The Phu Quoc Night Market (Chợ đêm Phú Quốc), also called the Dinh Cau night market, is the island’s busiest evening out: a few hundred metres of stalls in the centre of Duong Dong selling grilled seafood, fruit, ice cream, roasted peanuts, pearls and souvenirs. It is unashamedly a market for visitors, and prices reflect that, but it is lively, safe and fun for an evening — especially after watching the sunset at Dinh Cau next door.
Changes in 2026. The original riverside night market on Bach Dang Street was run under a ten-year lease that ended on 31 December 2025; that section stopped trading after Tet and its stalls were taken down in April 2026 (VnExpress, January 2026; Tuổi Trẻ, April 2026). The night market itself carries on: the Phu Quoc authorities said in April that the island would keep it, and Google Maps reviews from October 2026 describe a busy market every evening in central Duong Dong, near Nguyen Trai Street — though several reviewers found it smaller and shorter than they expected. Other night markets are at Bai Truong (Sonasea) on Long Beach, in Sunset Town and at Grand World.
The essentials
- Where: in the centre of Duong Dong, on Vo Thi Sau and the streets around it near Dinh Cau, by Nguyen Trai Street.
- When: every evening from about 17:00 until around midnight; by 23:00 many stalls are winding down.
- Rating: 4.0 on Google Maps from over 6,600 reviews (October 2026). Visitors love the atmosphere and the seafood; the common complaints are prices and stalls that all sell the same things.
- Getting there: by Grab or taxi. If you come by motorbike, use one of the paid parking lots on the side streets — the market street itself is narrow, crowded and still has the odd motorbike squeezing through.
What to eat
Photo: Hayley, via Google Maps
Seafood is the main event. The seafood restaurants along the market have their catch on ice or in tanks at the front: you choose, they grill or cook it, and you eat at plastic tables. Look for:
- Grilled scallops and oysters with spring onion oil and peanuts.
- Grilled sea urchin (nhum nướng) — a Phu Quoc favourite.
- Squid, grilled or steamed with ginger — usually the best value and the freshest choice.
- Herring salad (gỏi cá trích), the island’s signature dish — see what to eat on Phu Quoc.
Photo: POP NALINRAT, via Google Maps
Beyond the seafood, there is plenty to graze on: tropical fruit and fresh juices, roasted Phu Quoc peanuts in dozens of flavours (most stalls let you taste), Thai-style rolled ice cream, banana and coconut pancakes, and sweet coconut candy.
Ordering seafood without overpaying
The night market is more expensive than eating in town; reviewers repeatedly say the same seafood costs less a few streets away. If you want to eat here, a few habits help:
- Ask the price per kilo before anything is weighed, and watch it go on the scale. As a guide, one couple paid about 680,000 dong for a seafood dinner for two in 2026, and another 1.8 million dong for a kilo of lobster.
- Pick from the tank, not the ice, if you want it live.
- Agree how it will be cooked and whether cooking is extra.
- Check the menu at the front before you sit down — several reviewers found the big sit-down restaurants average, and some of the smaller grills better.
- Choose local species. Squid, scallops, urchins, crab and local fish are what Phu Quoc’s boats bring in; lobster, salmon and abalone are mostly imported.
More advice in our where to eat guide and scams and safety guide.
What to buy
Mostly souvenirs: pearl jewellery, T-shirts, bags, branded “surplus” clothes and shoes, dried seafood and Phu Quoc pepper. Prices are usually negotiable. Two warnings:
- Pearls: cheap strings here are often not real pearls. If you want genuine Phu Quoc pearls, buy from an established pearl farm shop that gives a certificate — see souvenirs.
- Fish sauce cannot go in your carry-on, and airlines limit it in checked baggage — see fish sauce before you buy a bottle.
Visitors have reported stalls using animals, such as a chained monkey, to attract customers. Please do not pay for photos with them.
The other night markets
- Vui-Fest night market, Sunset Town — the night market in Sunset Town, with seafood restaurants such as Octopus Island (4.8 from 250 reviews), beer stalls and souvenirs. Convenient if you are watching the Kiss of the Sea show; see theme parks.
- Sonasea night market — a smaller market in the Sonasea area on southern Long Beach, open from the afternoon until late, handy if you are staying at the resorts there.
Tips
- Go after the sunset at Dinh Cau, then walk over — the two are a few minutes apart.
- Bring small notes; many stalls only take cash.
- Keep an eye on bags and phones in the crowds, as in any busy market.
Ratings, review counts and opening hours: Google Maps, October 2026. Prices: visitor reviews, 2026.
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