It was like living on a tree house! The wooden cottages blended well with the vegetation sloping gradually along the treeline. Our cottage was one of the higher ones and we had to do a bit of a stair climb, but it was okay as it was amusing to see some squirrels scurrying on the sides. We came to Coral Bay Beach without any reservations but we were lucky enough to stumble upon Senja Bay Resort which was offering an off-peak promo at that time. For RM 80/night for a twin bed room, we took the offer and became our home for two nights in Perhentian Kecil.
Senja Bay Resort
We only have a fan room but it was sufficient as the cottage was well ventilated. The room was aptly spaced with a generous sized, basic but clean bathroom. What I do like is that our veranda offers a nice view of the western seas of the island. Opening our doors to this view was a pleasure to the eyes.
The room came with a free breakfast buffet, continental or Malaysian. Nothing spectacular but enough to fill the tummy. There’s wifi in the resort, unfortunately, the main backbone tower transceiver of the island was broken leaving the island disconnected, but I’m not complaining.
Afternoon Wind Down
I was in-transit for at least a day and I definitely took time to rest the afternoon we arrived at the resort. We went down the beach when the sun was almost setting. Coral Bay Beach is short in length but the sand was powdery white it was pleasurable to walk barefooted.
There are large smooth boulders near the edge of the beach fronting Senja Bay and they look so picturesque and floating on the crystal clear water, with waves, calm and gentle. The sunset was obscured by the clouds on the horizon but I didn’t mind.
We walked further the beach and the changing pastel color of the sky made us pause near a beach volleyball court. We were trying to capture what’s left of the light as it slips past the horizon.
And Irish guy, tall and thin approached us asking if we captured some good shots. It turns out we were blocking his sunset view from behind but he got friendly. He’s been in Coral Bay Beach for a few months already loving the chill out and relaxing feel of the island. It’s funny he hasn’t been to the other beaches because he loved it here. He did went around for some snorkeling but he’s working online doing some stock trading. But with the internet wonky, he’s working on some programs to automate his trade.
The dining scene here is all about outdoor beach-side barbecue and fresh seafood. We partook on some Barracuda and Kingfish BBQ at RM15 each. It was tasty especially with the sauces. The first night at Perhentian Kecil was looking great.
Ferdz Decena is an award-winning travel photographer, writer and blogger. His works has found print in publications such as Singapore Airlines’s Silver Kris, Philippine Airlines’ Mabuhay, Cebu Pacific’s Smile and Seair InFlight. He has also lent his expertise to various organizations like the Oceana Philippines, Lopez Group Foundation, Save the Children and World Vision, contributing quality images for their marketing materials.
