Langkawi Beaches and Cruising

PANTAI KOK, CENANG, TENGAH, DATAI AND BURAU BAY are among Langkawi's idyllic beaches that offer carefree sun0filled days and quiet evening strolls. First-class accommodation in modern hotels or comfortable chalets is available. A wide range of exciting watersports provide fun and thrills for the energetic. Restaurant outlets in the hotels and outdoors serve a variety of appetising cuisine with live music and an explosive atmosphere.

Pantai Kok (Kok Beach), Langkawi

Pantai Kok
On the western side of Langkawi Island, about twelve kilometres north of Pantai Cenang, lies Pantai Kok, a beautiful powdery sand bay fringed by limestone hills and forest. Quieter and more secluded than Pantai Cenang, the area makes an ideal romantic getaway or a tranquil honeymoon place. Four new resorts, a new golf course and a replica of the Thai palace used in the film "Anna and the King" are among the other attractions. If you're feeling energetic you can go jungle trekking or explore the local caves. Pantai Kok has a few bars and restaurants but it's mainly a place to simply relax in the natural beauty of the beach and bay.

Pantai Cenang, Langkawi

Pantai Cenang
Only 3 km from the Langkawi International Airport and about 25 km south-west of Kuah is the famous beach of Pantai Cenang where most of the beach chalets and resorts are located. It is a lively beach with a number of restaurants and bars offering good food and drinks. There are facilities for sailing, canoeing, snorkeling and fishing. You can also hire boats for island-hopping there. Opposite Pantai Cenang is the island of Pulau Rebak. At low tide, a sandbar allows visitors to walk to Pulau Rebak and view marine life caught in the tidal pools. Not far off is another island worth exploring called Pulau Tepor, which can be reached by a hired boat from Cenang Beach.

Pantai Tengah, Langkawi

Pantai Tengah
At the southern end of Pantai Cenang is another stretch of quieter beach known as Pantai Tengah which curves past a rocky point. There is less development here, but like Pantai Cenang, there are sailboats, catamarans and canoes for hire. Nearby is the Langkawi Golf Club, an 18-hole golf course which fronts the beach.

Teluk Datai (Datay Bay), Langkawi

Teluk Datai
Teluk Datai to the north-west of the island is way off the main road, but it has the most exclusive golf course on the island. There is a beach near the resort meant mainly for resort guests. There are several jungle trails that take you down to the sea. There is a crocodile farm on the way to Teluk Datai where visitors can view the crocodiles and be entertained by shows in the mornings and afternoons.

Tanjung Rhu, Langkawi

Tanjung Rhu lies on the northern cape of Langkawi. Aptly named for its abundance of casuarinas, its enchanting beach affords magnificent views of nearby islands, which can be reached at low tide on foot. Tanjung Rhu has one of Langkawi’s best beaches. The shallow water makes it fine for swimming, and a sandbank links it to a nearby rocky outcrop. The Gua Cerita, or Cave of Legends, is just around a promontory and can be reached by boats that are hired on the beach.

Pantai Pasir Hitam, Langkawi

Pantai Pasir Hitam (Black sand beach)
Some 2 km west of Tanjung Rhu is Pantai Pasir Hitam, a beach streaked with black sand. The black streaks are caused by the deposits of mineral oxides from a nearby spring. The sea in the area is dotted with large boulders. Along the beach is a jetty where fishing boats moor. Attractions include food and souvenir stalls that sell local crafts and trinkets.

Sunset Cruise, Langkawi

ISLAND CRUISES are a great way to relax and take in the breathtaking scenery of Langkawi. As your boat weaves through the watery passageways between the islands, enjoy the cool breez and warm rays of the sun. A round trip around Dayang Bunting and Beras Basah Island takes about four hours. Alternatively charter a boat and enjoy a fantastic sunset cruise with cocktails. Special itineraries with a barbecue meal, snorkelling or trips to other islands can also be arranged.

