Tioman Island () is , off the east coast of

Peninsular Malaysia Peninsular Malaysia, historically known as Malaya and also known as West Malaysia or the Malaysian Peninsula, is the western part of Malaysia that comprises the southern part of the Malay Peninsula on Mainland Southeast Asia and the list of isla ...

, more specifically off the east coast of

Rompin District Rompin The Rompin District is a district located in the southeastern corner of Pahang, Malaysia. Rompin is currently under the Rompin District Council. The district covers an area of 5,296 km and located 130 kilometres from Kuantan, the ca ...

Pahang {{Infobox political division , name = Pahang , official_name = Pahang Darul Makmur , native_name = , settlement_type = States and federal territories of Malaysia, State , image_skyline = , imagesize ...

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

. It is long and wide and has seven villages, the largest and most populous being Kampung Tekek on the central western coast. The densely forested island is sparsely inhabited, and is surrounded by numerous

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in group ...

s, making it a popular

scuba diving Scuba diving is a Diving mode, mode of underwater diving whereby divers use Scuba set, breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface breathing gas supply, and therefore has a limited but variable endurance. The word ''scub ...

snorkelling Snorkeling ( British and Commonwealth English spelling: snorkelling) is the practice of swimming face down on or through a body of water while breathing the ambient air through a shaped tube called a snorkel, usually with swimming goggles or a ...

, and

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suita ...

spot. There are many resorts and chalets for tourists around the island, which has duty-free status. The island is accessed via ferry service from the coastal town of

Mersing Mersing (Terengganu Malay: ''Merecing'' or ''Ngesing'') is a town, mukim and the capital of Mersing District, Johor, Malaysia. The town is located at the southern end of the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. As of 2010, the town has an estimat ...

and Teluk Gading, as well as by air, run by a regular private service from

Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport also known as Subang SkyPark, — formerly Subang International Airport/Kuala Lumpur International Airport, often called Subang Airport — is an airport located in Subang, Selangor, Subang, Petaling District, Se ...

(formerly Subang International Airport) in Selangor.

History

Tioman has been used for thousands of years by Austronesian fishermen as an essential navigation point and a source of fresh water and wood. During the past thousand years, it has played host to Chinese,

Arab Arabs (, , ; , , ) are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in West Asia and North Africa. A significant Arab diaspora is present in various parts of the world. Arabs have been in the Fertile Crescent for thousands of years ...

, and European trading ships en route to

Champa Champa (Cham language, Cham: ꨌꩌꨛꨩ, چمڤا; ; 占城 or 占婆) was a collection of independent Chams, Cham Polity, polities that extended across the coast of what is present-day Central Vietnam, central and southern Vietnam from ...

, and often Chinese

porcelain Porcelain (), also called china, is a ceramic material made by heating Industrial mineral, raw materials, generally including kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The greater strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to oth ...

shards can be found on beaches around the island. In more recent history, Tioman played host to both the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and the

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese navies during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. As a result, the waters around the island are littered with war remains, including HMS ''Repulse'' and HMS ''Prince of Wales''. Tioman island does not allow buildings to have more than three stories. Tioman Island is to be granted municipality status soon.

Nature

The marine area around Tioman Island and eight other nearby islands have been declared as marine parks and marine reserves. Apart from its diverse

marine life Marine life, sea life or ocean life is the collective ecological communities that encompass all aquatic animals, aquatic plant, plants, algae, marine fungi, fungi, marine protists, protists, single-celled marine microorganisms, microorganisms ...

, the inland

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

area was protected in 1972 as the Pulau Tioman Wildlife Reserve. However, a large part of the original reserve was sacrificed for agricultural and touristic development in 1984; the remaining area is approximately . There are several protected species of

mammals A mammal () is a vertebrate animal of the class Mammalia (). Mammals are characterised by the presence of milk-producing mammary glands for feeding their young, a broad neocortex region of the brain, fur or hair, and three middle e ...

on the island, including the

binturong The binturong (''Arctictis binturong'') (, ), also known as the bearcat, is a viverridae, viverrid native to South Asia, South and Southeast Asia. It is uncommon in much of its range, and has been assessed as Vulnerable species, Vulnerable on th ...

