Vietnam's biggest high-speed boat cruises southern coast

The boat, Thang Long, was launched Friday in the northern port city of Hai Phong where it was built before traveling to the south to serve passengers there.

As the biggest high-speed boat in Vietnam to date, it has a maximum capacity of 1,017 passengers that it hosts on three floors. A cafeteria serves passengers on the top floor.

The boat will shorten the time to travel between Vung Tau, a beach town that borders HCMC, and Con Dao, a popular tourist island off the province, from 210-240 minutes to just 180 minutes.

Thang Long high-speed boat is launched to serve passengers on the Vung Tau - Con Dao route, May 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Giang Chinh

Costing almost VND200 billion ($8.72 million), it was built by the 189 One Member Co. Ltd, under the Ministry of National Defense and invested in by Phu Quoc Express JSC.

The boat is made of aluminum alloy imported from Italy. It is powered by a 11,580 horsepower (8,635 kW) Rolls-Royce MTU engine.