The island of Phu Quoc in Vietnam has gone through an unprecedented decade of growth, with the government intent on turning this once sleepy island into a “sleepless city”. I say unprecedented because I have never seen anywhere in Southeast Asia that compares to what is going on here (Sihanoukville in Cambodia would be the […]
Construction Updates
Vung Tau construction update – 2021 edition
Vung Tau is a popular beach resort city in Southern Vietnam. Its proximity to Ho Chi Minh City makes it a defacto beach suburb for the city. In 2020 I did construction reports for the beach cities of Da Nang and Nha Trang, both of which rely heavily on international tourism. You could see first-hand […]
Da Nang construction update – 2020 edition
Da Nang has been booming over the last decade, becoming an increasingly popular tourist destination and central business hub in Vietnam. This growth has come to a grinding halt with the onset of the COVID-19 virus. In 2020 Da Nang recorded negative economic growth for the first time in over 20 years. It’s been especially […]
Ho Chi Minh City construction update – 2020 edition
This is the second annual Ho Chi Minh City construction update (here is the 2019 construction update), and what a difference a year makes. At the end of 2019 Vietnam had recorded over 7% GDP annual growth, capping off a record decade of growth. And then COVID-19 struck. With international travel all but closed down, […]
Nha Trang construction update – 2020 edition
Nha Trang was in the midst of a construction boom in 2019, with Cam Ranh International Airport reaching 10 million passengers for the first time. As I noted in my Vietnam aviation report for 2019, Cam Ranh airport was serving flights to 30 cities in mainland China every week. [Cam Ranh International Airport passenger statistics […]
Ho Chi Minh City Metro 2020 construction update
Ho Chi Minh City is in the process of building its first metro line in a planned 9-line system of metro, light rail, and monorails. As part of the Future Southeast Asia annual construction report series, this article refers to developments over the past year. Here is the 2020 construction update for the approved lines […]
Hanoi Metro 2020 construction update
Hanoi has two metro lines under construction, and when completed they will be the first urban railways in Vietnam. Both lines were due to be open by now, but there have been years of delays that have kept the lines from opening. It’s been a frustrating wait for Hanoians (and regular visitors like myself) to […]
Quy Nhon 2020 construction update
The city of Quy Nhon is a rising tourism destination of the South Central Coast region of Vietnam. Since my last visit in May 2018 there have been many changes, even for a country which is noted for fast changes. The last time I was here Phu Cat (Quy Nhon Airport) was still a domestic […]
Saigon construction update – what to expect in 2019
2018 was a mixed bag for development in Saigon. On the one hand, the Vinhomes Central Park project was completed, with Landmark 81 becoming the tallest tower in Vietnam. At 461.5 metres it claimed the title of being the tallest building in Southeast Asia, overtaking the Petronas Twin Towers by 9.5 metres. It was also […]
