View from Perhentian Islands windmill peak | Marine Parks of Malaysia
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About this website

Marine Parks of Malaysia is a community-centred hub helping you to choose sustainable experiences in Malaysia's marine parks, and contribute to help local initiatives.

Marine conservation in the marine parks of Malaysia developed since the 1990s from being primarily about fisheries management, towards a more holistic ecosystem approach. With this came a recognition of the importance of community buy-in and the contribution of citizen-led marine conservation efforts.

Over time, more such conservation projects have been established on Malaysia's marine park islands, typically run by environmental NGOs. At the same time, efforts to campaign for sustainable tourism in marine parks have increased amid concerns about climate change and pressure on ecosystems. 

This website is an attempt to compile all these efforts in Malaysia so that it is easy for visitors to learn how to vacation sustainably in marine parks, and how they can help efforts by island communities.

In future, we also want this website to be a place where scientists and photographers can collaborate with us, and where we can promote their work. 

WHY WE LOVE MARINE PARKS

What are marine parks?

A marine park is a section of the sea where the government limits human activity to achieve conservation goals while allowing sustainable uses.

Usually they are special areas of marine biodiversity, which is why they are so interesting!

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Marine Parks in Malaysia

Malaysia has a very long coastline, resulting in a diverse range of marine ecosystems that span from the Strait of Malacca, the continental shelf bordering the South China Sea, towards the Coral Triangle.

Malaysia's marine parks are distributed across seven of its federated States. The Marine Parks of Peninsular Malaysia and the Federal Territory of Labuan are gazetted under the Fisheries Act 1985. This Act establishes a two-nautical-mile protected zone around designated islands to conserve marine habitats and biodiversity (though some parks only have a one-nautical-mile zone). 

There are an additional six Marine National Parks in Sabah, which are gazetted under the National Parks Ordnance 1962. 

Why are marine parks important?

The abundance of Malaysia's tropical seas have provided food and shore protection for island and coastal communities for generations. Located in one of the world's megadiverse areas, Malaysia is also steward to a large proportion of the earth's biodiversity.

However, in modern times, increased human activity has affected the stability of these ecosystems. Overfishing. coastal development, and sewage have affected fishing stocks and the health of marine ecosystems. More recently, rising global temperatures have further stressed coral ecosystems, causing mass bleaching events and the loss of coral reefs. If this continues, the sea would no longer be able to feed and protect us.

Marine Parks are important because they protect a portion of the sea from damaging activities, and help ecosystems recover by serving as a refuge and protected nursery grounds for the wider marine ecosystem. 

>60 protected islands
out of 879 islands in Malaysia

in 7 Malaysian states

Seven federated States in Malaysia host Marine Parks: Terengganu, Pahang, Johor, Kedah, Melaka, Sabah, and the Federal Territory of Labuan.

Most of Malaysia's Marine Parks are located along its peninsular east coast and around Sabah. Of the peninsular States, Terengganu has the most number of Marine Park islands. These Terengganu islands are usually grouped into 4 archipelagoes known by the most famous island in the group, e.g. 'Perhentian Marine Park'.

The remainder States have one archipelago each.

Over in Sabah, there are 6 Marine Parks which are managed as National Parks of Sabah due to the difference in the regulatory jurisdiction. Additionally, Sarawak has coastal National Parks which include marine protected areas. 

Perhentian Marine Park

Located in Terengganu, this Marine Park consists of the twin Perhentian Islands highly popular with backpackers and budget holidaymakers, as well as the nearby Pulau Susu Dara islands. 

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Redang Marine Park

Located in Terengganu, this Marine Park centres around the dreamy Redang island, considered among the most beautiful islands in Malaysia. Nearby, Lang Tengah island is a hidden gem.

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Tioman Marine Park

Pahang's Marine Park islands cluster around Tioman island and Pulau Seri Buat, but the tourism is only based in Tioman. The Dragon Island is best known for its beautiful coral reefs and lush forest cover.

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Kapas Marine Park
Coming soon
Tenggol Marine Park
Coming Soon
Johor Marine Parks
Coming Soon
Pulau Payar Marine Park
Coming Soon
Melaka Marine Parks
Coming Soon
Labuan Marine Parks
Coming Soon