Pangkor Laut Resort

While I was holidaying in Pangkor Island Beach Resort, I was told by our jungle guide that Pangkor Laut Resort is the best in the Lumut region. Since then I did come across a number of write-ups about Pangkor Laut Resort; in local dailies as well as international travel magazines all giving fantastic reviews of the place.
Curiosity got the better of me and soon we were on our way for a 3D/2N stay in this resort mainly to see whether it is the paradise it's meant to be. I hope the photos I post and my personal review of this place are helpful if you are planning a trip there.  

Initially I thought Pangkor Laut Resort is in Pangkor Island. I was mistaken as Pangkor Laut Resort is located on another island called Pangkor Laut Island, a very small 300-acre island privately owned by YTL and which is just adjacent to Pangkor Island. 

Access to the resort is via Lumut, a seaside town in Perak. Upon reaching Lumut, it is easy to locate the Pangkor Laut Resort office or depot which is set up to arrange luggage check-in and transportation for its resort guests as the depot is just beside the jetty. 

Our luggage was taken care of by the resort staffs in Lumut who handled their job quite professionally.

This is the boat that took us to Pangkor Laut Resort. The journey took about 40 minutes.

These villas perched against the hill are the Hill Villas. When we arrived at the jetty we were greeted by a resort staff (a Mexican girl) who seemed to already know my husband's name but sorry to say, whose PR skill is in dire need of polishing.

We originally booked the Sea Villa but having stayed in 4 other YTL owned hotels, were upgraded to stay in Purnama Suite. (There are only 3 suites in the entire resort)

This is Purnama Suite.  It is really big, comprising a bedroom, a separate lounge, a very spacious washroom and 2 balconies that overlook the sea. This is quite a luxurious unit.

The grand and exquisite entrance to Purnama Suite.

The suite's very own little gate with a latch.

After the gate , there is a short stretch of private passageway that leads to the door, making this suite very private indeed.

The suite entrance

This is the air-conditioned bedroom.

A cute towel folded  elephant.

There is supposed to be free internet access but the connection was down the whole duration we were there.

The bedroom opens out to a balcony facing the sea.

There is a separate lounge in the suite. There are 2 TVs, one in the bedroom and one in this lounge.

A mini-bar.

There is a complimentary fruit basket and a variety of complimentary snacks.

There are also some reading materials...

 The lounge opens out to a second balcony.(See photo below).

What makes this place cozy are the ceiling and walls which are entirely wood.

The suite comes with a very spacious washroom. There are two wash areas/dressing tables, a separate shower cubicle and a separate toilet.  The 4 windows (anterior view) can be opened to view the sea below. 

The coffee/tea making facilities.

The closet with bathrobes, a beach bag and umbrellas.

The huge bathtub...

Two towel-folded love swans.

Plenty of towels.

Enjoying the evening breeze at the balcony. 

The villas are interlinked to each other by wooden bridges.

Shown in the next few photographs are the other types of accommodation available in the resorts. There are 5 types of villas. Picture above shows the the sea villas. They are built on stilts and are a smaller version of the suite I stayed in.

A closer look at the sea villas.

These are the spa villas. They look exactly like the sea villas but are called spa villas because they are located at the spa area which happens to be the most beautiful area in the resort. They are also furthest away from the reception building.

The units perched against the hill slopes are the Hill Villas.

This is a beach villa.  Beach villas are located at the beach area.

Another beach villa.

This is the Garden Villa.

More garden villas.

A typical trademark of YTL owned hotels are the libraries as all that I stayed in have libraries. 

Quite unique to the resort are the beds in the library as some loves to read lying down.

Like this perhaps??

The library is opened till quite late at night. Computers and internet are available in the library and its usage is complimentary.

The beautiful lamps and library ceiling.

There are 3 tennis courts, a squash court and a gymnasium.

The gymnasium.

There are 2 swimming pools. The main pool is infinity-edged and facing the sea.

The second pool is located at the spa village. 

The Spa Village comprises a number of specially built structures designed to facilitate an extensive range of treatment from China, Japan, India, Thailand, Bali and Malaysia.  The spa in PL Resort is quite renowned.

This is the Chinese Therapy hut.

And this hut is for ayurvedic treatment.

Another therapy hut

Beautiful koi pond at the spa reception.

The Spa Village.

An activity arranged for interested resort guests is jungle trekking. The guide is an elderly man who is very knowledgeable in the faunas and floras of the jungle, but he was too slow for us and we walked ahead to reach the destination much earlier.

The jungle trekking ended in Emerald Bay, a beach gazetted for swimming.

Snorkeling was a big letdown as the seawater was murky. Not even 1 marine life  or coral was spotted at Emerald Bay. 

Our package included all meals in the resort. We chose to eat in different restaurants for our meals. Photo shows the Royal Bay Beach Club Restaurant.

The Royal Bay Beach Club served excellent food. This appetizer called sushi salad with ingredients like wasabe, octopus and seaweed is a must-try. 

This tom yam soup may be a little spicy but it was perfect for me.

Lunch was a la carte and we chose the briyani rice and chicken curry.

Desserts were simple but nice.

Another F&B outlet is Feast Village. [It is better to book a stay with full board as there are no other eateries/restaurants besides the resort restaurants].

The tandoori and naan is one of the items on the menu.

Chapman's Bar which is quite far from the villas is a restaurant located at Emerald Bay. The resort does provide transportation for resort guests who want to dine here.

 The lotus leaf fried rice was recommended by the room manager but it wasn't that great.

We tried the Mongolian lamb with crepes which fared better than the lotus leaf rice. 

The Chinese Restaurant called Uncle Lim's is unique and creatively constructed to incorporate the surrounding boulders at the beach.

Exterior view of Uncle Lim's restaurant.

The interior of Uncle Lim's. Notice the rocky walls and the gigantic boulders protruding onto the restaurant floor.

The ceiling which is shaped like a big umbrella is unique too.

Among all the resort restaurants we dined in Uncle Lim's is the best.

There's one other restaurant called Fisherman's Cove (picture above) which we missed.

An interesting corner in the resort.

Urns with floral arrangements line up certain pathways. The flowers are changed every day.

Can't remember the name of this building  but it looks very artistic.

Signboards to guide guests along.

A tree with thousands of bats was spotted in the resort.

There were a number of iguanas  sun-bathing at the rocks near the sea villas.

Some marine life were sighted during the low tide at the sea villas.

Anchovies (ikan bilis) spotted at the sea villas.

Scenery in the afternoon

An interesting resting spot.

Passageway with beautiful roof.

Covered walkway at the sea villa.

A rocky part of the beach.

Peacocks near the reception.

Finally it was time to go home. This resort is a good holiday getaway but I would not say it is a paradise as described by some. The WOW factor is somehow not there for me. Perhaps I should not have read too much of those reviews and seen all the professional photographs which raised my expectation way too high.