Phu Quoc Island is a stopover for 19 cruise ships departing from Singapore and traversing Thailand, Vietnam and other countries in northeast Asia.

Without a port terminal, Phu Quoc receives small cruise ships bringing less than 1,000 passengers and crew members.

Recently Saigontourist, a leading travel operator in Vietnam, implemented a pilot scheme to bring 516 passengers and a 370-member crew aboard five-star Europe 2 ashore.

However, Europe 2 had to anchor off the coast and small boats were used to transport passengers to the island, causing inconvenience and security problems. Vietnam Maritime Administration is completing its review of detailed planning documents for the Phu Quoc Passenger Terminal for submission to the Ministry of Transport for approval in August 2014.

The terminal will be built at an estimated VND1.3 trillion with the first phase alone costing VND400 billion. It is designed to receive luxury ships carrying 5,000-6,000 passengers such as Allure of the Seas, and Mariner of the Seas.

The sheer size and magnitude of the project requires a careful and comprehensive review, said Pham Tuan Anh, Deputy Director of Portcoast Consultant Corporation, which is hired to provide consultancy for planning.

At a recent working with the Ministry of Transport, Vice Chairman of the Kien Giang provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Thanh Nghi vowed to allocate land for the project.

It is forecast that the number of international sea travellers to Phu Quoc is likely to reach 105,000-190,000 each year by 2020, and even to 350,000-550,000 by 2030.