1. APEC 2027 in Phu Quoc - Infrastructure launchpad with national vision
The Summit Week of APEC 2027 in Phu Quoc is a particularly important foreign affairs - economic event, marking a new development for Vietnam in the process of regional and international integration. The focus of the preparations for this event is the APEC Hosting Cluster - an iconic complex of works, where the highest-level international conferences, exhibitions, exchanges, and connections take place.
Invested with a total of VND 21,860 billion, the APEC Hosting Cluster includes the APEC 2027 Convention and Exhibition Center, the Multipurpose Performance House, and APEC Park. This complex is synchronously planned, fully meeting strict standards in scale, function, and security, not only serving APEC 2027 but also as a long-term strategic infrastructure for Phu Quoc in the orientation of developing a regional MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) center.
Construction projects serving APEC 2027 are being urgently carried out.
Around the “heart” of the event is an ecosystem of construction projects serving APEC 2027, implemented synchronously to ensure accessibility, operation, and efficient exploitation. Notably, the expansion project of Phu Quoc International Airport meets ICAO's 4E-level airport standard, increasing its operational capacity to 20 million passengers/year from 2027 and aiming for 50 million passengers/year in the next phase, capable of receiving wide-body aircraft like Boeing 747, 787 or Airbus A350.
Along with that is the provincial road DT.975 directly connecting the airport to the APEC hosting cluster; the APEC avenue, 3 km long with a cross-section of 68 m, leading directly to the event center; and the LRT light rail line with a total investment of nearly 9,000 billion VND, capacity of over 4,500 passengers/hour. These infrastructures form a modern, synchronous connection network, contributing to the overall picture of projects serving APEC 2027 in Phu Quoc.
Within the overall APEC hosting cluster, besides highly functional structures such as the Convention and Exhibition Center or the Multifunctional Performance Hall, there are also spaces created to balance experience and emotion. It is here that APEC Park plays the role of the “breathing space” for the entire complex - a place connecting architecture, landscape, and people, contributing to the completion of the APEC 2027 Convention and Exhibition Center's appearance.
2. Where is APEC Park located and what is its scale?
Within the overall APEC 2027 Convention and Exhibition Center, APEC Park is positioned as an open space playing a connecting role between major structures, while also creating a harmonious balance between architecture, landscape, and human experience.
Not resembling a purely urban park, APEC Park is created with inspiration from the image of a coastal village communal house roof - a familiar symbol in Vietnam's coastal cultural life. The design language aims for familiarity and closeness, evoking a sense of connection between people and nature, between Heaven - Earth - Sea, in line with APEC's spirit of openness and cooperation.
Along the main axis of the park is a symbolic garden representing the economies participating in the conference. This is not only a landscape highlight but also a space with soft diplomatic significance, demonstrating the spirit of diversity, respect for differences, and commitment to sustainable cooperation among countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Multipurpose performance venue located within the cluster of facilities serving APEC, next to APEC Park. (Source: Sun Group)
During the time of APEC 2027, APEC Park will be the venue for side activities, exchange events, reception, and connection among delegates, businesses, and international media. After the conference, the park will continue to be exploited as a public space, serving festivals, cultural-tourism activities, and community life, becoming a soft legacy remaining after APEC.
3. Architecture of the cluster of facilities serving APEC 2027
In the overall structure of the APEC 2027 Convention and Exhibition Center, APEC Park is not considered a supplementary item but a soft connecting space that shapes the experience. This is where the large-scale complex operates harmoniously, balancing architecture, landscape, and people.
APEC 2027 Convention and Exhibition Center
The convention and exhibition center has a total construction floor area of 157,375 m², comprising 4 above-ground floors and 1 basement floor, integrating full functions of conferences, banquet rooms, exhibitions, dinner shows, and restaurants. A special highlight is the exhibition space – ballroom with a column-free span of 81 m, an area of 11,050 m², larger than the current largest ballroom in the world at Caesars Forum (Las Vegas).
The facility can host events for up to 10,000 people, banquet space for up to 5,000 guests, along with a ballroom system of 3,000 m² and 30 small meeting rooms. The international press center is designed to serve 3,000 - 4,000 reporters during the APEC period. In terms of architecture, the Convention Center block is shaped softly like sea waves, embodying the expansive spirit of the Phu Quoc ocean, where modern techniques go hand in hand with local identity.
APEC Convention and Exhibition Center has a capacity of up to 10,000 people. (Source: Sun Group)
Multipurpose Performance Venue
The Multipurpose Performance Venue has a total construction floor area of 67,720 m², comprising 6 above-ground floors and 1 basement, with a capacity of 4,094 seats. The project involved design by world-leading consulting firms such as SOM and Apeiro. The theater is designed as a circular block - a symbol of Heaven - placed next to the square Convention Center - a symbol of Earth, embodying the philosophy of balanced round Heaven - square Earth in Eastern thought. The structure is clad in a shell inspired by dragon scale patterns, evoking the legend of "Children of the Dragon and Fairy", while the theater's roof is supported by 50 pillars symbolizing the 50 children who followed their father down to the sea, carrying the image of bamboo ramparts of a village - the soul of Vietnamese culture.
The interior space is equipped with modern sound and lighting systems, meeting the conditions to host international shows and concerts. After APEC, the multipurpose performance venue will be a cultural and entertainment highlight, a venue for grand music festivals, international film festivals, and events promoting Vietnamese culture to the world.
APEC Park therefore does not exist independently, but is organically integrated with the key structures of the cluster serving the APEC organization - from the Convention and Exhibition Center to the Multipurpose Performance Venue - creating a unified whole in terms of both function and symbolism. The park creates a "soft diplomacy" space, where informal meetings, open dialogues, and cultural exchanges occur naturally. This is an important factor contributing to enhancing the APEC experience, going beyond the framework of traditional sessions.
In the long term, APEC Park becomes a public space of symbolic value, contributing to the completion of the MICE - tourism - cultural ecosystem in Phu Quoc. The project clearly demonstrates Sun Group's philosophy of sustainable development: creating structures that not only serve an event but also create long-term value for the destination and the community.
