Langkawi

We were very spoiled with the picturesque beaches, nature, lakes, waterfalls and so much more this beautiful Malaysian island had to offer.

Langkawi is a small island which can easily be traveled in a day or two.  25km from North to South and a little bit more from East to West.  This island just has so many things to see that two days just aren’t enough.

HOW TO GET TO LANGKAWI FROM PENANG

1. Fly – a 35 min flight.  The cheapest airline to use is AirAsia  but still the more expensive choice.
2. High Speed Ferry – One ferry in the morning and one in the afternoon.  It is a 3 hour cruise and a lot of people get sea sick. This is the quickest option after flying.  We took the early morning ferry and the kids were asleep most of the time.  Luckily no sea sickness! We paid RM60/adult and RM45/child
   

   High Speed Ferry

3. Train & Ferry – You can catch a train, but this just seemed like such a mission to us. Travel from Penang to the mainland, try to find the train station, travel north with the train and catch an 1 hour ferry to Langkawi.
4. Bus & Ferry – This is the cheaper option, but also the slowest.  For people that get seasick very easily, I would recommend this option.  You still need to catch a ferry to Langkawi, but it is only 1 hour.

WHERE WE STAYED

• Coco Valley Inn, Kuah – Don’t judge a book by it’s cover.  We were not very optimistic when we stood outside the building. Once inside, we were pleasantly surprised.  The room was clean and we ended up extending our stay.  We were out most of the day exploring and only needed a place to sleep at night and catch up on some mails.  Kuah is a lovely little town. We paid RM60/night.
  

  Coco Town Inn – Kuah

• Landcons hotel , Cenang – To end our trip off, we stayed at this lovely hotel with a swimming pool.  We could not get the kids out of the kiddies pool! They loved it! Cenang has the most tourists. Right on your doorstep you will find loads of restaurants.  The beach is also within walking distance. We paid RM100/night.
  

  Landcons Hotel, Cenang

TRANSPORT

There are no bus system in Langkawi, so you have 3 options.  Make use of a taxi, rent a scooter or rent a car.  As we wanted to explore the island on our own time, we rented a car.  We got the best deal at RM60/day.

MAIN ATTRACTIONS

• Black Sand Beach – you’ve got to see this.  The sand is a mixture of white and black sand. Locals believe that a mermaid laid a curse because a fisherman stole her ring. Kids got quite dirty, so be aware! A lovely playground for the kids with some hawker stalls. Free of charge. Watch more on our vlog.
  

  Playground at Black Sand Beach

  

  Black Sand Beach
• Skull Beach (Tengorak) – a white sandy beach with warm turquoise waters.  A lovely beach to swim and relax a bit. Thailand’s Tarutao island is visible in the distance. There once was a prison from where the prisoners escaped and never made it to Skull Beach…only their skulls were washed ashore.  Apparently the ocean was infested with sharks and crocodiles. More on our vlog.
  

  Skull Beach with Tarutao island in the distance

• Air Terjun Temurun Waterfall – We had so much fun splashing in the pools below the 30m drop waterfall! Water is so clean. Definitely a must!! Free of charge. More on our vlog.
  

  Swimming under a waterfall

• Kilim Geoforest park – The highlight of our trip!  We explored this park via a riverboat cruise along the Kilim river. Cruise between the mangroves and breathtaking limestone formations to caves and a floating fish farm (where you can touch a stingray!).  Another highlight of this trip was the brown eagles feeding right next to the boat, it was spectacular!! We paid RM250 for a 3 hour trip (we negotiated the price).
  

  Kilim Geoforest Park

  

  At the Floating Fish farm

  

  Crocodile cave

  

  Bat cave

  

  Cruising on the Kilim river
• 3 Island hopping tour – The 2nd highlight of our trip! Cost: RM250

1. We visited Pulau Dayang Bunting  where you will find the pregnant maiden lake and rented a paddle boat (RM30 – waste of money, the paddle boats don’t work properly). This is a fresh water lake on a small island separated from the ocean by a small strip of rocks.

Ocean on the edge of the lake

Pregnant maiden lake

2. At the second island, Pulau Singa Besar, you don’t get off the boat, but view eagles feeding at arms length.

Eagles feeding at Pulau Singa Besar Island

3. The 3rd island, Pulau Beras Basah, has a beautiful beach where you can appreciate the beautiful clear blue waters. Unfortunately the monkeys are quite a nuisance and will snatch your bags.  The beach also fills up fairly quickly with tourists.  Tip: Take drinking water as you won’t be able to buy any.

Pulau Beras Basah

On our way to Beras Basah Island

Enjoying the boat ride

• Langkawi Sky Bridge – Adrenaline filled day!! After a steep cable car ride up the mountain, you reach the Langkawi Sky Bridge. It is a 125m curved bridge at 660m above sea level. The views are amazing!! We paid RM190.
  

  SkyCab

  

  Sky Bridge
  Our ticket included the Skydome where you sit inside a dome and watch rollercoaster rides, 360 degrees view and in 3D. It feels like you are actually twisting and turning on that rollercoaster.  The power of the mind is amazing!  We also visited Jurassic Park, chasing away in our safari vehicle whilst dinosaurs were chasing us. This 6D SkyRex really made the spitting dinosaurs come to live! Not for children under 5.  To end our day off, we let our mind play tricks on us at the 3D Art Museum.  We ended up spending most of our time here! The photo’s made everything come to live! The kids just loved it here!

Scary King Kong

Message in a bottle

Captured inside a bubble

On Aladdin’s flying carpet

Ever wanted to climb into a fairytale?

• Langkawi underwater world –  This was right across our hotel in Cenang. Another eventful day as the kids rushed from one fish tank to another until they found Nemo! We saw sharks, penguins, a very colourful octopus and a sea turtle swimming around us in the sea tunnel.   We paid RM 165
  

  Mrs. Octopus

  

  Gigantic Spider Crab

  

  Freaky Sea Creature

  

  Hello Mr Trutle

  

  Finding Nemo…Jay!
• Visit the Eagle Square to admire Langkawi’s landmark, the majestic 12m high brown eagle.

This is an island not to be missed!! We have found several play parks around the way, all free of charge.  This island is duty free and super cheap!!! I will definitely recommend any family to visit Langkawi!!! We have created very special memories here….

For anyone planning to visit Langkawi, please feel free to ask any questions!!

Happy Wanderlusting!