You can travel to Tioman either by boat or by private plane. If you come here from Singapore. you must first drive or take a bus to the port in Malaysia and then sail for less than an hour and a half by sea. From Kuala Lumpur, you have to make a similar journey.

By boat to Tioman

The other option is to travel from ports on the mainland. There are daily boat services to Tioman from the port of Tanjung Gemok or Mersing,

There are two companies offering boat services, Bluewater and Cataferry. Boat tickets cost similarly but can still vary considerably. While Bluewater offers tickets across the board for 60 myr, with Cataferry you can pay extra for the upper deck and even the lower deck reflects the busyness of the service. The price goes up with higher demand. On Cataffery, you can sail on Tioman from 40 myr to 120 myr for one trip.

Where to buy a boat ticket on Tioman:

• bluewater.my - price 60 myr
• cataferry.com - price from 40 myr to 120 myr depending on deck and availability
• to compare times and prices for both companies, visit busonlineticket.com

There are usually three departures a day during the season from Mersing port and two departures a day from Tanjung Gemok port. The cruise from both ports takes 2 to 3 hours.

Buy tickets online in advance, as they often sell out on the spot. You must then report to the company's office at the port, where you will present your passport and an agent will issue you with boarding passes.

Along with the boarding passes, you must pay a fee to enter Tioman. It is payable at the opposite office in the same building.

From which port do I sail to Tioman?

It doesn't matter. The two ports are a 35-minute drive apart, so it's more important that you follow the timetable to get to the port. From Kuala Lumpur you are more likely to head to Tanjung Gemok, from Singapore you are more likely to head to Mersing.

Getting from Kuala Lumpur to Tioman

From Kuala Lumpur, both of the above options are encouraged. You can fly directly to Tioman or sail from the mainland by boat.

If you opt for the land route, you will first need to get to the port.

From Kuala Lumpur, there are dozens of daily bus services directly to the ports of Tanjung Gemok and Mersing. They depart from the bus station on the south side of Kuala Lumpur near the TBS LRT Station. The bus station is named Terminal Bersepadu Selatan.

The journey time is 5 hours and 30 minutes. An adult ticket costs between 35 and 40 myr depending on departure time and carrier. Tickets can be purchased online at busonlineticket.com.

• Departure from: Terminal Bersepadu Selatan, TBS LRT Station, Kuala Lumpur
• Arrival: Tanjung Gemok or Mersing ports
• Travel time: 5h 30m
• Price: 40 myr
• Where to buy: busonlineticket.com

How to get from Singapore to Tioman

From Singapore, Tioman is currently only accessible by land. First you have to cross the border and head to the ports of Tanjung Gemok or most commonly Mersing. You then cross by boat, see above.

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There are regular bus services from Singapore, with the first morning service also connecting to boats that leave before noon. A much more convenient way, however, is to use a private driver.

By bus to the port

There is one bus company, KKKL, that runs from Singapore to Mersing Harbour. It runs regularly every day, but departure times are continually changed and updated throughout the year.

The ticket price is 35 sgd per person and the journey takes 3 hours and 30 minutes. During the journey, you will be crossing the border crossing from Singapore to Malaysia. Here you must disembark and pass through passport and customs control at the border. The bus waits here for 30 minutes.

Tickets can be purchased directly from busonlineticket.com.

Private taxi

If you are not travelling individually, use a private taxi service instead. A proven and reliable one is e.g. sgmytaxi.com.

You book a car in advance and it will pick you up at the agreed time and place. The journey will take approximately 2 to 2.5 hours depending on traffic.

You do not need to get out of the car at the border, you can hand your passport to the customs officer from the car window, or the driver will take care of everything for you.

The price for a one-way ride from Singapore to Mersing is 220 sgd for the whole car.

By air to Tioman

Currently, you can only fly to Tioman by private flight. Scheduled flights have been cancelled as of the end of 2023.

A scheduled air service to Tioman was restored from 2022 and operated until the end of 2023. This scheduled air service to the small airport of Tioman TOD was operated by SKS Airways from Kuala Lumpur from Subang SZB airport. The airline has currently discontinued operations.

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Flights were operated regularly up to twice a day by small turboprop aircraft with a capacity of 19 passengers. The flight from Subang Airport to Tioman took about 1 hour and 30 minutes and tickets cost from 300 myr to 600 myr per flight.

Tickets could be purchased directly from sksairways.com.