Pangkor Laut or Tanjong Jara
Apr 18th, 2003, 07:37 PM
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Pangkor Laut or Tanjong Jara
Hi,<BR><BR>Am planning to go for a romantic holiday for my 15th anniversary. Has anyone been to Pangkor Laut or Tanjong Jara? We originally wanted to go to Bali but we changed our minds after seeing previous postings mostly saying that the beaches in Bali are not great...Boracay is better (we are from Philippines!).<BR><BR>What about Langkawi? Could anyone suggest a nice beach resort there with complete spa facilities?<BR><BR>Regards.
Apr 21st, 2003, 02:24 AM
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I am a huge fan of the Tanjong Jara, especially if you are going in July-august when the giant sea turtles are nesting. Even at other times, the area is so beautiful and remote. The beaches and water color are stunning, and there is good snorkelling and diving. You can hire a boat and go to deserted islands, etc. The hotel is spectacular. I love the whole east coats of Malaysia and this is one of my favourite parts. <BR><BR>I have not been to Pankor Laut, but I have heard some disappointing things bout the hotel from friends, who say that it has not been maintained as nicely as they should. Perhaps others on this site have different experiences.<BR><BR>As for Langkawi, I think it is nice, but there are a lot of hotels and it seems overdeveloped to me. Also, the beaches and water color are not as good as the east coast of Malaysia.<BR><BR>If you are from the Philippines, it may be that you want to try another country, but the Amanpulo Resort on its own island near Palawan is probably one of the most beautiful places I have been in SE Asia. I can't imagine a more romantic place for an anniversary. Take a look at Amanresorts.com. The resort is about an hour by plane from Manila.<BR><BR>Also, while I agree that Bali beaches are not in the same class as some of the above, the island itself is so beautiful and magical that you really don't miss white sand beaches. Any of the Aman hotels there, plus the various Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton would be a great place. I especially like the Amankila Hotel up along the north east coast in the area of black sand beaches. Take a look at their website as well.<BR>
Apr 21st, 2003, 07:18 PM
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Sorry Cicerone, the Malaysian govt recently announced that there are no more leatherback turtles coming back to nest in Trengganu. This is due to the stealing of their eggs by poachers in the past. The wildlife dept did try and resuscitate the turtle population by incubating the eggs but only succeeded in hatching male turtles. This confirms scientific theory that the sex of turtles are determined by the temp of the eggs.This is sad for wildlife in Malaysia.
Apr 21st, 2003, 07:24 PM
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Eliz, Pangkor Laut's reputation preceeds it but some find the rooms dowdy. There is a new spa village and new bungalows called "estates" which are for rent at USD2k a nite which are brand new tho. <BR><BR>Tg Jara is newer and has a nicer beach but it doesnt hv a spa. <BR><BR>IMHO the best luxuy hotel in Malaysia is the Datai in Langkawi which has great rooms with views of the rainforest canopy. The private beach is nice as well with the scenery of karst islands like that in the movie "the Beach". It also has a great spa.Costs the same as your two choices.Its beaches cant compare with East Coast Msian beaches in terms of white fine texture tho.
Jul 20th, 2003, 01:49 AM
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I'm a little late on this but thought I'd add comments for anyone searching this topic again, as I have stayed at both Tanjung Jara and Pangkor Laut in the past month.
Both have their pros and cons. Tanjung Jara is smaller and more intimate - or maybe it was just less busy. Felt like we had the place to ourselves. Found the service better, and actually preferred the room there. It was also cheaper (we got a Malaysian residents' rate of RM699 a night for two nights, including all meals and non-alcoholic drinks). The resort is very spread out, so there is some walking involved.
(We didn't see any turtles - I think they are discouraging tourists from going to see them because they are not faring very well, and yes, the government is doing something about it, I'm told.)
Pangkor Laut was harder to get to. They have a ferry transfer from Lumut but on the way there one engine died, and on the way back the air/con died, so either way it wasn't pleasant. Not up to 5 Star standard, definitely. But once there... ahh. It's bigger, more people around (lots of kids - someone asked about this on another thread). The room was not spotless, I'm sorry to say. The courtyard bathtubs in the hillside villas are awesome! Very romantic (bring candles!). The spa is much more developed than at Tanjung Jara - you can get a massage at TJ, but at PL you get more of a spa experience. Costs more, but what the hell. BTW, we got a similar deal at PL as at TJ, RM799 a night for two nights, meals and non-alc drinks. The beach (at Emerald Bay) is nicer than the beach at TJ (though both are lovely, really), plus you can get drinks and lunch there. The resort is also spread out, but they have vans to shuttle you around if you don't want to walk, and if you're in a hillside villa there is actually an elevator in the hillside to take you up.
We had crappy service in one of the restaurants at PL (Uncle Lim's) but also had crappy service in one of the restaurants at TJ, so I guess that was just the luck of the draw.
I found TJ more baby-friendly (we had our 8month old along). PL gave us a playpen for her to sleep in, which was so hard I wouldn't let a dog sleep in it. TJ had a proper baby crib. Also were very helpful at almost every meal, entertaining the baby so we could eat. That only happened once at PL. Neither place is very stroller/wheelchair friendly, though).
I'd go back to either. I actually have more small complaints about PL - I think my expectations were higher for it, so of course it didn't fulfill every hope I had for it. But I think in the end I'd be more inclined to return to Pangkor Laut over Tanjung Jara, and especially to take guests who come to visit us... to wow them.
Both have their pros and cons. Tanjung Jara is smaller and more intimate - or maybe it was just less busy. Felt like we had the place to ourselves. Found the service better, and actually preferred the room there. It was also cheaper (we got a Malaysian residents' rate of RM699 a night for two nights, including all meals and non-alcoholic drinks). The resort is very spread out, so there is some walking involved.
(We didn't see any turtles - I think they are discouraging tourists from going to see them because they are not faring very well, and yes, the government is doing something about it, I'm told.)
Pangkor Laut was harder to get to. They have a ferry transfer from Lumut but on the way there one engine died, and on the way back the air/con died, so either way it wasn't pleasant. Not up to 5 Star standard, definitely. But once there... ahh. It's bigger, more people around (lots of kids - someone asked about this on another thread). The room was not spotless, I'm sorry to say. The courtyard bathtubs in the hillside villas are awesome! Very romantic (bring candles!). The spa is much more developed than at Tanjung Jara - you can get a massage at TJ, but at PL you get more of a spa experience. Costs more, but what the hell. BTW, we got a similar deal at PL as at TJ, RM799 a night for two nights, meals and non-alc drinks. The beach (at Emerald Bay) is nicer than the beach at TJ (though both are lovely, really), plus you can get drinks and lunch there. The resort is also spread out, but they have vans to shuttle you around if you don't want to walk, and if you're in a hillside villa there is actually an elevator in the hillside to take you up.
We had crappy service in one of the restaurants at PL (Uncle Lim's) but also had crappy service in one of the restaurants at TJ, so I guess that was just the luck of the draw.
I found TJ more baby-friendly (we had our 8month old along). PL gave us a playpen for her to sleep in, which was so hard I wouldn't let a dog sleep in it. TJ had a proper baby crib. Also were very helpful at almost every meal, entertaining the baby so we could eat. That only happened once at PL. Neither place is very stroller/wheelchair friendly, though).
I'd go back to either. I actually have more small complaints about PL - I think my expectations were higher for it, so of course it didn't fulfill every hope I had for it. But I think in the end I'd be more inclined to return to Pangkor Laut over Tanjung Jara, and especially to take guests who come to visit us... to wow them.
