Hello Readers!!!
How did you all celebrate your long weekend? For me, I went to Tioman. Some of you may think that I'm crazy, going Tioman during the monsoon season. Haha... Anyway, I really have to thank God that during my 3 days 2 nights stay in Tioman, the weather is perfect! So now, I am going to share my Tioman experience with you ^.^ For a start, I booked this trip through WTS Travel Agency, which did the booking of the coach, ferry and accomodation.
Day 1: Singapore to Tioman
Coach to Mersing Ferry Terminal
So on Saturday, we assembled at Hotel Grand Central at 6.15am. Bus was scheduled to leave at 6.30am. Well, there wasn't a need to be too early as the bus arrived on the dot (i.e. 6.30am) and left once everyone boarded the bus. The bus wasn't full, in fact it was less than half full.
Mersing Ferry Terminal
We reach Mersing Ferry Terminal at 10am. There wasn't any stopover for breakfast, so you may wish to pack some bread / biscuit for breakfast. Once we alighted from the bus, a guy led us to a table in the Ferry Terminal and explained the route as well as to pass us our boarding pass. After which, we headed over to another counter to register our particulars. There's a conservation charge of RM5 per pax.
Note: Try to board the ferry asap. The later you board, the harder to find seats.
On board the Ferry to Tioman
The ferry was so damn squeezy! *Groans* We were literally shoulder-to-shoulder with the person sitting next to us. If you have long legs... well good luck to you! The ferry left the jetty at 10.30am and was crawling until 10.45am where they finally pick up speed. At 12.05pm, they reached the first stop,
KG. Genting. We reached our destination,
KG. Paya (Second Stop) 10 minutes later. I was mentally breathing a huge sigh of relief as my butt had turned numb from sitting too long without moving =(
At Paya Beach Resort
Upon arriving at the Resort, a deposit of RM150 was collected when we checked in. So do remember to set aside that sum of money first. The said sum would be refundable if you do not have any outstanding amount to settle with the Resort when you checked out.
Paya Beach Resort - Superior Beach Front Room
We thus proceeded to the room after collecting the keys from the Reception. The musky smell from the bedsheet hit me when I first stepped into the room. My heart sank a little, because we were going to stay here for 2 nights. So we went to open the doors to air the room. Despite the smell, the room was indeed much much better than I thought when I read reviews online. The view from the balcony was superb!
Lunch: Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort - Wine & Dine
Afternoon found us eating our lunch at Wine & Dine. We were soooo hungry as we did not have any breakfast.
Americano Mocha (RM5.20)
Shirley Temple (RM8.20)
Lime juice / Syrup / 7up
Nasi Goreng Kampong (RM8)
Local Malay village fried rice with Chicken meat and Shrimps
Lamp Chops 'Paya Beach' (RM30)
The 'Americano Mocha' was pure black coffee, just what was needed for a good kick start for the day. Love the 'Shirley Temple', a right mixed for me. The 'Nasi Goreng Kampong' had sambal in it and hence it was a little too hot, in my opinion. As for the 'Lamb Chops', it was too chewy and the coleslaw doesn't taste nice =( Note to self: Do not order their Western food anymore. However, their service was good. =D
Rock Fall
2 locals recommended us to visit the Rock Fall. They mentioned that in spite of the sunny weather, the water remained cool and it would be very comfortable to dip our feet into the cooling water. As we didn't have anything else to do, we decided to take a look. The walk to the Rock Fall took about 10 mins. Along the way, there were red ants and mosquitoes. I had a few "kisses" from these pesky mosquitoes. Irritating!
When we finally reached the Rock Fall and dip our feet in, the annoying mosquitoes attacked full-force. Beware, it was exactly like mosquitoes feeding frenzy. In the end, we hurried out with red bites all over our legs! Damn! Thank God I brought my mopiko and was applying it to the bites. ='( Blacklisted that place already!
Swimming in Paya Beach
To counter the itchiness, we decided to take a swim at Paya Beach. The water was warm and comfortable against those bites. However, do look out for rock / stone. Oh! The water was very very salty (gulped down a few mouth accidentally). There were not many people swimming in the beach.
Dinner: Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort - Wine & Dine
Having swam for about an hour, we were feeling hungry. Evening found us back at Wine & Dine as that's the only place to eat. We decided to go for their Dinner Buffet which cost RM33 per pax (from 6.30pm to 9pm). Cheap right?
Spa
We rested for a while for our food to digest and went for our spa that we booked earlier in the afternoon. For Spa packages, you can book with the Receptionist. I went for the following (Gotten this from their brochure):-
- Neck, Back & Shoulder Massage (30 mins / RM78): A soothing massage that focuses on releasing the tension from the neck & shoulders. Perfect for easing the stress from working long hours & relaxing the muscles to ease stiffness and promote good posture.
- Foot Massage (30 mins / RM68): A luxuriously relaxing massage using oils & gentle gliding strokes to ease tired foot muscles leaving your feet feeling fresh and rejuvenated.
Personally, I preferred their foot Massage. The lady who massage me did not really massage my shoulder. She was more focus on my back. Overall, i had a great time relaxing. (I think I dozed off halfway..)
