Our Amazing Perhentian Island Experience!

Perhentian Island was a last-minute plan in which we decided to book through a travel agent for their attractive package of 3 days and 2 nights inclusive of two ways transport from the jetty to the island and 3 meals a day at the Perhentian Island Resort.
Being an east coast island, there were a couple of things that we needed to take into consideration to ensure a smooth holiday. Be sure to look into all these matters if you are going to Perhentian Island.

The beautiful seaview otw back to our resort after trekking In Perhentian Besar

Which Perhentian Islands?

Even though Perhentian Island is always referred to as one island as a whole, it is actually made up of two islands. There is quite a difference between these two islands. And it is very important to decide which island you would prefer in terms of budget and vibe. There are:

1) Perhentian Besar Island

Known for more beautiful beach and less crowd. However, it is not very budget-friendly and also there are no night lives here. It is solely for a calm and relaxed holiday.

2) Perhentian Kecil Island

Known for its tropical beach nightlife and vibe. It is more crowded and the beach is not the prettiest. There accommodations that fit all type of travelers be it high-end resorts or backpackers hostels.

Morning situation in Perhentian Besar after breakfast.

When to go there?

The islands are empty during rainy and monsoon season between December to February. Most accommodations and eateries are closed during these months.
You are planning a trip to Perhentian, be sure to book between March to November.
The best months to visit the island is in July and August. It is also the peak months, so the accommodations can get booked pretty earlier. You definitely want to book your rooms well in advance.
Do not enter the island during the peak season without booking a room. You might not get rooms to stay.

How to go there?

To get into Perhentian Island, we will need to Jetty Kuala Besut located at one of Malaysia's east coast state called Terengganu.
Two options to get there:

1) By a flight

Take a flight to Kota Bahru airport ( the much closer airport to Kuala Besut Jetty) or Kuala Terengganu airport.
It is suggested take a flight to Kota Bahru airport. Once you have landed, you got to travel by land for about an hour to the Kuala Besut Jetty.
There are daily flights to Kota Bahru airports from Kuala Lumpur, Johor, Penang, and Singapore!

2) By Bus 

Take the bus from TBS (Terminal Bersepadu Selatan) bus station at Kuala Lumpur. Each way costs RM50. The bus will drop you at the Kuala Besut Bus Terminal.
Kuala Besut bus terminal and Kuala Besut jetty is about 10 minutes walk away. You can opt to take the taxi, but we decided to get some exercise after long hours of sitting. Just GPS Kuala Besut jetty and you are good to go.
We recommend taking the night bus. It is a much better option compared to day trip, because you can just sleep your way through. You wouldn't feel the journey. We did just that to go to Kuala Besut Jetty. We took the 10.30 pm bus and reached Kuala Besut bus terminal at about 5am. We didn't feel a thing. But on our way back home, we decided to take the day bus at 1pm and it was a dreadful 9 hours journey back. Instant regret!!
But on the bright side, the transportation cost from KL To Kuala Besut costs us only RM 100 each.
We chose to go to Kuala Besut by bus. Mainly because the flight ticket was expensive considering the peak season at our time of travel. Both bus and flight have the pros and cons. So you can decide for yourself. :)

What to do at the Kuala Besut Jetty?

We reached the jetty way too early at about 5.30 am. We thought of going for a hike at a hill nearby called the Bukit Keluang. We even came prepared with only two backpacks so that it won't be much of a struggle to carry our bags uphill. But we got a little lazy that morning when we were there. hehe! We just wanted to walk around and look for decent places to have breakfast. We did spot many decent places and we had two rounds of good breakfast. We even managed to check out the souvenir stores nearby.
At about 8am we decided to get back to Perhentian Island Resort kiosk at the jetty and just wait till person in charge that we have already spoken to earlier calls us to hop onto the speedboat. And a short while after, she did! We managed to get onto the earlier boats than what was scheduled for us.
Just a little reminder for anyone who is planning a trip, just wait by your respective hotel's kiosk at the jetty. You might be able to get into the earlier boat than scheduled if there are any empty boats.

The boat ride journey?

