What to Do
If you love the outdoors, culture, adventure or just peace and quiet, Terengganu is the place to be. Our wonderful natural attractions from islands and beaches to rustic kampungs and Lake Kenyir open up many possibilities of activities that one can pursue for a memorable holiday.
Depending on your interest, the following are the typical activities that you can pursue when you visit Terengganu.
Self - drive tour of the Terengganu coastline
Where:
Take State Route T3 for the coastline tour.
Recommended stops include the following beaches: Kemasik Beach, Marang, Teluk Bidara, Pantai Kelulut, Tanjung Jara, Pantai Batu Rakit, Turtle Sanctuaries in Rantau Abang and Pantai Ma’ Daerah.
To get to Tasik Kenyir, take the road heading towards Kuala Berang and signs will lead you to Tasik Kenyir. From the East Coast Highway or LPT2, head towards Ajil and follow signs to Kuala Berang and Tasik Kenyir.
Tour Kuala Terengganu on Bus Kite
“Bas Kite” is a bus service that takes you to all the popular tourist attractions in and around Kuala Terengganu. Tourists can use the service to hop on and hop off at any of the tourist attractions that lie on its route. You only need to pay a fee of between RM1 to RM3 per trip depending on the distance.
Tourists can choose between two routes with differing destinations and attractions for each route. The starting point for both routes is at the MBKT Bus Terminal, Jalan Sultan Mahmud. Route CO1 takes you from MBKT Bus Terminal to the Floating Mosque (Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque) in Kuala Ibai; whereas Route CO2 starts from MBKT Bus Terminal and ends at the Islamic Civilization Park in Pulau Wan Man.
“Bus Kite” can be easily recognized by its unique shape, which is that of a traditional Malay house and painted in colourful livery. The bus is fitted with wifi service and an LED screen. It has wide windows to give good views of the scenery along the way. The service starts at 9.00am for route C01 and 9.30am for route C02 and the last service leaves at 6.15pm for route C01 and 10.00pm for route C02.
Weekly Cultural Show
Get a taste of the richness of Terengganu culure by attending the Weekly Cultural Show at Pantai Batu Burok, Kuala Terengganu. Held at the outdoor stage, visitors will be able to watch traditional folk and court dances, martial arts displays and listen to both modern and traditional music performed by local artistes.
There is no admission fee and show starts at 9pm every Saturday (except during the month of Ramadan).
Snorkelling
Redang Marine Park and off the beaches of all the resorts and hotels on Perhentian, Redang, Lang Tengah, Kapas and Tenggol Islands.
Diving
Best diving spots are Redang, Perhentian and Tenggol Islands. Tenggol has deep sea diving sites. Tenggol is famous for catching the passing of the whale shark, which plays in the waters off the island in certain months of the year.
Redang is protected by the Marine Conservation Park.
Boating
The Duyong Marina Resort has a marina for you to dock your boats or yachts. Built for the Monsoon Cup, which Terengganu had hosted before, you will find the facilities for your yachts and boats on par with international standards.
Cruise on the Terengganu River upstream or speed off to the nearest offshore island, Pulau Kapas, about 45 minutes away. Or you can head off to Bidong, Redang, Lang Tengah and Perhentian Islands from here too. You can also explore the coastline, taking a detour to the Setiu Wetlands north of Kuala Terengganu or to Kuala Ibai where the famous floating mosque can be seen in the distance. And further south, you will find the mouth of the Marang River, which is one of the most beautiful scenic spots in Terengganu.
Squid Jigging
Participate in the Terengganu Squid Jigging festival, held from April to June every year. Quite a spectacular sight to see scores of boats head out to sea with lights on to attract the squids to surface. It’s like a floating city at sea. Be prepared to spend the whole night at sea with the boat moving from one spot to another to get the best catch.
Taking a walk on the beach
Our beaches are long and endless! There’s nothing more refreshing than breathing the fresh air and feeling the sea breeze on your face as you take a leisurely walk on the beach. Pick up sea shells and look out for the tiny crabs that dart across the sand only to disappear into their burrows. Depending on the season, watch out for other local beach goers who seem to be digging into the sand with their feet. If you follow what they’re doing, you might just find a few clams. Watch out for passing boats and if you’re lucky, you’d find a fisherman or two casting their nets to catch fish not far from the beach. And a sight to behold that would make your walk so memorable is to find fishermen returning from their days’ outing.
