Its beaches washed by the blue-green waters of the South China Sea, turtle-shaped Pulau Tioman is the largest and most impressive of the east coast islands. Its sheer size (20km long and 11km wide) makes it more developed than the other east coast islands
A short boat trip from Kuala Besut will take you to the beautiful islands of Pulau Perhentian Besar and Pulau Perhentian Kecil, just 20km off the coast. With their crystal-clear aquamarine water and white-sand beaches they are among Malaysia’s biggest tou
Less wrapped up in history, less multicultural but still refreshingly Malay, the peninsula’s east coast is an entirely different experience from the mobile-phone obsessed, traffic-clogged west coast. Headscarves, skullcaps and the hauntingly melodious cal
A peripheral fishing village on the east coast of Johor, Mersing would be an inconsequential blip on the road to Kuantan were it not the hopping-off point for boats to Pulau Tioman and other islands of the Seribuat Archipelago. Travellers passing through
About midway up the east coast from Singapore to Kota Bharu, Kuantan is the mouldering capital of the state of Pahang, and it’s also the start of the east-coast beach strip that extends all the way to Kota Bharu.
Standing on a promontory formed by the South China Sea on one side and the wide Sungai Terengganu on the other, Kuala Terengganu is the state capital and the seat of the sultan. Oil revenue has transformed Kuala Terengganu from a sprawling, oversized fish
In the northeastern corner of the peninsula, Kota Bharu, which calls itself ‘The Islamic City’, is the termination of the east-coast road and a gateway to Thailand. At first glance, Kota Bharu, with its bustling modern centre and traffic-clogged streets,
Capital of the state of Johor, Johor Bahru (popularly called JB) is the southern gateway to Peninsular Malaysia, connected to Singapore by road and rail across a 1038m-long Causeway. JB inevitably suffers from comparisons with its successful, plutocratic
Effortlessly ranked among the east coast’s top stops, the travellers’ kampung of Cherating waylays visitors with a woozy concoction of sunshine, seaside charms and an infectiously leisurely tempo. Some people drift through, settle down and stay for weeks