With palm fringed beaches and amazing underwater coral, Redang is a fabulous getaway in the East coast of Malaysia. We had a lovely family holiday over the Easter break. I won’t call it a hidden gem as we had a fairly busy Beach but no doubt this is one of the best places to swim and snorkel on the Peninsula side of Malaysia.

We stayed at The Taaras  which is probably the best resort for families on the island. The setting, the beach and design is lovely and of course, and the highlight is that Redang truly is a snorkeler’s paradise.

We flew to Kuala Terengganu and took the speedboat transfer from Merang jetty which is around 35 minutes from the airport.  Most resorts in Redang provide full board packages that includes boat transfers, accommodation and meals.

Our transfer was arranged by The Taaras. The transfer worked for us as we wanted a lounge to relax for the few hours we would have to kill on our return journey to KL. If taking the ferry, you leave via Shahbandar. There is a compulsory conservation fee at the jetty. We found this site useful to plan our transfer times but do call your hotel and check about timings, just in case.

We were told that the monsoon lasted longer this year and hence the bumpy ride to Taaras. After arriving at Redang jetty, a minibus was waiting to take us the very short journey (less than 10 mins) to the resort.

The Taaras is tucked in the Teluk Dalam (Deep Bay) beach area. Most other resorts are at Pasir Panjang (Long Beach) or Teluk Kalong. These stretches of beaches are probably the most spectacular in the whole of Malaysia and truly worth going. The sand is powder white and very fine. The water is breathtaking and shines like blue glass under the sun. Amazing giant turtles were a few minutes away by boat.

Food and activities

The children spent most of the time body boarding and playing soccer on the beach. There were lots of kids of similar age and easy soccer sessions were formed almost instantly! As mentioned, don’t expect an empty beach. If you are looking for a truly secluded getaway, the Taaras may not suit you. We truly enjoyed the family atmosphere and my kids made a few good ‘holiday friends’ which was very nice!

The facilities within the resort are good and we spent hours after dinner at the games room playing foosball and carom, and even spent one evening playing tennis.

The hotel offers various snorkeling trips which we utilised. I here good things about Jo Glamour’s services.  He is located just outside the hotel and offers snorkeling, fishing and turtle watching for a fraction of the prices.

As for the food, we enjoyed all our meals. We took different options : ala carte, buffet and one night even signed up for the ‘fine dining’ option. It was all well made but on the expensive side. The kids managed, but as most kids are with food during travel, there were some hits and misses. We did walk out one afternoon for a local lunch at Aima’s which we truly enjoyed.

Rooms at the Taaras

Our room was excellent and literally a hop away from the beach.  Access via buggy was also always available.

We loved the Taaras. Service was somewhat slow but this is after all a place where one needs to slow down, spend days watching the waves and the kids playing with wild abundant. Bliss.

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