Pulau Kapas Day Trip (Part I)

Terengganu have always been famed for its beautiful islands with dazzling clean and white sandy beaches and crystal clear waters; simply breathtaking. Thus, how can I afford to miss the chance to visit one of the islands during my stay in KT. Due to budget and time constrain, we chose to visit Pulau Kapas, a smaller and less crowded island compared to the other well known islands such as Pulau Redang and Pulau Perhentian. We were obviously in dire need of pure peace and relaxation after a few hectic weeks in the hospital and some drama going in the house. Pulau Kapas would be more often visited by the locals compared to tourists due to easy accessibility and they would normally go for a day trip.

Thank goodness it was already April (post monsoon season) that time, so it is said to be safe to visit the island yet the weather had to go against us that day. During our entire stay in KT, it never rain but it just had to rain on that lovely morning when we were heading to the island by taxi. Taxi normally costs RM25-RM30, less than 30 mins drive from the town or you can directly take a taxi from the airport at the same price as well. Once we arrived at the Marang Jetty, the taxi driver brought us directly to one of the agents, Mak Cik Gemuk Beach Resort (I suppose he knows them). There is actually a row of shops with different agents so you'll get to choose which agent that offers you the best price and etc. Then off we rushed to the jetty cause the speedboat was about to leave already and we were so lucky to bumped into our colleagues, students from KKM in the same boat. Only 6km away, it takes 10 minutes by speedboat to reach the island or 30 minutes by slow boat. Due to the bad weather and strong waves, the speedboat ride was terrible! Even worse than a roller coaster, I felt that my heart almost fell off.

Almost all the girls in the boat shouted every minute throughout the bumpy ride. I was literally lifted up from my seat and it scared the shit outta me, I tell you! 

Told you the weather doesn't look so good（´＿｀） 

After that crazy 10 mins ride that felt like a year(!), we safely arrived at Pulau Kapas; the haven for those seeking for a good time in the sun, sand and sea. 

Welcome welcome ☆ﾐ(o*･ω･)ﾉ So since we've bought the package from Makcik Gemuk Beach Resort, we were brought directly to their resort instead of the jetty. 

There are about 9 main resorts in Pulau Kapas altogether; Turtle Valley Chalet, The Light House, Duta Puri Island Resort, Kapas Island Resort, Kapas Beach Chalet, Makcik Gemok Beach Resort, Qimy Chalet, Kapas Garden Resort and Harmony Camp Site. Chalet, dorm and room rates ranges from RM20 to RM300 per night.

Once arrived we were greeted by Amir, the man who's in charge of Makcik Gemok Resort and we were asked to wait for the weather to settle first before heading to Long Beach for snorkelling. It was raining at the other side from we came from. Since there was still plenty of time to kill, we kept calm and camwhored!

One of the thing that I love the most about Pulau Kapas is their sand, fine and smooth! Totally different from the sand of the beaches I've been too. That's the reason how Pulau Kapas (Cotton Island) inherited its name from the natives because of its incomparable white sandy beaches which looked like 'kapas' or cotton as symbols of paradise on earth. 

Surrounded by crystal clear ocean, it's such a perfect niche to laze on, forgetting the hustle and bustle of city life and indulge in the quiet natural retreats with bountiful supply of sunshine and crisp clean air. 

See, someone just couldn't sit still and wait :P 

They have shady palm trees along the beach for shade from the sun. *cues California girls by Katy Perry*

This could be para para paradise ♪( ´▽｀)

The colourful and striking hut that store all the equipment for beach activites. 

Besides snorkeling, you can go for swimming, scuba diving, windsurfing, fishing, kayaking or even jungle trekking around the island. You can also head over to the another neighboring island known as Gem Island (Pulau Gemia) to see baby turtles! Sadly, motorised activities such as banana boats are not allowed here. Our package of snorkeling costs about RM25 including the rental fee for mask and life jacket and also the boat transfer fee to the snorkeling area and an additional visit to the Gem Island.

The girls <3
L-R: Aleen, Muguntha, Kash and Me (:

In the midst of enjoying the sea breeze that it made me flew up so high LOL

Joeann and Muguntha :D 

You can also play beach volleyball since there's a net provided (:

Love the cool and clear blue water, three different layer of colour (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o))) Am I dreaming? *smack self*

You can find tons of corals and seashells along the sandy beach. 

Leaving footprints (＾▽＾) 

Fret not for those who aren't staying overnight, they do provide booth with benches to keep your stuff and rest. 

YAYYYYERS Finally the sun is out!

Getting ready to snorkel \m/ We were lucky to have Dave and Amir to help us out that day!

That's Amir on the left, that I've mentioned earlier. He is really friendly and funny. He was the snorkeling instructor and the boat driver of the day :P   Not forgetting Steffi and Ruran with Joeann (: 

Joeann helping me out to gear up or should I say SUIT UP! and yes I was ready to rock the sea :DDDD It was my first time snorkelling so I was a tad nervous. It took a while to get used to breathing in and out through my mouth with the mask. 

That's Dave (He's a frequent visitor of Pulau Kapas from Aussie but he has been travelling around Msia for 2 years and he still love Pulau Kapas the most) on the left helping out Huda who can't swim. We were given some basic snorkeling 101 lesson in the shallow area first.

Me warming up and posing for the camera HAHA lol and we actually brought along a waterproof analogue camera but the photos didn't turn out that great, I'll post a few in the next post. 

...Abrupt ending IKR cause I need to pack. So I guess I'll continue the rest of the story on the next post since this post is quite lengthy already, I've been on it since 2 hours ago O_O Anyway, stay tuned then!

xx