Japamala Resort

Japamala is one of those places that needs to be understood for what it is: not a polished luxury resort immersed in nature, but a place where hospitality tries to exist within nature with as little impact as possible. The location is extraordinary: roughly a kilometre of beach, huge dark boulders, water that is perfect for snorkelling and, immediately behind it, jungle and palm trees reaching almost all the way down to the sea. The resort has only 16 rooms, can only be reached by boat, and is the only property along this stretch of coastline. This translates into a constant sense of space, ease, and abundance. You have the feeling of being able to enjoy a very rare kind of natural beauty entirely on your own, at your own pace, without having to share it with anyone else. When you pass by from the sea, the resort almost disappears into the vegetation, apart from the jetty. The bay also faces west, which is far from a minor detail: in the evening you can watch the sun set over the sea while having a cocktail at the bar on the jetty. The cocktails, incidentally, are excellent, as is the food, but both almost feel secondary compared with the beauty of the natural setting. The staff are fantastic: attentive, present and genuinely hospitable. If you take all the different functions into account, the staff-to-guest ratio seems close to one-to-one. The rooms are serviced twice a day, and the level of attention to guests is consistently high without ever feeling intrusive. The property is not perfect: during our stay the swimming pool was not operating, and the wood, stone and other natural materials inevitably show the effects of the tropical climate. That said, we constantly saw staff carrying out maintenance work. In an environment that is so harsh on anything man-made, a certain degree of wear and tear is unavoidable and, personally, we found it entirely consistent with Japamala’s rustic character. As for the pool, given the quality of the sea just a few steps away, we honestly did not miss it and found it honestly unnecessary. In fact, precisely because almost everything is built using wood, stone and other natural materials, the signs of ageing do not feel artificially neglected; they somehow blend into the surrounding environment. The same applies to the walkways, the jetty and the very uneven steps leading to the rooms in the jungle or on the cliffs. The jetty does not have railings everywhere, and some paths require a little attention. If you are looking for perfectly smooth surfaces, handrails at every turn and an entirely “controlled” experience, you should probably choose a different type of resort. Having previously stayed at Four Seasons, Aman, Mandarin Oriental, Kempinski and other high-end hotels, this is exactly what we found interesting about Japamala: it retains some of the best elements of luxury hospitality — service, attention to guests and the quality of the staff — but does not attempt to turn nature into a harmless, perfectly controlled backdrop. A few previous reviews have been extremely critical about insects in the rooms. Because the resort was almost fully booked when we stayed, we had to change rooms halfway through our stay, so we experienced two different rooms in two different parts of the property. We used a normal insect spray around the door thresholds and around the bed before going to sleep and never had any problem with insects during the night. Outside, of course, there are ants and some tropical insects, exactly as you would expect in the middle of the jungle. We never saw cockroaches. Ironically, I was bitten by fewer insects here than during many summers at home in Italy; the only significant bites I got were during a jungle trek when I had forgotten to use insect repellent. Wildlife is very much part of the experience. We saw and photographed many monkeys directly on the hotel beach, as well as several monitor lizards, small sharks from the jetty and a few rays. We also did several diving sessions at different spots around the island. Even without arranging major excursions, there is plenty to do in the immediate surroundings. A beautiful short trek of around 20 minutes starts directly from the resort and leads up to a huge rock at a higher elevation, with a wonderful view over a long stretch of coastline and the sea. We also spent half a day visiting a freshwater waterfall that, thanks to the resort’s location, can be reached with roughly a 15-minute boat ride followed by a 45-minute trek. The trail leads to a beautiful natural waterfall where we swam and jumped into the freshwater pools — one of the most enjoyable experiences of our stay. The sea directly in front of the hotel is already excellent for snorkelling, and the absence of any other properties along this stretch of coastline creates a sense of isolation that is increasingly rare. You never feel as though you are in a tourist destination built around a resort; rather, it feels as though the resort has found a way to exist within that particular piece of coastline. One practical tip: bring reef shoes or water shoes. In keeping with the natural character of the place, some sections of the beach have pieces of white coral mixed into the sand, and there are also a few spots where the access into the sea can be slightly rough underfoot. It is not a problem, but proper footwear makes moving in and out of the water much more comfortable. For this reason, I think Japamala is a place that should be chosen with a clear understanding of what it offers. If you are looking for a Luxury-US-style resort, perfectly polished, where every element of nature is kept at a safe distance and every possible inconvenience is removed, you may well be disappointed. And that is perfectly understandable: they are simply two very different kinds of holiday. Japamala instead offers an experience that is genuinely immersed in nature, with the highest level of comfort and hospitality that can reasonably coexist with such an environment without changing its character. Here, nature is not scenery viewed through a window: it is the place you are actually living in. This becomes especially clear in the evening: the sunset in front of the bay, the bar on the jetty, the sea beneath you and then, once darkness falls, an incredibly clear sky. From the beach, we saw some of the best stars we have seen in years. One final small tip: walk for a few minutes past the hammocks towards the west. You will find a beautiful little beach that is usually completely deserted, with a large, completely white leafless tree full of dry but sturdy branches, perfect for leaving your belongings while enjoying the sun in complete solitude. For us, this is what Japamala was all about: not artificial perfection, but a very rare combination of powerful nature, isolation, excellent service and genuine hospitality.

