Hà Tiên or Ha Tien is a town (thị xã) in Kien Giang Province

Kien Giang Province

Kiên Giang is a province of Vietnam, located in the Mekong Delta region of southern Vietnam. It is known for fishing and rice farming. The provincial capital is Rạch Giá, 250 km from the Ho Chi Minh City...

, Tay Nam Bo of Vietnam

Vietnam

Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...

. Area: 8,851.5 ha, population (2002): 39,957. The town borders Cambodia

Cambodia

Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...

 to the west.

Hà Tiên is a popular tourist site of the region thanks to its beautiful beaches and landscapes.

History

Hà Tiên was established by a small group of Chinese people mostly men who supported the Ming Dynasty

Ming Dynasty

The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...

 and were opposed to the Qing Dynasty

Qing Dynasty

The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China....

, led by Mo Jiu (Mạc Cửu

Mac Cuu

Mạc Cửu was a Chinese adventurer who played a role in relations between Cambodia and the Nguyen court. He was born in Leizhou, Guangdong. Sometime between 1687 and 1695, the Cambodian king sponsored him to migrate to Banteay Meas, where he at first served as chief of a small Chinese community,...

). When they arrived in Đàng Trong (as southern Vietnam was called while under the rule of the Nguyễn Lords), the Nguyễn Lords ordered the king of the Khmer

Cambodia

Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...

 (then a vassal state of Đàng Trong) to grant land to these Chinese people. These people built markets in this place and turned it into a busy business town. Vietnamese people gradually arrived here. This town later was merged into Vietnamese territory when Mo Jiu delivered its sovereignty to the Nguyễn Lords. Mo Jiu was then conferred the position of ruler of this town.

Transportation

Buses connect Hà Tiên to the provincial capital Rach Gia

Rach Gia

Rạch Giá is the capital city of Kien Giang province, Vietnam. It is located around on the coast of Gulf of Thailand, 250 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City...

 and Chau Doc

Chau Doc

Châu Đốc is a district and town in An Giang Province, bordering Cambodia, in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. As of 2003 the district had a population of 112,155. The district covers an area of 100 km²....

A border crossing between Hà Tiên and Kampot in Cambodia

Cambodia

Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...

 was opened in 2007. The border is 7 km west of Hà Tiên.

Twice daily fast ferry hydrofoil

Hydrofoil

A hydrofoil is a foil which operates in water. They are similar in appearance and purpose to airfoils.Hydrofoils can be artificial, such as the rudder or keel on a boat, the diving planes on a submarine, a surfboard fin, or occur naturally, as with fish fins, the flippers of aquatic mammals, the...

s are available to Phú Quốc Island.