Pulau Tioman The Great Destination

Vacation To Malaysia

Great Malaysia island destination: The beaches of Pulau Tioman

BY: Barbra Stuter

A close ferry ride away from hustle and bustle of civilization is a perfect tropical beach getaway with fantastic resorts, great snorkeling and superb beaches. Located about 20 miles off the east coast of Malaysia, the sparsely populated Pulau Tioman is covered with dense rainforest, surrounded by coral reefs and holds a special place in my memories – primarily for the variety of wildlife that I have run into there. While living in Singapore, this beautiful Malaysian island was one of my favorite places to go for a weekend getaway and an escape from the city.

Nearly every time I have visited Tioman, I have stayed at the Berjaya. You will find varying reviews of this resort, but I always found my stays there to be quite enjoyable. I like the Berjaya, primarily for its proximity to both the airport and the ferry dock, but also because Pulau Renggis is directly off shore from the property (more on that later). It is a close taxi ride to the night life in Salang Beach and it is also within walking distance of Kampung Telak where you can get some good local food and do a little shopping if that is your pleasure.

Pulau Renggis is the tiny island you can see off the shore of Tioman in my pictures, and is a fantastic place for snorkeling and diving. I have seen any number and variety of beautiful corals and colorful tropical fish out there, but the most memorable were black tip reef sharks and cuttle fish. Seeing the sharks was thrilling, but the cuttlefish might still be the most fantastic marine animal I have ever seen in Tioman or anywhere else. When I first saw it, it was a mottled brown color, and just cruising slowly through the water. As my diving partner pointed it out, it immediately dove to the sandy bottom. As it settled near the bottom, it immediately changed color to match the sand, which was nearly white. The color change happened as rapidly as flipping a light switch. As I continued towards it to get a closer look, it started flashing what looked like neon concentric blue circles all over its body, obviously designed to scare me off. Worried that I was distressing the animal, I moved away and it scuttled off. It was really, truly fantastic to see and something I will never forget. You can see a cuttlefish towards the end of this video taken out at Pulau Renggis.



The distance between Tioman and Pulau Renggis is swimmable, but you are crossing boat traffic so you have to be careful – and quick! You can also arrange a trip out there by long boat, but I have never managed to be on the boat for the return (ahem -pay attention to your time). Again, with flippers it is absolutely swimmable, so enjoy yourself and don’t worry.

The wildlife is just as amazing out of the water as well. On one of my first trips to Tioman I was sunning on a lounge chair and happened to spy a GIANT lizard hanging out by the fake waterfall cascading into the pool I was sunning by. This creature had to be 3’ long from nose to tail. I exclaimed to the waiter bringing me a frosty beverage “Oh My GOD! What is that?” His reply was… “A snack”. Apparently the monitor lizards are a local delicacy and I can only imagine that they must taste like chicken.


We also had the good fortune to see some beautiful flying fox bats as we were enjoying our evening libations under the trees by the beach. They swooped into the tree we were sitting under, and proceeded (upside down of course) to crawl all over the the tree looking for fruit. Very cool. I have also seen many Palm Civets, which are kind of a cross between a cat and a monkey, with big giant eyes and a long fluffy tail. At least I think that’s what they were.

Don’t let me forget the beaches of Tioman, for after all – that is why we came, right? The beaches have the fine sand required for sandcastle building, and it is sort of a well, sandy color. Not the blinding white of so many tropical islands. There can also be quite a bit of seaweed at times, season and tides depending. Tioman is an island completely surrounded by white coral reefs and crystal clear waters. This provides visitors with excellent snorkelling off any beach, including these below.

Salang Beach – the most popular due to its nightlife. Very crowded during high season.
Monkey Bay – the whitest sand and the best spot to jump off for diving or snorkeling.
Panuba – very quiet and exclusive with sparsely populated beaches.
Juara – on the east side of the island is largely untouched and your best spot for viewing wildlife. One of the many great hikes on the island is from Telek to Juara.

