Diving on Redang, Malaysia
Coral Island Resort
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Diving on Redang, Malaysia - Visit Report
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Redang is a small island off the east coast of Malaysia. Traveling from Europe to Redang
takes some time: first some 11 hours flying to Kuala Lumpur, then another hour of flying
to Kuala Terenggano. A car will take you in half an hour to the small harbour where a
fast boat will take you to Redang in another hour. Thus a stop-over in Kuala Lumpur is
not a bad idea. It will give you the chance to see something of the exciting city of Kuala
Lumpur and it makes your journey to Redang seem shorter.
In September 2001 (just after the attacks in New York) we travelled to Kuala Lumpur and
Redang (Coral Island Resort) for a 2-week holiday. We never had any unsafe feelings there,
on the contrary, we felt very much at home there. Kuala Lumpur is very interesting with
the mix of rich and poor right next to each other (e.g. the slums directly adjacent from
the Petronas Towers, the symbol of Kuala Lumpur). And of course, visiting China Town is
a must!
Upon arrival on Redang you sense that it is going to be a marvellous and relaxing holiday.
Nice wheather, clear and warm water, friendly people and excellent accomodation. Much
time is spend outdoors: in the pool, in the open restaurant, on the terras of the bungalow
or ofcourse under water. Diving on Redang is tranquil, relaxing and very beatiful: superb
visibility, calm waters and a magnificent under water panorama with beautiful corals and
rock formations. Prices are even relatively low so we finally made the effort to do the
"advanced" diving course.
Our personal rating (September 2001):
| Topic |
Rating |
Comments |
| Island |
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The island is a few kilometers long but the resorts are best reached by boat. There
is a lush green vegetation but also a number of magnificent beaches. |
| Bungalows |
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The bungalows of the Coral Island Resort on Redang are simple but fullyequiped (air conditioning,
shower).
Not all bungalows offer a direct view on the beach. Several resorts are situated next
to each other in the small bay, each with some 20 to 40 bungalows or rooms. Occasionally
some karaoke sounds were drifting our way. |
| Food and drinks |
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The Coral Island Resort is not very big and offers only a smaller selection of
foods and beverages. There are however both european as well as asian dishes and in
the afternoon the staff are happy to prepare some light snacks for the guests. The
bar is fully licensed and equipped. |
| Facilities |
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Snorkeling and diving are the main attractions. Most guests come here for relaxing
and unwinding. |
| Under water |
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The under water world is particularly beatiful. The visibility is usually excellent,
there is plenty of colourful fish (especially clown fish) around impressive coral
and rock formations. The water temperature was 29°C so that a 5mm short wet suit
was absolutely sufficient. |
| Huis reef |
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There is not really a house reef. Left and right of the bay you find some easy
and simple dive grounds (directly accessable from the beach). All other dive sites
are however very near. |
| Dive sites |
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There are some 20 dive sites within 5 to 40 minutes by boat (starting directly
from the beach). The dive sites are very interesting and varied. Also, early-morning
as well as night dives are possible. We hardly ever experienced and current and the
water was very calm. |
| Dive center |
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The dive center was very tidy, professional and well equipped (run by South Africans).
Other resorts in the bay also featured dive centers but in many cases we had some
doubts about their quality and safety, thus we stayed with the dive center of our
resort. |
| Prices |
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Eating and drinking, but also diving was rather cheap: 20$-25$ per dive (including
boat, tanks and weights but using your own equipment). |
| Conclusion |
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Redang is an excellent choice for diving. Very colourful, beatiful nature, rather
quiet and good food. Especially in combination with a stop-over in Kuala Lumpur, Redang
is an absolute recommendation! |
More information on Redang
Highly recommended is www.malasiasite.nl where
you can find a wealth of information (in english) on Redang in particular and Malaysia in generell. Are
you looking for more information on hotels on Redang, then checkout this site.
If you have any comments, don't hesitate to let us know!
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