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Monday, December 3, 2018

Pulau Papan Di Labuan B&B





I had so many ideas on how to write this, on what to write as well as the angulation but when putting it into writing, all gone. Whooooosh, hilang pergi mana tak tau! So I guess I have to write this as what I remembered and how my mind thinks, of which might not be good. Hem…..


Anyhow… I need to make it very clear to everyone that I have never been to Labuan before this nor have I read let alone research about Labuan. My knowledge of Labuan is that it is an island (duh!) and it is somewhere near Sabah. I probably know about Tiga Island or Mantanani Island better (yeah… sad, I know), but have you heard about this 2 islands yourselves? Belum kan kan kan…. *smirk*.

It started with me getting an invitation via whatsapp to Labuan, and I agree without hesitant, requesting urgently for the itinerary as I need to know what I will be covering and what else can I do there. This is when, jeng jeng jeng…. I found out that we will be going to nearby islands (note the plural in island). ‘Wow’ I said to myself, pulau and more pulau. Interesting (I murmured). I lied, I already knew few months earlier that island hoping is one of the must do activity when in Labuan (based on a friend’s Instagram post), just that I forgot all about it. Now that I too will be going to the same island is he/them, I can show off lah kan *evil smile*.


They brought us to 2 islands – Karuman Island and Papan Island. After much thought, I figure, Papan Island would be the one for me to share (first, later on Karuman Island) as it is (i) nearer to Labuan, (ii) have a proper and well equip chalet, (iii) offers nature activity as well – ‘jungle’ trekkeing to the light house, eagle's nest and separation rock. Lastly but not least (iv) water activities – banana boat, sofa boat and PERAHU LARAI. Did I get your attention now? Here are some infos to help you plan your trip and activities.


Pulau Papan Di Labuan Bed & Breakfast
Pulau Papan Di Labuan is the only resort located on Papan Island has so much to offer, for a small resort in a small island, its comfortable with the necessary amenities available.
Journey
- 6-8mins boat ride from Marina Awam Labuan – subject to weather condition.




Chalets/Room
- It consist of 3 chalets and each chalet consists of 3 bedrooms, a living room, kitchen, wash room & bathroom
- Each chalet can accommodate up to 6 pax in a chalet – 2x rooms with 2 single bed room in each room and 1x room with queen size bed
- For additional guest (on request) mattress will be provided. Ideally maximum of 10 pax in a chalet (comfortable).
 

Cost per chalets/room
- RM450 per chalet, excluding boat ride and food


Cost per camp site
- RM90 for solo camper
- RM150 for 2pax, inclusive of return boat ride, a tent, overnight charges & utility charges



Meal - full board
- RM115 per pax for breakfast, lunch and dinner (minimum of 6 pax for the full board*)
* there are on shops nor restaurants on this islands

Day trippers
- RM100 per pax, inclusive of return boat ride, snorkeling, jungle trekking, banana boat ride, perahu larai & set meal

Catering – per meal
- Starts from RM20 - RM80



Water activities
- Sofa Boat Ride - 1 pax for RM30, 2 pax for RM50, 3 pax for RM75 and 4 pax for RM100
- Banana Boat Ride - 2 pax for RM60 (minimum 2 pax, maximum 7 pax)
- Perahu Larai Ride (30mins ride) - 1 pax for RM30 (minimum 4 pax, maximum 8-10 pax)



Outdoor facilities
- Volleyball, sepak takraw courts and barbeque pit

 
Aside from the above, I was made to understand that one can also have an private event on this island such as team building, family day, birthday parties, get-togethers and etc. They also organized packages duringn school holidays so keep a look-out on their Facebook Page as well as they Instagram.

Game?
3 days 2 nights or 4 days 3 nights in Labuan is sufficient but make sure you includes Papan Island in your itinerary and perahu larai is a must. Else you’ll bound to regret it.


