Perhentian Besar Island

Split into two separate islands, Besar (“Big”) and Kecil (“Small”), each Perhentian offers a specific brand of relaxation. Besar is the more isolated of the two and as its name would suggest, is bigger in size. Beaches dot the circumference of the island but the centre is a tangled maze of forest and jagged rock. The resorts on Besar are more expensive and cater mostly to couples or newlyweds. In contrast, Kecil’s two main beaches are perfect for the backpacker set, with the quieter Coral Bay a sunset-watching haven and Long Beach renowned for its partying and, unfortunately, for petty theft. Opposite to the Gili Islands in Indonesia or Thailand’s aquamarine Andaman coast, there was considerably less alcohol on the Perhentian Islands — at least in 2009! There were some bars on Long Beach, but the cost and limited selection means that most tourists bring their own poison or forgo it altogether. While there was one evening of an under-the-table purchase of cheap Malay vodka (big mistake), most of my time on Perhentian Kecil was dry, and it was nice to get up early and fully enjoy my days in the sun with no hangover to speak of.

Those travellers less enthusiastic about local wildlife should be warned: there were plenty of monitor lizards, poisonous spiders and geckos to be found. While I could do without the monitor lizards and the spiders, I loved watching the geckos hop around the ceiling in search of mozzies, and would leave my outside light on when I left for dinner to get them some tasty treats. And then there is the wildlife under the sea. Huge sea turtles, clownfish, big blue-spotted rays and black-tipped reef sharks are plentiful. Most of the resorts on Kecil have their own snorkel rental and day-long snorkeling trips, which are well worth it. A highlight: climbing and jumping off of a tall lighthouse and into the deep sea below.

For the scuba-divers, there are several diving outfits on each of Coral Bay and Long Beach who will take you out to “the Pinnacle”, a stretch of land jutting upward from the seabed and the surrounding Malaysian islands. All in all, my weeks on the Perhentians were perfect: my toenails managed to grow back after my Agung climb, I enjoyed my time on the beach and in the sea and I left completely relaxed and ready to conquer my next destination.

This property is 1 minute walk from the beach. Surrounded by tropical greenery, steps from the beach, Perhentian Island Resort offers a variety of water activities and charming wooden bungalows with private balconies. It provides free Wi-Fi, an outdoor pool and tennis courts.

Situated along the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, Perhentian Resort is a 30-minute speedboat ride from Kuala Besut pier. The coral reef located 10 m from the beach offers great snorkeling opportunities. Views of the beach or landscaped grounds can be enjoyed from private balconies, while the air conditioned rooms provide the convenience of tea/coffee making facilities. Select rooms have a bathtub in private bathrooms.

Perhentian Resort can arrange diving and fishing trips. After a day of activity, guests can indulge with a relaxing massage. The resort also provides karaoke rooms, beach volleyball and soccer facilities.Enjoy stunning views of Teluk Pauh Beach while sampling local specialties and Western dishes at Pinang Seribu Restaurant. The Beach Kiosk offers a beachfront dining experience, serving grilled dishes. 

This property also has one of the top-rated locations in Perhentian Island! Guests are happier about it compared to other properties in the area. We speak your language!

Perhentian Island Resort has been welcoming Booking.com guests since Jan 19, 2011

Perhentian Kecil Island

What’s the diving like?

Perhentians scuba diving is excellent – It has a collection of 10 or so dive sites, the max depth of which is around 24 metres. Highlights include two shipwrecks, the Vietnamese Wreck, which is upside down, and the Sugar Wreck, which is lying on its side with two cranes still attached to its deck. There is also the labyrinth of rocks and boulders known as T3 (Terumbu Tiga) and the pinnacle which is variously called Temple and, er, The Pinnacle. The reef in D Lagoon is excellent for a long, shallow dive too.

What can I expect to see underwater?

Over the four days I was diving at the Perhentians I saw several turtles, a black tip shark, triggerfish, tiny yellow boxfish (deeply cute), huge puffafish (up to half a metre in length), razorfish, octopus, schools of barracuda, jacks, fusiliers and travallies, a squadron of squid close to the surface and a truly giant moray eel.

