Explore Perhentian Besar
Perhentian Besar is a tropical island of Terengganu, Malaysia, located in the pristine waters of the South China Sea. Perhentian Besar is the larger of two islands which make up the Perhentian Islands, the other is called Perhentian Kecil. Kecil is suited more for backpackers, while Besar is more for families, honeymooners and visitors who would like to have a more relaxing and secluded holiday. This island is the epitome of paradise; white sandy beaches, crystal clear waters and scenic views. These waters hold a large variety of beauty for divers to explore, including flourishing reefs which inhabit a high abundance of marine species, ranging from small to Whale Shark, there are wrecks and unique boulder rock formations. The multiple dive centres and dive resorts here will be able to share some of the best diving in Malaysia with their divers here.
Dive Activity
Diving in Perhentian Besar
One of the luxuries is that the diving is close to the island; there are multiple shore dive opportunities and the ones offshore are between 5 and 20 minutes by boat. Due to the pristine waters with easily accessible dive sites, this is an ideal location to take dive courses. Other types of diving here include wreck diving, such as the Sugar Wreck and the Vietnamese Wreck, there are pinnacles, boulders and other underwater formations to swim through at Temple of the Sea, there are stunning reefs, swim-throughs, canyons and so much more!
Top Wildlife Sightings in Perhentian Besar
The waters here are absolutely teeming with life and what attracts all this life are the flourishing reefs made up of a collection of colourful soft corals, hard corals, Sea Fans, Barrel Sponges, Giant Clams, Anemones, and large Table Corals. In and around these corals live species such as the vibrant Nudibranchs, Coral Banded Shrimp, Scorpion Fish, Lion Fish and Squid. Some of the schooling fish which are present here include Trevally, Snapper, Great Barracuda, Wrasse, Parrot Fish and Clown Fish. Some of the larger species include the Giant Pufferfish, Giant Moray Eels, Green Sea Turtles, Hawksbill Turtles Blue Spotted Stingray and the really unique and beautiful Bamboo Sharks. On the luckiest days, divers could spot Blacktip Reef Sharks and Whale Sharks.
Wildlife Sightings are Based on User Generated Content
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 27
iStock-Global_Pics
314 Sightings
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0
F
2
M
2
A
31
M
29
J
24
J
65
A
83
S
66
O
11
N
1
D
0
Shutterstock-Andrey Armyagov
Hawksbill Turtle
299 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
11
A
47
M
31
J
41
J
54
A
64
S
41
O
10
N
0
D
0
Shutterstock-Shane Myers Photography
Green Turtle
256 Sightings
J
1
F
7
M
12
A
31
M
27
J
15
J
40
A
68
S
35
O
15
N
0
D
5
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 200
Alamy-WaterFrame
Moray Eel
128 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
7
A
22
M
19
J
7
J
12
A
38
S
17
O
4
N
1
D
1
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 600
iStock/ultramarinfoto
Wrasse
97 Sightings
J
0
F
0
M
1
A
1
M
1
J
21
J
21
A
36
S
15
O
0
N
1
D
0
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 28
Udo Kefrig
Clownfish
1.3k Sightings
J
2
F
6
M
55
A
146
M
144
J
130
J
220
A
291
S
207
O
48
N
3
D
1
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 80
iStock/Extreme-Photographer
Stingrays
1.1k Sightings
J
1
F
4
M
37
A
157
M
147
J
111
J
189
A
243
S
146
O
28
N
0
D
2
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 90
Shutterstock-Rich Carey
Angelfish
923 Sightings
J
0
F
5
M
29
A
116
M
115
J
82
J
169
A
233
S
133
O
38
N
3
D
0
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 100
iStock-burnsboxco
Parrotfish
823 Sightings
J
2
F
3
M
32
A
89
M
103
J
73
J
164
A
206
S
119
O
31
N
1
D
0
The image shown is a representative illustration and does not depict every individual animal in this category.
Total number of species approx.: 130
AdobeStock-JirinaVFR
Pufferfish
663 Sightings
J
0
F
3
M
44
A
70
M
64
J
91
J
122
A
156
S
90
O
21
N
1
D
1
The best Months to Dive in Perhentian Besar
Malaysia has two seasons; the rainy season and the dry season. Luckily for divers, the rainy season only lasts from December to February, which is also not the most advisable time to visit. The rest of the year the conditions are ideal; water temperatures are warm and pleasant, dropping down to only 27°C during the rainy season and reaching up to 32°C in the peak of summer in August. The visibility ranges between 10 metres in the rainy season up to 35 plus metres in the dry season.
