Malaysia - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 454

10min walk from the centre, this guesthouse/homestay
offers cheap basic rooms, most with shared bath. The
owners are friendly and welcoming, and can point y ou in
the right direction with onward travel. Double RM30

here's an excellent choice of budget
accommodation, a good range of cafés
and restaurants and a few laidback bars.
he Perhentians are also a great place
either to learn to dive or to enjoy some
breathtaking “fun dives”. Dives include
The Three Brothers (Terumbu Tiga),
where you go through three seriously
impressive rock formations; Temple of
the Sea , popular on account of its good
visibility which enables divers to see an
incredible variety of fish; and the Sugar
Wreck , one of the few wreck dives in the
world suitable for relative beginners. But
you don't have to dip far below the waves
to see some spectacular marine life; most
guesthouses offer snorkelling trips which
take in different points around the islands
where you can see reef sharks, turtles and
more (around RM45 per person; 4hr).
here are no banks in Kuala Besut or
on the islands, so change money before
you go.

EATING
Night market Jln Pintu Pong. Easily the most exciting
place to eat, with a large variety of local dishes. Try the
local speciality ayam percik (barbecued chicken with a
creamy coconut sauce) or the delicious nasi kerabu (purple,
green or blue rice with a dash of vegetables, seaweed and
grated coconut); finish off with a filling pisang murtabak
(banana pancake) and you won't have parted with much
more than RM7. Daily 6-10pm.
P.K. Corner 1069C Jln Kebun Sultan. It's often hard to get
a table at this hugely popular outdoor place featuring local
dishes from tom yam (RM6) to tempura (RM10), as well as
more substantial mains such as crispy sea bass with
mango salad (RM30). Daily 1pm-midnight.
Sri Devi 421 Jln Kebun Sultan. No-frills local Indian joint
serving banana-leaf curries (RM8.50), as well as a few
veggie options (RM4.50). Daily 7.30am-9pm.

6

DIRECTORY
Banks and exchange HSBC Bank, Jln Padong Garong;
Standard Chartered Bank, Jln Tok Hakim.
Hospital Hospital Kota Bharu, Jln Hospital ( T 09 748 5533).
Internet There's a Cyber Café on Jln Kebun Sultan,
diagonally opposite the road from Sri Devi (Sat-Thurs
9.30am-10pm, Fri 3-10pm; RM2/hr).
Post o ce On Jln Sultan Ibrahim.
Thai visas From the Royal Thai Consulate, 4426 Jln Tok Guru
(Mon-Thurs & Sun 9am-noon & 2-3.30pm; T 09 744
5266). Two-month tourist visas are issued within 24 hours.

Perhentian Kecil
his is generally considered to be the
livelier of the two islands and it is very
popular with backpackers, having a
slightly more ramshackle atmosphere than
its larger neighbour. On the southeastern
corner of Perhentian Kecil lies the island's
only village, Kampung Pasir Hantu , with a
jetty, police station, school, clinic and
littered beach. Coral Bay is the most
popular west-facing cove on the island,
lined with friendly guesthouses and shack
restaurants. East-facing Long Beach has a
wide stretch of white beach and a laidback
atmosphere, though litter management is
currently a problem. he beach is much
more exposed to the elements, and the
crashing surf forces many of the chalet
owners to close up from the end of
October through to March.
Coral Bay is usually the first drop-off
point when coming from the mainland.

PULAU PERHENTIAN
Pulau Perhentian , just over 20km off the
northeastern coast, is actually two islands
- Perhentian Kecil (Small Island) and
Perhentian Besar (Big Island). Both have
turquoise waters and some of the most
attractive white-sand beaches in
Malaysia. Each is less than 4km in length
and neither has roads; in cheaper
lodgings, there's little or no electricity
during daylight hours and internet is
offered at a premium (usually RM10/hr),
although a number of resorts and cafés
have free wi-fi. During the beginning or
end of the monsoon season, prices are
exceptionally low, you'll have the islands
practically to yourself and the rains are
few and far between.

Perhentian Besar
Perhentian Besar is more sedate than its
neighbour and more popular with families
and a slightly older crowd than with the
just-out-of-uni backpacking set. he pace
of life is even more laidback than on
Kecil, but Besar's got plenty of budget