Second day at The Taaras Beach & Spa Resort on the scenic island of Redang, off the East Coast of Peninsula Malaysia!

Woke up early and headed to the Asean All Day Dining restaurant for a good ol’fashioned Western breakfast – sunny side up egg, baked beans, beef ham, butter on toast, chicken and egg sausages, with a glass of cold fresh milk.

Headed to the beach. The skies were a clear blue, the hills were illuminated in sunshine, and the sea was a beautiful shade of turquoise. There were guests sunbathing, and even some surfers, since the waves were still quite strong. I sat in the shade and listened to the ocean lapping against the shore, before heading back to my villa to sink into the soft bed and watch TV. Now that’s what I call a holiday.

Later in the afternoon we attended a signing ceremony between the hotel proprietor, Berjaya Group and Prima Air. Under this partnership, Prima Air will provide chartered flights in s Cessna plane that accommodates about 10 guests, directly from the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang to Redang, three times weekly. The flights will be packaged with accomodation at The Taaras. This service is expected to start in April.

Our dinner that night was at the exclusive Taaras Villa, the most expensive accommodation available at the resort. Apparently the Princess of Jordan and HK superstar Andy Lau stayed here during their visits! 🙂 The bungalow is perched atop the hill, with expansive views of cliffs, ocean and parts of the island. The living room even has its own karaoke system.

Dining area. Guests will be privy to private chef and butler services.

Perhaps the star attraction is the 16m infinity pool, which offers gorgeous views while you’re taking a dip. I got to swim in it early the next morning (since the rest of the group weren’t there, I had the whole pool to myself!)

Exploring the five bedroom villa. The house was very big and can easily fit 10 – 20 guests. In each room there were soft beds and couches along with TVs, large closets and bathtubs.

There’s even a basic gym in the basement, complete with treadmill, exercise ball, bike machine and yoga mats.

View from one of the rooms on the first floor. 

The jacuzzi area was hidden in a vast room that looked like an art gallery, before opening up to this space with glass partitions and the tub.

The sea was a stunning dark teal/turquoise.

Our dinner that night was a traditional Malay meal – sambal squid, beef rendang, mutton kurma, fried shrimp, stir fried veggies and meat stew. Everything was excellent.

I’ll make it my dream one day to be able to afford such a place on a holiday. Not a bad thing, to dream. 😛