Our boat ride was bumpy! We actually had so much fun! The water was splashing at our faces but we were so excited to finally be able to see an east coast island.
The boat ride was about 40 minutes. If you look at the sea, you will notice how the waters change color from murky brown to ordinary deep blue sea to clear turquoise water towards the island. You can see corals while you are on the boat.
Cost: It was inclusive in the resort package that we purchased. If you were to buy on your own, it costs RM60 two ways.

The colour of the water got us excited! Clear turquoise!! 

The boat drop off/pick up experience?

The boat will drop you off at the designated jetty for each resort.
In Perhentian Besar, most resorts have their own mini jetty like drop off point.
We were dropped off at Perhentian Island Resort jetty at Perhentian Besar Island. It was high tide that morning and we could barely get off the boat. It was such an experience to hop out of the boat to our jetty without falling into the sea.
The pick up from the Perhentian Island Resort jetty was smooth, unlike the drop-off. It all heavily depends on the tides. Either way, it was all new and enjoyable experiences!

I can't speak much about Perhentian Kecil though because I didn't notice any drop-off point there. I presume they will drop you off directly at the shore of the beach. We were dropped off at the shore when we made a quick trip to Perhentian Kecil Island

Million dollar view! Caught this view at Perhentian resort Island Resort Jetty.

Our AMAZING Perhentian Island experience. 

Our plan initially was to just to relax by the beach. Hence, we chose to stay in Pulau Perhentian Besar which is known to be a more quiet island with lesser tourists.
Contemporary to the popular statement, Perhentian Besar  Island is not a boring island comparatively to Perhentian Kecil Island. As mentioned, it is a much quieter island with equally fun activities to do.
We reached our resort at about 9am. We were greeted well by the resort staffs and we were given welcome drinks. Since we reached our resort way earlier than the check-in time, the staffs couldn’t accommodate us for an earlier check-in because our chalet was still occupied.
We had no choice but to roam around the resort. We found a nice place to sit under a tree by the beach. Just sat and chilled there for about two hours. Thank god for the great weather. We stayed by the beach till the lunch hour at about 11.45am. Had our early lunch and we finally got to run into our chalet at about 1pm. We were so happy to finally be able to chill in our resort.
We didn't have much planned for our 3 days and 2 nights trips. We wanted to just go in the flow and take the trip as it is. We did a couple of impromptu activities and it was  just nice to keep us occupied.

Perfect book to for the perfect place. Found a beautiful spot to chill whilst we were waiting for our room to be prepared.

What to do in Perhentian Besar Island?

Island hopping.

We booked the island hopping tour while we were aimlessly roaming around the resort in the morning. We booked for the package that covers around the Perhentian Island area which consists of Shark point, Teluk Keke and Turtle Base. Tour started at around 10am and we were picked from the jetty of the resort. We got to snorkel at every pit stop. The tour costs RM40 for about 2 hours and its inclusive of the rental snorkeling gears.
Totally recommend this package because it delivers everything that it claims. We got to see huge turtles, colourful fishes, corals and even sharks!! Spotting sea animals are solely based on luck but just give this quick island hopping a go if you must!

The snorkelling point differs according to the time. So choose whichever suits your fancy. We highly recommend the 10am trip!
Also, be noted that the snorkelling packages from other tour companies may have slight difference in terms of price and time. We booked ours through our resort. 

Explore the island.

You can only explore this island by foot. There aren’t any cars on the island. We walked along the beach to from our resort to the other resorts until we reached the end where we can't walk anymore. You will spot many kiosks selling drinks and snacks along the way. It is cheaper to get your snacks here than to buy at the resort. We came across many beautiful photo spots along the way. Oh, and also look out for birds. We saw a few different species of birds, colorful ones. Just not too sure what are the called.

Picture perfect spot at Perhentian Besar Island!

Watch the sunset and sunrise.

Sunsets and sunrise are the most beautiful time of the day. We try and get a glimpse of sunsets and sunrises anywhere we go if the time permits. got to be thankful for our chalet that faces the beach with no interruptions. We sat by the verandah of our chalets with some coffee and just watched the sunset. It is safe to say, we witnessed beautiful sunsets both the days.
If you are planning to stay in Perhentian Island Resort, take the older chalets that faces the beach. The newer chalets may be more comfortable, but it doesn't have these wide perfect view!! So be sure before booking your rooms.

The view from our room

Morning walks.

