Kuantan Flights

Kuantan is about 259km east of Kuala Lumpur. The journey takes around 5 hours inclusive a ½ pit stop if you travel by bus.

I personally prefer to travel with TransNasional buses to Kuantan, reason being they are allocated fixed terminal at Pudu Raya and they have a board to announce whether the buses have arrived at the terminal for boarding. I found their service is reliable and reasonably punctual. The cost per ticket is RM14.20 per way, can be purchase at TransNasional counter at Puduraya and KL Sentral.

The ride is smooth, passing by many small towns like Karak, Temerloh, Maran, Lanchang, Gambang etc. The only cons for TransNasional is they stop at this horrible restaurant called Delima (should be renamed Dilemma) in Temerloh for ½ hours for food and toilet break, but so do other eastbound buses. Try not to use the toilets here – the toilets are filthy and they charge 20 sen for it!! Food here sucks too. So, I normally pack my own food and eat in the bus, as I like.

The journey ends at Kuantan Bus Terminal in the town center. Darul Makmur Stadium, Berjaya Megamall, Ocean Shopping Centre, Kuantan Wet Market are within walking distance from this terminal.

Kuantan town bus station is located behind the Kuantan Wet Market. All the town buses begin their journeys here. There are two types of buses services to Telok Chempedak. One is the orange white bus (Rahmat Alam) and the other is blue and yellow (not sure what is the bus company name). The ticket cost RM1. The frequency of the bus is once hourly. If you want to stop at Taman Gelora, another Kuantan attraction, take the orange white bus (Rahmat Alam) as it passes by Taman Gelora on the way to Telok Chempedak.

With the completion of this new East Coast Highway, traveling to East Coast is a more enjoyable experience. It not only saves time but also offers basic facilites like Rest & Relax area for refreshments, prayers and petrol kiosks. The biggest Rest & Relax area is in Temerloh, situated just right after a bridge.

The highway stretches from Karak to Kuantan toll plaza. From Karak to Gambang, you only need to pay RM16.90 for the comfort and safety in driving.

Some of the petrol stations in Kuantan have a rough map of Kuantan. Very useful for motorists who are lost and need some directions.

This is the only bus terminal in Kuantan. Various bus operator are avaiable in here. For thoese who want to move in & out of here via huge buses, should just drop by here.

Previously, driving to Kuantan from Kuala Lumpur will take about 5 hours. Howevere, with the opening of the East Coast Highway (LPT) in 2004, the travelling time has been reduce to 3 hours. The next time you plan to go to Kuantan (and other part of the East Coast), you should consider taking the LPT.

Sarah and I enjoyed our single day in Kuantan. We chose to take an organized trip through our cruise liner, which included a bus ride through town. Its main highlights were the fishing village where most of the traps and nets are made right there onsite. In addition, we went and saw a Hindu temple, Muslim Mosque, and Malay village where monkeys are trained to pick coconuts.

From our P&O Cruise, the tour was called "Malay Lifestyles". The main transportation was a tour bus, and it was air conditioned, comfortable, and the guide was very helpful. The package ended up being about $40 USD, which is good.

Due to its location on the eastern coast of Malaysia, and its equidistance between Bangkok and Singapore, Kuantan makes for an excellent place for cruise ships to add to their itinerary. In addition, the melting pot of several different cultures makes this location nice for the ships to enter, especially with the ability to dock on-shore.

When we landed, Kuantan was experiencing a little rain-shower, but the dock was able to handle the whole ship and get us on the tour buses without too much drama. The pier there was very clean and ready to handle this size of a ship.