long-tailed macaque The crab-eating macaque (''Macaca fascicularis''), also known as the long-tailed macaque or cynomolgus macaque, is a cercopithecine primate native to Southeast Asia. As a synanthropic species, the crab-eating macaque thrives near human settleme ...

slow loris Slow lorises are a group of several species of Nocturnality, nocturnal Strepsirrhini, strepsirrhine primates that make up the genus ''Nycticebus''. Found in Southeast Asia and nearby areas, they range from Bangladesh and Northeast India in the ...

black giant squirrel The black giant squirrel or Malayan giant squirrel (''Ratufa bicolor'') is a large tree squirrel in the genus '' Ratufa'' native to the Indomalayan zootope. It is found in forests from northern Bangladesh, northeast India, eastern Nepal, Bhutan ...

red giant flying squirrel The red giant flying squirrel or common giant flying squirrel (''Petaurista petaurista'') is a species of rodent in the family Sciuridae (squirrels). It is found in a wide variety of forest–types, plantations and more open habitats with scatter ...

, mouse deer, brush-tailed porcupine, and common palm civet, from a total of 45 species of mammals and 138 species of birds, including the majestic

frigatebird Frigatebirds are a Family (biology), family of seabirds called Fregatidae which are found across all tropical and subtropical oceans. The five extant species are classified in a single genus, ''Fregata''. All have predominantly black plumage, l ...

. Moreover, Tioman has species that are endemic to its shores. The Tioman walking catfish '' Clarias batu'' can be seen on rainforest walks. Kajang slender litter frog is only known from Mount Kajang. Tioman Island Marine Park hosts three marine ecosystems: coral reef, seagrass bed, and mangrove forest. The coral reefs accommodate 350 species of scleractinian corals from 67 genera including three endangered species (Alveopora minuta, Isopora togianensis and Pectinia maxima), 86 vulnerable species and 85 near threatened species, 326 species of coral reef fish from 55 families including the endangered humphead wrasse, vulnerable blacktip reef shark, slender bambooshark, tawny nurse shark, brown-marbled grouper, squaretail coral grouper, finless sleeper ray, Jenkin's whipray and the near threatened blackspot tuskfish and Bower's parrotfish, and 76 taxa of benthic macroalgae. The seagrass beds support 3 species of seagrass and can be found near Kampung Air Batang, Kampung Genting, Teluk Nipah, Teluk Mukut and between Japamala Resort and Pasir Cina. The mangrove forests, a total of 59.90 hectares, support 23 mangrove species including a new hybrid species, one endangered species (Heritiera globose) which can be found near Kampung Genting and Kampung Juara and two near threatened species (Ceriops decandra and Sonneratia ovata) which can be found near Kampung Juara.

Impacts

Tioman's corals have been affected by a mass bleaching event in 2010 whereby the island lost a significant portion of its live coral cover. That resulted in many corals turning a dull white colour and some even fragmenting into pieces of dead coral skeleton. The 2016 bleaching event only just touched on Tioman's Coral Reefs, and as such, the coral has remained in good and healthy condition. A proposal to build an international airport on Tioman Island which were rejected by authorities in 2018 due to the scale of the environmental impacts it would cause are still very much in the works as an environmental impact assessment (EIA) for the project has been submitted. The new airport would cover 186.4 hectares (460.6 acres) of the island's west coast between the villages of Kampung Paya and Kampung Genting. 76% of the development area would need to be land reclaimed from the sea (142.70 hectares) within Pulau Tioman Marine Park, according to the EIA report. Impacts on the marine environment cited in the EIA report include direct destruction of coral reefs and coastal habitats, underwater construction noise, pollutant runoff, artificial lighting, and plumes of silt and sediment. The development could displace local businesses, extinguish tourism revenue in two of the island's seven villages, and have cascading effects on the island's already limited natural resource. The EIA report suggests carrying out a marine conservation and rehabilitation plan, which involves relocating and propagating corals to four designated sites and two coral farms before any construction begins. While the relocation of corals may appear to be a measure to protect these fragile organisms, it is important to examine the drawbacks and limitations of this approach. Relocating corals from their natural habitats to new sites can have an adverse effect on their survival and the ecosystems they support. Transplanted corals often struggle to adapt to new conditions, leading to a high mortality rate. The disturbance caused by relocation can disrupt the balance of the ecosystem and result in long-term ecological consequences. The EIA report states that 54% of 300 island residents surveyed about the development viewed the development positively. However, the report concedes that many respondents were residents of Kampung Tekek, a village in the northern, most developed part of the island, far from the development footprint and close to a large resort linked to the project developer. In contrast, representatives surveyed from the affected villages of Kampung Genting and Kampung Paya typically held a negative view of the airport proposal. The EIA report was prepared by Asia Pacific Environmental Consultants Sdn. Bhd. for Tioman Infra Sdn. Bhd., a subsidiary part-owned by the Berjaya Group, a Malaysia-based corporation that also operates a resort on the island. The project developer is Tioman Infra Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tioman Hill Resort Sdn Bhd which is 50% owned by Berjaya Group. The rest is owned by the royal family of Pahang through Aimvesco Sdn Bhd and the late Sultan Ahmad Shah.

