On the second day, we both have to wake up at 5am in order to catch our 7am ferry at Mersing jetty to get to Japamala Resort.
It was about an hour and a half drive from Johor Bahru to Mersing Jetty and it is not advisable unless you really want to / have to stop at Johor Bahru.
Roads are bumpy, full with holes and most of the time there’s only one lane. All of these drive my boyfriend crazy haha.
From KL, you probably need about 5 hours of drive to Mersing Jetty and another one hour plus of ferry to Tioman or you can just fly to Tioman’s airport through Berjaya Air for only an hour.
Fatty swear to never drive to Mersing again (LOL) and claimed that he did it just because I wanted to go to Johor Bahru.
Okay I give him extra 50 points lah for being such a sweet boyfriend as he claimed to be.
There’s only one ferry company and it’s called Bluewater Express. Ticket is RM35 per way for an air-conditioned ferry which if were to compare is far from Macau’s ferry.
Not to mention they are also very bad at their services because on the day we left, they were behind schedule for more than one and a half hour.
What’s worse is that they are not even apologetic and kept shouting that they can only fit 50 passengers right there and then.
So what about the others who waited at the jetty for about 2 hours?
Lucky us we were among the 50 passengers or else I don’t know how Fatty will react. But then again you’ve got no choice because this is the only ferry company that operates which is why flying to Tioman is no doubt the best choice.
#1 Mersing jetty.
#2 How the ferry looks like from the inside.
There’s a few stops and to go to Japamala Resort you’ll have to get down at the first stop, Genting.
At Genting jetty, Japamala Resort had a speedboat ready to send us to Japamala which takes only about 5 minutes.
#3 You will of course have to inform Japamala on your boarding time at Mersing Jetty so that they’ll know what time they have to pick you up at Genting’s jetty.
Japamala charges Rm30 per way from Genting jetty to Japamala which I think is quite ridiculous.
Guests spend so much a day at Japamala Resort and they feel the need to charge us Rm30 per way, per person for a 5 minutes distance.
Well, that’s not very sweet of them.
You rent their room for at least about Rm500 per night, you are force to eat at Japamala too because it’s a private beach so there’s nothing else and it’ll cost at least RM30 per dish (lunch & dinner) and then you’ll most likely go for a massage for at least Rm150.
Hotel Icon at Hong Kong gave us free upgrade, free minibar and free shuttle bus lor okay.
It’s not that I don’t have the money, it’s just that why don’t they be a little kind/sweet instead of erm say money minded? PFFT! Okay lah actually this is my only complain and I only got angry like now when I blog. It didn’t occur to me when I was there that they shouldn’t charge the guests, guess I was too happy to give a shit lol.
Plants, animals and land have been disturbed as little as possible. It’s been our goal to build around nature – to respect and preserve the inherent beauty of this destination; to coexist with all who dwell here. Great care has been taken to minimize any environmental impact. No rocks were moved, no trees were cut down. As a result no two Villas are the same. Each is unique – taking on the character of the land upon which it is built.
Truly appreciate their love for nature that instead of building what they want, they decided to build around the nature and adjust to it’s shapes and forms.
I heard there were monkeys, sometimes dipping themselves into one of Japamala’s pool early in the morning. :)
#4 Walking towards the lobby from Japamala’s jetty.
#5 It was drizzling when we arrived cause it was monsoon season. Pfft!
#6 Breakfast is included and because we have to leave real early the next day due to the stupid Bluewater Express’ schedule, we had our breakfast on the day we arrived instead.
#7 It’s a small breakfast buffet with ala-carte that you can order.
#8 Right next to Tamarind Restaurant, where we had our breakfast.
Japamala Resort is owned by Samadhi Retreats and so are Neo Tamarind, Tamarind Springs, and so on.
We didn’t get to check in until 12pm because I requested for Room 16 which has the best view among the Sea Cliff Chalet.
so we just walked around, checked out the places and took a nap at one of their cabanas.
#9 We had to climb a number of stairs in order to reach our room. I was panting every time.
#10 Gosh I miss this!
#11 Rm660 were charged for a night stay at Sea Cliff Chalet and this is the price for non-peak season due to monsoon. Full rate will be Rm890 per night.
Tips: Must request for Room 16 if you’re taking Sea Cliff Chalet, it has got the best view.
#12 Spot my balloon! Yes, I brought my balloon all the way. :D
#13
#14 Every time we go to nice hotel or resort I’ll tell Fatty, ‘Bay, next time we put this in our house’ and obviously for this time, I want THIS in our garden. So demanding haha.
