Tag Archives: ocean

Malaysia, Travelinds

Mabul Island

2 Comments

08 February 2014

Day trip snorkelling tour to Mabul Island with Scuba Junkie. The most inhabited of all the surrounding islands, Mabul gives off an energetic vibe and it was clear to us that all tourists and locals here were passionate about the ocean and its mysteries, as well as protecting their environmental treasure trove.

Mabul Island

We snorkelled in three different spots for the day and ate lunch at the Scuba Junkie cafeteria (buffet style) at the beach resort. There were no swimming beaches on Mabul but there is a small white beach where you can suntan or rest in the shade of a few umbrellas.  The resort itself looked very nice – small wooden bungalows and pretty gardens.  Swimming is not advised as there as too many sea urchins, but you can snorkel with the dive operators from off the boats, a little further out.

The rest of the island contains other resorts, dive operators, local houses and some home stays – this is another option for staying on Mabul cheaply. It is advised to check out the home-stays in person before deciding and/or paying for your accommodation.  We were warned repeatedly that home stays are strictly “very basic” accommodation (bamboo huts/shared bathrooms/sleeping on floor) etc.

Best sightings for the day:

Hawksbill turtle, Blue spotted ray, a school of very large Trumpet fish, a group of Puffers, very large Green turtles (at least 20 of them for the day) and so much more!

Snorkelling spots:

We snorkelled along the drop off and also in the artificial coral garden. Lobster Wall and Panglima Reef were wonderful, so many turtles and many other interesting fish.  Artificial Reef was completely boring and the visibility was poor.

Transport tips:

If you are staying on Mabul, but not diving/snorkelling through Scuba Junkie, you can still use their boat as a shuttle between Semporna and Mabul.  It was only about MYR 50 and they do regular trips.  You can take your luggage with you on the boat to Mabul (and back again).

See more about Scuba Junkie here.

 

Malaysia, Travelinds

Mataking and Timba-Timba Island

1 Comment

07 February 2015

tumblr_inline_n40p17q3WL1rg4d7lMataking Island

Mataking Turtles
Turtles popping their heads out of the smooth turquoise water off Mataking Island.

 

The Mataking Island day trip was by far our favourite of the three days spent snorkelling off the coast of Semporna, Borneo.

With its long white beach and crystal clear turquoise water, it is just like something out of those romantic movies in tropical paradise.    Just the two of us, on a white beach, under the shade of a tree, looking out over the cobalt water lapping on the shore…
We saw a large number of fish and other sea life, including barracuda, stone fish, colourful varieties of parrot fish, turtles and weird looking tiny things.

The colours here are truly spectacular and this is definitely one of Travelinds’ best places in the world to snorkel and to swim!
We spent time on the beach after lunch while the divers rested and could see the turtles popping their heads out of the water every few minutes (to breathe).

 

 

 

 

 

Timba-Timba Island

Mataking

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the way back to Semporna, we went to the Diver’s Delight snorkelling spot off Timba-Timba island and saw so many turtles here!

It was really exciting for me as I had not had much experience in swimming with turtles, even while snorkelling in Philippines, Malaysia and Thailand!

It was a truly spectacular snorkelling day and we flaunted the sunburn to prove it!

See more about Scuba Junkie here.tumblr_inline_n40p3uXy3t1rg4d7l

 

 

 

 

 

Malaysia, Travelinds

Sibuan Island

1 Comment

06 February 2014

Nicknamed “Sunburn island”, Sibuan is like something out of a dreamy beach romance.  White sandy beach, cobalt clear water, reefs right off the island and a couple of palm trees dotted here and there.  The military base building is the only sign of life here and life seems to creep past at a suitably slow island pace.

The snorkelling here was fantastic, colourful coral, turtles, all kinds of colourful fish and other interesting sea creatures.  It is close enough to swim back to the beach if you get tired and the visibility was good that day.

Favourite memory:

Due to the military presence of these islands (mostly for environmental protection and immigration law enforcement) it is common to see a couple of soldiers, with big guns, lying around on hammocks or patrolling the islands checking for illegal activity. One of the Swedish tourists was in his skimpy speedo (only) and demanded a photo shoot with the soldier and his large weapon, to which the soldier of course, happily complied. They were having a whale of a time doing a photo shoot of “the soldier and the speedo” – hilarious to watch!

