First published December 2021 | Words and photos by Vietnam Coracle
From stylish, modern sky bars with sunset views to windowless speakeasies with professional mixologists, from rustic-chic wine bars hovering above the waves to cheap beach shacks with a youthful local crowd: Phu Quoc Island has dozens of great places to enjoy a refreshing alcoholic drink. Scattered across the island, this is a list of 21 excellent bars for cocktails, beer, wine and local liquor on Phu Quoc. There are lots of good spots for a drink on the island, and more are opening all the time. However, this list should suffice to get you started and give an idea of what’s available.
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21 PLACES FOR COCKTAILS, PHU QUOC
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I’ve deliberately chosen 21 bars located in different parts of the island and representing a range of prices, ambience, style and scenery. Some are high-end and expensive, others are local and cheap; some have long and sophisticated drinks list, others only offer local beer or rượu (liquor). I’ve plotted all 21 places on my map and written a short description of each one, including contact information. Prices are indicated as such: $ = cheap; $$ = mid-range; $$$ = expensive. Due to the pandemic, it’s essential to call ahead to check if the bars are open and if they require documentation, such as vaccination certificates and passports. Also, due to Covid restrictions, I wasn’t able to conduct my research in the way I usually do: therefore, photos on this page don’t always correspond to the place they’re illustrating. The following bars are listed in geographical order going north around the island, starting from INK 360.
CONTENTS:
1. INK 360
5. Bittersweet Hidden Cocktail Bar
11. Bamboo Cottages
15. Luna Beach
18. Rory’s ‘The Wreck’ Beach Bar
21. Phung Hung Boutique Rooftop Bar
*Covid-19 note: Due to the pandemic, it’s essential to call before you visit any of these bars, as some may be temporarily closed or only open during certain days/hours. Some places may require proof of vaccination and ID to get in. Always call or email in advance.
MAP:
21 Great Places for Cocktails | Phu Quoc Island
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1. INK 360
Location: Bãi Trường (Long Beach) | Contact: 0297 397 8888 | Price: $$$
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On the rooftop (19th floor) of the InterContinental Long Beach Resort, INK 360 is the highest bar on Phu Quoc Island. The views from the wide and windy terrace are massive and the sunsets spectacular. The bar itself is very striking – a metallic, industrial-chic edifice in the midst of being consumed by the silver tentacles of a giant octopus. The size and quality of the drinks are way lower than the prices (250,000vnd upwards) suggest. But that’s not really the point: you come here for the views, ambience and experience.
2. Sailing Club Phu Quoc
Location: Bãi Trường (Long Beach) | Contact: 093 1031 035 | Price: $$$
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A sleek, low modern structure along the beachfront just across from the InterContinental Resort, Sailing Club is a smart-casual bar and restaurant with a good swimming pool and beach access. Sunset views and strolls along the sand under palms add to its appeal. The quality of drinks (and standards in general) is high, but so are the prices: expect to pay over 200,000vnd. Sailing Club is part of a large, new development along the waterfront, which is fascinating in itself. (At the time of writing, Sailing Club was only open Friday-Sunday.)
3. Sol Sets Rooftop | Nine
Location: Bãi Trường (Long Beach) | Contact: 0297 386 99 99 | Price: $$$
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Overlooking the beach, Sol Sets Rooftop bar is part of a large resort but open to non-guests. The ‘rooftop’ is more of a terrace, which is on the first floor – just high enough to see across the sand to the sea. Sunsets are beautiful and the drinks are good, although prices generally edge over 200,000vnd. A Spanish food menu makes this a good place for some wine and tapas.
4. Sunset Sanato Beach Club
Location: Bãi Trường (Long Beach) | Contact: 0297 6266 662 | Price: $$$
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One of the most photographed spots on the island in recent years thanks to its collection of creative ‘Instagram props’, Sunset Sanato is a beach club on the sands of Bãi Trường. Drinks are fine, but most people are here to get dressed up and take photos of themselves among the various props and sculptures, including elephants on stilts and giant wiry jellyfish. As the name suggests, sunsets are great here. (At the time of writing, Sunset Sanato was undergoing repairs.)
5. Bittersweet Hidden Cocktail Bar
Location: Tran Hung Dao Street | Contact: 093 578 45 05 | Price: $$$
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Serving some of the best cocktails on the island, Bittersweet is a speakeasy bar with excellent service and professional mixologists. Accessed via a ‘hidden’ door in a shopfront for a ‘tailor’s’, Bittersweet is a cavernous and cool 1920s-style bar with cushioned booths, low-lighting and good music. There’s no menu and no price list: ask for your cocktail of choice or explain your preferred taste profile to the mixologists and let them create a personal drink for you. Considering the quality, prices represent value for money: around 200,000vnd. What Bittersweet doesn’t have is a view (there aren’t even any windows) or beach access, but it more than makes up for this with its style and quality. (Bittersweet is located next to Hiền Charcoal Kitchen, opposite Salinda Resort.)