View at night
Feeling tired but refreshed, we took a stroll back to our rooms. The view at night looked different from that in the morning. As darkness stole away the colours, it became hard to distinguish between the sky and the sea.
Day 2: Tioman
We woke up pretty early on our second day because we wanted to catch Sunrise. However, much to our disappointment, it was drizzling and thus... there goes the sunrise =(
Breakfast: Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort - Wine & Dine
So at 7am, we went for our complimentary Breakfast Buffet... The coffee and lemonade tasted very bland, like plain water with a tiny hint of their respective tastes. Food was ok, the Nasi Lemak was not bad!
Walking along Paya Beach
After breakfast, we went to enquire on snorkelling which would take place from 2pm to 6pm. As per the counter guy, their usual timing is from 9am to 1pm, however on that said day it seemed there were no drivers available as they had gone for prayers, and hence the change in timing. So we went to walk around Paya Beach. Some pictures that I took...
Lunch: Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort - Wine & Dine
As we were participating in water sport, we had lunch even though we were relatively full from the breakfast buffet.
Islander Pizza (RM16)
Turkey Ham Sandwich (RM12)
The 'Islander Pizza' was not bad. The 'Turkey Ham Sandwich' was ok only.
Snorkelling Trip
Finally at 1pm+, we went to rent equipments for snorkelling. The costs for equipment rental per day were "Mask - RM8", "Life Jacket - RM7" and/or "Fin - RM7". We only rented the Mask and Life Jacket, which costed us RM15 each. The Snorkelling Trip Fullboard Package for adult and child is RM35 and RM25 respectively. It's a free and easy trip to Renggis Island & Marine Park.
Note: Remember to bring the conservation charge ticket, if not, you'll have to pay RM5 again.
Renggis Island
This was the first place they brought us to get upclose and personal with the fishes and corals. The water was a little cold when I first went in, but after a while, I got used to the temperature and it felt warm against the sun. Beware of sea urchin, at all times, try to keep yourself horizontal. I got cut by the corals on my feet while i struggled to find footing. Now I know the reason for the fin. It's to prevent you from getting cuts. If you brought bread, you may feed the fishes. The fishes seemed like they had not eaten for hundreds of years, all fighting to claim ownership of the bread. We swam for about an hour or so before we left for the next destination.
Marine Park
Our second destination - Marine Park. There are various activities that you could enjoy here. Snorkelling (again), playing or sitting by the beach, feeding the fishes or simply strolling around. If you chose to snorkel, you would find that the fishes were bigger. We stayed here for about an hour before we left... feeling hungry and tired...
Dinner: Paya Beach Resort
Hungry as hell and straight from bath, we went to search for food...
Mee Goreng (RM8)
Fujin Style Noodles (RM8)
Sizzling Doufu (RM14)
Crispy Prawn Paste Fried Chicken (RM20)
Bascially, the 'Mee Goreng' was not bad, I felt that their Malay food was nicer than other cuisine. The 'Fujin Style Noodle' was so-so only. Nothing very special.The 'Sizzling Doufu' was a much better than the 'Crispy Prawn Paste Fried Chicken' in which I found the latter rather dry.
Supper: Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort - Wine & Dine
Hehe... What's life without desserts. So yeah, here we are - Supper! Desserts!
Banana Split (RM10)
Strawberry Sundae (RM6)
Day 3: Tioman to Singapore
Breakfast: Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort - Wine & Dine
Similar to Day 2, we had complimentary breakfast on the third day as well. Yippee...
After breakfast, we requested for late check out. The original check out timing was at 10am. The receptionist informed us the latest would be at 11am.
Walk along Paya Beach
Our last chance walking along and around Paya Beach.
Lunch: Paya Beach Spa & Dive Resort - Wine & Dine
We had a quick lunch while we waited painstaking for 2pm.
Virgin Pinacolada (RM8.20) / Governor Smile (RM8.20)
Virgin Pinaolada: Coconut milk / Pineapples juice / Fresh milk
Governor Smile: Orange juice / Fresh milk
Chicken Burger (RM6)
Chicken Pizza (RM16)
At the Jetty
The Ferry was scheduled to arrive at 2pm but they were late for 50 mins! Some of the awaiting passengers were talking, some were playing games, some were feeding fishes... I was entertaining myself by snapping pictures..... Sigh, why the long wait? *Groans*
3 ferries arrived at the same time and they were nearly full. -.-"" Thank God we managed to get seats. And yes, it was as squeezy as Day 1 =(
Mersing Ferry Terminal and back to Singapore
We reach Mersing Ferry Terminal at 4.30pm.
20 mins later, we were brought to our bus. However, I was turned off when the guy tried to fill up all the empty seats and people (not in the original group) started coughing and spreading germs around the bus! Finally, we reached Singapore at 8.10pm! Home Sweet Home!!!
Overall Verdict?
The damage for this trip costed S$235 per pax. We were considered lucky as this period was supposed to be the monsoon season. But thank God, this trip was smooth and the weather was bright and sunny, even though on Day 2, we were meet with slight drizzle in the morning =D
Tiny Pea
