Pulau Payar

The sprinkling of jade green islands that make up Pulau Payar lie just 30km south- east of Langkawi. From here, it is a 1-hour boat ride out to the best marine park on Malaysia’s West Coast, making it an ideal choice for a day outing.

This well-preserved, uninhabited marine park extends over a number of islands, with Pulau Payar being the largest. Your base out here is the floating platform moored off Pulau Payar. But the real attraction of this platform lies below sea level.

A day trip to the Pulau Payar Marine Park is the only option for most tourists. This tourist spot can be accessed from three major points-Kuah, on Langkawi Island, Kuala Kedah on the mainland, and Penang Island. From Kuah or Kuala Kedah the boat ride takes about 45 minutes, whereas from Penang, it may take slightly more than an hour.

You can book your trip at the office of the Langkawi Coral at the Kuah Ferry Terminal, which cost around RM220 per day. For this price, the company will pick guests up from their respective hotels, provide lunch and the use of their reef-viewing platform. All their snorkelling equipment is also at the guests’ disposal.

Island and Sun at Kelanas in Kuah provides a similar service, for RM150. This price does not include hotel transfers and they take visitors out to Pulau Payar in small speedboats. The experience of being in a speedboat itself is quite exhilarating, especially with the wind against your face and water spraying out right next to you.