#15
#16 If not for the monsoon, the sea will be a lot bluer than this. I was actually surprised that Tioman is included in a ‘Island-you-must-go’ kind of list.
#17 One of the Sea Cliff Chalet opposite ours. Don’t know how they see the sea lah, surrounded by trees.
After settling down, Fatty went for his massage while I took a shower and rest in the room.
There’s only one masseuse so we have to take turns and it’s quite a turn off when couples cant do their massage together.
I was like, ‘HAR!? :( :( :( ‘ because we’re left with no choice. Definitely time consuming.
#18 Different types of massage will have different venue and this is one of the venue.
#19 While this is the second, a room for Thai massage.
Fatty’s massage was RM150 and as for mine, I took Head and Shoulder massage for Rm125 which lasts both of us an hour.
The masseuse was so good I actually fell asleep and that is rare for me cause I hardly sleep during massage.
We also book a Jacuzzi for two for RM100 and while they take their time to prepare and heat it up, we went off to take some pictures.
#20
#21Â I love this picture the most! It is now my Facebook cover picture and Iphone’s wallpaper heh. :B
#22
#23 <3
#24 This is the jetty and Mandi-Mandi Restaurant that serves Italian food for lunch and dinner.
#25 This is the best! The backrest is 45 degree angle that is perfect for you to rest on and just do nothing.
#26
#27Â Spotted crabs.
#28Â And a cute bird. :)
#29 Then it’s jacuzzi time! Jacuzzi that was filled with bubbles and two pots of hot tea by the side for us to enjoy.
#30 The jacuzzi was ze bomb! There was bubble everywhere and it smells so good!
Due to me being the cheapskate me, I was in the jacuzzi for about half an hour even though I know I shouldn’t.
When I get out of the jacuzzi, I almost fainted. I couldn’t stand the dizzyness I dropped on the floor. T_T
Dahlah got low blood pressure, still want to put myself in a hot tub for that long. Haha, I hate myself sometimes.
#31 Hahaha stupid boyfriend tried to used bubble to make himself look like a santa claus.
#32 Went off to snorkeling after Jacuzzi. My first time snorkeling with Fatty and my first time wearing flippers too. It was fun!
Snorkeling equipment can be rent for free.
#33 HAHAHAH! So ugly!
‘
#34 “Why did you take picture of my ass!?’ Haha cause I can’t really see the screen and I just randomly snap whatever I could.
#35 Fatty was so busy swimming and snorkeling, he didn’t help take pictures of me snorkeling. Meh, so I have to self layan and take my fingers instead.
#36 There were lots of fishes swimming around and I was particularly drawn to this colourful fish. I also saw sea cucumber and sea urchin.
Showered after snorkeling and off we went for happy hour.
From 6pm to 7pm everyday, Japamala will have happy hour and offers free drinks and snacks for guests.
#37
#38 The boy suggested that I sit on the bridge. :)
#39
#40 Heaven on earth.
#41 It just keeps getting better.
#42 Tomato soup.
#43 Beef carpaccio.
#44 Beef.
#45 Lobster tagliatelle.
Food was really decent and up to standard. I especially love their beef carpacio and lobster tagliatelle.
I didn’t want to order their soup but Fatty always tends to order a lot. Something he totally inherited from his dad, over order during meals.
Total damage done was Rm341 excluding tax.
I asked Fatty, ‘You didn’t get me cake ah? You didn’t ask them to prepare cake for me meh?’ with puppy eyes and he said he did not.
So I replied, ‘WHY? :( :( You can just ask them for cake they have it one!’ and Fatty beh tahan me so he had to screw up his surprise and said ‘Got lah, got lah. Aiyo this girl’. HAHAHA!
#46 Yay! The type of cake that I dislike the most, chocolate cake. HAHA!
#47 I couldn’t be happier, really. :)
#48 Thank you baby for celebrating yet another birthday with me. He somehow promised that for my birthday every year, we’ll go for a getaway. As the Chinese says, ‘listen first lah’ (teng ju sin). Hehe. :)
#49 Despite the monsoon season, the sea was really blue the next morning when we woke up. Imagine normal sunny days, this will be your paradise.
I only wish that we can stay for another night cause I’m a greedy girl like that. Haha.
I had the time of my life, relax, fun, and lots of laughter on my birthday.
Despite being the oldest I have ever been right now, this year’s birthday is one of the best.
Great getaway and I also finally have the ability to get myself a birthday present that I’ve wanted all this years.
The latest Iphone! Hehehe.
Don’t want to jinx it but God has been very generous to me this year, I cant thank God enough. :)
P/S: My blog just turned 7 too.