go to Asia - travel to Asia: April 2007

A thrilling time in Terengganu

By ANTHONY TAN

This east coast state will bring a smile to your face with its endless miles of beaches, laid-back lifestyle and delicious seafood.

Ever wonder what it’s like to swim in a large aquarium teeming with colourful coral fish? Go to the Redang Island Marine Park in Terengganu and you’ll find out.

I found it an awesome experience snorkelling among the multitude of fish in the park’s pristine waters on a recent media trip there.

The fish were in hues of blue, yellow, purple, green, and, sometimes, just black and white. They were not afraid of humans and probably thought we were part of the marine life. Some brought along bread to feed them, and this attracted them in swarms.

The Redang archipelago consists of nine islands, with the marine park centre located on Pulau Pinang (not to be confused with Penang on the West Coast), where we snorkelled. Visitors to the centre have to pay a RM5 conservation fee.

I did not know the names of the different types of fish we saw at Pulau Pinang but I did recognise the white pomfrets. A lifeguard told us a 1.5m long grouper and a 2.4m-long moray eel made their home here too. I did not see them, but a fellow journalist said he saw a giant grouper and three or four big moray eels.

We stayed at the Laguna Redang Island Resort (www.lagunaredang.com.my) at Long Beach on Pulau Redang, the main island. It is about an hour by ferry from Merang on the Terengganu coast. Merang is a 45-minute drive north of Kuala Terengganu.

The girls in our group shrieked in delight when they first saw the white sandy beach and crystal-clear waters at Long Beach. One said she did not realise that there was such a beautiful place in Malaysia. The place was indeed alluring. It made me think of Fantasy Island with its azure sea and fine sand.

I read in the papers that a travel agent even took a bottle of sand from here to the World Travel Fair 2007 in Shanghai in March as a way to introduce our islands to them.

We saw wooden reclining chairs on the beach under umbrellas made of palm leaves. These made a good setting for pictures on the beach.

Do you fancy breakfast by the sea? At the resort, you get breakfast, lunch and dinner with the sea as backdrop. The Sang Suria Restaurant where we had our meals overlooked the beach and sea. Everyday troubles seemed so far away as we sat there enjoying the superb view with the breeze in our faces.

As the sun began to set, the bathers came out in droves. There were also tourists playing beach volleyball and soccer, and others who simply relaxed on the reclining chairs or went for walks on the beach.

Other activities available at the resort include banana boat rides, kayaking, jungle trekking, archery, pool, sunset cruises, karaoke and indoor games. If you are short-sighted, but still wish to go diving or snorkelling, you can rent Laguna Redang’s power masks.

There are other resorts along the 1km long beach. One has a beach discotheque, which seemed popular with guests.

The 1999 Hong Kong movie Summer Holiday starring Sammi Cheng and Richie Ren was partly filmed in Redang. Those who have watched the movie will probably recognise the blue-and-pink building used in the movie. It has now been turned into a souvenir shop and tea inn by Laguna.

For a trip to Redang, it is best that accommodation is pre-arranged. Resorts there have packages that include meals, snorkelling trips and return ferry rides from the mainland.

Besides Merang, travellers can also get to Redang via ferry from Shahbandar Jetty (09-6225 233) in Kuala Terengganu, which takes 90 minutes and costs RM40 one-way. Or they could take a one-hour flight with Berjaya Air from Subang Airport in Kuala Lumpur.

Most, if not all, resorts at Redang are closed from November to February due to the monsoon season.

The trip to Redang was the highlight of the media tour to Terengganu which was hosted by the state government in conjunction with the inaugural Firefly flight from Penang to Kuala Terengganu in April.

For tourism information on Terengganu, visit www.tourism.terengganu.gov.my

http://thestar.com.my/lifestyle/story.asp?file=/2007/4/28/lifetravel/17513332&sec=lifetravel

28 April 2007