Arwana Perhentian Resort

We had an enjoyable stay at the Arwana. Staff at the front desk were helpful and accommodating. The pool and restaurant area are well presented with lots of greenery and shaded areas. The local food was really tasty.

Arwana is a very overpriced and really outdated resort. When you pay close to 600 euro's for four night i expect alot more. On arrival we were told the restaurant was open till nine pm. We went there at a little past eight pm and were refused by the staff. Not because it was full but the chef was to busy. I counted only five tabels being seated. Wow! The breakfast buffet was also terrible. Flies everywhere on the food. Warm fruit , moldy cupcakes. Unbaked bread rolls. Only thing edible were the omelets. Even the coffee was terrible. The swimmingpool was green and very dirty. Everything looked really uninviting. The staff all looked unhappy and were working from early in the morning untill late at night. I know having no wifi is not the end of the world. But the fact there is only wifi in the lobby is not acceptable for these kind of prices. All and all it was a very dissapointing experience. Later we stayed in an other resort on the small island and that was fantastic an even cheaper.

Beautiful pool and landscaping

Nous avions passés l’un des meilleurs séjours depuis notre arrivé en Malaisie. Le staff est super accueillants, serviable, et très souriant. Le spot est reposant, avec un paysage incroyablement pittoresque ! Nous nous sommes réconciliés avec la nourriture, car très frais, assaisonnés et assez variés. De plus Le petit déjeuner était top ! Alors ça à été une très belle expérience pour notre part.

Staff were very good, food was ok,the boat dropped us off right in front of the resort, taxi boat was easy to catch once we got to the Island. Our stay eas quite nice.

The hotel owner has very restrictive policies: no room service, no alcohol allowed (not even if you buy your own in a nearby store), no beach towels, no beach chairs, no food in between hours, no money exchange, no payment with card for extra activities/services, no table service at breakfast (you have to lay the table yourself), no hand towels, etc etc etc. It was an awful experience, the only possitive outcome of this stay was the big room and the views (we were on the beach), but even so, the sleep quality was BAD because the power generator makes a lot of noise. Mi best advide is to skip this property.

As a family with children aged 10 and 12, we absolutely loved this resort. The pool was invaluable to be able to have time for ourselves to relax as well as the children. Buffet was great and the manager was amazing. Our children loved watching the baby reef sharks swimming next to the jetty out the front of the resort. Would highly recommend to both couples, individuals or families as they offer something for everyone.

Well managed hotel

It is on the best beach on Perenthians. The staff very helpful

great stay.

The property is one of the best property for Besar island in the price range. Pools are great facility if you have non swimmers with you. We had kids and they just loved it. Food was good for Non Vegetarians but being vegetarian, we faced trouble. Cook helped on day 1 with good friend rice on day 1 in complimentary breakfast but that was the only 1 item we got in vegetarian food, apart from juice and tea coffee. On second day we were served something which noone liked and we left only with juice and tea/coffee. Apart from that, we did not like the policy of charging extreme for water bottles. May be the case in that part of the world of using the bottles, I would recommend increasing room rent and giving water refills for free. That would stop ruining the amazing beaches of Perhentian Islands with plastic litters.

Accommodation was clean and well kept. Diving centre next door was excellent "Leisure Divers" Malay cuisine for breakfast each day was repetitive and could be better eg more fruit etc and add some western. Location was not so good in that the "beach" was mostly mud flat throughout the day with no sandy bottom and so not really suitable for casual swimming. Staff were good and friendly.

Should look into F&B area, and WiFi around Resort.

Deluxe room with poolview - Nice from the outside! Inside large room, sparsely decorated. No balcony furniture. The bed and the part of the room where the bed was smelled damp and sour. Under the bed was 2cm! of dust and dirt. The bathroom was so run down and full of mould. The door had to be kept closed to not have the smell in the room. The room was dark with strange lightning. No cosy or nice feeling at all. I'm not very picky, but would never recommend it or stay there again. The pool though was nice! Reception staff nice and helpful! The staff in the restaurant very lazy, not welcoming at all, stuck up and it felt like you were bothering them if you e.g. ordered an ice cream. They sighed in front of you and tried to give the "chore" to someone else.

Super friendly staff made the trip memorable. We had an amazing room that was beachfront with a balcony. Shower was a bit dated but we didn’t mind as we spent most of our time enjoying the island!

The staff is really friendly and give a warm welcome to the guest. As for the room utilities need to improve such as to provide water heater iron and iron board as well as it is basic necessity use for the guest. Toilet utilities need to be improved more.

Not recommended to stay in this hotel again. Everything is not up to the 3 star standard that it is supposed to be except probably the pool. Half of the staff are not friendly, rooms are not worth the price and not clean up unless being told, low water pressure in the bathroom, lack of choice for breakfast and the beach front are one of the worst spot at the island with full of rocks and dead corals.

Located on the beach. The rooms are motel style with views over the central swimming pool. The rooms are basic but are of a good size and have a/c. Hotel staff are friendly and the breakfast is acceptable for the room rate we paid.

Check-in process was easy and could enter our rooms even though we arrived very early. The pool could have been cleaner but it did not stop us from swimming in it. They could do better with the creepy crawlies in the room but it did not make us uncomfortable. The staff were very welcoming and kind and made the stay very pleasant. There was a movie on every night for the guests and that was great.

Location is good. Rooms were old and smelt bad..