Tioman island is probably known as one of the most popular places to dive in Malaysia. One of the biggest reasons it has the reputation of being a dive destination is undoubtedly its close proximity to Malaysia’s capitol, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
In the 1970’s Time Magazine named Tioman as “one of the worlds most beautiful islands” and despite a massive uptick in development and visitors since then, parts of the island are still quite beautiful and largely untouched by developers. The island is fairly large but most of the development is clumped into 5 major clusters along the west coast. These villages (called kampung) are centered around where the ferry from the mainland stops. The main town is Tekek and that’s about the only place you will see cars or an ATM. There is even a small air strip located in Tekek but we rarely saw any planes that used it, so for most of us the ferry is the only way to get on or off the island. One of the unique things about the villages on Tioman is that they’re fairly isolated from each other by land, so it ‘feels’ like 5 separate small islands with different vibes. Getting between the different villages costs the same price as getting to the mainland which is 35 Malaysian ringgit, which is not really that expensive but we could never figure out how a 5 minute boat ride can cost the same as a 1.5 hour ferry ride. But, it is what it is…
Most visitors to the island come from Singapore and Kuala Lumpur and some of the big attractions for non-divers are snorkeling tours, sightseeing, and the duty free status of the island which means that cheap beer, alcohol, cigarettes and chocolate definitely seems to be one of the draws for some people. The beauty of Tioman is by far made better if you can get away from the crowds, and there are opportunities to do that at numerous resorts that sit between the main ferry stops. As with most places, you have a range of options when it comes to accommodation and places to eat, from low budget to the luxurious. No matter where you stay on the island, you will probably be close to the sea and have plenty of lovely sunsets to watch.
We ended up living on Tioman from May to October in 2018, and we only got to experience parts of the western shore, so we can’t tell you anything about the east side other than we know there are a few resorts there and a turtle sanctuary. There were parts of it we enjoyed and parts of it we found frustrating. Our experience with Tioman was fairly limited though to be honest and the issues we found challenging probably wouldn’t be the same for you if you were just visiting. There are a few nice dive sites on the island so if you’re in the area and are interested in checking out the diving there we suggest you give it a try. We also suggest doing your research before you go and finding a dive center that is both professional in service, safety, and standards, as well as environmentally conscious. That being said we experienced many cases where standards were followed only when convenient, and while there are some really great dive operators, there are also a few that do things ‘cowboy’ style and hope for the best. Our advice is the same everywhere, which is, ask a lot of questions. Although people may give what sounds like the ‘right answers’, ask for verification if you’re not sure. We know first hand that some people look and act as a Divemaster or Instructor, or speak with confidence and authority, but unless they sign and put their Instructor/DM number on your paperwork, it’s also possible that they are just good divers who are playing the role of a professional. Some people don’t think that kind of thing is very important and they will just go with the cheapest option possible, but remember this is your safety that we’re talking about. A professional diver has been trained in risk management and rescue techniques, as well as, in the proper ways to teach and guide people in diving. They keep their training current by following training updates and staying aware of new trends and standards. So while things with a non-professional may go smooth 9 out of 10 times, it’s that tenth time that you will want to be with a true professional. In our opinion, it’s worth paying a few more dollars and asking for verification of this. This kind of thing isn’t exclusive to Tioman, and we don’t mean to suggest that there is an excessive problem on the island, as there are many professional and great dive operators in the area. We simply want everyone to have a great safe diving experience and when more customers are informed and insist on the best, people that might not have the qualifications to be teaching or guiding divers will feel it’s important to invest in the proper training to do so.
We were happy to see that there is a small but committed group of divers doing environmental actions on Tioman, but they could use more help and support. It’s ironic really, because the island is actually a Marine Reserve with rules and regulations in place to protect the reefs and habitats, however it seems as though the protections for the forests are more closely followed than those for the waterways. While there, we witnessed many unfortunate things like snorkel operators giving bread to their guests to feed the fish, people walking on corals at low tides, and families that buy these little nets on a stick to catch marine creatures and fish just to name a few. It seems that fishing and spearfishing on scuba also happen in so called protected areas but we don’t know for sure how often it is happening. The other thing that bothered us personally, was seeing sharks cut up and served in restaurants there.
Changing these kinds of practices start with public education programs and pressuring local businesses to change their practices by either the consumer or enforcing regulations. So while it’s great that groups like Reef Check, and Green Fins, as well as individuals are doing their best, they can’t be everywhere and it shouldn’t be their role to enforce the protections set in place by the government. One thing we were encouraged by was a limited number of recycling bins on the islands. However, they seemed to be under utilized because they often sat mostly empty, while bags of mixed rubbish were piled up next to them. Once again, this shift in mentality takes time, and more could be done to promote recycling and reducing the number of single use container items being offered. We look forward to seeing how things progress and we are encouraged by the potential we see. It seems that more visitors are hopefully becoming savvy and informed about some of the issues we personally found challenging with living and diving on Tioman. As we stated earlier, we didn’t get to see all of the island and we haven’t been going there for years so our experience isn’t comprehensive or complete by any means. If you have visited Tioman before or have been going for years, feel free to let us know what your experience was like and share your thoughts.