Tropical Asia - Tropical Destinations

Tropical Destinations

Boracay Island, Philippines

The Boracay Island of the Philippines is a vivid island noted by long white sand beaches among the popular beach destinations such as Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. Boracay can only be reached by ferry from Caticlan. SEAir serves up to 28 flights a day, each flight about as 35 minutes, from Manila to Caticlan Airport. Another way is through the Kalibo Airport on the other side of Aklan Island. From Kalibo, visitors take a two-hour (2-hour) ride to Caticlan. Three transportations get tourists from Kalibo to Catlican: Mini-vans, buses and other rental vehicles.

Prehentian Islands, Malaysia

The Perhentian Islands is a group of two small islands in Northeastern Malaysia: Perhentian Besar (or ”Big Perhentian”) and Perhentian Kecil ( or” Small Perhentian”). Small abandoned of Susu Dara, Seringgi and Rawa lie off Kecil. The area belongs to Pulau Redang National Marine Park, which is a marinal site especially for fishing. In Malay, the word “Perhentian” means “point to stop”, referring to their hoary role as a waypoint for traders between Bangkok and Malaysia. The islands were sparingly inhabited by fishermen for centuries, although tourism accounts now for most economic activity.

In the Perhentian, the most common activities are scuba diving, sunbathing, and snorkeling. The Perhentian offers detailed diving and draw diving skills. Competition for dives is competitive, though quite cheap, averaging out to RM60-80 per dive depending on how many dives done and a person brings their own gear. There are 5 dive centers on Kecil’s Long Beach: Spice Divers, Coral Sky Divers, Sea dragon Divers, Turtle Bay Divers and Sunlight Divers. For Snorkeling, all resorts rent out snorkeling gear (RM30 a day for mask, snorkel and fins) and organize snorkeling tours throughout the islands. General snorkeling spots on Besar include Teluk Pauh (on the left of the beach in front of the PI Resort), Shark Point and Tanjung Basi. Sharks (though usually at the bottom of the reef) are most commonly seen on boat, at a very small beach, between Shark Point and the Teluk Dalam large beach. Turtles, are most commonly viewed in the middle of the beach in front of Perhentian Island Resort, where the sandy bottom is covered with algae.

Many of the smaller resorts of the island offer buffet-style meals with a variety of Western and Malaysian dishes. Larger beaches, such as the Pasir Panjang, offer a greater variety of eating options Meals. Since most of the island imports seafood, it is served several times on mainland. Mainly people travel to the islands by the provincial capitals Kota Bharu or Kuala Terengganu. Although the nearest railroad station is Tenah Merah, most tourists prefer Khotu Bharu for better service. Since the islands have neither roads nor airport, arriving to the islands requires a rough speedboat trip with two large outboard motors. On the islands other than from walking, the only way of transport are water taxis. Due to the eastern monsoon, the season in the Perhentian is effectively limited to the period between April and October. Beyond this, the seas can be extremely rough and most space options are closed.

Rai Leh, Thailand

Rai Leh, or Railay in Thailand is, a tourist area located on the Andaman Coast of Thailand, in Krabi Province, is largely known as a rock climbing spot, open to climbers from all over the world and for its gigantic limestone. A peninsula surrounded by ocean and mountains, final entrée can only be by boat. “Long-tails” leave from Ao Nang (10 minutes, 60 baht/person) and Krabi (30 minutes), whose towns are the gateways to Rai Leh. Another way of access to Rai Leh is on the regular ferries that run between Ko Lanta, Ko Phi Phi, and Phuket (mainly in the dry season: November–May ) From Bangkok are flights go to Krabi and Phuket, direct bus services, and trains to Surat Thani and connections by bus.

The topography of the Rai leh is in four primary areas. Phra Nang is a one white sand beach, on the southern tip of the peninsula. Rai Leh (East) is the mangrove side of the peninsula, used by long-tails to/from Krabi. Rai Leh (West), a fine white sand beach with shallow water, where most long-tails arrive from Ao Nang. Then, Ton Sai, which is a cove around the corner from Rai Ley West; rock-climbers and backpackers and practice climbing.