Con Dao Island receives first international cruise ship after pandemic

By Truong Ha October 2, 2022 | 04:00 am PT

French luxury ship Le Laperouse, carrying 88 passengers, has become the first international tourist ship to dock at the Con Dao Archipelago after two years of Covid-19 disruption.

French ship Le Laperouse seen near Con Dao Islands. Photo by VnExpress/Cuong Tran

The ship arrived at the southern island Saturday after traveling to Indonesia and Singapore.

Passengers visited the infamous prisons where the French colonial administration jailed and tortured Vietnamese patriots and the cemetery where they are buried.

They also went diving to see coral reefs.

They left late Saturday for other Vietnamese localities including Ho Chi Minh City, Nha Trang, Quy Nhon, Da Nang, Hue, Quang Binh and Ha Long.

A foreign tourist from French cruise ship Le Laperouse arrives at Con Dao, October 1, 2022. Photo by VnExpress/Cuong Tran

Con Dao Islands is 185 kilometers off Vung Tau beach town. It has a combined land area of 76 square kilometers and a population of around 10,000 people.