Weekend away from KL - Langkawi

Living in Kuala Lumpur is fantastic if you like to travel. You are in a central hub for travelling in the region, with other SEA countries at your doorstep and the rest of Asia not far away. And with the likes of Air Asia, Jetstar, Tiger and other low-cost airlines all servicing KL, you have the choice of fares so cheap for international travel they would certainly rival the cost of domestic air travel back in Oz.

That being said, The Boy's business commitments at the moment make it difficult for the two of us to go anywhere on a long holiday. Luckily, Malaysia is in itself a fascinating country to discover and has plenty to offer in the type of holiday the two of us love - relaxing by the beach. As inland as KL is, it does make me miss Sydney's beaches and how accessible the coast was from anywhere. And when lying by the artificial beach at Sunway Lagoon is no longer enough, what better than to hop on a quick flight to one of the many beautiful islands dotted around this country.

So one sunny weekend in late June, we headed to Langkawi with 6 others for a couple of days of sun and relaxation.  

We stayed at the Frangipani Resort on the more happening end of Pantai Tengah beach (closer to Pantai Cenang). A cute little eco resort, our garden villa (with amazing outdoor rain shower) was only steps from the beach and at night you could hear the sounds of the ocean.

Our garden villa

The beach was only steps from the front door

Frangipani flowers around the resort

The highlight of the weekend though was a sunset cocktail/dinner cruise we all did through Crystal Yacht Holidays. 

Arriving at the marina

What the boys hoped we were going to ride

Our real boat

We watched the skies anxiously as the sunny day had turned an ominous grey as we arrived at the marina. Sure enough, it started to rain as soon as the boat started moving but luckily we escaped the bad weather and soon enough were in calm, gorgeous ocean waters.

It was free-flow drinks on board (soft drinks and a selection of cocktails) and the friendly crew made sure noone's cup was ever empty. Once we were in open water the jacuzzi net was put out the back of the boat, which was our cue to jump into the warm sea while the crew prepared our delicious dinner.

Eventually the sun started to set and we were heading back to the marina. A beautiful end to a great cruise. Definitely a must-do when in Langkawi!

The next day after a leisurely breakfast we headed to the Langkawi Cable Car together with our Scottish couple friends. The Boy and I had done this before on our previous visit in May 2011 but it was an overcast day and the fog at altitude had meant we couldn't see anything at all. Waking up to another blue skies and sunshine day, I was determined we wouldn't miss out this time.

View from the cable car on our way up

Sky Bridge (closed when we visited)

 

The fog literally began to creep in while we were up on the observation platform. Still, we were happy to have been able to see some of the breathtaking views before it got swallowed up in the grey mist.

 

Access to the Langkawi SkyCab is in Oriental Village, which is a bit of a tourist spot in Langkawi with several souvenir and clothing shops and a few eateries all in a pretty-ish setting. The Boy and I had already checked it out on our previous visit and unless you are looking for souvenirs, it's not really a must-do.

Back down on the ground, there was time for a leisurely seafood lunch (another must) and a few more moments at the beach before heading back to the airport with our duty-free purchases in tow. Yeah, did I mention Langkawi is a duty free island? Alcohol is one thing that does not come cheap in KL so The Boy and I stocked up on vodka and scotch at prices that would be unthinkable anywhere in Australia!

Lobster lunch

Bye Langkawi! We'll be back soon!