Dive Perhentian
Perhentian is near the east coast of Malaysia with palm fringed white sandy beaches and turquoise blue sea. The water around beaches is shallow with many rays, cuttlefish and parrotfish. With its natural beauty and laid-back atmosphere, Perhentian is viewed as a paradise for divers, an escape from the modern world.
The Perhentian Island can be found in the coast of northeastern Malaysia and almost a few kilometers away from the south border of Thailand. There are also some people that called this place as the Pulau Perhentian in Malay. There are two main islands in that can be found in the whole Perhentian. These are the Perhentian Besar and Perhentian Kecil. The Perhentian Besar is the big one and Perhentian Kencil is the smaller one.
The island is part of the Pulau Redang National Marine Park which means that activities like fishing, earning coral reefs and littering will be strictly prohibited in the whole island. The island is often used by sailors, to be a place where in they can repair their boats.
Just like other islands, this is used by many ancient merchant in the past as a shelter and source of food. Merchants always pass by in the area to stop-by until they had entered the market of South China Sea. This is the reason why the island gained its popularity and named as One Stop Island. One Stop Island is translated to Malay language as Pulau Perhentian and that is where the island got its name. And as time goes by, the Perhentian Island became a tourist spot. The main attraction of the island is its natural beauty and its home for hundreds of Green and Hawksbill turtles.
In many years, the island has been a great tourist spot for many people around the world. Mostly, people from Europe and United States are the one who are flocking around the whole island. The two main islands are covered with white coral sand beaches that may be a little rough for our feet and sea with turquoise blue water. There are many activities that you can do in the island. The most popular activities that you can do here are scuba diving, snorkeling and of course swimming and diving.
On most of beaches, the water is shallow and there are fishes lying there. There are also many diving sites around the whole island. Aside from water activities you can also have other activities like camping and jungle trekking with its natural forests. Banana boat riding is also quite popular activity in the area.
Most rooms and resorts can be found in the Perhentian Besar. There are also hotels that can be found in the bigger island that has a very low prices but had a great accommodation.
The island is quite hidden to the main airports that are why the only way to go there is by boat. Boats can be found in the fishing villages of Kuala Besut and Tok Bali. For the language, people here used Kelantanese Malay Language.
Best time to go there
The best time to go there is between the months of March to October. This are months where in there are no low pressure areas that may warn your stay in the area. If you are lucky enough with these months, you may experience to watch and swim with the turtles that are kept and cared in there. The people around the area also accept volunteers for taking care and building homes for the turtles.
How to get there
The only way to get there is using a boat. If you came from Kuala Bescut, you can take boats from there that will lead you to the island. Traveling from Kuala Bescut up to Perhentian Island may take up at least thirty to forty minutes if you are using a speed boat and one and a half hour if you are going to use a slow boat.
If you came from Kuala Lumpur, you could have a flight from airports like Malaysia Airline, Air Asia and Fireflyz that will lead you to either Kuala Terengganu or Kota Bharu. This will take at least forty five minutes in the air before your arrival. Upon arriving, take bus or taxi and asked them to lead you in to Kuala Besut Jetty. If you came from Kuala Terengganu Airport it may take one and a half hour while if you came from Kota Bharu airport it will be only one hour.
Perhentian Dive Resources
- View our Scheduled Dive Trips or Suggest a Custom Trip
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- Learn more about Perhentian
- Frequently Asked Questions
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Check before you go
- Passport expiry date (most countries require at least six months prior to the expiry date)
- Visa requirements
- Travel Insurance (make sure coverage for Scuba Diving is included)
- Medical status (Visit your doctor if you are unsure)
Perhentian Weather NOW!
- Conditions for Kuala Terengganu, MY at 7:59 pm MYTCurrent Conditions: Cloudy, 79 F Forecast: Fri - Scattered Thunderstorms. High: 85 Low: 76 Sat - Scattered Thunderstorms. High: 83 Low: 76 Full Forecast at Yahoo! Weather (provided by The Weather Channel) […]
