US travel giant Expedia published its 2026 "Island Hot List" on July 21, and Phu Quoc Island in southern Vietnam ranked 9th in the world. The top spots were filled with regular European and Caribbean names — Saint Lucia, Porto Santo, Praslin, Syros, the Lofoten Islands, and Fiji — with Southeast Asia represented only by Phu Quoc (9th) and Palawan in the Philippines (10th). Just an hour's flight from Ho Chi Minh City, this island is still relatively unfamiliar to Japanese travelers, so why did it make a global island ranking? Tracing the reasons behind the ranking reveals both the island's current strengths as a destination and a side that's still very much under development.
Expedia Ranked It 9th for Its Potential, Not Its Polish — Searches for the Island Rose 55%
How did Expedia put this list together? The company describes its selection criteria as "search trends, traveler interest, and the growth potential of island destinations." In other words, it's not a ranking of polished, established attractions but a design meant to surface up-and-coming places. Searches for the island on Expedia's platform rose about 55% year over year, and mentions on social media climbed roughly 20%. As travelers increasingly choose emerging resorts that still offer untouched nature, local culture, and unhurried time, Phu Quoc has positioned itself as a more accessible alternative to European islands in terms of both price and distance.
Numbers back up this assessment. Phu Quoc drew 5.7 million visitors in the first half of 2026, up 30% year over year, with foreign visitors at 1.32 million, up a striking 50%. Expedia isn't the only third party taking notice, either — travel search platform Skyscanner has also named Phu Quoc among its global trending destinations for 2026, with multiple overseas platforms pointing in the same direction.
About 2.2 Trillion Dong in Airport Expansion, Plus APEC 2027, Turn the Island Into a National Project
Behind this growth lies a national project that goes beyond the island's own tourism efforts. Vietnam has decided to host the 2027 APEC Leaders' Summit in Phu Quoc, and in step with that, expansion of Phu Quoc International Airport is now underway. The investment totals roughly 2,199.8 billion dong (about 130 billion yen at a rough rate of 170 dong per yen), with a plan to lift annual passenger capacity to around 20 million by 2027. The plan also includes a VIP terminal and additional parking spots for aircraft carrying heads of state and dignitaries, with operations run by a Sun Group subsidiary.
The island's gateway itself is also coming together. Phu Quoc's second runway, 3,300 meters long, has completed calibration flights and can now accommodate wide-body Boeing 787 aircraft (Phu Quoc's second runway, 3,300 m, completes its calibration flights, making B787 service possible). What sets this island apart is that having a summit as a fixed "deadline" has pushed tourism infrastructure development along faster than usual.
Moxy, W, and Westin Open in 2026–27, Adding Rooms by the Thousands
Room supply is set to surge, too. In 2026, Moxy Phu Quoc Hon Thom (501 rooms) and Fairfield by Marriott (353 rooms) are due to open in the Hon Thom area. On roughly 880,000 square meters of land at Ruby Beach in the island's south, five properties — W (526 rooms), Marriott (826 rooms), Westin (527 rooms), Le Méridien (432 rooms), and Courtyard (300 rooms) — are set to open in a concentrated wave through 2027, adding a combined total of well over two thousand rooms. In Sunset Town, Ascott is expected to operate more than 1,500 rooms across multiple brands.
| Hotel | District | Number of cabins | Opening Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Moxy Phu Quoc Hon Thom | Hon Thom | 501 | 2026 |
| Fairfield by Marriott | Hon Thom | 353 | 2026 |
| W Phu Quoc | Ruby Beach | 526 | 2027 |
| Marriott Resort & Spa | Ruby Beach | 826 | 2027 |
| The Westin Phu Quoc | Ruby Beach | 527 | 2027 |
Attractions are moving forward too. Alongside one of the world's longest three-cable cable car crossings to Hon Thom Island, the Guinness-certified show "Kiss of the Sea," the CNN-featured Kissing Bridge, and nightly fireworks in Sunset Town, a food-and-drink street called "Sunset Bazaar" opens from November 1. Cultural events are also growing: in 2026, Vietnam's first international flute music festival, VIFF, ran for six days (Six Days on Phu Quoc: VIFF 2026, Vietnam's First International Flute Festival). Beyond beaches and big-ticket facilities, there are gradually more reasons to venture out during a stay.
No Direct Flights From Japan Yet — The Reality of Connecting Through Ho Chi Minh City and the 30-Day Visa Exemption
The positive news keeps piling up, but the real hurdle for Japanese travelers is access. As of 2026, there are no scheduled direct flights from Haneda or Narita to Phu Quoc. The standard route is a domestic connection through Ho Chi Minh City or Hanoi, and connecting via Ho Chi Minh City often means through-checked baggage isn't available — you have to clear immigration, collect your checked bags, and re-check in at the domestic terminal. Routing through a third-country hub is another option: a direct flight with meal service departs daily from Singapore (Sun PhuQuoc Airways launches a Singapore–Phu Quoc direct flight, one a day, from July 25). Across the island as a whole, roughly 30 international flights now arrive and depart each day.
On the entry side, though, the rules work in travelers' favor. Phu Quoc is the only place in Vietnam that grants a 30-day visa exemption to all foreign nationals. Japanese travelers already don't need a visa for stays in Vietnam of up to 45 days, but the island's standalone exemption widens the scope for longer stays and side trips. Given the distance involved, the light procedural burden is a practical reason to choose this island.
Go Now, and Go Knowing It's Still a Work in Progress — Factor In the Gap Between Crowds and Acclaim
Third-party rankings are a strong tailwind, but they shouldn't be taken at face value. Expedia's criteria measure "an island on the rise," not "a finished destination." On the ground, large-scale construction is proceeding in parallel ahead of the 2027 APEC summit, and in some areas construction sites and cranes are within view. The figures of 5.7 million visitors in the first half, up 30% year over year, also mean, conversely, that crowding and rising prices at popular spots are advancing too.
Still, drilling down into whether it's "worth going now" splits into two groups. For travelers who want a stay that's complete within the beach and resort, right now is a tailwind, even setting aside the inconvenience of no direct flights, given how fast lodging options are expanding. For those hoping for the quiet air of an untouched island, the picture will be closer to that once development settles down, sometime after 2028. A "9th in the world" headline is a cue to start considering whether to add this island to your itinerary, not an answer in itself. It's worth weighing your own travel goals against Phu Quoc's current state as a destination still under development.
Sources referenced
- VnExpress International — Vietnam’s largest island Phu Quoc named among world’s top 10 by Expedia
- Sun Group — Phu Quoc named one of the world’s top trending destinations for 2026 by Skyscanner
- Vietnam Law Magazine — Vietnam fast-tracks Phu Quoc int’l airport expansion ahead of APEC 2027
- Luxury Travel Report — Marriott locks in a 10-hotel Vietnam expansion, including W and Moxy debuts
