Saturday, February 9, 2008

Tioman Island ( Tioman Travel Guide )

Pulau Tioman , Tioman also spelled Tiuman island in the South China Sea, about 40 miles (65 km) off Kuala Rompin, Peninsular (West) Malaysia. It has an area of 53 square miles (137 square km) and is 13 miles (21 km) long and 2 to 8 miles (3 to 13 km) wide. Tioman's economy, traditionally based on fishing, is now focused on tourism. Its main settlements, Kampung Tekek on the west coast and Teluk Juara on the east, are linked by a rough, hilly track.

Tioman's beaches were depicted in the 1958 movie South Pacific as "Bali Hai". In the 1970s, Time magazine selected Tioman as one of the world’s most beautiful islands. The densely forested island is still sparsely inhabited, but is surrounded by numerous white coral reefs, making it a haven for scuba divers from around the region.

Already the most developed of Malaysia's eastern islands, a controversial RM 40 million marina project for Kampung Tekek, complete with 175-meter cargo jetty, now threatens to speed up the pace of development on Tioman considerably - so get there before it's too late!

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