Pulau Payar Marine Park Tours and Activities
Set between Penang and Langkawi, Pulau Payar Marine Park offers probably the best diving and snorkeling on the west coast of peninsular Malaysia. The four islands that make up the park are a marine protected area, meaning there’s a rich range of coral reef and fish life, from angelfish and clownfish to blacktip reef sharks.
The Basics
A small conservation fee is required to enter Pulau Payar Marine Park, which is generally visited as a day trip from either Langkawi or Penang. If you learn to dive on Langkawi you’ll find yourself diving here, but the park is best known for snorkeling, either from the beach or from floating platforms suspended in the ocean.
While it’s possible to visit Pulau Payar Marine Park independently, most travelers prefer the convenience of a tour that includes snorkel gear, lunch, and door-to-door round-trip transfers.
Things to Know Before You Go
How to Get There
Pulau Payar Marine Park is midway between the islands of Penang and Langkawi. While there are regular ferries from Penang, the park is only accessible from Langkawi by private speedboat or catamaran. As there’s no accommodation on the island, many travelers choose an organized tour to make the most of their time.
When to Get There
During Langkawi’s peak season (roughly November through March), Pulau Payar can get unpleasantly crowded, especially on weekends and during Malaysian school holidays. Seas can be choppy in August and September, so April through June, the mid-season, is the best time to visit.
Help Save Pulau Payar Marine Park
Although it’s a marine park, Pulau Payar faces a number of challenges. Please don’t support tour operators who feed fish. It distorts the natural ecosystem, alters fish behavior, and can harm coral. Please also be aware that coral can take centuries to grow and is very fragile. Touching it or standing on it can kill the structure altogether.
The Basics
A small conservation fee is required to enter Pulau Payar Marine Park, which is generally visited as a day trip from either Langkawi or Penang. If you learn to dive on Langkawi you’ll find yourself diving here, but the park is best known for snorkeling, either from the beach or from floating platforms suspended in the ocean.
While it’s possible to visit Pulau Payar Marine Park independently, most travelers prefer the convenience of a tour that includes snorkel gear, lunch, and door-to-door round-trip transfers.
Things to Know Before You Go
- Pulau Payar Marine Park is a popular choice for snorkelers.
- There are limited facilities on the island, so don’t forget the sunscreen.
- Nonswimmers can check out the fish from an underwater observation chamber in the floating platform.
- The boats that run to Pulau Payar Marine Park are not wheelchair-friendly.
How to Get There
Pulau Payar Marine Park is midway between the islands of Penang and Langkawi. While there are regular ferries from Penang, the park is only accessible from Langkawi by private speedboat or catamaran. As there’s no accommodation on the island, many travelers choose an organized tour to make the most of their time.
When to Get There
During Langkawi’s peak season (roughly November through March), Pulau Payar can get unpleasantly crowded, especially on weekends and during Malaysian school holidays. Seas can be choppy in August and September, so April through June, the mid-season, is the best time to visit.
Help Save Pulau Payar Marine Park
Although it’s a marine park, Pulau Payar faces a number of challenges. Please don’t support tour operators who feed fish. It distorts the natural ecosystem, alters fish behavior, and can harm coral. Please also be aware that coral can take centuries to grow and is very fragile. Touching it or standing on it can kill the structure altogether.
Address: Pulau Payar Marine Park, Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
Admission: Varies
3 Tours and Activities to Experience Pulau Payar Marine Park
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Full Day Payar Island from Langkawi
1
Travel to the island of Payar, one of the 99 islands in the Langkawi Archipelago. The island is protected as a marine preserve, making it an excellent site for viewing the underwater world. This day cruise features time for snorkeling and relaxing on the beach, lunch, and a knowledgeable guide and crew.
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From
$61.54
From
$61.54
Face masks provided for travelers
Contactless payments for gratuities and add-ons
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Langkawi Island Snorkeling Trip
1
The most famous in Langkawi Coral is platform snorkelling + diving, the ship will stop at the middle of the sea. Enjoy a swim among the schools of fishes and experience an underwater view of a world filled with colorful coral reefs without getting wet on Langkawi Coral's floating platform equipped with an underwater observation facility.
Be awestruck by the beauty of the reefs and its inhabitants as you snorkel in the vast ocean.
At 10m deep, cooler than the rest. The only sounds are your steady breath in and out through the regulator and a tapping sound from a nearby fish pecking at coral. Visibility is good and you can see schools of fish circling above and many others swimming calmly around you. The anemones, coral and Christmas tree worms present a beautiful, waving display on the ocean floor.
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From
$126.16
From
$126.16
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Face masks required for guides in public areas
Transportation vehicles regularly sanitized
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3-Days PADI Open Water Certificate Course at Langkawi
Most people find it a rewarding challenge. The PADI Open Water Diver course includes three parts: knowledge Development , Confined Water Dives and Open Water Diver. For confined water dives you will get to know your equipment and learn a lot of diving skills in shallow water. Knowledge Development covers the principles , concepts and terms you need to know for dive safety and enjoyment. You’ll enjoy making one or more minidives. To complete training you practice , apply and demonstrate what you learn during four Open Water Dives from the reef platform, simulate dive from boat. As a PADI Open Water Diver , you’ll be trained to a maximum depth of 18 metres/60 feet, and are qualified to dive in conditions as good as or better than those in which you tained. It’s just the beginning of a lifetime filled with dive adventures.
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From
$560.00
From
$560.00
Face masks required for travelers in public areas
Temperature checks for travelers upon arrival
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