6. Istanbul Beach Club
Location: Bãi Trường (Long Beach) | Contact: 096 114 88 05 | Price: $$
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An enormous bar and beach club right at the heart of Long Beach, Istanbul is well-positioned to become the go-to hang-out for the younger crowd for the next few years. From its almost cathedralic entrance the bar opens onto a large, high-ceilinged ‘stage’ upon which dozen of tables and chairs spill down onto the beach. But this is no ‘backpacker bar’ – the showers, for example, are classy, clean and spacious and the ambience is much more relaxed than you might expect (unless it’s a party night). Prices are reasonable and drinks are pretty good. Get here an hour before sunset.
7. Chuồn Chuồn Bar
Location: Sao Mai Street, Dương Đông town | Contact: 0297 3608 883 | Price: $$
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Classy but relaxed and with a typically modern Vietnamese urban-chic vibe, Chuồn Chuồn is positioned on the hillside behind Duong Dong town, with excellent views over the green hills and ocean. Sunset is, of course, the most popular and spectacular time to visit. A mixture of glass, girders and wood, Chuồn Chuồn is an angular structure built out over the trees with a wide, open wooden deck. Craft beer and cocktails are very good, but prices are pushing up towards high-end: 150,000-200,000vnd. (At the time of writing, Chuồn Chuồn was temporarily closed.)
8. Mango Bay | On the Rocks
Location: Ông Lang Beach | Contact: 090 338 22 07 | Price: $$$
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Elegant and understated, On The Rocks bar and restaurant at Mango Bay Resort has long been a favourite place for a sunset cocktail among travellers. Set on a wooden deck above a rocky beachfront, the views across the ocean and lush resort grounds are gorgeous. The bar has a long drinks list, including lots of wine and signature cocktails – try the Monsoon. Quality is good, but prices are very high these days: 250,000 for a cocktail, making it one of the most expensive on this list. A happy hour would be a welcome addition.
9. Camia Resort | Beach Bar
Location: Ông Lang Beach | Contact: 0297 6258 899 | Price: $$
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An attractive wooden structure opening onto a deck and a pier leading out over the ocean, the beach bar at Camia Resort is a lovely little place. At its best from 4.30pm when the sun begins its descent, there’s nothing showy or ostentatious: it’s just a simple, tasteful bar. Drinks are fine and fairly reasonably priced, but it’s the setting that you come for.
10. Phu Quoc Eco Lodge
Location: Cửa Cạn Lagoon | Contact: 0297 6272 345 | Price: $
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A grassy garden leading onto a wooden platform above a lagoon with access (via kayak) to Cửa Cạn beach, Phu Quoc Eco Lodge is a very pleasant, inexpensive place for a refreshing drink at any time of day. Mostly serving non-alcoholic drinks, there’s beer available too. Prices are under 100,000vnd, so it’s cheap and generally attracts a younger crowd. Phu Quoc Eco Lodge gets the sunset, but it’s also good as a short stop during the day while exploring the island.
11. Bamboo Cottages
Location: Vũng Bầu Beach | Contact: 0297 2810 345 | Price: $$
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Situated beneath casuarina trees on the sands of the quiet northern section of Vũng Bầu Beach, the bar at Bamboo Cottages is casual and tasteful. Indoors, there’s cosy bamboo furniture, a pool table and board games; outdoors, there’s wooden tables and chairs right on the beach. The cocktail list in quite short, but they’re strong, good and reasonably priced. Get here for sunset.
12. Rock Island Club Bar
Location: Móng Tay Islet | Contact: 0297 3891 234 | Price: $$$
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Accessed via a 5-minute boat ride from Nam Nghi Resort, Rock Island Club occupies its very own little islet. Classy and expensive, it’s a fun place for a sunset cocktail and a swim. The views are fantastic and the bar is spectacular: a raised platform above the rocks. During high-season you should call ahead or book in advance. (At the time of writing, Rock Island Club Bar was temporarily closed.)
13. Mun’s Cafe & Rum Bar
Location: Gành Dầu Beach | Contact: 093 244 42 87 | Price: $
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Right at the north-western tip of the island, Mun’s Cafe & Rum Bar is a small, shack-like drinking hole with a view of Gành Dầu Beach and the Cambodian islands. Cheap, relaxed, local, fun and unpretentious, the Rum Bar serves good, simple, refreshing cocktails to a young, Vietnamese crowd. Sunsets are great.