These are the things I haven’t seen but was told about: There have been sightings of the shovelnose guitarfish at T3 on occasion, and a couple of divemasters found a seahorse by going off one of the wreck dive sites; big marble rays and cobias are also spotted too. Apparently a few years ago a solitary manta was occasionally seen around the islands, possibly lost on its way to the Philippines – no-one’s quite sure.

What’s the setup for diving?

Very laidback – all diving is done from small wooden skiffs which run straight off the beach. Carry your gear down to the boat, motor out to the dive site within 20 minutes (remember suncream!) , backroll entry and that’s it. Morning dives are around 8.30 am, afternoon dives around 1.30pm

Do you recommend a specific dive shop?

Yes, I would unreservedly recommend Turtle Bay Divers on Long Beach, who I dived with during my stay. They are one of the longest-running operations on the islands and have an excellent setup. Their scuba gear is new and well-maintained, their boats and shop are efficient and the staff are very helpful and knowledgable, which tends to make or break whether a dive operation is any good or not. [Full disclosure: Turtle Bay gave me free dives as I writing for Asian Diver magazine]

Where can I stay?

The Perhentian Islands are divided into Perhentian Kecil (Small Island) and Perhentian Besar (Big Island). Besar is more family orientated and a bit more upmarket and quieter. Long Beach on Kecil is the backpacker beach. with the most going on in terms of apres-dive partying. I saw several other small beaches around the islands where you can also stay, but bear in mind getting a boat is usually the only way of moving between beaches, so you probably won’t want to move around much.

If you’re looking to book Perhentian accommodation, check out the reviews of Perhentian resorts and guesthouses on Agoda, where you can also book online.

There’s also a bunch of hotels on Palau Redang, around 45 minutes away from the Perhentians and a great dive spot in its own right. Have a look at the Berjaya Redang Beach Resort, the Aryani Resort, the Tanjong Jara hotel and the Primula Beach resort.

How can I get there?

Fly into Kota Bharu from Kuala Lumpur (a 50 minute flight) with AirAsia. Then get a cab direct from the city airport to Kuala Besut, a town on the coast. The taxi takes around an hour and costs 50 RM. From here you can get a speedboat out to the Perhentian Islands – the boat takes about half an hour (Return ticket 30 RM). Boats run out to the islands until around 6pm. Arriving on the islands as early as you can is advisable as accommodation can be scarce later in the day unless you’ve booked ahead. Accommodation is around 50 to 80 RM for a wooden hut with en suite bathroom.

What should I take?

The Perhentian Islands are still quite basic so you need to bring everything with you besides food and water – mosquito repellent, suncream, sunglasses and a hat are all very advisable. The Perhentians lies in the strict Islamic district of Teranngu and while the islanders are very laid back, alchohol is very pricey by usual Asian standards – RM8 per beer. Stashing a bottle of spirits might be a good idea before you set out.

Salang Beach

"I've visited Tioman a few times and have stayed with Salang Sayang family rooms. Staying in Singapore has certainly given us advantage. A short 2 hour drive brought us to Mersing Jetty where we could park our car safely for few dollars per day. Another 2.5hours ferry ride will bring us to Salang. We enjoyed Salang as there are more choice for restaurants and snorkeling easily accessible from beach.

There is always downside to wonderful destination. Accommodation in Salang is sub-standard. Don't expect 4 star hotel service. Rooms or rather chalets are very basic and do note that not all amendities in the room are in good condition. The shower heater burst on us on our second day while my son was taking his bath. The shower head hung on the floor as there is no latch to it. Toilet paper holder had came off, therefore we could only placed the toilet paper on top of the flusher. The tap on the washing basin had came loose, such that whenever you turned the tap, it will move with you.

What is most disturbing is the sand flies. We did not encounter them during our previous visits. However it was plentiful in September. We got nasty bites even after using insect repellent. We observed and realised that most patrons on the beach were with at least few bites, so we guess it is not only us. We are not sure if it is due to season or its just there nowadays. Our previous visits are mostly during May and June.