Weird experience:

We were on our third snorkelling spot of the day around Sibuan when we heard two loud bangs in a row.  It was enough to get us to lift our heads out of the water suddenly and look around expectantly. Apparently, this area has a problem with fisherman using dynamite for fishing purposes and unfortunately, these explosions occur pretty regularly.  This particular one was apparently about two kilometres from us, but unbelievably loud for being that distance away.  There is a system to report explosions (time,date, location) in the area so that officals can investigate and hopefully catch the offending parties.

TIP:
Take suncream with you. It sure is hot, with little to no shady spots on the island. As a result, we spent most of our downtime at Sibuan in the shade of the speedboat.

See more about Scuba Junkie here.

Malaysia, Travelinds

Tip Top – Tip of Borneo

05 February 2014

Tip Top restaurant is right on the beach road of Tanjung Simpang Mengayau (the Tip of Borneo).  It is also known by the names Howard’s or Tampat Do Aman restaurant.

It has a very relaxed beach vibe; sandy floors, wooden benches, bean bags and some chilled out tunes playing in the background.  There are also some books to read and a lot of locals and tourists to chat too.  The food is competitively priced with the rest of the area and there are some local dishes to try like ‘Hinava’ – raw fish marinated in citrus juice.

Inside the menu itself, there is a whole stack of information about the owner’s many business ventures, the sustainability focus and many community projects.  There are so many ways that you can get involved in projects in the Kudat area through either volunteer work or donations; like turtle conservation, beach clean ups, volunteering in the local community, survival courses etc.

Personally I was very impressed with the detailed explanations of the different projects that are currently up and running in the area.  I hope to get involved in some of these in the future.

Enjoy!

Check out more information on Tip of Borneo restaurants.

Malaysia, Travelinds

Scuba Junkie

3 Comments

5 February 2014

If you ask anyone in Sabah which dive operator they would recommend in the town of Semporna, Scuba Junkie is usually the first name on the tip of their tongues.  Semporna is the gateway to the underwater beauty of Borneo and its beautiful islands – among them the world-famous Sipidan island, said to be one of the world’s top diving sites!

Although there are a wide range of other dive operators in Semporna, we only had a few days here and did not want to waste precious hours looking at other options.  We went straight to Scuba Junkie when we arrived in Semporna and set up our next few days of snorkelling tours.

Upon arrival, we hadn’t done much research about which islands we wanted to see, but Kay at Scuba Junkie patiently took us through the options, cost and details of the trips so that we could decide on the best course of action.  Scuba Junkie

We ended up choosing to do three day trips – to Mataking, Sibuan and then Mabul.  Not being divers, we obviously couldn’t get in to Sipidan itself because this is a prime diving spot (only) and generally requires special permits, applied for ahead of your trip.  The other islands, however, are more than enough to provide breath-taking underwater scenes and a vibrant mix of colours in the reefs that are teeming with beautiful and odd ocean creatures.

The full day snorkelling trip cost MYR120 (as at February 2014) and included tea, lunch, transport, environmental fee, wetsuit, snorkel, fins and your dive master. Snorkellers go on the boat with the divers and snorkel in the same spots as the dive group.

After three days of AMAZING snorkelling, turtles, rays, acute sunburn, happy memories and so much more, we definitely recommend Scuba Junkie if you only have a couple of days in Semporna.  Our favourite island trip was to Mataking (a ‘northern’ island) as this was the most beautiful underwater scene of the three.  Mabul Island was also wonderful for seeing many large turtles, including the rare hawkbills!

You can find out more about Scuba Junkie online on their Facebook Page, TripAdvisor or the website.

See more on these snorkel day trips to Mabul Island, Mataking Island and Sibuan Island.

Malaysia, Travelinds

Semporna

3 Comments

04 February 2014

Semporna is a very small city on the south eastern border of Sabah, Malaysia Borneo.  It is home to a wide range of cultural groups including Filipinos, Indonesians and Chinese Malaysians.  It relies on palm oil and tourism to sustain its economy.  It is best known for its association with some of the world’s most beautiful diving and snorkelling islands that lie just off the coastline.  Check out Travelinds posts on the gorgeous northern islands off Semporna’s coast – Sibuan, Mabul, Mataking and Timba-Timba.

