HCM CITY  The HCM City Department of Transport plans to launch a high-speed boat service to Côn Đảo Island off Bà Rịa Vũng Tàu Province to meet tourism demand. 

It is set to start on February 23.

The boats will depart from Sài Gòn-Hiệp Phước Wharf Terminal in Nhà Bè District, and take five to six hours to reach Côn Đảo 230 kilometres away.

Trần Song Hải, director of Greenlines DP, which will operate the service, said the company is working on the final preparations and would announce the schedule soon.

"We'll also have boats to transport passengers between Bạch Đằng in District 1 and Sài Gon-Hiệp Phước wharves."

Tickets will cost around VNĐ900,000 one-way.

Currently the only way to travel from HCM City to Côn Đảo Island is by air. Only two carriers fly on the route, their aircraft are small, and fares are high.

So, people often go to Vũng Tàu City or Sóc Trăng Province and take a boat to Côn Đảo.

World-class eco-tourism

à Rịa Vũng Tàu Province has set a goal of developing Côn Đảo into a world-class eco-tourism destination by 2045, heard a seminar held by the provincial People's Committee [provincial administration] in October.

Under the Côn Đảo development project till 2030 with a vision to 2045, the island is expected to become an area that preserves special historical heritage sites, forest and marine ecosystems while fulfilling important missions related to national defence and security.

At the seminar, participants also proposed specific suggestions such as designing eco-tourism products that minimise plastic consumption.

They also suggested creating healing and self-help tourism products, such as meditation and yoga retreats, and the development of volunteer tours, building hotels and resorts that use renewable energy, and education tours for students to learn about marine life, marine ecosystems, and conservation issues.

Côn Đảo is an island located in the southern part of the East Sea, belonging to Bà Rịa Vũng Tàu. It consists of 16 large and small islets, with a total land area of around 75sq.km and a marine area of roughly 140sq.km within Côn Đảo National Park. VNS