Corridor
Ha Tien ferry + Xa Xia gate is the only practical crossing from the island
Terminal to gate
15 to 20 minutes by car from Ha Tien ferry terminal
to 18:00
Border gate hours, daily, both sides
Door to door
05:30 pickup, back on the island by late afternoon
The route
Why this crossing, and why the morning ferry
Xa Xia is the old name for the Ha Tien international border gate, the Vietnamese side of the crossing that meets Prek Chak in Cambodia's Kampot province. If you are standing on Phu Quoc with a visa that is about to run out, this is your gap in the fence. There is no bridge from the island and no airport run that beats it: a fast ferry to the mainland, a short drive south, a stamp out, a stamp in, and a ferry back before dark.
Leg one
The ferry: Bai Vong port to Ha Tien
Boats to Ha Tien leave from Bai Vong on the island's east coast, not from the pier by Duong Dong night market. From most hotels in Duong Dong the drive to Bai Vong is 30 to 40 minutes, which is why the run's pickups start at 05:30 rather than at a civilised hour.
Two operators do the crossing: Superdong and Phu Quoc Express, both modern express boats that take roughly 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes. Fares sit around 216,000 to 230,000 VND one way for an adult, and both companies put on extra sailings around weekends, Tet and the summer rush. Thanh Thoi runs slower boats on the same route if the fast ferries are full.
| What to expect | Detail |
|---|---|
| Departure port | Bai Vong, east coast of Phu Quoc |
| Operators | Superdong, Phu Quoc Express (Thanh Thoi as backup) |
| Crossing time | About 1h10 to 1h30 |
| Adult fare | Roughly 216,000 to 230,000 VND one way |
| Morning sailings | From about 06:30, with several boats before 09:00 |
| Last useful return | Early afternoon from Ha Tien to Bai Vong |
Leg two
Ha Tien terminal to the Xa Xia border gate
Ha Tien's ferry terminal sits in town, on the river. The border gate is about 8 km out, along a road that runs past market stalls, coconut palms and a few half-finished guesthouses. Fifteen to twenty minutes in a car, and the landscape loosens into flat delta country with the Cambodian hills behind it. Give the leg up to 45 minutes when town traffic is thick and the border has a bus unloading.
A taxi or Grab from the terminal to the gate costs roughly US$3-4, or 80,000 to 150,000 VND if you negotiate in town. What that price does not buy you is certainty. At 08:00 most of the taxis in Ha Tien are working the market, and the ones at the terminal are keen to sell you a full-day wait rather than a single run. Booked cars work the other way round: the driver knows your ferry, meets the boat, waits through the border formalities on the Cambodian side and brings you back to the terminal for the return sailing.
If your run slips and the afternoon ferry goes without you, Ha Tien is a forgiving town rather than a punishing one. Guesthouses near the river run about 300,000 to 500,000 VND a night, the seafood market stays open late, and the first boat the next morning fixes everything. It is an unwelcome extra night, not a crisis.
Leg three
The crossing: out at Xa Xia, in at Prek Chak
The Vietnamese side is the Ha Tien international border gate, still called Xa Xia by plenty of locals and by every map printed before the rename. It opens around 06:00. You hand over your passport at the exit window, get stamped out, and walk across to the Cambodian building at Prek Chak, maybe 500 metres of tarmac with a canopy over part of it. On the other side, the Cambodian officers open around 07:00.
The Cambodia visa on arrival is the part everyone asks about. Officially it is US$30, and in practice most travelers hand over US$35 to US$40 in cash. There is no card machine, no ATM at the gate, and no useful argument. Bring small notes: a US$50 bill and a shrug can turn a ten minute stamp into a long conversation. Two passport photos help, and your passport needs six months of validity left.
One caveat that catches people out: not every Cambodia e-visa is honoured at Prek Chak. Travelers report arriving with an e-visa bought online and paying for a fresh stamp at the window anyway. If you already hold an e-visa, check the entry port list before you sail, and carry the cash as a fallback.
At the gate, in order
- Vietnam exit stamp at the Xa Xia window. Keep the departure card if one is handed to you.
- Walk across to the Prek Chak building. Around 500 metres, no shuttle, no fee.
- Cambodia arrival form and visa on arrival, roughly US$35 in cash. Photos speed it up.
- Turn around on the spot if the run is only about the stamp. Your driver waits.
- Re-enter Vietnam at the same gate with your new e-visa or approval letter printed on paper.
Prek Chak is a quiet crossing. Expect 30 to 45 minutes end to end when no bus has just unloaded, and rather more when one has.
Coming back in
The re-entry stamp is the whole point
A visa run is a two-stamp day. Leaving Vietnam without a fresh visa to come back on lands you at the window with nothing to show, and no amount of explaining changes that. The e-visa application has to be approved before you sail, which is why most people file it two to three days ahead and print the result.
Immigration officers at land borders prefer paper. Have the e-visa document and, if your passport is on an older visa, the supporting approval letter in a folder you can hand over without unlocking your phone at a border window in the sun.