SAIL LANGKAWI

ROYAL LANGKAWI YACHT CLUB (RLYC), situated within walking distance from Kuah Jetty, is an exclusive establishment with a beautiful clubhouse. There is also a fully equipped marina comprising 51 berths that can accommodate a variety of vessels including sailing keels, deep hull boats and even 60-metre mega yachts. The Club offers impressive facilities such as a waterfront swimming pool, jacuzzi and sauna, deep-sea fishing, sailing, scuba diving, jet-skiing and speedboats, and yacht chartering service. You can hire the Club's luxury motor yacht, Putri Maimunah, for a discovery or sunset tour of the beautiful Langkawi islands. For diners, RLYC is the perfect place to enjoy a long cool drink and a delightful meal in relaxing surroundings. Breathtaking views of Langkawi's beautiful islands and sunset can be enjoyed from its beachfront restaurant called Charlie's Place or from the Captain's Deck, its fine dinng restaurant. The above facilities are open to the public. RLYC is also the organiser of the annual Royal Langkawi International Regatta.
Phone: 04 966 4078

REBAK MARINA RESORT is the only development on a small private island located just off Langkawi's main beachfront of Cenang Beach. This development includes a safe and proteced modern marina, a luxury resort and facilities for servicing boats.
Phone: 04 966 9960


TALAGA HARBOUR PARK has an array of facilities such as the Petronas and Perdana quay, customs house, harbour office and the headland watchtower. There is also a bank and business center with internet access. A basin area of 27 acres was created and designed for public berthing of crafts of various sizes. A number of berths are allocated for term lease or tenancy.
Phone: 04 959 2202

AWANA PORTO MALAI LANGKAWI, noted for its Mediterranean architecture and as a terminal for ocean-going cruise ships, features a hotel, restaurants and shops lining the waterfront as well as a small marina. Several sailing and boating charters operate from the marina and sunset cruises around nearby islands are particularly popular.
Phone: 04 955 5111

Boracay Island - Philippines

Boracay Island Map

Hovering like a butterfly a few miles off the northern coast of the Western Visayan island of Panay, tiny Boracay was an unknown, unsung paradise until a couple of decades ago, when the hippie fashion for puka shell necklaces unleashed a modest economic boom overnight. Enraptured visitors were soon extolling the pristine beauty of its sugar-sand beaches, glassy waters and coral reefs, and even though these new arrivals brought with them a selection of the more inevitable trappings of tourism, the palm-fringed shoreline still retains its idyllic perspective today. You’ll be better off in Bali if you prefer a little cultural variety in between the basting sessions; Boracay is essentially for beach freaks who need little more by way of daytime diversion than bird song and a sea breeze. (Water sports, cycling, riding and tennis will adequately absorb excess energy.) As night falls, an imaginative palette of distractions illumine the scene; you can dine to live rock music in a beachside café or choose from a Filipino, Indonesian, Thai, Chinese, Italian or Swiss-style menu in one of the island’s restaurants. Caticlan, the starting point for the 15-minute banca crossing to Boracay, has a direct air link to Manila; or it you plan your visit to coincide with the Ati-Atihan festival in Kalibo in January, a brief detour will enable you to participate in a riotous Filipino-style Mardi-Grass fiesta in which local citizens and visitors with soot-blackened faces perform tribal dances in procession through the streets.

White Beach in Boracay - Philippines

Boracay's two primary tourism beaches, White Beach and Bulabog Beach, are located on opposite sides of the island's narrow central area. White Beach faces westwards and Bulabog Beach faces eastwards. The island also has several other beaches.

White Beach is the main tourism beach. It is a bit over four kilometers long and is lined with resorts, hotels, lodging houses, restaurants, and other tourism-related businesses. In the central portion, for about two kilometers, there is a footpath known as the Beachfront Path separating the beach itself from the establishments located along it. North and south of the Beachfront Path, beachfront establishments do literally front along the beach itself. Several roads and paths connect the Beachfront Path with Boracay's Main Road, a vehicular road which runs the length of the island. At the extreme northern end of White Beach, a footpath runs around the headland there and connects White Beach with Diniwid Beach.

Bulabog Beach in Boracay - Philippines

Across the island from White Beach is Bulabog Beach, a secondary tourism beach and Boracay's main windsurfing and kiteboarding area.

How To Get There & Away

Boracay can be reached from Manila by daily flights on Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, Air Philippines, Asian Spirit, Seair and Pacific Air. Caticlan is nearer the island, but the airstrip is short and narrow, and only the smaller planes of Asian Spirit, Seair and Pacific Air can land on it. The larger aircraft of Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and Air Philippines fly to Kalibo, the capital of Aklan. From Caticlan it takes about 15 minutes by boat to Boracay; from Kalibo, an hour and a half by bus plus the 15-minute boat ride.

