Pulau Payar, Malaysia

Destination #5: Pulau Payar, Malaysia

Year of Visit: 2007

Pulau Payar is one of the hidden snorkeling and diving gems of the west coast of Malaysia.

Situated in the northern part of the Straits of Malacca, Pulau Payar can be assessed from Pulau Langkawi, Penang and Kuala Kedah on the mainland.

Image courtesy of http://www.malaysiasite.nl/payar.htm

There are no accommodations on this island but if you wish to live the semi-castaway life of Robinson Crusoe you may request for a permission from the Fisheries Department in Alor Setar, Kedah to camp on the island. The marine life at the Pulau Payar Marine Park is very much alive and kicking but be please be reminded that fishing is strictly prohibited.

Most tourists make a day trip to the Pulau Payar Marine Park from Pulau Langkawi, Kuala Kedah (approximately 30 minutes ferry ride) and Penang (approx. 1 hour).

I, for instance, took a day trip from Swettenham Pier, Penang.

This is how the Pulau Payar Marine Park looks like. The ferry will first drop you off on a large Langkawi Coral floating platform. That's where you leave your belongings behind, put on your snorkeling or diving attires, apply your lotion, listen to instructions, get your shower and off you jump into the water.

The turqoise water and corals beneath.

When we were there we brought along with us loaves of bread to feed the fishes.

I'm not sure if it's still permitted though. Ask the operators when you make your reservation.

Feeding the marine fishes was really exciting and plenty of good fun. Hundreds of them will swim to you so quickly as if they have not eaten for years and it's also the best time to prank your friend by throwing bread at him. The fishes will nibble him all over thinking that he's a giant piece of bread.

For those who don't dive, you can marvel at the spectacular sights below the surface from the observation chamber at the floating platform.

A barracuda and a diver close by.

You can also dive near the observation chamber to have your photo taken - like this!

The Langkawi Coral floating platform.

Just before the buffet lunch, you will be transported to the beach in a glass bottom boat for a walk on the sandy beach and also to witness a shark feeding session.



Shark feeding session.

The black-tip baby shark, similar to the one in Maldives!

You don't have to go to Maldives to see it, haha!

Remember to bring your camera with you when you're transported from the floating platform to the island! You won't wanna miss out on the shark feeding photos!!

The school of fishes and baby sharks was a very pretty sight.

The giant floating platform and the corals of Pulau Payar Marine Park.


A group photo taken from the observation chamber on the floating platform.

For more information of the Pulau Payar Marine Park, log on to:

• Langkawi Coral
• Ping Anchorage

Tourist Submarine, Maldives

How often do we get to sit in a submarine let alone see one?

Here's a chance for a dive in one of the world's only tourists submarines if you visit the Maldives.

According to the Whale Submarine Maldives' website : On board the submarine you will descend to a submerged reef 40 meters beneath the surface. However the first stop is at 25 meters where you will see a colorful display of corals and different types of reef fish. In most of the dives the submarine is greeted by a school of blue or yellow-stripped Snappers. Common Lionfish, Yellow Box Fish and turtles are usually found here. Next stop at 40 meters is yet another type of coral garden and depending on current the submarine will be beached on a sandy spot just close to a big cave. The exterior lights of the submarine will enable you to see the different types of fish taking shelter inside the cave. Occasionally White Tip Reef Sharks and Napoleons are sighted here. If you are lucky you may be able to see one of the biggest Groupers in the Maldives here on this location.

The submarine ride costs U$ 75 for 45 minutes underwater.

I have never been on a submarine so i thought why not, for the experience.

The submarine ride is highly recommended for families with young children and those who are not keen on snorkeling or diving. The website says it's disabled-friendly as well. From my observation, most passengers on the submarine are well-dressed Asians who didn't look like they want to get wet snorkeling or diving.

Inside the submarine.

If your intention of boarding the submarine is to look at the marine lives underwater, i suggest that you snorkel or dive if you are able to. It's Maldives afterall, 99% of Maldives is water! The marine lives we have seen from the glass windows of our submarine were disappointing. It felt exactly like plunging into a giant aquarium with many dead corals and typical marine fishes you always see. Not a pretty sight at all compared to what i have seen snorkeling in the tropical waters of Malaysia and other parts of Maldives. This is what happens when tourism becomes too commercialised - the ecosystem suffers.

The sad looking fish.

The angry looking fish. 'why are you humans trespassing into my territory!!!'

Some fishes inside the underwater cave.

Lionfish and others.

Another type of marine fish. Nothing special.

Oh, the only other good thing about the submarine ride is that you get to photograph and record videos of the marine lives underwater from the submarine IF you don't have a water/underwater proof camera or an underwater protector with you.

Well, for the once-in-a-life-time feel of being on a submarine i shouldn't be complaining so much.

Check out the Whale Submarine Maldives webpage for more information.

Veligandu Island, Maldives

Destination #3: Veligandu Island, Maldives

Year of Visit: 2006
Now this is what Maldives is all about. Seat back, kick those shoes away and enjoy!

The second Maldivian resort of our trip is the Veligandu Island Resort in North Ari atoll.

How to get there?

A 15 minutes ride on the sea plane or the Maldivian water taxi from Hulhule International Airport. That was my first time on a sea plane. I have not even seen a sea plane before.

This is what i have been waiting for. A scenic ride on the sea plane would have cost about U$ 90 for 30 minutes if you are interested. I must thank my host for arranging this 15 minutes scenic sea plane ride to Veligandu Island inclusive of a 2 nights stay at the exclusive resort.