Photography
If ever there is place to catch the best of Malaysian exotica, this is it. Enjoy Terengganu’s many photogenic natural and man-made attractions, from the old heritage sites of Kuala Terengganu to the simple and rustic Malay fishing villages by the sea, to the undersea world of corals and reefs to the wilds of TasikKenyir, Terengganu is a photographer’s paradise. Take a close look at the people and their way of life or focus on the intricacies of our wood carving skills on the panels of old houses, Terengganu is not short of visual subjects. Even if you don’t have an expensive SLR camera, your camera phone can already shoot awesome pictures. So be prepared wherever you go to capture the best of sights and candid moments that make your trip to Terengganu memorable.
Water Sports
Bring your jetskis, surf boards, windsurf gear and anything that helps you float and move on water to give that exhilarating adrenalin rush or that gives you slow and simple pleasures, Terengganu has plenty of water bodies for you to partake in any water sport. Go speed boating from Kuala Terengganu to the offshore islands, windsurf on the lagoon in Setiu Wetlands, jetski upstream on the Terengganu River, or take a slow kayak ride on TasikKenyir, come to Terengganu for a great sporting holiday.
Kayaking
A 15km route on the Sungai Berang takes you from Kampung Pengkalan Ajal to Kampung Buluh. Operated by a group of kayak enthusiasts, Secretariat OKB, you can go on an adventure and navigate the river surrounded by lush rainforests where certain parts are shaded by overhanging mature trees giving the impression of going through a tunnel of greens. The route can at times be challenging, but that’s part of the fun. As you will pass five kampungs on the banks of the river, you will also be able to appreciate the rustic kampung scenes and the friendly folks along the way.
Paragliding
The first of its kind in Terengganu, you can now go paragliding in Bukit Keluang, in Besut. Take off from Bukit Bubus, Kg Tembila, Besut. The sport is operated by Tandem Paragliding Flights and managed by Ustaz Aznawi (contact +60128151596). You can paraglide over one of the most beautiful sceneries in the country, over hills and sandy white beaches, with a view that will take your breath away. From a few hundred metres up, you can see how far our beaches stretch, up to the horizon. After all, Terengganu has the longest stretch of beach in Malaysia.
Picnics and BBQ
Get hold of your family and friends, grab some food and drinks, mengkuang mats (to sit on!) and perhaps a football to play on the beach, and make your way to any spot on our long scenic beaches or to any of the waterfalls located in the Recreational Forests listed in the Where to Go section under Nature.
Terengganu is all about being outdoors where the beauty of mother nature is all there to be appreciated. Feel the wind, smell the fresh air or the musky odor of the rainforest, there’s nothing better to whet your appetite than being on the beach or next to a cooling cascade of water and having the best nasi dagang or kerepok lekor and eating them to your hearts content. When you’re on holiday in Terengganu, dieting should be declared illegal. Most importantly, please do not litter and pick everything you brought with you.
Where:
Batu Burok beach, Teluk Bidara beach, Pantai Kelulut, Kemasik beach, Paka beach, Pantai Air Tawar, and many more spots along our coast line you’d have to find and explore!
TTI River Boat Cruise
Take a slow cruise from the jetty at Taman Tamadun Islam and let the boat take you across and along the Terengganu river past some kampongs and dockyards. You will see a kaleidoscope of people and scenes of village life, from children bathing and jumping into the waters, to Malay village homes, just unspoiled rural scenes.
Fishing
If you’re an avid angler, Tasik Kenyir would be a great place to go fishing, amidst the serenity and wild jungles of the interior of Terengganu. There is an angling festival that attracts scores of anglers every year. Rent a houseboat or a boat and make your way to the middle of this vast lake, the largest in Malaysia.
Apart from Tasik Kenyir, you’d find plenty of places to fish, from the banks of the many rivers and tributaries, to hitching a ride with the local fishermen to traverse the South China Sea for some real action on the seas. And if you’re on a trip to the islands, get a boat and anchor at one of the offshore fishing spots.
Golf
There are a few nice golf courses to choose from around Kuala Terengganu, Dungun and Kemaman.
The main ones are Kuala Terengganu Golf Resort and Tuanku Mizan Golf and Country Resort in Kuala Terengganu; Dungun Golf & Country Club and Tasik Puteri Golf and Country Club in Dungun; Kelab Desa Perantau Petronas in Kemasik and Resorts World Kijal in Kemaman.
Bird Watching
Terengganu has a total of 290 species of birds. There are ten hornbill species in Malaysia and nine out of those are found in Terengganu. Terengganu hosts the annual Kenyir Bird and Nature Quest for the past four years and is held over two days at Tasik Kenyir. The programme offers talks and activities that include jungle trekking, visits to Bewah Cave and of course, bird watching. This event is organised by the Malaysian Nature Society, Kuala Terengganu branch and Ping Anchorage MICE.