PHUKET BEACHES

To enjoy a panoramic view of Kata Noi, Kata and Karon beaches, there is a vantage point on the beach route between Nai Han and Kata Noi beaches.

Rawai Beach
Located to the south of the island, Rawai is the first beach that brought fame to Phuket Island. The coconut-fringed route from the Chalong Intersection to Rawai is one of the most beautiful roads in Phuket. It is a good beach area where sea-people reside and where several restaurants provide different styles of delicious foods, especially seafood, shell handicraft shops, and both fishing and charter boats.


Naihan Beach
Naihan is a place for those who love peace and quiet. Its most picturesque landscape can be seen on the way from the north of Phromthep Cape down to the beach. It has a large freshwater behind it that flows into the sea at the southern end and some good snorkeling at the northern end. It's not a place to hire a jet ski or expect a lot of action. Just yachts bobbing in the bay, vendors selling ice cream and drinks and a fine sandy beach. Great for swimming from November to April, but it is not advisable to go for a swim here during the monsoon season (from May to October).

Kata Beach
Kata Beach is many people's favourite beach in Phuket. Stunningly beautiful with surfing from May to October, from November to April surfing is replaced by snorkeling and sunbathing and other watersports. The beach is palm lined and fairly busy but never too crowded to be annoying.

In the high season, yachts moor just offshore, adding to the ambience and the sunsets here are some of the best in Thailand. Restaurant lined or tree lined, there's a perfect spot for everyone at Kata.

Karon Beach
Karon is one of Phuket's longer beaches, very popular due to its fine white sand. Being so long the sunbeds are well spaced out so it never feels crowded. Just across a low hill to the north of Kata, the long white beach of Karon stretches magnificently with pines and palms standing tall over the rolling sand-dunes providing a unique scene. It is flourishing side by side with Kata Beach, but is more placid.
The sea water here is clean and the sand is powdery. It is one of the best places for swimming, diving and sunbathing. You can come from Kata to Karon easily by road or by a path along the coast.

Patong Beach
Patong is the foremost beach resort of Phuket which can compete with any other famous beaches of the world. With its wide variety of activities and nightlife, Patong is an ideal place to party and play. But many people do not know that, as late as a few decades ago, Patong was the remotest district of Phuket, cut off from the main part of the island by mountains. During the day Patong's curved sandy bay is a hive of activity with parasail and jet-ski operators, boat drivers, beach vendors and masseuses all vying for the attention of the many visitors relaxing on the beach chairs.

Kamala Beach
Kamala is about 10 minutes drive north from Patong and a great place for those wanting to get away from the hustle and bustle. It is just 6 km. north of Patong. Probably because most of the villagers here are Muslim, Kamala Beach is the only major beach in Phuket that does not have extensive hotel development and thus is still much peaceful. However, the beach has a highlight at "Phuket FantaSea", the cultural theme park offering a dinner buffet with an extravagant show.

Surin Beach
This beach, bordered by a hillside with a nine-hole golf course, is a good place to see the golden sunset of Phuket. The sea here is warm and clear during calm weather. Some small reefs at each end offer snorkelling. The beach slopes quite steeply downward, which helps keep the water clear of sand. The flip side of this is that during the monsoon season, the waves here are quite large, and strong undertows develop. It's popular with surfers at this time, but not really suitable for weaker swimmers. Unlike the other busy beaches of Phuket, there's a refreshing absence of jet-skis and speed boats here since Surin lacks a launch area.

Bang Tao Beach
Located south of Naithon Beach, this 8 km. sandy beach with an 18-hole golf course is suitable for swimming, sunbathing and water sports. The beach is lined with several upmarket resorts, most of which are part of an integrated resort system. Often you see people riding horses up and down the beach as the afternoon gets cooler.
Mainly only used by guests of the hotels here you'll find yourself relaxing in a secluded paradise, with a perfect sunset every evening.

* Thailand
* Phuket
* Where to stay and hang out in Phuket
* Phuket Attractions
* Phuket Beaches