Aerial view of the capital, Malé and Vilingili island.

It was rather noisy and stuffy inside the plane but it was totally worth it!


Look at the beautiful turquoise blue lagoons, reefs and beautiful islands!

They were truly breathtaking beyond imagination. They looked just exactly like what you have seen in travel magazines and one of those photos of Maldives circulated in the email but you just gotta witness this yourself at least once in your lifetime.

So beautiful beyond description. Unbelievable.


The 40 odd seconds video of the aerial view from the seaplane ride.

The 15 minutes ride ended here and now we have landed on this makeshift platform off the resort to catch another boat to the resort.

Welcome to the stunningly beautiful paradise where marine fishes can be seen from above the surface and the sand is white!

The hotel staffs were expecting our arrival at the resort and we were immediately led by the resort manager to the resort guest lounge for the welcoming cocktail and the wet towel. I think it is a common practice that new guests are served cocktails and given a wet towel.

We settled down a little to enjoy some sandwiches and drinks, especially the Fanta orange which was very different from what we have in Malaysia. The buffet dinner with a wide variety of food is worth mentioning too! Everything there is quoted in U$D, from food to scuba diving charges so you can forget about the Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR) when at any of the resorts.

This is a testimony of the crystal clear waters at Veligandu Island - What do you see?

A baby shark chasing a school of fish!

These are the water villas ideal for honeymooners, with a great deal of privacy, facing the vast ocean and also - a romantic site to watch the sun set and to gaze at the gazillion stars that decorate the skies at night. The room rate starts from U$ 290 for a single room.

For those of you with the PADI certificate of scuba instruction this is paradise.

There are night divings as well and boats depart late at night for the night diving. For those of you without a scuba diving license don't despair. You can still go for snorkeling and still see many fishes and marine lives. However, you have to know the designated areas for snorkeling around your resort. There are certain areas which are not suitable for snorkeling and can be dangerous eg. rocks, sting rays etc so please be very careful.

We signed up for the catamaran sailboat adventure as well. It was one helluva experience, almost slipped off into the sea when the catamaran sailed at its maximum speed with sea water constantly hitting right into my face but wow it was awesome!

Life's a beach, surf it up! Haha!

Enough of water activities? Go baby shark sighting! Plenty of them near the beach.

Indoor activities like foosball and pool if you fancy?

Or sit/lie back and relax on the white sunny beach complete with a session at the spa.

Life doesn't get any better than this.

Veligandu Island Resort.

Signing off here. Maldives, the sunny side of my life.

Summer Island, Maldives

Destination #2 - Summer Island Resort, North Male Atoll, Maldives

Year of Visit: 2006
After we have recovered from all the traveling from Malaysia to Maldives and completion of island hoping tours between Maldives and the other residential islands we now set out to the first ever Maldivian resort of our trip!

The blue sky and white sandy beach at Vilingili Island before our departure to Summer Island Resort. An American expatriate family was having a good time at the beach.

We depart from the pier in Malé early in the morning for Summer Island which took us about 2 hours in the choppy waters due to a storm. We were in Maldives during the monsoon season so occasional thunderstorms were inevitable.

Downtown Malé where all the commercial and government buildings are located.

When we first set out from Malé, the weather was absolutely fine, with some sunshine.

As we traveled our further into the sea, the boat swerved so hard to the right and to the left like it was doing a drift at sea. Then came the rain and thunder AND THE FLOOD! Yes! The heavy rain poured into the partially covered upper deck like a flowing stream and everyone had to rush down to the lower deck for shelter.

Approaching the paradise as the blue lagoon becomes more visible.

The 2 hours journey felt like forever in the stormy seas.

I thought i was going to die in the heaven on earth.

Crabs moving about Summer Island. They are a common sight in the islands of Maldives just like stray dogs and cats in Malaysia and nobody eats them. The Maldivians don't eat crabs.

The strong winds and the turquoise blue lagoon at Summer Island blew me away!

The reception and guest lounge at Summer Island Resort was filled with white sand. They serve us cocktails and gave us wet towels to clean up upon arrival at the resort.

We spent 2 nights at this 3-star resort, courtesy of my host.

A night's stay at this 3-star resort can cost up to U$ 200.

We spent most of our time eating, chatting, playing ping-pong, foosball and relaxing at this resort because the weather was so bad in that few days that we could not venture out to the sea as often as we want to. We did attempt snorkeling but we almost got swept away by the strong currents.

I should have gone for the traditional massage in that symbolic wooden hut!

Can somebody explain to me what my traveling partner, Yeo was doing?

Later it rained so heavily and the wind was so strong that it gave us a very painful 'massage' at our backs. I have never experienced that sort of hard hitting rain ever in our very own tropical country.

The crystal clear water at Summer Island where you can easily spot a fish or stingray underneath.

This bird is called the 'maakanaa' in the native Dhivehi language. I think it was looking out for fishes. Btw, be warned that your slippers might go missing if you leave it on the beach. Well, i lost mine in just 15 minutes. I don't know if the hotel staff stole it, the wave took it or the bird ate it.

See the white line further out in the sea? That's when the waves hit the reef resulting in a thunderous noise as if a tsunami was approaching. It scared the s*** out of me!

All in all, a pretty relaxing resort dominated by German tourists who weren't very friendly except for this German-speaking Sri Lankan guy who came up to us to tell us how much he admires Dr. Mahathir after he found out we are Malaysians.

Man, our former PM is famous! Even the Kebab guys in Rome and Wales spoke about him!

Stay tuned for review of the next Maldivian resort!