First impression:

Upon arriving at this town via express bus, we were surprised to find a dirty, poorly maintained town with litter, water leaks and sorely evident poverty.  The overall vibe here was so different to that of other charming cities we had visited in Sabah and our sixth senses seemed to kick in to high alert.

Tourist attractions:

The only reason to visit Semporna is to use the town as a stepping stone across to the vast underwater beauty of its stunning coastline and surrounding islands.  Scuba Junkie are the dive operators of choice in Semporna.  The islands also boast fantastic white sandy beaches that rival the Tip of Borneo.

Getting here:

We took the Dyana Express Bus (from Sandakan MYR 40, about 6 hours, airconditioned, fairly comfortable).  The Dyana express bus terminal is only a ten minute walk down to the waterfront and boat jetty so the town is pretty small.  You could also take a taxi or intercity bus from Tawau (where the domestic airport is located), or an express bus from Kota Kinabalu.

Accomodation tips:

We stayed at City Inn (right next to the Dyana bus terminal, ten minutes walk from the jetty) for only MYR60 per night. It was clean, quiet, more reasonably priced than backpackers and comfortable. Trip Advisor reviews seemed a bit harsh for the value for money of this hotel.

Staying in Semporna and doing the dives/snorkel trips from there is highly recommended because it generally works out a lot cheaper than staying on Mabul Island.  There are also quite a few restaurant choices on the waterfront (unlike on Mabul Island) so this helps keep the budget in line.

If you are diving at Sipidan, however, you have to stay on Mabul Island or at Kapalai resort (this is usually arranged a little while beforehand though as things get booked up quite quickly).

The advice from a local dive instructor was that it was not really worth the money to stay on Mabul Island (no swimming beach, few restaurants, pricey accomodation) unless you were really into diving at a few of the exclusive spots.  For regular snorkellers/divers, like ourselves, it worked out better to stay in Semporna and take trips out to the islands every day.

Bus booking tip: 
If you are too tired or lazy to walk up to the Dyana bus terminal and book your tickets, there was a waitress at the Scuba Junkie restaurant who also does bookings for the bus from there.  She phones, books your seats, takes your cash and issues your official ticket. Helpful when it is the end of a long day of sunburn or passed office hours.
Malaysia, Travelinds

Kota Kinabalu Islands

2 Comments

28 January 2014

Huddled together off the coast of Kota Kinabalu, the group of five islands, which makes up the Tunku Abdul Rahman Marine Park, serves as a popular tourist zone for those visiting Sabah’s capital city.  There are hundreds of boat operators to choose from that offer standard or special tours, as well as diving or snorkelling.  It is a wonderful place to go if you need a day at the beach where the only thing to do is enjoy the scenery and breathe in the fresh sea air (once you’ve dodged the busy tourist gatherings).

The five islands – Gaya Island (big), Sulug Island (Sulu people), Manukan Island (fish), Mamutik Island (shell collection) and Sapi Island (mowing buffalo), lie about three kilometers off shore.  The Park was founded in 1974 as a national reserve to protect the marine life in the area.

After reading reviews on TripAdvisor, we decided to visit Manukan and Mamutik on one day trip, with snorkelling.  The islands were pretty much the same in terms of natural scenery except that Mamutik had amazing shells (as it name suggests) and was a lot quieter without the groups of Chinese tourists that thronged the open spaces on Manukan’s beaches and park areas.

Manukan

Manukan Island was our afternoon destination and we spent a lot of time eating lunch in the shade of the trees, sun-tanning and resting.  We saw a lot of monitor lizards here but were feeling too lazy to do the jungle walks where you can explore the rest of the island. There are a few places to eat here but not enough to keep prices competitive. We also saw a couple of people camping here (tents) and barbecuing, which looked like it might be a fun thing to do; especially since most of the tourists go home after 4 pm.  This leaves you ample time to enjoy the sunset and then the sunrise too, without the hoards of foreigners blocking the view.

Mamutik

Mamutik

Mamutik Island was our first stop and we spent the morning here snorkelling, sun-tanning, reading and admiring the birdlife around the island. It was a lot of quieter than Manukan and had good snorkelling around the far end of the beach (furthest from where the pier is) which was less damaged and had a quiet part of the beach to enjoy.  There are also lockers available for a day at the Borneo Divers offices (on the far side of the beach) if you need to lock up your things, for a small fee.

Mamutik

Getting here:

We found a boatman somewhere along the way to the Jessleton Point (just after the market, but before the main piers) who hustled us into buying a trip from him for MYR 100 (for two people, snorkelling equipment, boat trip return).   We then also had to pay a further MYR 10 for a conservation fee when we arrived at the island.  Based on some of the other tour packages we’d looked at this didn’t seem like a bad deal.

A few days afterwards, we did see a flyer somewhere for a package deal, including the above, plus KFC lunch and INCLUDING conservation fee, for only MYR 50 per person.  So I guess we could have saved about MYR 20 plus lunch costs had we found a deal like this earlier.  But it was not too much difference considering our busy schedule.

*Some information was taken from Sabah Parks website.*

Malaysia, Travelinds

Kota Kinabalu

1 Comment

Kota Kinabalu,

Sabah, Malaysia Borneo

This vibrant city is the largest city in the eastern Malaysian province of Sabah, on Borneo.  As in most other parts of Malaysia, Kota Kinabalu is home to a wide variety of cultural groups, including some special people groups specific to Borneo, like the Rungus. This province includes 33 indigenous groups speaking 50 different languages and up to 80 different ethnic dialects. Talk about an administrative nightmare for local government!

The province of Sabah has a wide range of attractions that make it a very alluring spot for tourists from all over the world. Beaches, islands, reefs, mountains, parks, nature reserves, museums, temples, mosques, markets, hot springs and rainforests – and Kota Kinabalu is the doorway to it all!

Named for its proximity to Mount Kinabalu, the city of Kota Kinabalu lies on the north-western coast of Sabah and boasts the largest port and population in Sabah. Kinabalu means ‘Chinese/China’ (kina), ‘Widow’ (balu), which perhaps explains why the mountain itself is held in such awe by the local inhabitants. It soars above the rest of the landscape, often swathed in a thick layer of white clouds and stands a lofty 4,101 metres above sea level.

With so much to see and not enough time to see it in, Sabah offers tourists a jam-packed holiday filled with endless activities and interesting places. You will need to take some time out to help it all sink in!

Read more about the following attractions in Kota Kinabalu (NOTE: these are just a few of them that we managed to see):

Travelinds also saw these interesting places in Sabah, Malaysia:
Philippines, Travelinds

Bohol Tours

Leave a comment

20 January 2014

While staying at Alona Beach (Panglao Island, Bohol), we booked a snorkel tour and a country tour with one of the local tour agents (the ones who walk around bugging you all the time).  We had priced a few and settled on one that we were happy to support.  Toto gave us a good deal for two days (one day snorkel tour, one day country tour) and agreed to all the little details that we insisted were deal-breakers (we needed snorkel equipment, guaranteed air-conditioned van, only two of us on our boat and in the van etc)

The tours were great fun and helped us to see a good deal of Bohol’s attractions that we may not have got to had we tried to wander around on our own.

The standard tour choices available all over Bohol are:

  • Country Tour:
    • Choose all or some: Zip-line, Tarsiers, Chocolate hills, Butterfly farm, Lunch River Cruise Loboc, Baclayon church, Blood Compact statue, Zoo and a few other little stops.

Toto was true to his word (but only because we insisted that he sort things out before we got on the boat – like there was no snorkel equipment?) and overall, we had a very enjoyable two days. The driver on our country tour was Toto’s cousin/friend and he was a wonderful tour guide and great conversationalist.  He was so professional and that made all the difference to us getting the most out of the day.

The total cost for both days (for two people, excluding lunches) was 2,000 pesos (about $45 US) but don’t let that stop you from bargaining with the vendor.  You will also have to pay extras for all the entrance fees during the country tour and buy lunches (ask about the cost of the attractions before you decide on which ones you would like to do).  To be honest, the “extras” didn’t come to that much either.

If you only have a couple days in Bohol, I highly recommend that you do these two tours, especially if seeing the main attractions on the island is one of your priorities.

Philippines, Travelinds

Tawala Beach

Leave a comment

19 January 2014

Tawala beach is one of the quieter beaches on Panglao Island, Bohol.  It is right next to the main beach, Alona, which is where the majority of tourists gather to enjoy the long white beach, restaurants, tour departure points and a large variety of accommodation. We chose to stay at a quieter location for our first week in Bohol, as we prefer peace and quiet to the buzz of the central tourist spots.

