It's been a while since I last updated. Laziness happened. And also an all-girls trip to
Langkawi (again!). And I still have not written about my 1st trip there.
So anyway, for my 1st trip to Langkawi (this year) in April, I went with my Mum & aunt, Makton. 3D2N and we stayed at 2 different hotels. I wanted to spend 2 nights in
Berjaya Resort, but it was kinda out of my budget range. We get a rental car, RM130 for a
Perodua Viva. It's the smallest car just to fit the 3 of us & 2 luggages. And the price was slightly low because it was not a peak season.
We arrived early, about 10am. So we went to the jetty first. I wanted to take picture of the
eagle. "Helang", in Malay. As in "Lang", part of the name of the island. Lots of tourists, and they had some kind of filming about to go on. Then we headed
Haji Ismain Group in Kuah town for some shopping.
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| Dataran Lang |
The women of Malaysia loves to shop here, I tell ya. They sell imported chocolates, cultery, pots & pans, trolley bags, etc. And it's cheaper because Langkawi is a duty-free area. They do have cigars, cigarettes, wines on the island, easily found if you go to the duty-free shopping malls by the jetty or The Zon in Pantai Chenang.
Our first hotel was
Alia Residence. I booked through Expedia for RM128 per night for 3 person. They were kind enough to give us an upgrade from an extra mattress to an extra bed.
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| Our room. 1 double bed & 1 single bed. |
The hotel was clean, reception was of course very nice & helpful. Their pool is always open but I didn't jump in. Location of the hotel is just OK for me. It didn't have a nice view (ours was overlooking other houses & trees next to the hotel) and there doesn't seem to have any nearby shops. It's on the quieter side, I guess. But, as I was only there to relax with my family, I'd say it's a nice place to stay. Breakfast was not a buffet, they'll have you choose from a menu, but this is OK by me too. They do have bread, juices & fruits on the small buffet area.
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| Pool |
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| Clean surroundings |
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| View from the back of the hotel |
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| View from our room |
That evening we just went around the island. Went for more shopping @ Kuah, then headed to
Beras Terbakar, then drove up to
Tanjung Rhu for an evening view. But it was raining, so I guess no sunset for the day.
We checked out at 12pm the next day and headed towards the airport. There's this area behind the airport where mostly Malaysians like to hang out. There's a few food vendors open up their trucks for some "pasembor", "laksa" and other local food. It's an island, so naturally, you know you'll be sitting under trees & by the beach. The view you'll get here is
Gunung Mat Cincang - where Berjaya Hotel &
Langkawi Cable Car are. And from time to time, you'll get to see airplanes land. I really like to hang out here.
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| Us having laksa & pasembor |
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| View from the beach |
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| View from the beach |
When time came for us to check in, we headed to our next hotel, Berjaya.
The Danna was on the way, so we saw yachts. I came to Berjaya a few years ago on my own, and I love it there. So now I had my Mum & aunt with me, I wanted to show them how beautiful this hotel & it's surrounding are. There was a large crowd at the lobby as it was a peak time for checking in & out. And you can only take the
hotel buggies to go to & from your room to other parts of the hotel.
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| In front of our room |
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| Our room. |
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| Please excuse the mess |
Our room was in the forest. Smaller than the room I stayed in when I was alone, but excellent nonetheless. After checking in & settling down, we head over to Langkawi Cable Car. The hotel provides free shuttle so it was the easiest! Makton is afraid of heights, so did not look anywhere. Shut her eyes & told me that that will be her first & last time going on it. Oh, poor Makton! Hehe. Mak was enjoying the view, taking pictures. She's cool about it, although she too, said the same thing.
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| View as we go up the mountain |
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| View from the cable car |
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| View from top of the mountain |
It was a hot evening, so we had a clear view of Langkawi & the sea. They were having a renovation going on, so tourists were occupied to only 1 side of the lookout point. I wanted to go onto the
Sky Bridge, as I did a few years ago. Registered, paid RM5 & walked my way down. It's a 450m hike and I managed to go until about 200m when I fell like dying. If I were to continue, I literally would die out there, in the forest, where there's a signboard that says they'll be hogs & snakes. Nobody in their right mind would want that! And so I climbed back up, with my lungs about to burst and covered in sweat from head to toe. Thank goodness I've been there once, in my 20s when I still have the energy.
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| The hike to get to the Sky Bridge |
I was the happiest to reunite with the bed back at the hotel afterwards. I called up
Pahn-Thai Restaurant to make reservation for us during sunset. The restaurant is above the water and have an excellent view of the sun going down behind the mountain.
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| The walk to Pahn-Thai Restaurant |
Unfortunately, it rained heavily. I didn't want to cancel, so after the rain we went out to enjoy what's left of the view. But it was still a nice, cool evening. Food was not great. It's not that it's bad-tasting, but the portion's too little but it's way too pricey. The three of us had sweet & sour fish, green curry chicken &
somtam. Plus our drinks, everything totalled up to RM230.
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| View from Pahn-Thai restaurant |
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| Nighttime at the lobby |
Going on a trip with the elders means the only night activity is sleep. So we had some rest & woke up early the next day to enjoy our buffet breakfast. They had a promotion, so the extra person only costs us about RM40+. It was a good deal since they have a lot to offer at breakfast. And we had a little bit of everything. After that we just went chilling by the hotel beach & checked out at 12pm.
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| Me, while waiting for the buggy |
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| The pool |
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| Private beach @ Berjaya Hotel |
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| View from the beach |
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| Entrace to Berjaya Hotel |
My friend's mom is a Berjaya shareholder, so we had a voucher that gave a special price. Our room cost us around RM330++ per night. It's another good deal, I'd say. So our total spending in Berjaya is just a few Ringgit more of RM600.
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| Pantai Kok |
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| Pantai Kok |
Our flight was at 3pm, so we chilled out at a small beach beside The Danna, went out to get food from the food trucks again & then to airport where we handed back the car keys. Of course, I had to purchase extra baggage allowance because we had almost emptied out the store at Haji Ismail.
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| Tanjung Rhu, after the rain |
All in, I really enjoyed this trip. We had loads of fun driving around the island. It's a nice place to enjoy with family & friends. But if you're looking for a party scene, this is not the place for you. Langkawi gives a very laid-back & chilled-out environment - good for relaxation.
