Pulau Besar Johor: A Private Island to Getaway

Pulau Besar which means big island in English is once known as Pulau Babi Besar or Big Boar Island. But you can't find any boar on this island now, in old days I am not too sure. If you google, there is another island at Melaka with the same name. Hopefully, you don't mix up both. I'm talking about Pulau Besar, Johor which situated at Mersing district. 

To get to this small town where the jetty located, you need to drive at least an hour journey from Kluang. The road is not as smooth as we see in KL, it is narrow, bumpy and crooked. There are hills of palm oil plantation along the road thus advised to clear your urinary bladder before you drive down as no toilet available. Once we reach Mersing town, there is a toilet available at Mersing Harbour Centre that charged a few cents per entry.


Pulau Besar Johor: A Private Island to Getaway

The island, which is surrounded by Rawa, Sibu and Tinggi Island, is characterized by quiet, clean stretches of beaches of powdery white sand and pristine-clear azure waters. To preserve the unspoiled marine life, the government has gazetted it as a marine park to protect around 60 species of marine life from any activities that can harm their natural habitats within 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) around the island. (source: Wikipedia)


Mersing Jetty

This is how the jetty looks like.

Mersing Jetty

I was not choosy about the boat but experience told me to ride on a bigger boat (less bumpy) and the side of the boat is not exposed. So I waited for all to board first and I went to the yellow boat in the middle as advised. 

Mersing Jetty boat

That's the interior of the boat we boarded. The engine in the boat is new and thus could run pretty fast compared to other boats. Well, I chose the covered one as the water would not splash on our bodies as the boat moved.


But honestly, I bit regret the boatman drove so fast. Imagining our boat was the last to leave the jetty but first to reach. So that's my photo together with Alexandra who screamed with me along the journey. We sat at the front seat and the waves sometimes too strong till we jumped up from our seats. The total journey spent about 15 minutes and the normal ride is about 30 minutes.

Pulau Besar Johor: A Private Island to Getaway

This picture was taken by Ujay Said. He used drone that could fly that high to take this beautiful aerial view of Pulau Besar or specifically Bayu Lestari Island Resort. I wish to get my own drone too.....anyone wanna sponsor me? 



Have a look at my video clip on Pulau Besar and Pulau Tinggi too!


Pulau Besar Johor sea fish

From the bridge, we saw a group of black fishes at the stone. It is bit hard to see from the picture due to reflection of strong light. But the black part was all fishes.

Pulau Besar Johor:

I came to this island 2 years ago. I was weird at first for why it looks so different from previous time. After a while, I noticed it is a new resort. The jetty I disembarked this time was different too.

villa at Bayu Lestari Island Resort Pulau Besar Johor

I was arranged to a room sharing with other 11 people. If you travel with a big group of friends, this villa at Bayu Lestari Island Resort is a good option.

Pulau Besar Johor

There are swings, chairs and hanging beds here and there. 

Pulau Besar Johor

rustic resort at Pulau Besar Johor

We took a leisure walk that evening towards the end of the island along the coast. We found many rustic resorts on this island. Interestingly before this island known for holiday, there are villagers staying on this island as fishermen. Now some run resorts for a living. However, the villagers need to travel to the mainland to buy groceries and settle bills. No post office, hospital, school, bank and car at the island.

5 resorts currently running in Pulau Besar includes:
ーBayu Lestari Island Resort
ーMirada Island Resort
ーASEANIA Beach Resort
ーBesar Bague Place
ーD’Coconut Island resort

Pulau Besar Johor

The island is divided into 6 villages, which are:

Teluk Bakau Village
Teluk Kampa Village
Teluk Penaga Village
Atap Zing Village
Batu Hitam Village
Busong Village

Pulau Besar Johor

There are no boundaries for all the village. What attracted me the most for the evening walk would be the beautiful flowers grown wild on the trail.


Pulau Besar Johor

It was half an hour walk until the point (above picture) where we were informed that's the end of the pathway. I saw it is a bushy jungle there which I also think unsafe to walk in.

Pulau Besar Johor

We could simply find things like that at the beach. Is that a fossil? I really have no idea.

Pulau Besar Johor

Pulau Besar Johor

The local said these fruits are edible. We tried one and it tasted like cotton.

Pulau Besar Johor

Pulau Besar Johor

Beach volleyball, cycling, kayaking and swimming are among the activities you could do at Pulau Besar.

Pulau Besar Johor

Or having some small talks at the beach overlooking the blue sea is awesome too!

Pulau Besar Johor high tea snack

We back to the resort for a high tea. All of us include my Japanese friend likes the keropok lekor (first picture) too. 


Keropok lekor or fish sausage is a traditional Malay fish cracker snack originating from the state of Terengganu, Malaysia. It is made from fish and sago flour and seasoned with salt and sugar.


fishing boat for sunset cruising

Next, we were brought to a fishing boat for sunset cruising. Kak Ros who managed Bayu Lestari Island Resort was welcoming us on board with her great smile.

fishing boat for sunset cruising

The boatman was an old man. His eyes are greyish blue but his skin is dark. Being a fisherman is one of the tough jobs in the world I think. You need to endure the hot sun, the sweat plus the unpredictable weather!

fishing boat for sunset cruising

No proper seat at the fishing boat. We just sat at the box placed at the front watching the sunset and enjoying the sea breeze gently blew to our faces.

Pulau Besar Johor: A Private Island to Getaway

Pulau Besar Johor: A Private Island to Getaway

The fishing boat did not bring us to other places but just along Pulau Besar mainland. Another view perspective we see from the sea looking at Pulau Besar.


BBQ dinner

Pulau Besar Johor bbq dinner

Yummy satay in the making during our BBQ dinner that night.

sea crab Pulau Besar Johor

Early in the morning, someone in the room screamed saying there were crabs at the shore! Getting excited, immediately carried my camera and run to the shore to snap the photos. They run too fast into the water and sand which by the time we were there, they were gone. We did not give up and continued to search for it. Finally, we spotted a sea crab playing at the water. Here came the shot of it.


Bayu Lestari Resort

That's one of the villas of Bayu Lestari Resort.  I will talk more about it in my next post.

Pulau Besar Johor

That's my sharing on Pulau Besar after paying 2 times visits. Do leave me a comment if you wanna know more about this place :)


Comments

  1. I love island stay. So serene and relaxing holiday.

    The island was beautiful. And you look great in bikini too. Love the triangle house. So cute.

    ReplyDelete
  2. nice post
    enjoy reading it

    visit mine?
    Mrs. Aa
    www.bymrsaa.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. nice blog thank you for all the information !! going there this Saturday :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hey did u ever get around to writing abt Bayu Lestari reaort specifically?
    Im trying to conpare them to Dcoconut resort to no avail.
    Personal view is much appreciated

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I wrote about Bayu Lestari Resort specifically in my other post.
      Please find it here: https://www.imemily.com/2018/05/bayu-lestari-island-resort-pulau-besar.html

      Delete

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