I have mixed feeling for Tioman. Will I return. My answer is probably yes as it is easy from Singapore. But my answer will probably be no for those who takes great pain to get there. 

I will be giving it one more try. If sand flies persist, I will write off Salang from my list as they really cause too much discomfort and pain."

"I was a bit wary about picking Salang Sayang due to the mixed reviews earlier, but I decided to go for it anyway as I thought I was only going for 2 nights and if it was truly grotty, I could find somewhere else to stay.The good points first: As the previous reviewer said, Salang Sayang is situated slap bang where the best part of the beach is. It's shallow enough for adults or kids to walk quite a long way out into the sea and is great for snorkelling as there is plenty of fish, even near the shore. We had a great balcony from which we'd sit and drink beers in the evening or just watch the monkeys scarpering around and the occasional monitor lizard strolling along the path. 

The not so good points: There was a mix-up with the room reservation -- I had booked the air-conditioned, Banana Hill room but this was mistakenly given to someone else. Miss Pisa was very apologetic and she said she'd give us a triple room that was free but charge us the same price as the Banana Hill. While supposedly bigger, the triple room was --to put it very nicely -- extremely basic. the level of cleanliness was just about bearable and I tried not to spend too long in the bathroom. There was no hot water and the toilet seat came right off the toilet. It may be that there were much nicer chalets at Salang Sayang and we may have been unlucky to have had one that has been somewhat neglected. Like I said, it was ok for two nights (if we had been staying for longer, I think I would have requested a different room or gone somewhere else) and we spent most of the time outdoors. Overall, I wouldn't completely write off Salang Sayang as a potential place to stay (the staff were nice and there's the great beach nearby) but I'd look at what other choices of rooms there are first

"Took quite a while to get pass work and other commitments before I finally got to Tioman island! Since this was my 1st time, I've tried to research by gathering words of mouths through personal relations and googling to look for the best "where X hits the spot" match so to speak. As my standard rules of thumb apply, I've ruled out 5 star creature comforts out of the equation and had chosen Salang Sayang specifically based on those criterias. Plus numerous online accounts had somewhat focused on Salang beach at anything's Tioman so that's why I flipped the coin to the place. It's important to do so since Tioman is quite expansive with 5 different fishing villages as locations for most resorts.This time it took me 3 business days to get past the e-mails' quirks. Miss Pisa from Salang Sayang had probably forgotten to add that I should have called in to secure my chalets' reservations in her last e-mail reply but luckily I kinda got a whiff of that. I don't blame her at all as she had probably gotten confused since my inquiries was mostly revolved around the 2 nights' package and since we planned the trip in a small group of 4 we weren't qualified for that. But it took just a call to clear the air and for me to place my name on the reservations' list. 9/10 points from me there.

 It was roughly 10.30am when our boat arrived to Salang's jetty. Thanks to some helpful Mersing jetty's staff tips, we were able to locate a BIG signboard to look out for Salang Sayang. Almost half a day's worth of journey's fatigue trickled easily off our backs when we walked below the "Welcome" arch and saw families and other guests out and about on the beach, front of Salang Sayang's restaurant. A very, very uplifting scene to say the least. Miss Pisa was manning the desk so it was a relief when she quickly checked us in and informed us that we should allow some 15-20 minutes duration for our chalets to be prepped. We had no issues there as this had came off as an opportune request for us to soak up a bit of an introductory air of Salang Sayang as we proceeded to a free table at the restaurant and ordered some breakfast. The beach was so nice that we didn't realize we had spent a good 45 minutes staring and talking about it right through breakfast. We got the keys and walked to our chalets by Miss Pisa's directions and we were nicely greeted with the sight of the little garden where out chalets were located. It's well manicured and planted with some exotic flower plants that I couldn't identify really. We had chosen to go with chalets w/ fan (non-AC). The chalet was equipped with a decent enough double bed, a cheap vanity table that serves its purpose well enough, well hung mozzie net, a tad noisy with NO speed control (Salang Sayang people should take note of this seriously, it was effing noisy), electric wall fan and an attached bath with cold shower (No complains here. 24/7 running water and a clean toilet gets 10 points from me) though the door was with a broken plastic slide lock. Oddly enough there wasn't a single clothes hook to speak of in my chalet, in the room or bath but a string clothes' hang place out on the balcony. Out on the balcony there's thoughtful additions of individual brooms and water pipes at the bottom of the steps. Handy to wash off those excess sand off the feets and sandals. 2 plastic lounge chairs and a coffee table completes the picture along with a balcony light. Not that there's much use of the light but a handy thing anyway if you need to chill out at the balcony at nights. For RM70.00/night currently, I've seen worse don't worry.

