TRIP TO TIOMAN ISLAND

Since it's been a while from the last time I've taken a vacation together with family, we decided to go to Tioman Island. It's located in the east of Malaysia just off the coast of Pahang. I'll try not to miss every single thing that we've done. I hope those who are planning to visit Tioman and their first time will find this blog helpful.

We decided to drive from Kuala Lumpur to Tanjung Gemok, which is the jetty to Tioman Island. Our trip was suppose to be from the 22/6/17 to 25/6/17. However, after some searching on the internet, we learned that the journey will be around 5 hours +. Due to the long distance we decided to start a day earlier so we can get some rest and catch the earliest ferry to Tioman. We drove from Kuala Lumpur heading to SILK Highway, then we cut into LEKAS Highway. We exited PAROI to JALAN KUALA PILAH pass BATU KIKIR. Head towards JALAN BAHAU - KERATONG. Entered LEBUHRAYA SEGAMAT - KUANTAN , Later FOLLOWED JALAN MUADZAM SHAH - BUKIT IBAM. There will be a signage of the Tanjung Gemok Jetty from there. You can use Google MAPS or you can also use WAZE for those living in Malaysia. There are also several other ways to get to Tanjung Gemok. Its only the distance to drive the shortest route or otherwise. You can also avoid a long and tiring drive by taking a bus from Kuala Lumpur straight to Tanjung Gemok with SANWA EXPRESS. Their schedule is 4.00 am or 9.00 am. Tickets are priced at RM 30.90 one way per person. Their HotLine : 013 646 5773 / 013 400 4773 ( this contact number is based on June 2017 ). As for us, we took the shortest way. We started our journey on the 21/6/17 ( a day earlier than scheduled ) at 2.20pm from Petaling Jaya. We arrived in Tanjung Gemok around 7.11pm. We stayed in Hotel Seri Malaysia, which is around 200 meters from the Jetty. Please check your hotel rate from booking.com and also compare them with the hotel website itself. We found out that booking via the hotel website is the cheapest. We got a family room with 1 double bed and 1 single bed for RM 150 nett per night inclusive breakfast but was not able to enjoy the breakfast due to the early checkout to catch the earliest ferry.

While we were in Tanjung Gemok, we had dinner in Fu Man Lou Seafood Restaurant. We ordered Teo Chew Steam Fish, Sweet Sour Pork and Lemon Chicken (gravy not to my liking as it's thick and salty ) . Spent about RM 98.16 for dinner. My personal opinion on price of the food in this restaurant is on the higher side. You can get better deal in Kuala Lumpur for the price that we just paid for... Dinner was for 3 .

From our understanding the sea is the calmest in the early morning as we wanted to avoid sea sickness. As for the ferry ride, you have a choice of 3 ferries to go to Tioman Island which is Blue Water ( they are the longest serving ferry ), Dragon Star ( since 2016 ) or the latest addition Cataferry ( since March 2017 ). I would personally recommend Cataferry as they are clean, huge and comfortable but of course a bit more pricey.. You can find photos of the ferries below. We didnt manage to take Cataferry on the 22/6/17 as they don't operate on Tuesdays and Thursdays unless you have an extra huge group so we tried Blue Water ferry instead. We were told to be at the jetty 1 hour before the departure time to buy and collect our ticket. We were one of the early birds there. Since it's not a peak time, the jetty was all good and comfy. Not a large crowd. The only thing is the counter doesn't open until 7.00 am. We had to wait until the counter opened to get our tickets. We made prior reservation days before our departure. Please get your I.C or Passport ready to buy your tickets. As for parking your car if you drove there, you can do so at the Jetty itself for RM 12 per day. Its gated and safe. We park ours for 4 days. Below is the Ferry Schedule to Tioman : Blue Water Ferry : Departure Time : 7.30 am or 11.30am . We took the 7.30am one. Duration : 2 hours + Price : RM 35 per person one way / Return RM 70 (Adult) , RM 30 per person one way / Return RM 60 ( Children ). Contact for reservation : Bistari Gemilang : 09 4131 362 ( just give them your name, contact number and how many person ) Dragon Star : Departure Time : Please call to check Price : Please call to check Contact for reservation : 09 4131 177 Cataferry : Departure Time : 8.00 am Duration : 1.30 to 2 hours Price : RM 66 per person one way ( Please call to check as their price vary according to booking and peak time. Just like Air Asia booking ) Contact for reservation : Lincoln - 012 318 9458 Juara Express : Departure Time : Please call to check Price : Please call to check Contact for reservation : 09 4131 390 The ferry we took departed at 7.45am instead of 7.30am. Just some heads up, before boarding the ferry and entering Tioman, you will be required to pay the Marine Park Fees at the Tanjung Gemok Jetty itself. There is a counter for you to pay. Fees for the Marine Park : Malaysian : Adult : RM 5.00 per person Senior Citizen : RM 2.00 per person Children ( 6 to 12 years ) : RM 2.00 Non Malaysian : Adult : RM 30.00 Senior Citizen : RM 15.00 Children ( 6 to 12 years ) : RM 15.00