Perhentian Island Resort
Approached via a rickety wooden walkway from behind Coral View Island Resort, this luxurious option over...
Approached via a rickety wooden walkway from behind Coral View Island Resort, this luxurious option over...
Moonlight’s staff are friendly as hell, their A-frame huts are fairly spruce and their regular rooms, while a bit blocky, are comfortable enough. It’s also likely the only spot on the island partly managed by a lady boy.
A slight step up from budget blah, the facilities at this cluster of bungalows and huts are a little more polished and pricey than many of the alternatives. Good for travellers who may want a little quiet.
Cocohuts has a good choice of rooms including pleasant beachside chalets and a two-storey longhouse, which has some great views from the upstairs balcony. The semi-sea-view rooms’ interiors are probably a little nicer than the sea-view rooms.
This resort is on the south coast at isolated Pasir Petani. It’s a peaceful, secluded setting, and the pricier chalets facing the beach have great views out over the open sea. There’s an on-site restaurant and diving facilities.
This gathering of pristine chalets perches on a lovely stretch of white sand, with others set in the pretty gardens or facing the jungle behind.
Set back among the trees with a walkway to the beach, Matahari is one of the better chalet operations. It has a good range of accommodation, from simple huts with shared bathroom to spacious bungalows.
Sitting on an attractive stretch of sand, Fauna has a choice of the usual creaky wooden huts and more comfortable sea-view bungalows. Pricier ones have air-con; there’s no hot water.
Situated on the northern end of Coral Bay, and sprawling back into the jungle trail, this is a good, clean and relatively posh option for those needing a little luxury while living the backpacker dream. Has 24-hour electricity.
At the southern tip of Long Beach, Lemon Grass has 16 no-frills fan huts with shared bathrooms. There are great views from the verandah at reception and nice secluded spots to sit and gaze out to sea.
At the western end of the bay, this is an ageing array of ramshackle A-frames and bungalows set around a pretty garden. It’s quiet and just about OK, but has seen better days.
This big place has a variety of options at the back of the beach, ranging from garden-view fan huts to ‘deluxe’ air-con beach chalets.
On the southwest coast, Mira is an adventurous choice, set on a small secluded beach with the jungle right behind. There are eight rickety chalets set amid banana and coconut trees, in a location Robinson Crusoe would’ve been proud to call home.
With a great location at the northern end of the beach, Coral View’s accommodation runs from simple fan chalets up to rather smart beachfront suites. There are a couple of good restaurants serving Asian and Western dishes (lunch RM30), and shops.
Steep steps behind Lemon Grass will get you to this vertiginous place on the rocks, which had just come under new ownership at the time of research and may no longer be called Rock Garden when you read this.
On Teluk Kerma, a small bay on the north-eastern side of the island. This is one of the better places on Kecil, with good coral and a tranquil, isolated location.
Mohsin has some great chalets sprawling into the sand and up a hill. The receptionist is surreally friendly, and the ambience is tropically languid.
Reached by a steep clamber over the rocks next to Senja Bay, this end-of-the-line place has a series of basic wooden huts perched precariously on the headland.
This huge upmarket resort occupies the eastern flank of Teluk Dalam, although it has no beach frontage itself. The broad array of rooms includes, surprisingly, two dorm blocks at the very back. The cheaper ‘standard’ rooms are a bit pokey.
Has a choice of reasonably comfortable chalets with or without bathrooms.
A pretty wooden house rises over a series of low-slung, teak-chic chalets and bungalows. Popular with divers and those seeking a bit of budget backpacker vibe in Besar.
Near the jetty, this renovated place is the best option in town, with large simple rooms and private bathrooms.
The wooden beach huts at this popular place are pretty ordinary, but all have private bathrooms and there’s a cafe too. Just beyond is the Government Resthouse, reserved for Malaysian government officials.
At the northern end of the bay, this is the sole top-end option on Long Beach. It’s a somewhat overpriced, modern three-storey hotel that looks out of scale here, but the rooms catch the sun, and most have balconies.
Reef’s very basic chalets are set back from the beach amidst a gaggle of lounging, flip-flopped staff. There’s an equally basic cafe and a lazy, laid-back atmosphere.
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