On the outdoor to crowd ambience aspect, it's good to note that Salang Sayang can cover the base as long as it can cope with its guests' counts. People from the opposite northern end of Salang tends to flock over to Salang Sayang's beachfront (yeah it's that nice) for some sun worshiping etc but nothing gets out of hand as there's ample space for everyone. At least that's through my observations on this trip and this is well into the peak season. What to do there? Light snorkeling off the beach are possible along with some fun in the sun along the likes of beach volleyball and soccer. The latter though was nowhere to be witnessed during my stay but there's goal cages set aside for the purpose. It's pretty much kids-safe and there isn't any regular appearances of mozzies (we didn't use the net at all and I slept "commando" with no adverse effects thankfully). Ran into 1 monitor lizard (quite a big almost over a meter's length) trying to cross the concrete bridge leading up to Salang Sayang that last wee early morning but it was harmless as it was quick to make its getaway. There's a lone macaque (monkey) that seems to be prone at choosing Salang Sayang but it's not aggressive and seems to be allergic to childrens' howling that it'll scamper off quickly.The place is spot on for families or people with "quieter" inclinations such as any prolonged intentions of beach side reading sessions and/or sun bathing. Now this is where I draw the conclusive lines. Readers should assess that although I've rated Salang Sayang as "above average" (look at the ratings), this can wildly vary when you factor in some more circumstances accordingly to your expectations. Our ultimate intentions for a fitting time filler was snorkeling as we're no divers. Paid a good amount of RM70.00 per head inclusive of gears and got 4 stops with an hour each. Duration-wise it's a good value but other than that I must say that it's a tough call. Why? Luckily the 1st 3 stops centered around Tulai's (called Coral Island by Salang's people) snorkeling spots was OK at best. Corals are fast approaching dead status and there wasn't much fish to be seen. Maybe it's a seasonal thing and/or we had missed our window but that's what my findings are in that aspect. Diving types should consult with well placed dive centers (more like dive huts if you ask me but hey it works) scattered along Salang beach. For the best bang per buck value, you'd want to book a minimum of 3 nights, chalets' ONLY deal at Salang Sayang. For gastronomy concerns, that's why my suggestion is to stick away from packages as there's enough restaurants on Salang for you to compare and try. Salang beach are known to be as the bit more "happening" part in Tioman but don't worry because Salang Sayang are well away off the places. Not too far but still a brisk walk is necessary to get to the said restaurants and bars.

Coral Bay

An upbeat holiday spot

Coral Bay is a lively seaside town on Cyprus’ west coast, nestled among banana plantations and vineyards. A long main strip runs through the town centre and along the waterside, offering up rustic tavernas and a handful of cheery cocktail bars. And when it comes to length, the sandy beach measures up pretty well, too.

Blue Flag beaches

Coral Bay boasts a peaceful white sand beach backed by limestone cliffs. The shallow turquoise waters make swimming super safe on this Blue Flag beach, and there are plenty of bars dotted along the front. Shuttle buses run every 15 minutes to the quieter Potima Bay, a large expanse of beach with sunloungers, umbrellas and a couple of beach bars.

Daytrips to Paphos Town

It’s a 15-minute drive to Paphos Town. There are mosaics dating back 2,000 years at Kato Paphos Archeological Park. Just a short stroll from there is Paphos Castle, a Byzantine structure right on the water which you can walk around. You’ve also got the fascinating Tomb of the Kings to see. At night you can saunter down Agiou Antoniou Street and drop into one of the quieter tavernas for a glass of Keo beer.

On a picturesque peninsula at Coral Bay in the west of Cyprus and just a few steps away from the beach lies the SENTIDO Thalassa Coral Bay in a peaceful setting.  Just 100 m away is the sandy Coral Bay Beach which for many years running is awarded the blue flag nomination.  Here you can be lazy and enjoy the sun of Cyprus or an active holiday engaging in water sports. Sun loungers and water sports activities are available at a charge. Nearby is Coral Bay where you can find several restaurants and bars.  Paphos, which is famous for its ancient Tombs of the Kings, the Archaelogical Park by the quaint harbour housing the internationally well-known mosaics of Leda and the Swan and the fantastic Aphrodite Waterpark are only few of the options available for a day outing.  The town centre with a large number of cafés, bars, tavernas and shops is about 5 km away.  Also worthwhile is an excursion to the Agios Neophytos monastery which lies some 10 km away in the rolling hills around Paphos nestled among vineyards where you can learn more about the Greek Orthodox culture. The distance from the SENTIDO Thalassa Coral Bay to Paphos International Airport is 30 km.

The hotel SENTIDO Thalassa Coral Bay offers one restaurant and two bars.

The hotel's main restaurant "Ambrosia" provides you with all-inclusive buffets and à-la-carte dishes by offering a wide selection of live cooking stations where you can choose from. Breakfast (07.00 am - 10.30 am), Late Breakfast (until 12.00 noon), lunch (01.00 pm and 03.00 pm), snacks (03.30 pm and 05.30 pm), and dinner (07.00 pm and 10.30 pm) are offered in this restaurant throughout the day. Once a week, there is a culinary themed evening. At the Blue Bar (10.00 am - 12.00 midnight) and the Ipokambos Beach Bar (11.00 am - 03.00 pm) you can enjoy a refreshing drink from our all-inclusive beverage menu while gazing across the crystal clear waters of Coral Bay.

Guests of the hotel SENTIDO Thalassa Coral Bay can choose between Bed & Breakfast, Half Board, Full Board and All Inclusive.*

*Please note that the above mentioned times and All Inclusive content are subject to change without prior notice. You will be informed about the current times and All Inclusive offerings upon your arrival.

You can indulge yourself in moments of relaxation in the Anagenissis Spa, the hotel’s own wellness centre. Sauna, whirlpool, steamroom and various massage treatments are available here. The treatments are against charge.

In the nice outdoor pool area you can take a swim with breathtaking views. An indoor pool is located within the hotel building and is heated during the winter months. Sun loungers and umbrellas are available at the pool.

The sandy Coral Bay beach is located only 100 m away from the hotel. The beach has been awarded with the Blue Flag for many years. Sun loungers and parasols are provided against charge here.

The fitness studio in the SENTIDO Thalassa Coral Bay with its modern equipment offers the opportunity for a daily workout. A tennis court is available on the hotel grounds and four 18-hole golf courses are located nearby.  At the beach there are various water sports & activities on offer (against charge). The engaging staff at the reception as well as your Holiday Concierge are at your disposal to help you with bicycles hire or rental cars in order to discover the coastline, which is marked by banana plantations and rocky cliff formations.

Juara Beach

Juara has pristine beaches, lush greenery and beautiful coral reefs. It is found on the East of Tioman Island, and unlike the west, this beach is less populated and is great for those looking for some seclusion and peace. In addition, Juara is one of the several major landing spots for nesting sea turtles, so be sure to look out for them while you're there!

If someone told you to imagine a tropical paradise, then you would probably think of South East Asia, a vast region filled with idyllic tropical islands. Then you would immediately conjure up images of white sand beaches framed by lush, tropical jungle, palm trees swaying in a warm breeze and clear cerulean seas filled with wildlife. Then you would try to forget the hordes of package tourists and concrete hotels and resorts that are infesting more and more of these islands every year and try to imagine instead a local village atmosphere, with just a few small beach huts to stay in and barely another soul around.

