pd or desaru?
Both are the beach weekends KL families drive to when nobody wants to fly. PD is the closest beach to KL, about 1.5 hours away and fine all year, while Desaru is a longer drive to a wider east-coast beach with big resorts and a water park.
port dickson
Dear group chat,The closest beach to KL, for a no-plan weekend by the water.Read the guide →To: whoever’s drivingPort DicksonMY, Negeri Sembilan
desaru
Dear group chat,Beach resorts, a water park and durian farms on Johor's east coast.Read the guide →To: whoever’s drivingDesaruMY, Johor
- From KL
- pdAbout 70 km
- desaruAbout 340 km
- Best months
- pdAll year
- desaruMar–Oct
- Vibe
- pdEasy, no-plan beach weekend close to KL
- desaruBig resorts on a long east-coast beach
- Getting there
- pdAbout 1.5 hours' drive, or a bus from TBS
- desaruAbout 4 hours' drive, or fly to Senai and drive 1 hour
- The beach
- pdCalm, but the water isn't the clearest
- desaruLong and sandy, facing the open sea
- Best season
- pdAny time; the west coast is sheltered
- desaruMarch to October; rough in the monsoon
- Things to do
- pdWater sports, Cape Rachado, the Army Museum
- desaruA water park, golf and a fruit farm
- Good for kids
- pdBanana boats and easy beach days
- desaruThe water park and resort pools
Go pd if…
- you want to be on the beach in about an hour and a half
- it's a last-minute weekend and nobody wants to plan
- you're going between November and February, when the east coast is rough
- a forest walk to the old lighthouse at Cape Rachado sounds good
Go desaru if…
- a big resort and a water park are the plan
- you want a long, wide beach and don't mind a longer drive
- it's durian season and you'd like to visit a fruit farm
- someone in the group wants a round of golf by the sea
The verdict
PD wins on distance: you can decide on Friday night and be on the sand by Saturday morning. Desaru is the better beach and the better resort stay, but it's more than twice the drive and best avoided in the monsoon months. Can't decide? For one night, go PD; for a family resort weekend between March and October, it's worth driving on to Desaru.