Tioman is easily accessible by ferry from either Singapore (4.5 hours) or Mersing on the Malaysian mainland (1 to 1.5 hours, depending on type of ferry). Berjaya air has daily flights to Tioman from Singapore’s Seltar airport and from Kuala Lumpur. I have made the trip both by sea and by air from Singapore, and I have to say the $100 plane fare was definitely worth saving four hours of travel by ferry.

The Beauty and Fun Sibu Island's Resort

Vacation To Malaysia
By SHARON OVINIS on Thestar.com


MAGINE your tanned skin glistening under the scorching sun, beads of sweat trickling down your forehead; but you welcome the perspiration as it cools down your body.

You’ve worked hard to reach the pinnacle of success and you’re not going to let a little humidity dampen your spirit. You know only too well that you’ve got to do it all on this three-day, two-night vacation. So you soak in the sun as you take long walks on the sandy white beaches, ride the banana boat and swim in the deep blue sea.

This is no imaginary trip. Sibu Island Resort, Johor, will be whisking 10 lucky winners from The Star-Pizza Hut’s Newspaper-in-Education contest, to this privately-owned island off the east coast of Malaysia.

Teams clinching the top spot in the Mag Inc 2009 contest from the upper secondary and primary categories are in for an idyllic getaway after toiling hard on their three-page mini magazine entries on the theme of teenage angst.

Sibu Island Resort has opened its doors to the world with a fresh look, heralding a new dawn to island adventurers. The resort has had a masterful make-over — 121 timber chalets refurbished and upgraded to luxurious accommodation and land reclamation to provide three stretches of pristine beaches.



With the construction of its own water desalination plant, the resort now boasts a constant supply of clean, fresh water — the first project of its kind on any island in Malaysia.

The island is easily accessible from Johor Baru by road at only one-and-a-half hours’ drive. From the Tanjung Leman jetty, the trip to Sibu Island is but 20 minutes on a comfortable air-conditioned, 50-seater twin-hulled catamaran.

At the resort, students and teachers are promised an island-spiced holiday with an integrated experience. Their days will, no doubt, be filled to the brim with both active fun and laid-back indulgence, from dawn till dusk.

The resort’s 27 hectares (67 acres) of natural surroundings feature a myriad of activities that are designed to challenge the mind, strengthen the body and build cohesive bonds. Not only is the island a perfect safe haven from the hustle and bustle of the city, its environment is rife with team-building pursuits such as telematches, adventure games and obstacle course programmes.

If students cannot get enough of the sea and salt water in their hair, then there is scuba diving, wind surfing, jet skiing, boat cruising, canoeing, snorkelling, fishing and island hopping.



Plan to unwind from the sand and surf? Then, explore the island at your own pace and discover charming surprises in store. The grounds and gardens offer a tranquil backdrop for jungle-trekking, deer-feeding and spice gardening.

If it’s a more rigorous workout that you’re up for, then pump those arms and flex those muscles at The Gym, dance to aerobics or jog around the resort.

And nothing can sound a whole lot better than a soak at the sauna to soothe those sore muscles afterwards. Or else there is the wide range of therapies and massages to be checked out at The Tropical Holistic Spa.

The resort isn’t without its culinary versatility. Students and teachers will be treated to island fare that is designed to excite the discriminating Malaysian palate.

Options are aplenty as there are barbecues by the beach, diverse Malaysian specialities, theme night parties and more. The Selayar Restaurant and the open-terrace Lumba-Lumba Coffee House serve up specialised buffet selections all day long.

Rather sit by the beach for a picnic and strum your guitar? Then let them pack you a take-away picnic basket as you tuck in by the beach.

And if you want to tune in to some hip-swaying music, head to The Suji Lounge where entertainment thrives while the sun sets in the horizon.

So write away and pen your thoughts on issues surrounding teenage angst. Sibu Island Resort promises to be an amazing location for celebrating a win with teammates!