Who doesn’t love morning beach walk? Yet to meet someone who dislikes it. We love morning walks by the beach. No beach walks are the same. Imagine walking by the beautiful beach in the morning. we went for our walk right after our heavy breakfast! There was no one at the beach but us and the waves. it will still be one of the best beach walks we had as of now. I think we would have spent more than an hour walking by the beach. And also, the morning sun helps with vitamin D production in our bodies. So, why not?

Make a visit to the Perhentian Kecil Island.

we were truly in love with the calm vibes we were absorbing in Perhentian Besar. But we were quite curious to see what's at the island at the opposite end. We took the water taxi at the end of our resort and asked the boat taxi man to take us across. About 20 minutes and RM50 (RM25 for each for two ways) later, we were at the said to be much happening island, Perhentian Kecil. We spent about 4 hours here before running back to our much quieter island.

Definitely worth a quick trip to Perhentian Kecil. The windmill station hill! 

Massage/spa time

After a whole day of exploring, what we look forward to is to unwind and just chill. We checked out the Resort's traditional Malay themed spa with decent rates for a resort's standard. It didn't really tickle our fancy.
What really got us into wanting a massage was the outdoor massage that we spotted while roaming around Perhentian Besar island.
We really wanted to the outdoor spa by the beach. Imagine your aching muscles being massaged while you get to enjoy the sound of the waves and the birds chirping?
Unfortunately, we didn't stand a chance to enjoy the luxury. there is only one masseur and he was completely booked. They did offer us a slot the next day, but we were already leaving. So the next time perhaps?

The outdoor spa we came across at Perhentian Besar Island

Jungle trekking

Who would have thought of this right? While we were aimlessly walking around on the first day before the check-in, we came across a tiny walkway into the forest at the back of our resort. We then asked our receptionist if we are allowed to trek it and she was more than happy to explain the route to us. The trek starts at the back of Perhentian Besar Island Resort. Look for the open-air badminton rink, it is just a few steps away from it. The beautiful and peaceful trek takes about 30 minutes and it took us to the other end of Perhentian Besar.
We just sat there for a moment, enjoying the other end of Perhentian Besar which was much more crowded. There were more locals here.
From here, we can only get to our resort by trekking the same route out or by a boat. We cannot walk along the beach because there is no route for that. We opted for the boat ride to our resort at the cost of RM25 per person just so we can enjoy the sea view on our way back. I even managed to catch a glimpse of a bird catching a fish and flying away!!

The end of the trek from Perhentian Island Resort brought us to this. The other end of Perhentian Besar Island.

Dessert by the beach.

I can have dessert anytime, anywhere! so can anyone! who doesn't love dessert and beach combo? And what not after some morning trekking. There is a little kiosk like café at our resort that sells some cakes, pizza, and drinks. We got the drinks and sat facing the beach. Love, love, love mornings like this. We did this on our last day in the resort and I still remember how bad I was hoping for that moment to never end. EVER!

Photoshoot

Every single corner in Perhentian Besar Island and Perhentian Kecil Island are amazing! Instagram worthy spot everywhere. Kid you not, even the coconut trees looks so beautiful there. Get your insta boyfriend/girlfriend/ husband/ wife/ friend or just whoever and have a mini photoshoot of yourself. I promise every single picture going to be BEAUTIFUL!  I personally preferred the Perhentian Besar island because of the much lower density of visitors. I had beautiful spots all to myself on multiple occasions. HEHEHE!

Additional information

1) There are no ATMs in both Perhentian Besar and Perhentian Kecil Islands. Bring enough cash to sustain your trip comfortably.
2) Most resorts do accept credit cards. Restaurants, on the other hand, prefer cash.
3) Watch your heads while you are here on the island. There are coconut trees everywhere and you don't want the coconut to fall on your head. We witnessed a lady slipping away from the mishap by a few seconds. Thank god for that.
4) There are monitor lizards on the island. Watch out for that you are terrified of them. They are harmless though.
5) Lastly, don't forget to have tonnes of fun!

Perhentian Island is the first east coast island that I visited in my country. It exceeded my expectations! We bid farewell to the island with the fullest heart. So thankful for this experience!

while waiting for our taxi boat to take us to our resort after our trekking session.