Mersing town is a lively tourist town visited by Malaysians
and foreign tourists and the town is particularly significant for a number of
reasons, it is one of only two major towns situated in the eastern half of
Johor state (the other being Kota Tinggi), it lies on the main trunk road that
connects and it is the main departure
point for ferries to the nearby offshore islands such as Pulau Tioman.
Mersing is located 136 Kilometres north east of the state
capital Johor Bahru. The Mersing port in the mouth of Mersing River is also the
main port for ferries to Pulau Tioman and the more than 40 other islands in the
Seribuat Archipelago. It is easily accessible from the Republic of Singapore,
the Johor state capital of Johor Bahru, the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur
and the major northern Malaysian town of Kuantan by car, bus, taxi or coaches.
From Mersing, tourists can visit many nearby beaches.
Beaches in the Mersing area rival beaches on the islands nearby. These are
easily accessible from Mersing town. Other interesting places to visit near to
Mersing town are Endau town, a major off-shore fishing port in Johor (about 33
km from Mersing town) and Penyabung, a very quiet fishing village located in a
beautiful cove by the sea (about 20 km from Mersing town). Another attraction
is the Endau Rompin National Park in the north.
There are numerous hotels at reasonable prices catering to
the many Malaysian and foreign tourists who visit the Mersing town throughout
the year.
The Chinese community in Mersing mainly belongs to the
Cantonese dialect group and speak Cantonese.
Mersing is nowadays the gateway to several beautiful
islands. It used to be a sleepy fishing village. There are still many fishing
boats on the river, as well as a local wet market and fishing-related
industries.
It lies along the South China Sea at the mouth of the
Mersing River. Its predominantly Malaysian residents live in coastal and
riverside fishing villages. There are some local tin-mining settlements and
rubber estates. An embarkation point for the islands in the Seribuat
Archipelago and a regular port of call on the east coastal trade route, Mersing
is linked by road inland to Batu Pahat and south to Johor Bahru and Singapore.
The ferry's in Mersing are going to:
To Tioman:
Passenger
boat - slower ferry 11:30 duration 2h
From Tioman to Mersing dep 8:00 (have to stay on Tioman
overnight if you want to use this service) one way RM25
speedboat - 7:30, 13:00 duration 1.5hrs.
From Tioman 10:00,15:30 one way RM30
To Pulau Besar:
(not
to confuse with the other Besar island offshore Melaka), departure 12:00
(from P.Besar 10:00) ow RM25, rt RM50
To Pulau Rawa:
Private
island owned by the resort. Accommodation from RM100 (sb,f,d) dep12:00 (from
P.Rawa 10:00) Book ahead boat fare might be included in the accommodation fare
To P.Tinggi & P. Sibu :
Ferry
leaves from Tanjung Leman
In Mersing is a Seri Malaysia Hotel (best Hotel in town),
Timotel and a Embassy Hotel.
There are 3 backpacker style hostels, some rent-a-room style
hotels (only 2 rooms in a family's house) and many Chinese style hotels.
