It has been ages since we went to the East Coast of Malaysia. One day my wife said "Let's go to the east coast areas since we have already been to many places along the west coast". Yes, it is said that the beaches and sea are better in the East Coast as the sea is an open sea of the "South China Sea".
Having decided of the destination - Kuantan in Pahang, my wife made a booking at Vistana Hotel which is in the heart of town and has easy access and near to most places of interest in Kuantan. having made all the necessary arrangements, off we go to Kuantan Pahang.
Starting from the Gombak toll plaza, we journeyed through the Karak Highway which is very interesting. Most of the time we would only go until the Genting Highlands exit (We frequently go up the Highlands to get the cool fresh air). This time around we went beyond the interchange. Karak Highway is a bit challenging as the road is sometimes winding and there are steep hill climbs. The best thing is you will pass along the forest which is lined on both sides of the highways. Occasionally you will go through hills and see the winding roads below. After the Bentong toll gates, we enter to the "East Coast Highway" which is similar to the "North South Highway"
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| Part of the Karak highway and the "East Coast Highway" |
We exited the Gambang Toll exit which leads to Gambang and finally into Kuantan town...
We arrived at the hotel around noon and enquired with the front office whether it is possible for us to check in earlier. Note that the check in time is actually 3pm ! They actually obliged to our request most probably due to availability of the room, and so we checked-in and checked out the room. Well, we were not surprised of the room as most reviews favour this 4-star hotel. It was a really nice room and our view is one part of Kuantan town and far yonder, the South China Sea.
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| The Reception area |
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| The entrance and lobby.. |
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| This path leads to the cafe and pool side.. |
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| The room.. |
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| Ammenities... |
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| and.. the views from our room.. |
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| The hotel at night... |
Later that evening we went to Teruntum Mini Zoo which is less than 10 Km away. Well, the mini zoo is well located but the state of the enclosures and animals much to be desired. I hope that one day the authorities would look into this and give those poor animals better enclosures and care..
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| Crocodile enclosures with only a puddle of water !!! |
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| The Mini Zoo is set on hilly slopes and expect an uphill climb to view some of the animals.. |
We did go to Teluk Cempedak but somehow I lost most of our pics there..thanks to technology !!! But do expect interesting things happening at Teluk Cempedak at night. On the day that we went there were live shows and shops and kiosk selling everything from T-shirts to beads made to order. fast food outlets were in abundance like McDonalds and KFC. Restaurants and eateries are a plenty and you would never go hungry.
On the second day we went to the Balok beach in Beserah....
A stop over at the Natural Batik Village for some batik shopping..
Then to Tanjung Lumpur in the evening....
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A picturesque sunset....
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On the last day as usual, the kids day at the pool
Having all these fun in Kuantan, my wife and I will be re-visiting Kuantan again in the future on our travels in Malaysia.... We will keep you posted.
