Perhentian Islands are a small group of pristine islands. Perhentian Islands are ranked one of the top ten beaches of the world. These beautiful islands are located 26km off the coast of Terengganu, Peninsular Malaysia. Kuala Besut Jetty is the point from where you can get a speedboat and in 30 to 45 minutes reach the islands. The two main islands are Pulau Perhentian Besar (“Big Perhentian Island”) and Pulau Perhentian Kecil(“Small Perhentian Island”). Kecil attracts more travelers as it has cheaper accommodation, while Besar is a little more expensive and caters more to families and those who want to avoid the backpacker party scene.
The best time to visit these islands is between March till late October. Other than this time, the weather gets pretty harsh because of the monsoon sets in and makes the sea very rough and choppy for any activity. It’s also very dangerous to swim, dive, scuba dive in the sea at this time. So better plan your trip in the safe period even if the travel agents make you believe about the availability of the hotel accommodations on the islands. Almost all of the family resorts and reasonable, decent accommodations are closed during the monsoon season.
There are a number of fun activities that you can enjoy with your family, especially young kids. If your kids are not swimmers then they can play around near the beach, this activity alone is too enjoyable for the kids. For swimmers, snorkeling, scuba diving, kayaking are some of the adventurous retreats on the islands. you can get all the diving gears on rent easily. You can also hire half day or full day boat trips around the small islands for island hopping.
Accommodations and Family Resorts
Pulao Perhentian Besar has all the big family resorts and hotel accommodations. Pulao Perhentian Kecil mostly caters the backpackers, the more adventurous lot who are traveling without families. It also depends on one’s preference too, if you are more adventurous and your family can enjoy then any location can be explored. Some of the well-known resorts on Perhentian Islands are Bubu Villa, Alunan Boutique Resort, Bubu Resort, Tuna Bay Island Resort, Ombak Resort. We stayed at the Ombak Resort. It is situated on Coral Bay, Pulao Perhentian Kecil. It was very close to the jetty where we landed. Ombak resort has its own scuba diving school and they give all the diving gears on rent. They also give scuba diving lessons.
Fresh Sea Food
Fresh Grilled Prawns
You can enjoy the fresh seafood here. Freshly grilled fish, prawns etc. are easily available options. If your kids are picky eaters then they also have a few choices of continental cuisines available.
All in all its a great place to visit with your family. Two-day trip is enough to explore these islands. The crystal clear waters will surely mesmerize you. You can have hands-on experience of watching the beautiful and colorful marine life around the waters of these islands. So get set and plan your trip to feel the South China Sea hot air breezing and relax on the white sandy beach under the sun.
