18 y old glenfiddisch.Rm165 at Wawasan kuah the chepest among all
Dimple Rm100 at Wawasan Kuah the cheapest
and Johnnie walker gold label also at wawasan kuah the cheapest Rm150 with box & Rm130 without box,

With or without box, something I will avoid next time. They are collecting empty boxes again!

whole company employee are only malay (not racist but found it strange),
95 percent population in Langkawi is Malay. So it is not suprising.

This post has been edited by etigge: May 7 2010, 09:28 AM

I have been using imageshack since I started and so far so good. I sometimes see Flickr photos unable to download! Make sure you resize the picture!

It was taken over by some other company and refurbished and now it is a super duper expensive resort. Check their rates. I think they cater to overseas market more since I rarely see their ads locally. It used to be a 'projek' venue because you can sneak into the rooms without the front desk knowing.

Can try Bonton Restaurant! Ms.Narelle McMurthie is quite a nice host. I don't know their no. but can google it. Bonton serves nice cakes and specialises in Fusion food.

Read my blog,
http://blog.thestar.com.my/permalink.asp?id=29867

For fishing at the Kuala Triang tuas, look for Pak Hassan. Go to Kuala Triang or Sheraton Beach Resort bell counter and enquire. Fishing. Alternatively on the Kuah main road look for Samudra Fishing shop. Ask for Ah Chooi and ask him to arrange a local fishing boat to Tuas and ask him to contact or if he don't want ask for Kuala Triang Guan Chai's no.

Option 2.
Go to Alu-Alu fishing and talk to Pak Deris. Nice man and ask him about Pak Lah. Pak Lah is a trolling specialist around Pulau Paku and Pulau Timun. The shop is also located in Kuah. Kuah is not that big, just explore.

Option 3.

Go to Tanjung Rhu near the beach activities shack. Ask for Rosli Hitam. He is also an avid angler and he also has a few boats.

If you are looking for really nice beach, Langkawi is not the place. Try Redang! What old buildings and which graveyard are you talking about?

Obviously Federal Villa is a better choice.

Being an island, the best food are the seafood. Chinese on the island has no special dishes and most good cooks are from mainland taking advantage of the freshness of the seafood there. Malay food are Thai influenced as Langkawi is near to Thailand. Wan Thai is good in this type of cuisine.

Also I find another unique noodle dish on the island and can only be found in Tanjung Rhu. It is called 'mee gulung'. Actually nothing special, just that the noodles and ingredients are rolled in an omelet and soaked in the soup.

Sinaran Restoren in Kuah town serves the best malay food I have ever tasted, even till now. Bonton serves nice food too but on the pricier scale. Abu mee rebus is quite nice. Located on the same row as KFC Kuah town(not jetty point). Sun Village in Pantai Tengah serves lobsters, mostly catering to Japanese.

Laksa Kedah, best in Langkawi is near the eateries just after Jetty Point. On the left hand side when going towards Kuah town beside a lake. The last shop beside a small carpark. Pokok Sena nasi kandar is in front of Teo Seafood.
That's about it! There are a few more but hard to actually describe the locations, mainly roti canai and nasi goreng.

If you have a car, there's a private lodging. It's located in Jalan Ulu Melaka. Try asking directions for EON showroom and on that road, drive further down till you see a traffic junction. Go straight and on the right is the Customs and Excise quarters. Beside the quarters is a nursery and the lodging is just beside the nursery. RM50 a night for a double bed with attached bath and air cond. It's private and it is clean, that's important.
He also have a shop directly opposite Grand Continental Hotel. The shop looks like it is selling lubricants. It's beside an electrical shop. Maybe you can ask here first and ask him to direct you to the lodging.

Maybe you can call Bayview Hotel first. You might afford it, who knows? Right in the middle of the commercial area and 4 star too.

Other options is Langkasuka Hotel (not the Helang group) which is above Langkawi Parade aka Teoh Soon Huat department store. Nagoya Hotel is a bit seedy!

