Duong Dong, past the night market
Around a hundred thousand people, a river full of boats, the best market on the island and a night market built entirely for visitors. Almost everyone sees the last of those and none of the first three.
At a glance
| Where | Middle of the west coast, at the mouth of the Duong Dong river |
| What it is | The island capital, its administrative and commercial centre |
| Population | Roughly 100,000 in the ward and its surroundings |
| Market hours | 05:00 - 11:00 for the real trade, then it thins out |
| Night market | 17:00 - 23:00, on Bach Dang. Built for visitors |
| Getting there | 15 minutes from the airport; everything on the island runs here |
| Beach | Long Beach starts immediately south and runs for 20 km |
| Stay | Yes - it is the most practical base on the island |
What this place actually is
Duong Dong grew from a fishing town into the administrative centre of an island that has tripled its visitor numbers since the airport opened to international flights. It shows: there are streets that are still entirely local, streets that are entirely tourist, and a river in the middle of it with several hundred fishing boats in it.
The river harbour is the best free thing in town. Boats moor three and four deep along both banks, ice is loaded, nets are laid out on the quay, and at four in the afternoon the night fleet starts leaving with its deck lamps already burning. Stand on the bridge for twenty minutes and you will understand more about the island economy than a museum would tell you.
The morning market off Tran Phu is the other one. It runs properly from five to about eleven and it is where every kitchen on the island shops: fish landed that morning, herbs, the black pepper, dried squid, fruit, and a wet section that is not for the squeamish. Prices are roughly half the tourist rate if you are with someone who knows them, and roughly double if you are not.
The night market, honestly
Cho Dem Phu Quoc on Bach Dang is the single most visited thing in Duong Dong: a pedestrian street of seafood restaurants with tanks at the front, souvenir stalls, dried squid and ice cream, from about five in the evening until eleven.
It is worth walking through once. It is lively, it photographs well and it is entirely safe. It is not where the island eats, the prices are two to three times the street rate, and the seafood tanks at the front are the most common source of the bill disputes we hear about - the fish is weighed after cooking, or a larger one is substituted, and the argument happens at the end when you have already eaten.
Agree the exact weight and the price per kilo before anything goes on the grill, and ask for the total in writing on the order pad. Most stalls are straight and this takes thirty seconds. The ones that are not will suddenly be less keen.
Four hundred metres away there are kitchens that have made one dish for two decades, and that is where our street food night walk spends its evening. Eleven minutes of that walk is inside the night market, being explained.
What to eat, and where the town eats it
| Dish | What it is | Where and when |
|---|---|---|
| Bun quay | The island noodle soup, seasoned by a dip you mix yourself | Back lanes off Tran Hung Dao, all day and best at breakfast |
| Goi ca trich | Herring cured in lime with coconut and roasted rice | Market edge stalls, evening |
| Banh khot | Turmeric rice pancakes with prawn, eaten wrapped in herbs | Old quarter doorways, from about 15:00 |
| Nem nuong | Grilled pork sausage rolled at the table | Same streets, evenings |
| Muc nuong | Charcoal-grilled squid with green chilli sauce | Harbour street, from 18:00 |
| Chao ghe | Crab rice porridge, the island hangover food | Market stalls from 05:00 |
Bun quay is the one to try first and it exists nowhere else in this form. The broth is deliberately plain and the flavour comes from a dip of salt, sugar, chilli, lime and MSG that you mix at the table to your own taste. Everyone has a formula. Ask the person at the next table for theirs. There is more on eating on Phu Quoc.
What it costs here
| Item | Local price | Tourist-strip price |
|---|---|---|
| Bowl of noodles | 35,000 - 55,000 dong | 90,000 - 150,000 dong |
| Iced Vietnamese coffee | 15,000 - 25,000 dong | 55,000 - 90,000 dong |
| Local beer, bottle | 18,000 - 25,000 dong | 50,000 - 80,000 dong |
| Grilled squid, a plate | 90,000 - 150,000 dong | 250,000 - 400,000 dong |
| Scooter hire, per day | 120,000 - 180,000 dong | 200,000 - 250,000 dong |
| Grab across town | 25,000 - 45,000 dong | Taxi 60,000 - 100,000 dong |
The gap between the two columns is the whole economics of this town and it is not a scandal - it is what happens everywhere with a large visitor economy. It is worth knowing that both prices are available three hundred metres apart.
Gallery
When Duong Dong is the wrong base
- If you want quiet. The town is noisy from five in the morning and the traffic is constant.
- If you want to walk out of your room onto a good beach. Long Beach starts a couple of kilometres south and the town waterfront is a harbour.
- If you are here for four nights and want to spend them at a resort. Ong Lang or the far south do that better and you can drive in for an evening.
- If construction noise would ruin your trip. There is building work in and around the town continuously and it starts early.
- If you dislike being solicited. On the tourist streets you will be offered a massage, a tour and a taxi about every forty metres, politely, all evening.
Tours that go here
The street food night walk is entirely in Duong Dong, on foot, from half past five. The morning market is also the first stop of the cooking day, where you buy the ingredients yourself before driving north to the kitchen.
On your own: go to the market at half past six rather than nine, stand on the bridge at four in the afternoon, and eat bun quay at least once before you leave.
Questions travellers ask most
Is Duong Dong a good place to stay?
It is the most practical base on the island - everything is 15 to 40 minutes away, there is real food at real prices, and transport is easy at any hour.
It is not the prettiest or the quietest. Ong Lang is the usual compromise for people who want both.
Is the market worth visiting if we are not cooking?
Yes, between six and eight. It is the clearest picture of what the island produces and eats, and it costs nothing.
Go with cash in small notes, expect the wet section to be genuinely wet, and do not photograph a seller without asking.
Is the town safe at night?
Yes. Petty theft exists as in any tourist town, mostly bag snatching from scooters, so keep a bag on the inside shoulder. Violent crime is very rare.
The main hazard is traffic - the roads have no useful pavements in places and scooters use them.
What about Cau castle temple?
Dinh Cau sits on the rocks at the river mouth and takes fifteen minutes. It is a small working shrine to the sea rather than a monument, and it is best at sunset when the fleet is leaving past it.
Free, no ticket, cover your shoulders.
Read next
Tell us what you want out of the island
Dates, party size and the places you care about are enough to start. You get a draft route and an indicative price, not a brochure.