If you are doing the run only to reset a stay and have no interest in Cambodia itself, say so when you book. The driver waits at Prek Chak, you cross back the same morning, and you are on the afternoon boat with time to spare.
The day, hour by hour
What a Phu Quoc to Xa Xia run actually looks like
Times move a little with the season and the ferry operator, but the shape of the day does not change much. This is a real run, not a best case.
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| 05:30 | Pickup at your hotel in Duong Dong, drive to Bai Vong port |
| 06:15 | Check in at Bai Vong. ID and ticket at the counter, bag on the trolley |
| 06:40 | Fast ferry departs for Ha Tien |
| 08:00 | Dock at Ha Tien ferry terminal, car waiting at the gate |
| 08:20 | Drive the 8 km to the Xa Xia border gate |
| 08:45 | Vietnam exit stamp, then the walk across to Prek Chak |
| 09:15 | Cambodia visa on arrival paid in cash, arrival form handed in |
| 10:00 | Back at the Vietnamese window, re-entering on your new e-visa |
| 10:40 | Ha Tien town. Coffee or an early lunch while the driver refuels the day |
| 13:30 | Return ferry leaves Ha Tien for Bai Vong |
| 15:00 | Step off at Bai Vong with a fresh stamp in the passport |
| 16:00 | Drop-off back in Duong Dong. Shower, sunset, done |
Roughly 11 hours door to door. The buffer between 10:40 and 13:30 is deliberate: it absorbs a slow border, a late boat or a missing form.
Honest section
What goes wrong on this run
Bad days here are boring bad days, not dramatic ones. In rough weather the fast ferries get cancelled, and June to October is the season for that. A morning cancellation usually moves you to an afternoon sailing, which breaks the border window for that day and pushes the run to tomorrow.
People also turn up at the wrong pier. Boats for Ha Tien leave Bai Vong, while the pier near Duong Dong handles other routes. Ten minutes of confusion at 06:00 can cost you the sailing, and the next one may not leave early enough for a same-day crossing.
At the border itself, the classic annoyance is a double exit stamp when a booth gets busy, which takes time at a second window to cancel. Show up with the paperwork already printed and in order and you remove most of the ways this day can go sideways.
What to carry on run day
- Passport with at least six months of validity
- Printed Vietnam e-visa or approval letter, plus a phone copy
- US$35-40 in small notes for the Cambodia visa, or the dong equivalent
- Two passport photos
- Water and something to eat: the gap between breakfast and Ha Tien lunch is long
- A hat and sunscreen. The walk between the two border buildings is open sky
Leave the big suitcase at the hotel. Border days are short, hot and easier with a small bag.
Xa Xia questions
Phu Quoc to Xa Xia: quick answers
How long does the Phu Quoc to Xa Xia visa run take?+
About 11 hours door to door. Pickup in Duong Dong is at 05:30, the ferry reaches Ha Tien around 08:00, the crossing happens mid-morning, and the afternoon boat puts you back on the island in the late afternoon.
What are the Xa Xia border hours in 2026?+
Daily from about 06:00 to 18:00 on the Vietnamese side, with Prek Chak on the Cambodian side opening around 07:00. Processing for international travelers winds down by dusk, which is why every run from Phu Quoc uses the first ferries of the day.
Do I get a Cambodia visa at the border, and how much is it?+
Yes. The visa on arrival at Prek Chak runs about US$30-40, paid in cash at the window. Bring small US dollar notes, two passport photos and a passport with six months of validity left. There is no ATM at the gate.
Is the Xa Xia border open to foreigners on foot?+
Yes. Walk-in travelers cross here without a guide or a tour group. The formality takes 30 to 45 minutes when nothing else is queued, plus the 500 metre walk between the two buildings.
Can I do this run without booking a service?+
You can. The ferries are public and taxis wait at the Ha Tien terminal. What you take on is the timing: seats are sold per sailing, the border shuts at 18:00, and the return boat leaves in the early afternoon. One missed connection turns a day trip into a night in Ha Tien plus a second fare.
Does Phu Quoc's 30-day exemption change how I plan the run?+
Yes, and this is the local rule most guides get wrong. Phu Quoc runs its own 30-day visa exemption as a special economic zone, separate from the mainland's 45-day exemption. If you have used your island window, the run plus a 90-day e-visa is the usual fix. Send your passport nationality and arrival date on WhatsApp and we will tell you which case you are in.
Keep reading
Sort the details before run day
Prices for the whole chain are on the cost page, and the booking form on the homepage shows your exact total for a specific date. If you are leaving Phu Quoc for good, the mainland corridors work differently: Ho Chi Minh City runs go through Moc Bai, and Nha Trang uses the same border with its own sleeper bus logistics. The network hub at visarun.vn compares every corridor side by side.
Ferry schedules, border hours and visa fees change without much warning. Everything on this page was checked in 2026. Confirm times for your own date when you book, and treat the numbers as the picture today rather than a promise for next season.