Panorama Chalet & Restaurant
Panorama offers a variety of rooms and prices, ranging from a single bed with fan RM 35 to a family style suite two double beds, two bathrooms, and aircon - with 2 free dinners per night of stay RM140. Additionally, Panorama is a popular hub for many of those who stay on Long Beach.
Mira Beach Chalet
Located on its own quiet beach, a 20 minute stroll down a paved jungle path from the busy beaches. Simple wooden chalets with mosquito nets, and a place to eat. All Rooms with fan and sea view. Rates: Room with shared bath RM50 to RM80, Room with Bathroom Attached RM80 to RM150. Dorm RM40.
Rock Garden
Once the cheapest place to stay on the island and for good reason. The old cheap rooms are still available for around RM30 a night RM40 in 2012 high season, but now you can also choose between a standard room RM70 - RM120 in 2012 high season and a deluxe room with AC for RM200. Most rooms come with nice view over the beach. But be warned: the nearby "beach disco" can get quite loud till 3 o'clock in the morning.
Bubu Long Beach Resort
This is the first ferroconcrete hotel on the islands, offering air-con, hot water and other creature comforts. Great views from the balcony. Excellent restaurant, but pricey compared with the rest of the beach. The resort has its own generator and 24hr electricity.
Moonlight Chalets
Various types of accommodation including :24 hour Electricity, dorm beds, small wooden chaletsvery very simple with fan and mosquito net to aircon rooms with beautiful views of the sea from the verandah. Food is OK. Wonderful receptionist, Dee Dee who seems to remember everyone's name..
World Cafe
After renovation it no longer offers budget or dorm rooms. It now has only exclusive rooms with AC - probably the best on Long Beach. Prices are around RM450 a night! The cafe has good food, although a bit pricier than other places on the island, but where the cafe really shines is their excellent coffee and friendly service.
D'Lagoon
Wooden chalets with mosquito nets, and own restaurant.Very good food/ quiet place with private beach. Coral is right in the bay but so close you cut yourself in low tide. Possible to walk from Long beach; follow power lines up to the windmill then walk a little bit down and take the first path to the right going into the jungle, when the path sections go to the right make sure you keep moving to avoid mosquito bites.
There is very little luxury accommodation on Kecil, with the top of the line being air-conditioned chalets RM100-200 and the bottom being a bunk in a longhouse RM10 and up. Discounts are usually negotiable in the off season although most resorts are closed, for weekdays, for longer stays, if you show up late and they have room... but the better places can get snapped up fast, especially on weekends and holidays, so book in advance. Luxery accommodation is on the west bay of Besar, but expect to pay for it. Air conditioned chalets and all the trimmings in some easily arranged on line or in Kuala Besut, but booking in advance is recommended. Mosquitoes can be a problem after rain, so bring your own mosquito net if staying in low-end non-aircon accommodation.
The most popular backpacker destination is Pasir Panjang Long Beach on the eastern coast of Kecil, where a bed in a longhouse can go for as little as RM20. More private "chalets" with fan, electricity and bathroom start at RM50. From north to south:
Shari-la Island Resort
Air con dorms are 20RM with power outlets, by far the nicest on the islands, not advertised anywhere. BBQ buffet in the evening for 15RM. Free drinks, free water refill and free wifi for all guests in lobby. Other rooms priced from 100RM upwards which include 24 hours electricity, hot shower, satellite TV, aircon and fan in room.
Elsewhere on the island:
Symphoni village
Offers pretty much beach front chalets quite a few would see the beach if it weren't for a canopy they built and larger rooms for very cheap. An A-frame chalet goes for RM30 with a bathroom thats shared by perhaps 10 other chalets, and is cleaned several times a day. It has one bulb and one fan which can be uses 7pm to 7am. Mosquito nets are usually provided. My room had a couple of spotted geckos which had laid a bunch of eggs on the roof. Larger rooms are available with attached bathrooms starting from RM50. As with all the beach accomodation, security is an issue so bring your own padlock.
Besar
Samudra Resort
Quiet resort with a fan beach RM60 and garden chalets RM40-50. No power sockets in the rooms but electricity mostly 24 hours.