Tawala BeachThe lodge we booked was called Nova Beach Resort (Nova Beach Club) and it is situated on Tawala beach.  As H was sick with flu for a few days, it was the perfect place to relax, swim, read and sleep. There are hammocks overlooking the ocean, a deserted sandy beach, plenty of comfortable couch space with a view and air-conditioned rooms for muggy nights.  We slept, ate and relaxed here (and recovered from flu) and by the end of the week were feeling more than ready to take on our forthcoming five week travelling vacation.

We stayed in the basic rooms at the back of the lodge (small room, two single beds, simple furnishing, en-suite bathroom, air-conditioning) and were very comfortable.  There are also deluxe rooms and villas available.  It would be a great place for honeymooners to enjoy some time to themselves.

There are dive tours available (just ask at the front desk) and we read reviews that when there are large groups of divers or Japanese tourists (the owner is Japanese), it can sometimes get a bit rowdy at the resort.  Our own experience, however, was of a tranquil atmosphere and we had plenty of time and space to ourselves for the week.

tumblr_inline_n4l3skCJBa1rg4d7lIf you want a night out or a change of scenery, you can get to Alona beach by tuk-tuk, motorbike, the shuttle van or even walking (if you’re fit and don’t mind sweating A LOT). These charged anywhere between 40 pesos and 300 pesos depending on your bargaining skills. When we changed hotels at the end of the week, we took our bags (we usually only travel with hand luggage) and each hopped on to the back of a motorbike – it was cheaper, and faster than taking the trike.

There is no entertainment on this stretch of beach so don’t expect any restaurants, tours or boats.  The advantage is that it is also free of tourists, pesky tour agents, vendors and noisy speedboats.  It is a beautiful big bay where you can swim and snorkel, before retreating into the shade of one of the low hanging trees on the beach.  Then take an afternoon nap on one of the hammocks or couches with a view before tucking in to a scrumptious dinner in the airy dining room.  The swimming pool area also has a few sun-loungers and private massage booths too.

We hope to return to Nova Beach Resort some day soon! It felt like our own stretch of private beach on a paradise island.

Check out reviews on TripAdvisor and make a booking on Agoda.com

 

Philippines, Travelinds

Panagsama to Kasai

Leave a comment

27 December 2013

Feeling adventurous, we took a walk one afternoon from Panagsama towards the Kasai Resort pier. We wanted to explore the coastline and possibly get to White Beach (although, we were totally oblivious to how far along the coastline White Beach actually is and the fact that it is not accessible except by the inland road).

We set off along the rugged coastline climbing over quite a few ‘private’ walls and jetties which separate each property from the next. The rocks were jagged and slippery and the rising tide was steadily making our chosen path impossible.  We pushed ahead, over coconut dumps, a sewerage river, sharp rocks, half-built walls, private property and scratchy plants and finally, as we reached the Kasai resort pier, were unable to go any further. This was after climbing up and down rock faces and sliding on our bottoms in certain places.

Along the way we’d seen half-broken bamboo huts, a couple of goats, some naked children cliff jumping into the ocean, a kingfisher and a lot of crabs and cowrie shells!

Disappointed that we were still nowhere near White Beach and unable to go back the way we came due to the tide (and lack of motivation to repeat the rigmorol in the ensuing rain) we headed back to Panagsama on the inland road from the resort. It must have been at least a two kilometre walk back to Panagsama (in the lightish rain), which took us through lazy villages and groups of local children playing in the streets.  The rain was a welcome change in temperature and it was great to get a taste of local life for an afternoon.

We never did walk to White Beach. Moalboal 1, Travelinds 0.

Funny moment:

A couple of children followed us for a while down the road asking us all the questions in their limited English vocabulary. Questions like “What’s your name?”, “Where are you from?”, “What’s your bride’s name?” etc

We’d noticed that this friendliness is present in all Filipinos we pass on the roads, but especially the toddlers who wave energetically and call out greetings as tourists pass by. We were busy discussing whether this is ‘just being friendly’ or if they ‘wanted something’ in return when one tiny mite piped up behind us, “Ok, give me money,please” at which all the others took up the mantra in turn to bring their point home.

(Unfortunately for them though, we don’t carry much money with us if we can possibly help it – safety first!)

Moalboal 0. Travelinds 1.