Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
271
painting, brass casting, basket w eaving, and woodcarving, as well as other local crafts in
progress.
Lot 2195 Kawasan Perindustrian Chendering.
&
09/617-1033.
Sat-Wed 8am-5pm; Thurs 8am-12:45pm.
TERENGGANU MARINE PARK
The first marine par k in M alaysia, the Terengganu Marine Park is situated ar ound the
nine islands of the Redang archipelago, 45km (28 miles) northeast of Kuala Terengganu
and 27km (17 miles) out to sea. S porting the best coral r eefs and div e conditions off
peninsular Malaysia, the park attracts divers with its many ex cellent sites. The largest of
the islands is Pulau Redang (Redang Island), where most people stay in r esorts on over-
night diving excursions. The recent completion of an airpor t on Redang makes it fabu-
lously accessible.
Berjaya Air
(in KL
&
03/7846-8228;
www.berjaya-air.com) flies four
times a week from KL. Otherwise, you'll have to make your way from Kuala Terengganu,
driving an hour nor th to the jetty to wn of Merang, followed by a speedboat trip to any
one of the islands for scuba, snor keling, and sunning on powdery beaches.
The best place to stay on Redang is the
Berjaya Redang Beach Resort
. It's the best,
mainly because they can arrange y our entire trip and activities for y ou—air transfers,
accommodations, meals, and activities including scuba. And while B erjaya commands
the best cove on the island, with po wdery white-sand beaches, it also happens to be the
most comfortable place her e, with 152 M alay-style chalets all with en-suite bathr oom,
air-conditioning, phones, TVs with satellite pr ograms and in-house mo vies, and mini-
bars. O f their thr ee r estaurants, the beach seafood grill is the fav orite. I n addition to
scuba and snorkeling trips to the coral reefs, they'll plan other watersports activities plus
treks around the island. Their pool is a gorgeous lagoon-style affair b y the beach. There
is a good spa in the r esort, too. Contact B erjaya Redang Beach Resort at
&
09/630-
8808,
fax 09/630-8855,
or visit online at www.berjayaresorts.com. Rates are RM463 to
RM930 ($134-$270/£83-£167) for a double.
14
PERHENTIAN ISLANDS
The Perhentian Islands (two islands; one big, one small) are part of the same archipelago
within the Terengganu Marine Park. Located to the north of Redang, they are not as easy
to access as Redang, because there's no easy airport access. It's about an hour's ride to the
jetty from Kuala Terengganu, then a speedboat to the island.
There are many bungalow operators on these islands—most of these places are simple
huts with poor ex cuses for beds and scar cely anything else for conv enience. For some
reason, these small bungalo w operators have not learned ho w to handle waste and r ub-
bish, and will ev entually spoil the envir onment that draws people her
e in the first
place.
Perhentian I sland R esort
is y our best option on P erhantian. They hav e a priv ate
beach and are managed properly. Their 106 rooms, housed in cabanas, offer comfortable
beds and air-conditioning. Their one r estaurant ser ves buffet meals thr ee times daily .
Activities are organized through their PADI dive center, plus ther e's snorkeling, tennis,
trekking, and nonmotorized sea sports. They will arrange your speedboat transfers to and
from the jetty.
Note:
The resort is closed during the rainy season fr om December through January.
Contact Perhentian Island Resort at
&
09/697-4095,
fax 09/697-8679, or visit online
at www .perhentianislandresort.net. Rates ar e RM425 to RM572 ($123-$165/£77-
£103) double chalet.
