Comparison No. 3 of 6
Comparison · Johor
The islands of Johor
Six islands off Mersing in Johor, ranked on the boat crossing, shortest first, from two jetties about 2 hours by road from Johor Bahru.
Order is editorial, not paid. An editor ranked these islands. Nobody paid to be on this list.
| No. | Island | Boat from | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pulau Rawa | Mersing jetty, Mersing | Families |
| 2 | Pulau Tengah | Mersing jetty | Turtles, quiet |
| 3 | Pulau Sibu | Tanjung Leman jetty, Mersing | Resort dive bases |
| 4 | Pulau Tinggi | Tanjung Leman jetty, Mersing | Snorkelling |
| 5 | Pulau Besar | Mersing jetty, Mersing | Beach chalets |
| 6 | Pulau Aur | Mersing jetty, Mersing | Remote diving |
A dash means we have not yet checked that fact against an operator.
1. Pulau Rawa
Tied for the shortest crossing, 20–30 min from Mersing, with the boat in every package.
Rawa sits in the Sultan Iskandar Marine Park about 16–18 km off Mersing, with two resorts and no village. Each runs its own speedboat from Mersing jetty and includes it in a 2-night full-board package. Rawa Island Resort has snorkelling from the beach and a dive centre, and says it stays open all year; Alang's Rawa runs from March to November. The catch is cost and terms: there are no room-only stays or day trips, Rawa Island Resort's 2026 rates start at RM2,820 for two adults for two nights, and its bookings are prepaid and non-refundable.
- Best for
- Families
- Season
- All year
- Boat
- 20–30 min
- Charge
- RM30
2. Pulau Tengah
The same 20–30 min crossing from Mersing, to an island shared by one resort and a turtle hatchery.
Tengah is about 15 km off Mersing in the Sultan Iskandar Marine Park, and Batu Batu's 22 villas are the only development on it. Hawksbill and green turtles nest roughly from April to September, and the dive centre opens from mid-March to October, sea permitting. The catch is the bill: the villa rate is room only, every guest pays for the 3-meal plan (RM350+ per adult a day), and the boat is RM190+ return per adult on top. Batu Batu is closed from 4 January to 4 February 2027.
- Best for
- Turtles, quiet
- Season
- All year
- Boat
- 20–30 min
- Charge
- RM30
3. Pulau Sibu
Two resorts with their own dive bases, 20–40 min by boat from Tanjung Leman, and a daily van from Singapore.
Sibu is about 6 km long and has been a marine park since 1994. Tanjung Leman jetty is about 2 hours by road from Johor Bahru and about 70 km south of Mersing town, so do not go to Mersing jetty. Rimba Resort has a house reef and a dive centre; Sea Gypsy Village Resort has a PADI dive base, a kids' club and a shared van from Holland Village in Singapore. The catch is the monsoon: Rimba closes from about December to Chinese New Year, Sea Gypsy publishes no closure dates, and neither resort has air-conditioning.
- Best for
- Resort dive bases
- Season
- Feb–Nov
- Boat
- 20–40 min
- Charge
- RM30
4. Pulau Tinggi
A hilly marine park island 30–45 min from Tanjung Leman, with snorkelling trips to Pulau Mentigi.
Tinggi lies about 35 km south-east of Mersing and has three villages of a few hundred people. Most visitors book a 3D2N package with meals and the boat, often with a snorkelling trip to Pulau Mentigi and a guided walk to a waterfall. The catch is choice: Shaz Resort is the one resort we could confirm is taking 2026 bookings, some packages leave out the boat, and there is no public ferry and no bus to the jetty.
- Best for
- Snorkelling
- Season
- Feb–Nov
- Boat
- 30–45 min
- Charge
- RM30
5. Pulau Besar
Three resorts on one west-coast beach, about 30 min from Mersing on a resort boat that runs once a day.
Pulau Besar off Mersing (not the Melaka island of the same name) is in the Sultan Iskandar Marine Park, about 15 km offshore. Most stays sell 2D1N or 3D2N full-board packages with the return boat; Emerald Sands also sells rooms from RM290 a night. The crossing takes about 30 minutes, up to an hour in rough seas. The catch is the season and the single boat: the resorts close from November to February, and if you miss the daily boat a private one costs RM600–700 each way.
- Best for
- Beach chalets
- Season
- Feb–Oct
- Boat
- 30–60 min
- Charge
- RM30
6. Pulau Aur
The most remote of the six, about 76 km east of Mersing, for divers, with visibility of 15–25 m in season.
Aur is in the Sultan Iskandar Marine Park, with about 100 residents and no roads. Its resorts sell packages, usually 3D2N, with meals, boat snorkelling and a trip to Pulau Dayang, and divers can also come for the day on a dive boat from Mersing. The catch is the trip: about 2 hours by speedboat with no fixed public timetable, 3 to 4.5 hours on a slower ferry, and the resorts close from about November or December to February or March.
- Best for
- Remote diving
- Season
- Mar–Nov
- Boat
- 2 h–2 h 30 min
- Charge
- RM30
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How we ranked
All six islands are in Mersing District, Johor, and in the Sultan Iskandar Marine Park. None has a public ferry with a fixed timetable: each resort runs or arranges its own boat, from one of two jetties. Mersing jetty serves Rawa, Tengah, Besar and Aur; Tanjung Leman serves Sibu and Tinggi. Both are about 2 hours by road from Johor Bahru, so the road does not separate the islands. We ranked on the boat: the usual crossing in our route guides, shortest first, judged on its longest time. Rawa and Tengah tie at 20–30 minutes; Rawa comes first because its boat is in every package, while Batu Batu adds RM190+ return per adult. We do not rank on commission.
From Singapore, add the border: Mersing is about 2.5 to 3.5 hours by car, and Tanjung Leman about 3 to 3.5 hours including immigration. Pulau Tioman also sails from Mersing jetty but is in Pahang, so it is not here. Facts come from the resorts, the Department of Fisheries and our island and route guides, checked on 8 and 9 November 2026. The “Best for” column is our one-line reading of each island, not a score. The best islands in Malaysia ranks five of these against the rest of the Peninsula.