This would be
my first time writing a recommendation for a place to visit. But in my own defence
travelling is not one of my hobbies. My love for hustle and bustle of the big
cities is simply too enormous. Going to far flung places are not my thing.
But there is
always an exception for everything. Hence, I’m going to sing the praises of
this incredibly beautiful remote island to high heaven. I would even like to
put this place in ‘a place you have to visit before you die’ category.
Am I being
excessive? Not even a little. Maratua Island took my breath away with its out
of this world beauty at the first sight. If there is heaven on earth then
Maratua Island deserves to be considered as one.
Its pristine white
sand beaches and turquoise crystal clear waters are the best prize to get after
our very long trip from Jakarta.
Situated at
the border between Indonesia and the Philippines Maratua Island necessitates us
to wake up at the wee hour to catch the 5 am flight from Jakarta to Balikpapan
(East Kalimantan/East Borneo).
After 2 hours
flight from Jakarta to Balikpapan, we continued with another 45 minutes flight
from Balikpapan to Berau. From Berau we drove about 3 hours to Tanjung Batu harbour
to take a small boat and ride the waves for 90 minutes to our final
destination.
It was only on
our last day when we were about to leave for Balikpapan from Berau that we
learned that we could fly directly to Maratua Island every Wednesday with a
small plane.
I’m not fond
of flying and I certainly have no craving for sailing. However, although deep
waters always give me chills I have a huge love for water. So, despite rather
anxious about our safety, the boat ride to Maratua Island was actually quite
fun.
We stayed at
Paradise Hotel which was the best hotel to choose if you wanted to have not
merely an ocean view but direct access to turtles, stingrays and other fishes
as well.
Despite the
rather salty water and challenging TV channels the room itself has a
spectacular view to boast. If we are lucky we could see a stingray or turtles from
our living room or even from our bed when we lie down with prop up pillows.
If you want
to leave civilization behind and experience what it feels like to own a private
island, Maratua Island is a perfect getaway. You won’t be bothered by phone
calls or perfect strangers particularly if you visit on weekdays.
Its terrible
food aside, Paradise Hotel is the best hotel to stay in Maratua Island. When it’s
high tide you will get turquoise crystal clear waters in front of your porch
and when it’s low tide you will get perfect white sand beaches at your backyard.
At night you will get to see twinkling stars in the sky.
Maratua Island
also has a rather charming little pond in the middle of the forest which gave
us a different experience. We had a lot of fun in this spot prodding one
another to see who had the bigger guts to jump into that pond.
Due to
weather condition we couldn’t have our planned trip to see the famous jelly
fish and stingrays in nearby islands. However, on our way back home we got an
unexpected bonus. Being on a boat we got
a first row seat to watch the sun rose from the bottom of the sea.
I don’t have
enough words to describe my feelings when I saw that giant red ball slowly
ascending towards the heaven. If I have to use only one word, that word is
perfect.
If you love
traveling you have to come to Maratua Island. You simply have to. You don’t
have to book the whole island for yourself, chances are that when you come to
Paradise Hotel you would be the only person in this heaven on earth.
This is the
most worthwhile trip that I’ve ever had.
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