Malaysia - The Rough Guide to Southeast Asia on a Budget - page 467

PULAU TIOMAN
PULAU TIOMAN , 30km east of Mersing,
is a popular holiday island scattered with
small palm-fringed beach coves. Express
boats travel here in less than two hours,
and several daily flights arrive from
Singapore and Kuala Lumpur.
Damage has unfortunately been inflicted
on the surrounding coral and marine life,
but Tioman still has some breathtaking
natural scenery. Most of the island's
facilities are at industrial Te k e k , on the
west coast, and the popular budget places
are in the bay of Ayer Batang or Salang .
he east coast's attractive sole settlement,
Juara , is less developed. One road wide
enough for cars spans the length of Tekek,
and another stretches along Juara, with a
steep, pitted, narrow road connecting the
two. Apart from these, the island is crossed
by dirt roads and jungle tracks.
Many of Tioman's nearby islets provide
excellent opportunities for snorkelling
and diving, with numerous dive centres
around Tioman. Most of the chalet
operations offer day-trips to nearby reefs
and around the island, taking in the Asah
waterfall on the south coast.

both located here as well as most of the
island's shops. It's also one of the least
attractive places to visit on the island, but
this is where you'll find essential services.
Situated north of the main jetty at the
very end of the bay, the Marine Centre
(daily 8.30am-4pm; free), set up to
protect the coral and marine life around
the island, and to patrol the fishing
taking place in its waters, contains
engaging interactive displays on the
marine fauna.

6

Ayer Batang
AYER BATANG , commonly referred to as
ABC, the next beach north of Tekek
(jetty to jetty), is the most popular choice
for backpackers, and essentially a single
concrete track running along the long
stretch of beachfront, with guesthouses
and restaurants spread out along it amid
the greenery. here's a good stretch of
beach at the southern end, near Nazri's
(see p.473), a charming series of bridges
linking the chalets at the northern end
and a pleasant, laidback atmosphere to
the whole area. When walking around,
you do have to watch out for locals who
cruise up and down the concrete path on
motorbikes and trundling three-wheelers.
It's a twenty-minute walk to here from
Tekek, or hitch a ride for RM5.

Te k e k
TEKEK is the main settlement on Pulau
Tioman, with the main jetty and airport

P. Chebeh

Salang
North of Ayer Batang, SALANG is a
pleasant backpacker option with a
handful of guesthouses lining the seafront.
It's smaller than ABC, although things
can get quite lively here too. he northern
rocky end of the beach is not ideal for
swimming, while the southern end is the
more scenic, and Pulau Soyok, the small
island off the southern headland, has a
pretty reef for snorkelling.

Gabo
Bay

PULAU TIOMAN

P. Tulai

P. S e p o i Genting Bay Tokong Magicienne (Reef )

Tiger Reef Tokong

Malang

Sparrow Cave

P. Labas

N

Salang

Bukit Kerayon
Kecil

P. S o y a k

Air Batang

Dive sites
Rough trail
Concrete path
Laterite road

Te ke k

Reef

Batu
Mumbang

Juara
At JUARA , situated across two quiet,
spread-out stretches of beach on the east
coast, the only entertainments are diving,
surfing and sunbathing, and the vibe is
friendly and more relaxed than on the
other side of the island. As the northern
(more populated) bay faces out to open
sea, it's more susceptible to bad weather

elil

P. Renggis

Juara

Paya

Gunung Kajang
(1038m)

n ak

Genting

Bukit Seperok
(958m)

Bukit Nenek
Semukut

Nipah

Mukut 0 3

Asah

kilometres Batu Sepoi (Reef )

P. Jahat