Odysseys of George

I first dived at Pulau Tenggol about three or four years ago and from that very first day, I fell in love with it. Of all the islands, Tenggol and Redang are my favourites and now to add would be Pulau Yu near Pulau Bedong. This would be the fourth time I have gone diving to Tenggol. The resort — Tenggol Island Beach Resort. Well, when one talks about a dive resorts it encompass a few things which are important. One is the resort itself and the management. Having stayed at its neighbour resort, Tenggol Island Resort the last times, I have to say the Tenggol Island Beach Resort is better managed overall. The rooms at Tenggol Island Resorts are more and looks nicer and better but the maintainance is poor with many a times the hot water does not work, there is no water or poor water pressure, the air conditioning fails and the toilets not functioning. The food is definitely by far excellent at Tenggol Island Beach Resort and to that there is really no comparison. At Tenggol Island Resort, I have heard of not just the food taste poorly but also many a times there is no food served.

Next would be the dive center. Well again the setup of the dive center at Tenggol Island Resort is better but the dive center at Tenggol Island Beach Resort is fairly good. What disappointed me however was the dive guide. We had this Sabahan dive guide who in person I think has some attitude issues and a very poor guide. He hardly showed us anything and somehow I felt that he showed little knowledge of the dive sites as in his dive briefing that he gives. So in that sense, my group was disappointed but since we were all a great team we worked the dives well.

There is another resort there on the island but maybe that, i will check out the next time around.

As for now enjoy the pictures.

For more check out my facebook album

My friends and I, are planning our next dive to this place – that many know not of — mainly because it is a scuba diving paradise. But even among divers, this place isn’t a favourite plainly because it is not just 26 km off the coast of quiet fishing town of Kuala Dungun, Terengganu, Malaysia but also has many challenging dive sites.

Cited as “The Best Diving in Peninsular Malaysia” Asian Diver Magazine 2002 Annual Edition, it consists of Pulau Tenggol (Tenggol Island), Pulau Nyireh, Tokong Timur, Tokong Burung and Tokong Talang/Tokong Kemudi, Tokong Laut. Some divers even call it “Sipadan of Peninsular Malaysia” with its beautiful rock formations and wall dives akin Sipadan. The currents here can be very strong and sometimes difficult to predict.

Tenggol and its surrounding islands offer good visibility with teeming of marine life, including sharks, rays, nudibranch and a wide variety of hard and soft corals.

Scuba Diving Tenggol Island, Malaysia

Water temperature:

27 – 28°C (80 – 82°F) on average, up to 31°C (89°F) in summer months

Suit:

Skin to 3mm shortie

Visibility:

10 – 20 metres (30 – 65 feet)

Type of diving:

Reefs and drift diving

Marine life:

Eagle rays, jacks, trevallies, fusiliers, barracudas, tuna, humphead wrasse, Christmas tree worms, sponges, sea anemones

When to go:

It is possible to visit Malaysia at any time of year, but the rainy season that runs from June to September can cause rougher seas and lower visibility. The months of July and August suffer from the heaviest rainfall. Avoid east coast destinations between November and January

How to get there:

Malaysian Airline System and Air Asia offer regular flights from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu arrviving at Sultan Mahmud Airport. Taxis are readily available at the airports for city transfers. It’s about one and half hour drive to Dungun. Alternatively you can catch the flight from Kuala Lumpur to Kuantan and from Kuantan, it is an hour and forty minutes drive by taxi or car. Kuala Terengganu is the main hub for express bus and coach travel in and out of the state. Long distance taxis are also readily available and all these coaches and taxis will pass throught the main road to Kuala Terengganu via Dungun.

Taken from Tenggol Island Beach Resort

Will update with pictures once we come back.