Pulau Papan Di Labuan
Tel : +6013-400 7833 or +60 19 5839100
 


Explore Labuan Media Fam Trip is in collaboration with Perbadanan Sabah and all its sponsors with #GayaTravel as media coordinator.

Thursday, November 29, 2018

Labuan Marine Museum




The museum, situated inside, was opened to the public in January 2003. Specialising in marine life exhibition, this is the first marine museum of such a concept in Malaysia.



I was truly surprised to learn that this small Labuan island has so many museums and that most of it are free. There’s the Chimney Museum, Labuan Museum and now the Marina Museum. Not only that, you can even go island hopping in Labuan, and the islands around Labuan are simply beautiful (will blog about the islands separately). And of course, there’s plenty of outdoor activities such as ATV by beach, perahu larai, zipling by the beach, nature trekking at the mangrove, on the island and etc. Oh! All museums are free, kid you not – FREE. I guess, what I am trying to say is not to doubt small island, especially Labuan.

OK, back to the Marine Museum. Wasn’t sure what to expect initially as I have never been to a marine museum before in my life. Yeah yeah… I know, what you guys gonna say that I have been to a few Viking ship museums before this and then there’s the Maritime Museum in Melaka (which talks more about the maritime in Melaka itself and not marine stuff in general). So visiting Labuan Marine Museum seems like a must-do activity in Labuan for me, and I have no regrets.

Opened since 2003, the Marine Museum is located inside the Labuan International Sea Sports Complex and is said to be the first marine museum in Malaysia. The museum is split into 16 galleries covering live specimen, preserved species of marine creatures, types of corals, fishing technics, shipwrecks information and many more.

Aquariums 
Live fishes are being displayed as you entered the museum, namely damselfish, butterflyfish, porcupinefish and others.



Shipwrecks 
Aside from showcasing local fishes in Labuan, the museum has information on the 4 famous shipwrecks in Labuan water. The shipwrecks in Labuan (yeah, you can dive as well) are 'Cement wreak', 'American Wreak', 'Australian Wreak', and 'Blue Water Wreak' – two are from World War II and the other two are from the 1980's. It is a heaven for divers.


Coral Reef Biodiversity 
The Labuan Marine Park comprises areas extending two nautical miles where the three islands are located – Kuraman Island, Rusukan Kecil Island and Rusukan Besar Island (you simply must visit these island); that was gazetted in 1994 as marine park. The reef patches such as Montipora monasteriata, Cyphastrea chalcidicum, Acropora valida and Pavona crassa among others are located in shallow area and grow on the granitic rock.

Blast Fishing 
Also highlighted in the Marine Museum is the blast fishing or dynamite fishing; using detonator, plant poison, cynide and etc to kill the fishes for easy collection. However, this process is illegal and damages the ecosystem as well as our marine life; threatens our coral reefs and contributes to the decline in fish populations. Upon seeing this in the museum, I did a little reading (not that I don’t know blast fishing is bad, more to I don’t know how many types of blast fishing are there) and found out Malaysia is mentioned in a few websites. This is not good guys, do educate you family and friends on the importance of NOT to do blast fishing yah.



The highlight of the museum is actually the Indian Fin Whale 42-foot skeleton. I felt as if I entered a Jurassic Park for creatures of the sea.

The whale found on Sebatu Beach in Malacca and has been ‘touring’ and ‘exhibiting’ itself around town in Raffles Museum, Singapore and of course the National Museum. Perhaps in the future they should put sperm whale skeleton as well. That. Will. Be. So. Cool.

So, jom lah ke Labuan! 


Labuan Marine Museum 
Kompleks Sukan Air Antarabangsa Labuan
Jalan Tanjung Purun
Labuan 

Operating Hours 
Time : 8.30am - 5pm daily (closed on first day of Eid al-Fitr and Eid ul-Adha)

Entrance Fees 
FREE


Explore Labuan Media Fam Trip is in collaboration with Perbadanan Sabah and all its sponsors with #GayaTravel as media coordinator.