japamala resort: tioman island jungle hillside leading to beach

Location

Tioman Island is the setting for what must be one of the best beach/ jungle hideaways in the world. With only 13 chalets and villas, JapaMala is unique in concept, location and design, earning itself the accolade of one of the top ten ultra boutique resorts in the world.

Japamala provides a rustic luxury holiday experience. Being at one with mother nature, guests hibernate in individual wooden 'sarangs' (or nests, in Malay language) decorated with contemporary flair which also integrate a generous amount of outdoor space.

The private beach is a beautiful white crescent with emerald-turquoise waters providing excellent snorkelling and diving experiences. A honeymooner's paradise also, you are encouraged to 'do nothing at all' and just simply self-indulge. Reputed for its intimate service, staff at JapaMala will win you over with their attentiveness.

Rooms

While some rooms cling to the jungle-clad hillside, others are either perched out on cliffs or nestled on the beach. No two rooms are the same and there are distinct categories offering slightly different positions and views, differing slightly in size and facilities. The top range of rooms is Penghulu's House which is a 2-room villa, split-level with two sizeable 1 bed residences; a double on the top deck with a glass balcony offering sea view, the other a twin-sharing right next to the private pool. This villa has direct access to the beach on its front garden.

Rooms start at 40m2 and finish at 180m2 for Penghulu's House. All rooms have:

21" TV (villas have larger flat-screen plasmas) & DVD player

Cable network TV

Hot/cold indoor rain shower

Coffee-making facilities & mini bar (except the chalets)

Super queen size bed

Toiletries from the in-house spa

Full Mini-Bar with Wines & Champagne

Aromatic Turndown Hair Dryer

Futon-ed Verandah

iPod Docking Station

Spa

As with much of this resort, they incorporate various parts of nature into the spa, part of it formed out of a natural cave and bathing pools created from the natural depressions in the rock. It's really a sensational place to relax and with the all -Asian therapy oils and other in-house spa products, offers a very visual, as well as sensory, Asian spa experience.

Dining

For a resort of this size to have two fully-fledged dining options just shows their commitment to being boutique but without compromising on choice.

On land you have the Tamarind (sister restaurant to the famous Tamarind Hill & Tamarind Springs in KL) serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Here you can enjoy Malay, Thai and Indo-Chinese cuisine right next to the beach.

Over water, the recently added Mandi Mandi restaurant is situated on stilts at the end of a wooden jetty 100 metres out over the sea. It serves international cuisine with an emphasis on Italian and also holds nightly BBQ's. It also has a range of very creative cocktails too.

The choice and quality of food here is really exceptional for a 13 room resort on a remote island but you'd expect nothing less from this conscientious management.

Other Facilities

The key activities here are scuba diving and snorkelling. One Australian guest described the diving here as "better than the Great Barrier Reef, but without the crowds". High praise indeed. Add to that kayaking in these unspoilt crystal clear waters and trips to some of the neighbouring islands and the sea adventure around here is breathtaking and fairly limitless.

Other activities include: Deep sea fishing, jungle trekking, rock climbing, romantic picnics and you can learn all about sea turtles & hatchling-release at the nearby hatchery (in season).

Final Word

Japamala really epitomises a rustic beach paradise, not only in terms of the careful way the resort is spread out and at one with nature, but its location above this lovely emerald cove. There are spots like this all over Asia but none has quite managed to provide such good quality accommodation and service without ruining the environment and/ or becoming a large resort of 40 rooms plus. To the owners of Japamala, small is beautiful and they intend to keep it that way so you can enjoy this paradise along with a lucky few.

For more information about this hotel please download our printable PDF Fact sheet from here