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| SPOTLIGHT | | Tropical
beaches and jungle, Wildlife, natural heritage and sun-kissed islands. |
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| Malaysia Most Beautiful Beaches |
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Juara Beautiful Beaches
Life is simple on Juara . The locals speak less English and are much more conservative than elsewhere on the island: officially alcohol isn't served. There's only one sea bus to the kampung from the east coast of Tioman, so at any other time the journey to this isolated bay must be made on foot through the jungle, a steep trek that takes three hours from Tekek. The start of the trail (a five-minute walk from the airstrip) is easy enough to identify since it's the only concrete path that heads off in that direction, passing the local mosque before hitting virgin jungle after about fifteen minutes. There's no danger of losing your way: cement steps climb steeply through the greenery, tapering off into a smooth, downhill path once you're over the ridge. After 45 minutes, there is a waterfall - it's forbidden to bathe here, since it supplies Tekek with water. From the waterfall, it's another hour or so to Juara village. Juara is refreshingly free from the buzz of speedboats and motorbikes, while its lovely wide sweep of beach is far cleaner and less crowded than anywhere on the other side. The bay, however, facing out to the open sea, is the most susceptible on the island to bad weather.
Juara in fact consists of two bays; the northern has a jetty, opposite which the cross-island path emerges. Most of the accommodation and restaurants are here too, although the southern bay does have a few chalets
The start of the trail (a five-minute walk from the airstrip) is easy enough to identify since it's the only concrete path that heads off in that direction, passing the local mosque before hitting virgin jungle after about fifteen minutes. There's no danger of losing your way: cement steps climb steeply through the greenery, tapering off into a smooth, downhill path once you're over the ridge.
After 45 minutes, there is a waterfall - it's forbidden to bathe here, since it supplies Tekek with water. From the waterfall, it's another hour or so to Juara village.
Juara is refreshingly free from the buzz of speedboats and motorbikes, while its lovely wide sweep of beach is far cleaner and less crowded than anywhere on the other side. The bay, however, facing out to the open sea, is the most susceptible on the island to bad weather.
Juara in fact consists of two bays; the northern has a jetty, opposite which the cross-island path emerges. Most of the accommodation and restaurants are here too, although the southern bay does have a few chalets. | |
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Top Beaches |
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 Batu
Ferringhi |
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Batu Ferringhi, a thirty-minute
bus ride west of Georgetown on Transitlink #202 or Transitlink air-con #93 (but
not the standard #93), has a decent beach and several guesthouses, albeit filthy
sea. |
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| Teluk
Bahang |
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The beaches around this rocky
headland are better than the ones at Teluk Bahang itself, but since the big hotels
run boat trips out here, it's unlikely that you'll have them to yourself. |
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| Air Batang |
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A fifteen-minute trail
leads over the headland to the north, which - after an initial scramble - flattens
out into an easy walk, ending up at secluded Penuba Bay. From here, it's an hour's
walk to Monkey beach, beyond which is Salang. |
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| Juara |
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Juara is refreshingly
free from the buzz of speedboats and motorbikes, while its lovely wide sweep of
beach is far cleaner and less crowded than anywhere on the other side. The bay,
however, facing out to the open sea, is the most susceptible on the island to
bad weather. |
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| Mukut Beach |
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Mukut , a tiny fishing
village on the south coast, lies in the shadow of granite outcrops. Shrouded by
dense forest, and connected to the outside world by a solitary card phone, it's
a wonderfully peaceful and friendly spot to unwind, though be warned that this
is still a conservative place, unused to Western sunbathing habits. |
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| Salang Beach |
Salang is a
quieter option with a better beach, but there has been a lot of development recently
and the string of hostels stretches pretty much the whole length of the seafront;
prices tend to be a little higher than at Air Batang.
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| Pasir Bogak |
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Only a few of the chalets
front the beach itself; most line the road that continues north along the west
coast, but they're all reasonably close to the sea. |
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| Teluk Ketapang And Teluk Nipah |
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The
best beach at Teluk Nipah is Coral Bay - a perfect cove with crystal-clear sea
and smooth white sand. The bay is inaccessible by road and to reach it you have
to climb over the rocks at the northern end of Teluk Nipah (watch the tide). |
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| Nipah Beach |
| Comprising a clean, empty
beach of coarse, yellow sand and a landlocked lagoon, there's no village to speak
of here, but there is a Dive Centre and canoeing. |
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| Pantai Cenang Beach |
The bay forms
a large sweep of wide, white beach with crisp, sugary sand, but again the water
here won't win any prizes for cleanliness.
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| Tekek Beach |
| The sprawling
village of Tekek is the main settlement on the island and the least inspiring
part of Tioman.
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| Perhentian Besar Beach |
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stunning conglomeration of three beaches, separated from the main area of accommodation
by rocky outcrops and reached only by speedboat, it provides a secluded haven
between May and September for green and hawksbill turtles to come ashore and lay
their eggs. |
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| Perhentian Kecil Beach |
East-facing
Long Beach has been the target of most development on Kecil, not surprisingly,
since it boasts a wide stretch of white beach and good coral nearby.
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| Pantai Kok And Telaga Tujuh |
| Pantai
Kok lies on the far western stretch of Langkawi and is the best beach on the island,
a large sweep of powdery white sand with relatively clear and shallow water -
quieter and more secluded than Cenang and more intimate in feel. |
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