The southern Vietnamese coastal city of Vung Tau is on track to gain a new high-capacity international cruise port, if a project currently undergoing feasibility studies and investment rounds goes ahead.
The Vung Tau international cruise port development is a proposal by Portcoast-Tediport-Hpec Consortium for luxury cruise ship mooring plus terminal infrastructure, offices, hotels, and retail spaces. Initial rendering images depict a circular marina area with coiling jetties in an Art Nouveau style, as well as a series of organic aerofoil-shaped buildings.
Major southern gateway
Requiring an investment of around VND 8 trillion (€291 million), the project is considered the largest in the southern region, creating a port that is anticipated to become an important southern gateway for the socialist republic in a potential renaissance for the area, which was a major port under French colonial rule, but more recently has been dominated by crude oil and natural gas exploitation. It is seen as a primary port of call for feeder vessels carrying cargo back and forth from Ho Chi Minh City, but it also connects other hubs to global shipping routes and relieves demand on other regional ports.
On the tip of a small peninsula and just a couple of hours from Ho Chi Minh City, Vung Tau boasts four beaches and esoteric attractions such as the local whale-worshipping festivals that take place in honour of a creature considered sacred. Already a destination increasingly found on cruise itineraries, Ba Ria-Vung Tau brought in over 80,000 visitors in 2023. Cruise companies Resorts World and Royal Caribbean International are among the 50 cruise lines that have called there in 2024.
Port, cultural hub and events centre
Set to include piers capable of welcoming 228,000 tonne vessels, which can board up to 6,000 passengers each, the port will also be designed to serve as a cultural hub and events venue, providing a showcase for the area and its produce and boosting the economy of a city that was once the regional capital. Parking zones and naval and maritime services will also be accommodated.
Sited at the Front Beach, the port will aim to capitalise on an existing cable car complex that offers a scenic ride to the top of nearby Nho Mountain, providing breathtaking views of Vung Tau city and the sea.
Approved in principle by the Ministry of Transport, the project must now go through the Ba Ria-Vung Tau People’s Committee’s pre-feasibility process and is seeking approved investors for the port development.