Suoi May stream day: rock pools and a forest BBQ

This is the gentlest forest day we run. It is built for people who want to spend time in moving water and shade rather than cover distance: families with children, friends who want a lazy day together, couples who have done the beaches and want something greener, and older travellers who like the forest but not the climbs. The walking is short and easy. Most of the day is spent in or beside the stream.

It also works for a group split between walkers and non-walkers. If someone prefers to sit on a warm rock with a book while the others swim, that is a normal way to spend the day here.

If you came to Phu Quoc to trek properly, this is the wrong page. Tien Son Peak and the Bat Cave is a real climb with a view at the top, and Trek & Heal is the hardest day we sell. If you are more curious about plants than pools, the Healing Forest walk at Da Ban is the slow, explaining kind of forest day.

Suoi May is a stream, not a swimming pool, and how much water it carries depends on the rains. This is the single biggest thing that changes the day, so we would rather you hear it here than find out on the rocks.

Water levels can change within days. The quote gives you what we know at the time; your guide confirms it again the evening before.

The guide team carries in the food and grills it on the spot. The usual menu is grilled chicken, rice, some seafood and fresh fruit, with drinking water throughout the day. It is a simple, generous lunch cooked outdoors, not a restaurant meal, and it is part of what makes the day feel like a day out rather than a tour.

Tell us in your request about anything you do not eat. Vegetarians, people who do not eat seafood and anyone with an allergy to fish or shellfish should say so; the menu is adjusted and confirmed in your quote.

Alcoholic drinks are not included. Please hand any rubbish to the guide rather than leaving it on the rocks; the stream is used by other people long after we have gone.

Children are welcome on this day, and it is the forest trip that suits them most. In the water they must be supervised by their own adults at all times. Tell us the ages of the children when you book, so the guide plans the swimming spot around the youngest in the group rather than the strongest swimmer.

You do not need to swim to enjoy Suoi May. Non-swimmers can stay on the rocks, sit with their feet in the shallows or paddle at the edge of a pool. Nobody will push you into deeper water.

Stream rules, for everyone

• Follow the guide on the path and at the water. The guide leads, and you stay on the path: snakes live in the forest here, as in any tropical forest, and staying on the path is the simple way to avoid them.
• Wet rock is slippery in every season. Walk on rocks only where the guide says, and never run.
• Do not jump or dive into a pool unless the guide has just checked its depth that day.
• In the rainy months leeches are possible. They are harmless but unpleasant; long socks help, and the guide knows how to remove them.
• Leave plants, stones and animals where you find them.

Payment is 100% at confirmation, by card link or bank transfer. There is no deposit, and nothing is charged before your date is confirmed. Cancel more than 48 hours before the start for a full refund less any card fee; between 48 and 24 hours, 50% is refunded; under 24 hours or no-show, nothing is refunded. If we cancel for weather or safety, you get a full refund or another day.

The pricing page explains how group size changes the price and lists the reference price of every tour. The steps from request to quote to payment are on how to book.

• Swimwear, worn under your clothes, and a change of dry clothes for the drive back.
• A towel. Small quick-dry towels are easiest to carry.
• Shoes that grip on wet rock and can get wet: sports sandals with a back strap or old trainers. Flip-flops are a bad idea on stream rocks.
• Sun cream and a hat for the open stretches of stream.
• Insect repellent, especially from June to November.
• A dry bag or a zip bag for your phone.

The full forest list is on the what to pack page; for this day you can skip the trekking items.

• Anyone looking for a real trek or a workout. The walking is short and easy; book Tien Son Peak or Trek & Heal instead.
• Travellers coming between March and May who will be disappointed by shallow pools. Ask us about your date first; we will tell you honestly.
• Anyone who must have a swim on one fixed date in the rainy season. Heavy rain stops swimming, and the guide will not bend that rule.
• Families who cannot supervise their own children in the water the whole time.
• People who are unsteady on wet, uneven rock and do not want to sit by the water either: there is no way to reach the pools without some rock underfoot.