Tioman & Pulau Aur – Malaysia

Pulau Tioman lies in the South China Sea off Pahang, east of Mersing, and is a marine park with small boulder islets – Chebeh, Labas, Sepoi, Tulai (Coral Island), Renggis and Soyak – around it. Dives range from sheltered house reefs at 5–12 m to current-swept pinnacles like Tiger Reef, plus the KM Sipadan artificial-reef wreck at about 30 m. Further out, Pulau Aur and Dayang in the Johor Marine Park have deeper pinnacles and pelagics, but operators and position data for them are thin and several Aur sites are marked unverified. The whole area effectively closes in the north-east monsoon, roughly November to February.

Facts

• Best season: About March to October; the 'golden windows' are mid-March–May and September–mid-October. Operators close roughly mid-November to February
• Monsoon closure: Marine park and island operators effectively shut during the north-east monsoon (about November–February/early March); B&J lists mid-November to January as closed
• Water temperature: About 27–30 °C in season
• Visibility: Typically 10–20 m, up to 25–30 m on good days; 8–15 m right after the monsoon
• Getting there: Boat from Mersing Jetty (Johor) or Tanjung Gemok; park fee is paid at the ferry terminal. Liveaboards also run from Singapore (Tanah Merah)
• Pulau Aur: About 70 km off Mersing in the Johor Marine Park; a 2013 source says high marine-park fees led operators to stop going. MeTOS registration is required for water activities around Mersing

Season

• Best months: Mar, Apr, May, Sep, Oct
• Acceptable: Jun, Jul, Aug
• Poor: Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb
• Water temperature: 27–30 °C

Main season is roughly April–October (best visibility mid-March–May and September–mid-October). From November to February/early March the north-east monsoon effectively closes the marine park and operators.

Dive sites (15)

Pulau Aur group (Johor Marine Park)

• Aur Pinnacles – 0–30 m, advanced
• Captain Point – intermediate
• Crocodile Rock – beginner
• Rayners Rock – 15–25 m, advanced
• Telok Jawa – beginner

Tioman north: Tulai (Coral Island) & Chebeh

• Pulau Chebeh – 10–45 m, intermediate
• Pulau Tulai (Coral Island) – 6–16 m, beginner

Tioman south: Jahat & Bahara Rock

• Pulau Jahat – 5–25 m, intermediate
• Tokong Bahara (Bahara Rock) – 3–18 m, advanced

Tioman west islets: Labas, Sepoi & Tiger Reef

• Pulau Labas – 5–20 m, intermediate
• Pulau Sepoi – 3–18 m, intermediate
• Tiger Reef – 10–30 m, advanced

Tioman Salang & Tekek: Soyak, Sawadee, Renggis

• Pulau Renggis – 5–16 m, beginner
• Pulau Soyak – 5–16 m, beginner
• Sawadee wrecks (KM Sipadan) – 22–30 m, advanced

Operators (6)

• B&J Diving Centre (Dive Tioman) – dive centre, Air Batang (ABC), Tioman
• Tioman Dive Centre (MY SCUBA Travel and Tours) – dive centre, Papaya Resort, Tekek, Tioman
• Aman Tioman Diving Center (Aman Holiday) – dive centre, Kampung Paya, Tioman
• GS-Diving (Singapore liveaboard to Tioman) – liveaboard, Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, Singapore
• Scuba-Naut Dive Centre – dive centre, Salang, Tioman
• Elite Tioman Dive Centre – dive centre, Kampung Genting, Tioman

Routes (2)

• Daily boat dives around Tioman (B&J)
• Tioman liveaboard from Singapore (GS-Diving)

Dive-site positions are approximations placed next to the islets' OpenStreetMap locations; no operator publishes GPS for these sites, and Aur positions are rougher still. For orientation only, never navigation. Check with local operators before any trip.