700 tourists stranded on Vietnam island return home

Kien Giang Maritime Port Authority on Tuesday licensed the resumption of the services between Nam Du and Rach Gia City, the capital of Kien Giang Province. Boat services to and from the nearby Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam’s largest, were also resumed after three-day suspension due to rough seas.

Tran Thi Yen Oanh, vice chairwoman of An Son Commune, home to Nam Du Island, said that the stranded tourists returned to the mainland on Tuesday morning.

Normally, there are two high-speed boat trips from Nam Du to Rach Gia on weekdays and four on weekends, but boat operators have increased it to five to handle the number of stranded tourists, Oanh added.

She said the commune had provided hundreds of free meals to the stranded tourists while accommodation establishments reduced room rates in the past three days.

A tourist waits to board a ship from Nam Du to return to the mainland in Rach Gia on July 16, 2024. Photo by Quoc Dai

Phu Bich Van, owner of a high-speed boat ticket agent, said the stranded tourists had been anxious to return home and constantly asking for the boat’s resumption schedule.

When the first boat trip prepared to depart from Nam Du, passengers waited in large numbers at the wharf, Van said.

Tran Quoc Dai, a tourist from Ho Chi Minh City traveling to Nam Du with a group of friends, boarded the ship at 10:30 a.m.

A group of tourists stranded on Nam Du Island amid bad weather, July 2024. Photo by Quoc Dai

“It rained intermittently on the island for a few days, so I was still able to go out,” he said, adding that the hotel had reduced room rates by 50%, and many restaurants provided free meals.

“Local people were friendly to tourists. Our group felt quite comfortable during the days of being stuck on the island,” Dai said.