Ghost net Ghost nets are fishing nets that have been abandoned, lost, or otherwise discarded in the ocean, lakes, and rivers. These nets, often nearly invisible in the dim light, can be left tangled on a rocky reef or drifting in the open sea. They can ...

s are becoming increasingly common around the island, harming local wildlife.

Tourist attractions

Tioman Island

* Tioman Airport * Panuba Bay * Salang * Tekek Village * Minang Cove - The only cove of Tioman Island * Asah Waterfall * Bagus Place Retreat - The most eco-friendly area on Tioman Island * Juara Turtle Project - volunteer sea turtle and environmental conservation * Golden City - part of Salang village * Air Batang - also known as ABC

Around Tioman

* Pulo Jehat * Tulai Island also known as Coral Island, famous for its white sandy beach and amazing snorkeling and dive sites * Renggis Island - a popular snorkeling and dive site known for sightings of sharks and turtles near Tekek Village * Soyak Island - a popular snorkeling and dive site close to Salang Village * Tomok Island - a popular snorkeling and dive site close to Paya Village Popular Dive and Snorkeling Sites off the coast of Tulai/Coral Island ** Sepoi Island ** Labas Island ** Chebeh Island

Climate

Politics

Tioman Island lends its name to the state constituency of

Tioman Tioman Island () is , off the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia, more specifically off the east coast of Rompin District, Pahang, Malaysia. It is long and wide and has seven villages, the largest and most populous being Kampung Tekek on the ...

, comprising the island and part of the

including the town of

Kuala Rompin Kuala Rompin is the district capital of Rompin District, southeastern Pahang, Malaysia, and the district's largest town. It is located on the south-east coast of Peninsular Malaysia and faces the South China Sea. It is about south from Kuantan, ...

. Its representative to the State Legislative Assembly is Mohd. Johari Hussain from

UMNO The United Malays National Organisation ( abbrev: UMNO; , PEKEMBAR) is a conservative, Malay nationalist political party in Malaysia. As the oldest national political party in the country (since its inception in 1946), UMNO has been known as ...

Barisan Nasional Barisan Nasional (BN; ) is a political coalition of Malaysia that was founded in 1974 as a coalition of centre-right and right-wing political parties to succeed the Alliance Party. It is the third largest political coalition with 30 seats in ...

. Its representative to the Malaysian Parliament is Abdul Khalib Abdullah from

BERSATU The Malaysian United Indigenous Party (Malay language, Malay: ''Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia''; Abbreviation, abbrev: BERSATU or PPBM) is a nationalist political party in Malaysia. The party was preceded by the United Indigenous Association ...

Perikatan Nasional Perikatan Nasional (PN; ) is a Malaysian Parliamentary group, political coalition consisting of Right-wing politics, right-wing and Far-right politics, far-right political parties. It is the second largest political coalition in Dewan Rakyat w ...

