A long weekend in Phu Quoc - Day 1, Part 1

An early start for Team Somerville today. We left the house at 6am for the 7:20am flight to Phu Quoc - a mountainous and densley forested island off the south-west coast of Vietnam.

Phu Quoc's in the Gulf of Thailand, 45 km west of Vietnam’s mainland and 15 km south of Cambodia, and a short 50 minutes flight from Saigon.

After a breakfast of mooncakes (disgusting!) and sweet bread at the domestic terminal, we boarded a bus to the plane. As we travelled along the tarmac and saw the size of the plane we'd be flying on the girls got very excited! The flight to Phu Quoc is on a tiny 34-seater, propeller plane that takes off fast and flies low enough for a great view on the way to the island.

Less than an hour later we were on descent to Phu Quoc. Despite a small amount of development (this is Phuket, Thailand 20 years ago), about 70% of the island is covered in forest which is thankfully protected since becoming a national park in 2001.

Phu Quoc Island from the air

We're staying 3 nights at the La Veranda Resort on Long Beach, about a 25 minute drive from the airport. La Veranda is a sprawling french colonial style resort with hotel room and bungalow accomodation.

We booked a deluxe bungalow that has a pool and ocean view. Absolutely gorgeous with a private verandah at the front overlooking the pool and a huge king size, four-poster bed with a mosquito net canopy. My only complaint is that the second bed we paid for is a small one which means one toddler is in the big bed with us! Oh well, the joys of travelling as a family of four!