon, garlic & chili, blueberry, cinnamon, cheese wasabi, cheese, cheese & chili, mango, apricot, macapuno coconut, durian, taro, caramel, tamarind, black sesame, gac fruit sesame, green tea, salted caramel, chocomint, chocolate coconut chips, pandanus, ginger, salted shrimp, seaweed fire garlic & chili, BBQ, black coffee, and cappuccino.

(Total bill - 600,000 VND) 

Phu Quoc Night Market

Spotted a monkey

Phu Quoc Night Market

Crocs shoes

Peanuts menu

Peanuts menu

Peanuts stall

Feeling a bit thirsty after all the walking and peanut sampling, we decided to grab a fresh coconut drink. It was cold, sweet, and refreshing.

Coconut drink - 30,000 VND

Address:

Phu Quoc Night Market

54 Đường Nguyễn Trãi, Khu 1,

Phú Quốc, Kiên Giang,

Vietnam

Opening hours: 5pm to 12am

One dish you must try when visiting Phu Quoc is Bún Quậy, a Vietnamese seafood noodle soup. So far this has been one of the best meals we've had on the island. After exploring the night market, we walked over to Bún quậy KIẾN - XÂY, just a short 6-minute walk (450m) away. My partner and I shared a bowl with the full topping set, which came with shrimp patty, beef, squid, and fish patty.

The noodles themselves are intentionally served plain, and the staff told us to mix our own condiments to suit our taste. You can either use their "3-in-1" mix of MSG, sugar, and salt, or create your own blend using the individual condiments provided: salt, sugar, chili, MSG, and calamansi. The noodles were soft, and even without adding anything, the broth was already rich and flavourful. Once we added the condiments, especially the super spicy chili and a squeeze of lime, the soup became even more vibrant and satisfying. We also ordered a sugarcane drink, which was slightly sweet and had a refreshing twist thanks to the added lime.

Bún quậy KIẾN - XÂY

Condiments section

Condiments section

MSG, sugar, salt and chili with lime

Sugar cane - 10,000 VND each

Full toppings - 90,000 VND

After 9pm menu

Address:

Bún quậy KIẾN - XÂY

28 Đường Bạch Đằng, Ph. Dương Đông,

Phú Quốc, Kiên Giang 922200,

Vietnam

Opening hours: 7am to 11.05pm

After finishing our meal, we walked to the nearest VinBus stop. On the way, we stopped by Sugar Fusion, and my partner bought their pain suisse chocolate, which they kindly heated up for us. It's a French pastry made from layered flaky croissant dough filled with chocolate pastry cream and dark chocolate chips.

We reached our hotel at 9pm, and once back in the room, we shared the pain suisse chocolate. It had a crispy outer layer with a warm chocolate filling inside. The texture was pleasant, but overall, the taste was just average. My partner went out for a massage with his buddy, and it rained heavily while they were out. Fortunately, the rain stopped just before they returned around midnight. He came back relaxed after getting a leg massage and a hair wash, while I called it a night and went to bed around 12am.

Note: 1,000 VND = RM 0.18

Sugar Fusion Bakery

Pain suisse chocolate 59,000 VND

Address:

Sugar Fusion Bakery

39 Đường Trần Hưng Đạo, Dương Đông,

Phú Quốc, Kiên Giang 922200,

Vietnam

Opening hours: 8am to 9.30pm

VinBus stop and massage parlor