14. Gold Coast Beach Bar
Location: Gành Dầu Beach | Contact: 0297 6577 878 | Price: $$
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The beach bar at Gold Coast Resort has one of the best positions on the island: the views over to the Cambodian mainland and the jungle-cloaked slopes of the as-yet undeveloped northern beaches of Phu Quoc are marvellous. Sunsets are beautiful, the beach is pretty and the swimming good. What’s more, the cocktails here are huge and powerful. And to cap it all, there’s a superb happy hour from 4-5pm (weekends): buy one, get one free. All told, Gold Coast offers excellent value for money.
15. Luna Beach
Location: Bãi Thơm Beach | Contact: 098 660 13 16 | Price: $
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A leafy, quiet piece of land next to shallow and beguiling Bãi Thơm Beach, Luna is a small, rustic, family-run guesthouse with a little brick gazebo-style bar on the waterfront. The only alcoholic drinks available are beer and local rượu sim (rice liquor flavoured with rose myrtle berries). It’s cheap and charming and very peaceful. This is the east coast, so there’s no sunset, but you do get the soft light of the ‘golden hour’ on the Cambodian hills.
16. Local Beach Phu Quoc
Location: Bãi Thơm Beach | Contact: 090 330 25 37 | Price: $
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A small, simple beach bar serving beer and non-alcoholic drinks, Local Beach is a relaxed, inexpensive place to stop at while passing through the lazy streets of Bãi Thơm hamlet. Its beachfront has a certain charm, as do the the views across the gulf to Cambodia.
17. The Pier | Beach Bar
Location: Cây Sao Beach | Contact: 090 321 78 29 | Price: $$
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At the northern end of up-and-coming Cây Sao Beach on Phu Quoc’s lesser-known east coast, the bar at The Pier Resort is housed in a gazebo jutting into the sea raised on concrete stilts above the shallow water. The views back to the jungle-clad mountains and coast are superb. Drinks are fine, including cocktails, but more than anything it’s about the location. Prices are quite reasonable. (At the time of writing, the bar was temporarily closed.)
18. Rory’s ‘The Wreck’ Beach Bar
Location: Cây Sao Beach | Contact: 091 933 39 50 | Price: $$$
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A sprawling bar, restaurant and beach club on the east coast, Rory’s in a long-time Phu Quoc institution recently relocated to Cây Sao. Spacious and popular, Rory’s has a large open deck, big indoor drinking and dining area, a pool, mini-golf, wooden pier and much more. The drinks list is extensive and quality is good, although prices are now pretty steep – Rory’s is no longer a cheap ‘backpacker’ bar. As well as the facilities, food, drink and location, people come here for the social atmosphere: this is where you meet everyone. Rory’s taking up residence on the east coast is a bold move and bound to attract more travellers to this side of the island.
19. Kiki Coconut Beach Bar
Location: Cây Sao | Contact: 056 951 8540 | Price: $
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Set beneath a grove of coconut palms on the sand by the sea, Kiki’s beach bar is a beautiful spot for a drink on the east coast. Quiet, calm and very reasonably priced (under 100,000vnd/cocktail), the drinks list is short but sweet, including a favourite of mine from back home in the U.K that’s rarely available in Vietnam: Pimm’s. Lay out on deck chairs under trees by the sea or get some exercise on the sand with various bat and ball games (equipment provided).
20. Paradiso Beach Club
Location: Bãi Sao | Contact: 0297 627 9988 | Price: $$
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An attractive, pastel-toned villa opening onto a breezy patio under palms, Paradiso is by far the best place for a drink on the white sands of Sao Beach, in the southeast of the island. Prices are mid-range and so is quality, but really it’s all about the location: the colours of the sea, sand and palms against the blue sky. There are loungers on the beach and swimming is good. (At the time of writing, Paradiso was temporarily closed.)
21. Phung Hung Boutique Rooftop Bar
Location: An Thới Harbour | Contact: 0297 3991 929 | Price: $$
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An unexpected rooftop bar in the middle of bustling An Thới, the southern port of the island, Phung Hung has great views over the busy harbour and outlying islands, connected to Phu Quoc by the long cable car. This rooftop bar is not yet widely known, but the cocktails are decent and the views are unique.
*Disclosure: I never receive payment for anything I write: my content is always free and independent. I’ve written this guide because I want to: I like these bars and I want my readers to know about them. For more details, see my Disclosure & Disclaimer statements and my About Page
Thank you so much for this list!
I’m coming over by myself in September and will definitely try some of these ☺️☺️
Thanks, Jess. I hope you enjoy trying some of these places!
Best,
Tom