ABC Guesthouse
ABC is a barebones longhouse-only operation in a creaky two-story building, which looks like it will soon collapse and join Cozy in the dust pile of history.
Arwana Perhentian Resort
Arwana is a family/student oriented resort at the very end of the beach, with reasonable room rates and a large swimming pool. Don't expect luxery or 'deluxe' as the decor is not to everyone's taste and be warned, some rooms are upstairs with no balcony. No kettle in rooms, but each room has a flask and there is free hot water on tap near the beverage counter. Air-conditioned rooms start from RM140, and there are dorms available for large groups at RM30/person. All the air-conditioned rooms have TVs with a few channels on. The staff are very helpful and can arrange your boat transfers if you haven't already. Also offers free WiFi in the main lounge.
Tuna Bay Island Resort
Tuna Bay is one of the newer and classier outfits, offering air-con chalets at a steep RM290 and up, including hot showers and safety deposit boxes in every room. Make no mistake, however, Tuna Bay is not a 5-star luxury experience. The seaside restaurant is also pleasant with fairly decent food and a small bar.
New Cocohut Chalet
One of the options on the south beach, New Cocohut offers air-conditioned chalets starting at RM130, chalets with a fan, and longhouse beds for less. The staff is friendly and helpful. The restaurant offers basic meals and beer at regular prices. However, expect run down toilets in the RM130 rooms with no water heater. The beach in front of Cocohut has some corals which could make it hard to swim at the shallow ends. 5 mins walk to a nicer beach. Cocohut also runs the new Cozy Chalets. Its just next door to Cocohut, a bit uphill and you have to climb stairs to reach to the beach. These chalets offers airco and a good view.
The Reef
The first in a series of near-identical no-frills chalets just south of the Coral View on the same beach, followed by Paradise Island Resort/Watercolours and Mama's. All offer basic non-air-conditioned chalets with basic attached bathrooms in the RM60-80 range.
Mama's Place
Mama's Place is run by Aziz, a very friendly and organized person who will go the extra mile to make your stay enjoyable. Bungalows start from RM70 for a clean fan room with private bathroom. Aziz provides snorkeling equipment, arranges transfers and is more than willing to give you advice. The attached restaurant offers basic meals for breakfast and lunch but puts on a great BBQ dinner by the sea.
The largest and the quietest beach on the islands, the southern beach has 6 resorts/chalets.
Flora Bay 1 and 2
There are two resorts separated by the Fauna resort offering chalets and rooms at reasonable prices. Nice restaurant and the 2nd pool on Besar.
Due to its popularity Kecil can get a little noisy at times, so to get away from it all, head for Besar. Starting from the northern Teluk Pauh:
A 5-minute walk away is Besar's nameless main beach, featuring the following:
Perhentian Island Resort
Offering the best digs on the islands, the Resort is located on Besar's nicest white sandy beach and equipped with the first swimming pool in town. Still, 5-star luxury it isn't, and the list prices of RM250 to RM350 are overpriced especially since some of the older, further-off chalets are downright grotty; take a look at your room first and ask to see a different one if you don't like it. It offers 24 hour electricity and water supply with heater, air-con with individual climate control, free wifi and in-room coffee/tea making service.
Everfresh chalets
It had a lot of chalets and some rooms, but it looked deserted the last time I saw it, although not abandoned.
Watercolours Paradise Resort
Has clean but mostly basic non air-conditioned chalets specifically request for one if desired with attached bathrooms. The Garden View chalets are RM 60 and the Sea View chalets are RM 80. There's not much difference between the two, although the Sea View rooms are bigger and closer to the sea. The standards huts with fan share the same roof so you can hear your neighbours loud and clearly. The staff are very friendly and helpful. The Watercolours Restaurant and Dive Centre is attached to this resort. For those on a budget, this makes a good place to stay. There are no power outlets in the rooms, although they do let you use the restaurant's outlets. NEW: The rooms have all been redecorated for 2009 and now free wifi is available.
Crossing over to the next beach is a more challenging 15-minute hike up and down through the jungle, but it will bring you to the southwest beach and: