MALAYSIABook your stay at lonelyplanet.com/hotels PENINSULAR MALAYSIA – EAST COAST •• Pulau Tioman
SALANG
The small bay at the south of Salang has a
beautiful beach and swimming area backed
by a murky river that’s teeming with giant
monitor lizards. At night everyone who slept
on the beach all day is keen to indulge in
duty-free beer till the wee hours of the morn.
Accommodation is listed here from north
to south.
oElla’s Place^ (%419 5004; chalets RM40-100;
a) There’s usually a loungeable patch of sand
here at this cute-as-a-button family-run place
at the quiet northern end of the beach. There
are 10 clean chalets (some with air-con) but
you’ll have to reserve in advance to nab one.
Salang Indah Resort (%419 5015; http://www.salang
indah.com; d/longhouse tw RM30/60, chalets hillside-/sea-view
RM80/90, q RM120; ai) The expanse of chalets
sprawl on seemingly forever and if you look
at several you’ll probably find one to your
liking. The mosque-looking restaurant serves
everything from cheeseburgers to cheap local-
style seafood (dishes around RM8). There’s
also a bar, a shop and internet access (per
hour RM10).
Pak Long Island Chalet (%419 5000; enquiry@pak
longislandchalet.com.my; chalets with fan/air-con RM50/60;
ai) Has wooden chalets with peeling
plastic flooring and OK verandahs, the more
expensive of which face the sea. What sets this
place apart is the family-run atmosphere that
makes it feel like it’s a mini-village.
JUARA
There’s little to do in Juara except swim, surf
(between November and April), snooze under
the swaying palms or take a gander into the
jungle. It’s actually two connected beaches
and both are wide and white.
oBeach Hut (%012 696 1093; camp sites with
tent for 2 people RM15, dm/chalets RM20/40) A super-
social, bona fide surf shack, chalets here (on
the southern beach) are decorated with shell
mobiles, driftwood and some fake flowers.
Budget warriors can get a tent (which come
with sleeping bags) next to the beach, and
at the time of writing dorms were due to be
completed by 2010. Take a surf lesson (RM60)
or body surf out front.
Paradise Point (%419 3145; r incl breakfast RM35)
North of the jetty and with a homey vibe, this
place offers simple, un-noteworthy rooms in
a longhouse.
Bushman (%419 3109; [email protected];
chalets RM50) Nabbing one of Bushman’s three
new varnished wood chalets is like winning
the Juara lottery – reserve in advance! It’s
right up against the boulder outcrop and a
flat knuckle of white sand.
Rainbow Chalets (%419 3140; d RM50, t RM60-70)
These fittingly colourful beachfront chalets
have an excellent reputation and so are al-
ways full. It’s right before Bushman at the
southern end of the northern bay and its
Sunrise Café serves some of the best grub
on the beach.NIPAH
Isolated Nipah Beach is a long jungle-clad
strip of sand with plenty of surrounding walk-
ing opportunities to more empty beaches and
a jungle waterfall.
You can stay at either the Nipah Beach
Tioman (%019 735 7853; chalets from RM70), which
offers some rustic chalets, or at Bersatu Nipah
Chalets (%07-797 0091; bersatunipah_tioman@yahoo
.com; r with fan/air-con RM60/90; a), which has
clean beachfront longhouse rooms and a
riverside restaurant.
Both places can arrange pick up from the
ferry stop in Genting for RM20 each way.Getting There & Away
Berjaya Air (code J8; %419 1303; http://www.berjaya-air
.com), with offices at Berjaya Tioman Beach
Resort (about halfway up the west cost) and
at the airstrip, has daily flights to/from KL
and Singapore.
Mersing is the ferry port for Tioman. Several
companies run boat services to the island; tick-
ets can be bought around Mersing town or at
the jetty. There are usually four to six depar-
tures throughout the day between 7am and
5pm, but specific departure times vary with the
tides. Ferries (RM35, two to three hours) leave
from the Mersing jetty and drop off passengers
in south to north order on the island.Getting Around
Getting around the island is, for the moment,
problematic. You can walk from ABC to Tekek
in about 20 minutes. But you’ll need to charter
a boat through a guest house or restaurant to
travel between ABC and Salang (RM25).
Boats from Mersing will sometimes stop
in Juara if there are four or more people who
want to stop; otherwise you’ll have to get off
at Tekek and then hire a 4WD (RM90 for four
people). Alternatively, you can walk through
the jungle to Juara from Tekek (7km).475