Some 700 visitors who had been stranded on Nam Du, an island off the coast of Kien Hai District in Kien Giang Province, southern Vietnam, for almost four days due to poor weather conditions returned safely to the provincial city of Rach Gia on Tuesday afternoon, a local official confirmed the same day.

The provincial Maritime Port Authority allowed express boat service operators to resume boat trips linking Rach Gia with Nam Du and Phu Quoc, a popular island destination in Kien Giang, after a three-day suspension caused by inclement weather in the area.

Local authorities arranged five express boat trips to bring the stranded tourists back to the mainland, according to Tran Thi Yen Oanh, vice-chairwoman of the administration in Kien Hai’s An Son Commune.

To support the affected tourists during their stay on the island, local tourism-related businesses provided them with free meals and room rate discounts of 30-50 percent.

Speaking to Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, Nguyen Minh Thuy Tien, hailing from Can Tho City, southern Vietnam, appreciated the support that Nam Du residents had offered to the visitor and her family when they were stuck on the island.

Tien and her family traveled to Nam Du on Friday last week but the suspension of express boat services forced them to remain on the island longer than expected.

She elaborated that a local hotel owner offered her family a 50-percent room rate reduction, along with other discounts on meals and travel services.

On Saturday last week, the provincial Maritime Port Authority announced the suspension of the express boat services to Nam Du and Phu Quoc, citing bad weather conditions as the reasons.

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