Japamala is a very special resort. The location is so beautiful, quiet and full of nature. The gently lapping sea and perfect yellow sand is great for a relaxing beach resort and better than anywhere else in the world I have been. The resort is described as rustic luxurious and everything lives up to that name. The villas are large and well set out with lovely touches like the passion fruit tea and other little treats. Ours was high up in the jungle and we loved looking out at the trees and getting visited by the wildlife around. The island is famous for its sealife and we spent so much time in the water seeing so many fish, turtles and dolphins. What really makes the resort are the staff. They are so helpful, friendly and really know how to make you feel special. All our trips were organised by them and we really appreciated them providing towels, water and fruit when snorkeling. Sundown on the pier with cocktails was our favourite time of the day, watching the sun go down and enjoying the company of the staff. Occasionally we would eat the fabulously cooked freshly caught fish on the pier. Other times we loved the Malaysian food on the restaurant cooked by our favourite cook. The highlight of the week was dinner on the beach which was so romantic. Thank- you to all the staff for making this such a great return visit. We would definitely come again.

Okay the journey to get here may be convoluted dependent upon your starting point but the travel is part and parcel of the experience and unless you have need to clock watch then just go with the flow. A ferry from Mersing to Genting (with Cataferry) took about 1hr 15 minutes where we were greeted with an enthusiastic wave from Robert the Japamala manager. Assisting Robert at the quay were a number of staff from the resort to help with luggage. A short hop along the coast in the resorts own boat captained by Christopher brought us to the Japamala jetty and a greeting from Mike the assistant resort manager and restaurant manager. We were led to our home for the next 7 days - The delightful Penghulu House situated a stone's throw from the crystal clear South China sea and we were immediately struck by the calmness and tranquillity of the house and its location. We had opted for the 7 night inclusive package taking full advantage of the inclusions - a snorkelling session, romantic beach dinner with set menu, nightly sundowners on the jetty, a massage, afternoon tea and daily laundry. We also opted to take the included trip + walk to a nearby waterfall. Japamala is surrounded by nature, no matter where your accommodation is you will be sure to come across the native wildlife. We were privileged to be close enough to the sea to observe from our balcony fish swimming, lizards climbing trees and Malaysian giant black squirrels scurrying along between trees and visits from resident long tail macaque. Breakfast allowed for a lazy start to the day, the buffet was available until about 11am and the a la carte options until 3pm and both offered some very tasty options During our visit we enjoyed eating in the main restaurant and on the jetty serving BBQ fish and sea food. The main restaurant doesn't have an extensive evening menu but on the whole is good. We were slightly disappointed with a lamb curry, having travelled in South East Asia on a number of occasions we felt the spice level and flavours were a little lacking, that said I dare say had we asked for an uplift in the spice department it would have been delivered. The BBQ fish on the jetty was probably our favourite evening meals. To have the sundowners whilst watching the sun setting was so peaceful and relaxing. The variety and freshness of the catch to follow was exemplary. Price wise as with and fish restaurant we have been to the fish/sea food is sold by weight, for example a 600g Golden Snapper at 52 MYR per 100g and with the addition of local tax came in at 361 MYR or £69 - BBQ Prawns (6) 78.88MYR or £15 and 2 BBQ Squid 81 MYR or £15.52. Other fish was available, Grilled Grouper @ 44 MYR + tax and Sea bass. The Romantic Dinner! I have always shied away from the 'Dinner on the Beach' concept due to the fear of the sun setting and fading light making things difficult to see. This fear came true when try as we might we had to revert to the torch on the i-phone. An improvement in lighting or repositioning of the table would go some way to improving the ambiance. The menu for this 'Dinner on the Beach' was very good but for us we were slightly over faced with the quantity but certainly not the quality. Every member of staff we interacted with were all quite charming and willing to engage in conversation. The house keeping was provided by Akash and Taizul and was exceptional in both quality and thoughtfulness The restaurant was overseen by Mike assisted by Saw and Sameer, professional ever willing to serve and ensuring our needs were met. Chef's Boi and I QA produced some very nice food for the main restaurant and perfectly cooked fish/sea food on the jetty after the Sundowners. We also need to mention the hard working ground staff A Saw and Robin who always had a smile and acknowledged our presence and the lady in the spa providing us with a great massage. A big shout out to Robert for taking the time to listen to our observations. For anyone contemplating a visit to Japamala don't go expecting marble floors and crystal chandeliers, this is a small rustic but luxury resort in the middle of nature. Japamala resort is true to its concept, it provided us with the peace and tranquillity we had been looking for. Yes Japamala SUCKED us into a world of calm serenity where our inner wellbeing was recharged and refreshed. Would we return? absolutely in a heartbeat.

We thoroughly enjoyed our two-night stay at Japamala. The cliffside house was truly fantastic. It was a little unfortunate that the heavy rainfall limited our ability to participate in activities such as kayaking, hiking, and snorkeling. Perhaps fishing at the jetty would be a good alternative for the rainy season. I also wanted to extend my sincere thanks for the motion sickness medicine that resort manager tried very hard to get for me—it was exceptionally helpful.

Best place I have stayed in. The Sea cliff view chalet was absolutely stunning! We would return again for sure. The beach is beautiful too and the staff are very professional. Special thank you to Rocco who took us on a hike to the highest point of the resort that really made our day. All in all 5 stars, dinner portions must be larger though but the fact that you get room service twice a day is actually EPIC