The An Thoi islands: which Phu Quoc boat trip goes where

Almost every island day sold on Phu Quoc goes to the same place: the An Thoi archipelago, a scatter of about a dozen islands off the southern tip, reached from An Thoi harbour. What differs is which four, or three, or two of them a given boat actually stops at — and the operators name them, which makes it possible to plan the day rather than buy a mystery.

Here is who goes where, with the prices next to the routes.

What is the An Thoi archipelago?

It is the cluster south of the main island: around twelve islands, among them Hon Thom, Hon Roi, Hon Dua, Hon Dam Ngang, Hon Buom, Hon Gam Ghi, Hon Mong Tay, Hon May Rut Trong and Hon May Rut Ngoai, Hon Kim Quy, Hon Doi and the lighthouse island. Boats leave from An Thoi harbour at the southern end of the island; most operators drive guests down from Dương Đông first, which is why pick-ups start between 07:30 and 08:30.

The islands are close together, so the difference between a three-island and a four-island day is less about distance than about how long the boat sits at each stop.

Which trip stops where?

The four-island day: which island is the fourth?

The canoe trip round four southern islands costs 800,000 VND (about $31) an adult and runs 08:00 to 15:00 — about seven hours — on a modern fast canoe, with seafood lunch at a restaurant on one of the islands, drone filming, mask, snorkel and life jacket, a bottle of water per guest and travel insurance. Hon May Rut Ngoai is named on the itinerary; so is a stop at the Ocean World coral park.

The fourth island on these routes is usually the one you stay longest on, because lunch happens there. That is worth knowing before comparing itineraries: a four-island day is not necessarily four swims.

Three islands, two hull types

John's Tours runs the same three-island route two ways. On a boat it is 32 USD per pax, 08:30 to 17:00, stopping at Xuong or Buom, then Gam Ghi, then May Rut Trong. On a speedboat it is 33 USD and finishes at 16:00, with a drone video and three photos included. The shorter two-island trip at 25 USD swaps one stop for fishing tackle and a later start at 09:30.

The RED RIVER TOURS wooden boat at 720,000 VND (about $28) covers three islands with rods and bait on board and lunch cooked at sea. It is the slowest hull in the comparison, and that is the trade: more time on the water, less time on the islands.

Premium routes name their islands too

Layla Mermaid Tours goes to Buom, Gam Ghi and Mong Tay on the morning escape and, on the sunset escape, to Mong Tay, Buom and Gam Ghi, both at 1,950,000 VND (about $75) per pax with a maximum of twelve guests. The operator warns openly that islands change with the weather.

Les Rives runs the widest named list — Hon Kim Quy, Hon Dam Ngang, Hon Buom and Hon May Rut — for 3,799,000 VND (about $146) an adult, 09:00 to 15:30 out of An Thoi. Kimie's southern group trip at 950,000 VND (about $37) per person lists Dam Ngang, Fingernail, May Rut and Hon Dam and states plainly that the choice on the day is made by the weather.

Places the big boats do not reach

OnBird's small-group southern trip at 1,380,000 VND (about $53) per person sells the opposite of a named island list: hidden reef points, five to six hours, on a speedboat licensed for twenty but loaded with eight to ten. Its private version, from 5,900,000 VND (about $227) per boat, names Half-Moon Reef and Coral Mountain. Same archipelago, different stops, because a small hull can hold position where a forty-seat boat cannot.

Ocean World is a stop you pay for separately

Both RED RIVER TOURS itineraries include a call at the Ocean World coral park, and both list the activities there as not included — sea walking and scuba are bought on the spot.

Sold as its own product, the sea-walking package is 1,350,000 VND (about $52) for an adult ticket for 15 to 20 minutes on the bottom with one instructor per guest, inside a four-hour trip that leaves at 10:30 or 13:30. The operator also states that in bad weather the trip is cancelled and the money returned.

The north is a different coast

Northern trips leave from Ganh Dau or Dương Đông rather than An Thoi and go to shallower water. Flipper Diving Club prices a north or south boat day at 900,000 VND (about $35) per person for guests staying centrally and states that northern trips are not available from 10 May to 20 October — which is outside the dry season anyway.

The north-west also carries the kayaking: OnBird paddles Casuarina Beach and Half-Moon Bay for 950,000 VND (about $37) per person over six hours from afternoon into evening.

How to choose

• If the point is to see as much of the archipelago as possible, take a four-island canoe day.
• If the point is to swim well at a few good spots, take a small-group speedboat and accept a shorter island list.
• If the point is the evening, the sunset routes cover the same islands in reverse order and finish with dinner.

Common questions

Are the islands guaranteed?

No. Layla and Kimie's both write that the stops depend on the weather on the day, and Les Rives states that a trip may be rescheduled or cancelled in unsafe conditions.

Which island has lunch?

It depends on the operator: RED RIVER TOURS serves lunch at a restaurant on one of the islands, John's Tours offers a fifty per cent discount on services on May Rut Trong, and Les Rives points out that activities on Hon May Rut are not covered by the ticket.

How long does a day take?

About seven hours for the canoe route, 08:00 to 15:00; eight and a half for John's three islands by boat, 08:30 to 17:00; six and a half for Les Rives, 09:00 to 15:30; five to six hours for the OnBird small group.

Updated 4 September 2026. All prices, inclusions and timings are quoted from the operators' own published pages.