There are a few companies that runs Langkawi express like Zulco. They all leave at 10.00pm (give or take an hour) and reach Kuala Perlis at 5.00 am and the Kuala Perlis bus station is near the Jetty to Langkawi. In fact any express buses to Alor Setar will do. Once there take a cab to Kuala Kedah Jetty. The fare should be about RM12.00.

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Added on May 24, 2010, 6:54 pm Yes, I am a very keen angler before I took scuba diving. After scuba diving I stopped fishing.
Pak Hassan is quite expensive! He operates a 32 footer boat with twin 115hp Yamaha outboards but he's good. Last time I heard, he charges RM600 to RM800 for a trip.

Cheaper option, talk to Pak Deris of Alu-Alu Fishing shop. Ask him to contact Pak Lah and fish around Pulau Timun area. Pak Lah's trolling for barracudas is almost guaranteed. Alu-Alu is just opposite the clock tower in Kuah town, near the traffic lights in Kuah. $ hours with Pak Lah should be around RM200.00, 5 person is possible if he uses the 24 footer Explorer.

This post has been edited by etigge: May 24 2010, 06:59 PM

Sorry, I don't have the contact, maybe you locate it and tell us about it when you come back from holidays.

The tours is exactly what it says, you cruise in the mangrove riverways of Kilim/Kisap. They will take you cave exploring (albeit a short one) to look at bats, visit fish farms, eagle feeding and thru cave cruise if the tide is low. The limestone hills are magnificient if you never do it before. Another attraction is lunch in either Barn Thai Restaurant or on a fish farm cum floating restaurant but it must be arranged with the boatman.

Another more comprehensive package includes a boat ride out into the open sea to the islands in front of Tg.Rhu off Tg.Rhu Resort and 4 Seasons Resort to do a bit of fishing and swimming or snorkelling on a deserted island. It helps if you have an ultra zoom camera or binoculars as they will also take to to see flying foxes resting upside down hanging on the trees on one of the island. You can also opt for light fishing on one of these islands.

The basic tour on the first paragraph is about 2 to 3 hours (excluding lunch) and the latter takes about 5 - 6 hours.

The main jetty of this activity is Kilim Jetty (behind Galleria) in Jalan Kisap but you can also book it in Keng Chuan Motors behind CIMB bank in Kuah. This one is a bit higher in price but understandable as they depart from Kuah jetty and the boat ride is longer cruising through more waterways hence could be more entertaining. Thier boats are bigger and more comfortable, ask for their 32 footer Gulf Crafts.

There are fakes and we can't guess which sells and which don't. But then again liquor licence is very hard to obtain and they don't really want to take the risk. One shop I don't recommend is Saga Shopping. They have outlets in Pulau Tioman too in fact they are the owner of KPLFS ferry services. They were the ones that made a huge ruckus in Tioman regarding the building of the jetty there.

It is more about what brand to avoid rather than what shop to avoid. All shops sells genuine liquor but sometimes one or two popular brand or type (eg. cordon Bleu) becomes flooded with fakes. The other day someone said they sell Johhy Walker with and without boxes meaning the syndicates are collecting boxes and bottles. They don't appear often anyway and because they are in 1 litre bottles as opposed to 75cl. on mainland, bottles are hard to obtain.

Or buy the 3 litre bottles, guaranteed no fakes. Got to pay tax though and they don't allow you to share entitlement. Eg. Me and GF, two person so 2 litres of liquor. They don't work that way. One person one bottle so 3 litres you pay for the extra 2 litres.

On the safe side, don't buy brandy or whisky, go for premium vodka, gin, liquers and that can guarantee that there are no fakes. Have you tried Belvedere Vodka

This post has been edited by etigge: May 27 2010, 11:49 AM

On the road from Kuah to Pantai Cenang, there's two road options. One is straight via Kedawang and the other coastal road via Temonyong. Near the hospital, the left turn (coastal road) on the left hand hand side there's a coastal restaurant called "Restoren Nelayan" (less than a kilometre from the junction). Their seafood is also from the fishing den there. That place is called Sungai Udang. Used to be a very popular local haunt but as tourist got to know the place, it became slightly expensive but the seafood is guaranteed fresh. Try their ikan bakar especially the pari.