You would be imagining Juara beach.

Juara is a small beach, hidden away on the East side of Tioman island in Malaysia, and unlike the more commercially developed and busier towns and beaches on the islands Western coast, it has still managed to retain that elusive small village atmosphere and has limited development along its long stretch of curved coastline.It is a little difficult to get to, which is probably one of the reasons it isn’t as popular or busy as some of the other beaches, but after making the effort to reach it I was totally blown away by how secluded and isolated it felt, exactly what I was after and I was so glad I did! Apart from the local villagers – who were extremely friendly – I could count the other backpackers and travellers I met during my week there on one hand and still have fingers to spare, and I spent my self imposed exile in blissful peace and quiet, enjoying jungle walks and reading a book on a stunning white sand beach that I had all to myself most of the time! All those Robinson Crusoe fantasies had finally come true!

The beach itself is very loosely divided by a small headland of rocks and is considered to be two separate beaches, but it is still technically one long stretch of stunning beach and you can easily walk along it and cross from north to south without any problems. If you are lucky – as I was most days – then you can walk from one end to the other without seeing a soul and then simply relax on your very own piece of paradise with a good book and no one else around! If the peace and quiet get a bit much for you, the swimming and snorkelling is absolutely amazing! Be careful though if you are heading into the ocean in the monsoon season there can be jellyfish about and some strong riptides can start to pick up making conditions a little less favourable, but not impossible to enjoy.

I was there in what was technically the off season at the time so that probably helped make my dream of having the place almost entirely to myself a reality, and now I’m telling you all about it I’ve probably contributed to ruining it forever, so hush! Keep it to yourselves!

There are a few small beach hut operations spread out along the beach, so that you can walk along the beach itself or the long paved road that follows the coastline a little inland without the place ever feeling too built up or crowded. There is a small convenience shop and a small restaurant that specialises in fresh fish caught just off shore (as well as doing some of the best fish sambal and rice I have ever tasted!) and a great little treehouse bar that is very laid back and loves playing the ubiquitous backpacker soundtrack (basically an old Bob Marley CD). It helps that Tioman island is a duty free zone so alcohol is very cheap here compared to the conservative Singapore and Malaysian mainland. If you end up staying after sundown make sure you have a torch on you to help you get back home as there are no streetlights along the concrete path to the beach huts

For those of you who feel the need for a little mild exercise there are easy hikes through the jungle with trails marked with red and yellow markers on the trees. There is a gorgeous waterfall an easy twenty minutes walk up hill that is perfect for a swim and cool down, and there are plenty of other hikes or walks to other parts of the island for those with a mind to walk further.

How to get there.

Juara beach is accessible by a long road from Tekek that essentially cuts straight through the jungle. This used to be a simple dirt road that could only be passed by a four wheel drive vehicle or on foot, but now that has been replaced with something resembling a normal concrete road that most vehicles can pass on.

Once you get off the ferry at Tekek, you will immediately be faced with the 4WD taxi mafia. These are basically drivers who have colluded to jack up the prices to extortionate rates far beyond what is reasonable, because they know most people will have no choice but to pay. Haggling is generally useless as they are all pretty much in cahoots. They charge per person as well, which is just a way for them to get more money.

If you are lucky, there will be a local heading across the road in their own car, and you can ask them to take you for much less than the taxi mafia are demanding.

Another way if you are relatively fit and feeling up to a long walk is to trek on the same road across to Juara beach. It isn’t difficult, the road is concrete and flat, but it is hot and will take a good few hours. Take plenty of water.

You can also get a speedboat to take you from Tekek or one of the other beaches to Juara, but it is seriously expensive!

Basically it is either a hassle or relatively expensive to get over to Juara beach, but it is totally worth it whichever way you choose. Yes it is a pain in the backside, but this hassle is what has led most people to simply head up to ABC beach or Genting, and is keeping Juara beach relatively quiet and undeveloped, so you can’t complain too much at it! Besides, they do say the bigger the effort the bigger the reward, and that is certainly true in the case of Juara Beach!