Non-governmental organisations

* Juara Turtle Project- volunteer sea turtle and environmental conservation * Reef Check Malaysia - build ecological and social resilience on Tioman Island through its Cintai Tioman Programme

Transportation

Air

The island houses the Tioman Airport with flights from Subang. A proposal to build an international airport through land reclamation was rejected in 2018 on environmental grounds, although the proposal has been raised since. Currently (May 2024) there are no commercial flights to Pulau Tioman, and discussions of an airport expansion are still on-going.

Water

The island is served by ferries from Mersing, Johor and Tanjung Gemok, Pahang. Both are located in Malaysia. Currently, two ferry companies are operating in both jetties. You can purchase the ticket at the counter book directly from their respective website to secure your seats in advance. 1. Bluewater Ferry
bluewater.my
2. Cata Ferry - cataferry.com 3. Jetty Location
Google Map

Legend

According to legend, Tioman Island is the resting place of a beautiful dragon princess. Whilst flying to visit her prince in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

, this beautiful maiden stopped to seek solace in the crystal-clear waters of the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by South China, in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan island, Taiwan and northwestern Philippines (mainly Luz ...

. Enraptured by the charms of the place, she decided to discontinue her journey. By taking the form of an island, she pledged to offer shelter and comfort to passing travellers. Local mythology claims that the island is the embodiment of the mighty dragon Sri Gumom. The dragon was on his way to visit his sister Gunung Linga (Lingin Peak). Still, the great Sri Rama forbade the meeting, and Sri Gumom was turned into a stone and fell into the deep sea where he now remains, frozen in eternity as this beautiful island with its distinctive topography.

Radio and television

Radio

Community radio within Tioman: *FM 90.0 *FM 96.8 ( Pahang FM) - owned by

Radio Televisyen Malaysia Radio Televisyen Malaysia (, Jawi: ; abbreviated as RTM, stylised as rtm), also known as the Department of Broadcasting, Malaysia (; Jawi: ) is the national public broadcaster of Malaysia, headquartered at Angkasapuri, Kuala Lumpur. Establi ...

*FM 100.7 Nasional FM *FM 103.2 (Airport radio) *FM 104.0 (Tioman community radio) *FM 104.1 From Malaysian mainland: * FM 88.3 Minnal FM - owned by

* FM 89.1 Ai FM - owned by

* FM 90.1 Radio Klasik - owned by

* FM 92.1 Johor FM - owned by

* FM 92.9 (

TraXX FM TraXX FM is a 24/7 English-language radio station operated by Radio Televisyen Malaysia. Established on 1 April 2005, it was previously known as the English Language Service in 1946, the Blue Network in 1959 and Radio 4 in 1993. The station' ...

) - owned by

* FM 102.5 Best FM

Television

* TV1 - Channel 50 (Temporarily unavailable) * TV2 - Channel 53 (Temporarily unavailable) - Currently broadcasting on Channel 11 *

TV3 Channel 3 or TV 3 may refer to: Television *Canal 3 (Burkina Faso), a commercial television channel in Burkina Faso * Canal 3 Niger, a commercial television channel in Niger * Canal 3 (Guatemala), a commercial television channel in Guatemala * Can ...

- Channel 32 *

NTV7 Natseven TV Sdn Bhd, operating as NTV7 is a Malaysian free-to-air television channel owned by Media Prima, Media Prima Berhad. The third private commercial TV station in Malaysia, the network focused on the urban area with various types of ...

- * 8TV - Channel 7 * TV9 - Channel 9 *

TV Alhijrah TV Alhijrah (stylized in capital letters; also abbreviated as TVAH) is a state-owned Malaysian free-to-air Islamic television channel, owned and operated by Al-Hijrah Media Corporation, a company under the purview of the Department of Islamic ...

- Channel 40 Local: * TV5 - Channel 5

References

External links

*
Tioman Island Travel Information Website

Tourism Malaysia - Tioman Island

(Supplement 6 of the

Raffles Bulletin of Zoology ''The Raffles Bulletin of Zoology'' is a peer-reviewed open-access scientific journal published by the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum at the National University of Singapore. Overview It covers the taxonomy, ecology, and conservation of ...

)
Tioman island Travel Informations
{{Authority control Car-free islands of Asia