In Kuah town, there a Siamese restaurant called 'Wan Thai'. Although Thai they have nice seafood too as the seafood is mostly locally caught. Try their "Kengsom Fish". The soury and hot steamfish with a charcoal stove heating the fish dish as you eat. Wan Thai is located in Pesiaran Bunga Raya, Langkawi Mall (NOT Langkawi Fair but Langkawi Mall).

The seafood restaurants along the main Pesiaran Klana Mas (little shops in two clusters) in Kuah, turn left at the first traffic light. They are all pork free as required by Majlis Daerah Langkawi and Wonderland Restaurant (check earlier threads) is one of them. In fact a lot of Wonderland's clientele is malay.

This post has been edited by etigge: May 27 2010, 09:31 PM

That's suprising! Wonderland used to be very busy. The local Hainanese is trusted by the local malays there and they do eat there. Maxis executives, government servants, customs officers etc. they all eat there. Maybe like one forummer said, they raised their price after thier outlet is described in an article in one of the magazines, the locals shunned the place.

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Added on May 31, 2010, 10:00 pmChampagne is available in most liquor outlets and also Brut (italian sparkling wine, also champagne but cannot use the term as they are not from the champagne region of France). Prices depends on the labels and year. For Rm30+ can get one bottle if you just want to pop!

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Added on May 31, 2010, 10:04 pmSnorkelling is OK in Pulau Payar and it is inclusive for most trips to Pulau Payar. The life jackets, fins and mask/snorkel is provided. Careful of the barnacles when you try to climb up the jetty or safer just wade back to the beach.

This post has been edited by etigge: May 31 2010, 10:04 PM

It is OK as this is the Langkawi Coral package. They have their own catamaran and the boat ride is better than the lousy tin can ferries of the Sarawakian operators. Even the Sarawakian operators charge RM130 per pax and they give lousy lunches. So I think your package is OK.

Off course the package provided by Langkawi Coral is better. They were formerly operated by Eden Group but it has changed hands now. They have their own catamaran for the trip from Kuah Jetty to Pulau Payar. The other operator use the ferries they used for the Kuala Kedah Langkawi, steel boats from Sarawak. Very uncomfortable and cramped. The catamaran of Langkawi Coral allows you to stand at ferry's rear and top deck when cruising, a plus point for those who are prone to seasick and also good for smokers

They also have their private floating poontoon with glass windows for underwater viewing and glass bottom boats. I think their meal is better and they do provide boat rides to the shore.

I don't think they have prescription goggles or mask for short sighted but anyway underwater the sights are magnified so I think you should be able to see.

This post has been edited by etigge: Jun 1 2010, 10:46 PM

Barn Thai ...........sigh! Nice restaurant but lousy management. YTL doesn't want to give commission to boat operators for bringing guest but only allow them a meal for a boat load. How many times can a boat operator eat a day. That's why boat operators avoids Barn Thai. Are you sure they are closed? Anyway they were there since the first LIMA was organised. Been a long time and making a loss most of the times.

Some other management shuld take over the operations. Is is such a waste and it is the only restaurant with such concept.

This post has been edited by etigge: Jun 7 2010, 12:02 PM

There's not much hiking trails in Langkawi but there is one up to Gunung Raya (highest peak in Langkawi). It is actually steps up there made in concrete totalling more than 4000 steps. But natural atmosphere is nice though walking under the trees and Hornbills can be spotted flying there. Lots of tongkat Ali trees too. The steps starts from the waterfalls at the Book village near Panaroma Hotel in Jalan Ulu Melaka.

Other trail that I know is up Gunung Matcincang where the cable car is. I think the trail was made during the construction of the cable car.

If you have a motorcycle license, you can rent a motorcycle and enjoy the wind as they say. Cheaper too! 3 nights is possible if you lodge in cheaper hotels like the private lodging house that I have mentioned in the earlier threads. Though it is cheap, it is comfortable with air cond and hot shower.