The road to Langkawi Island via Plus Liner Bus

While the rest of my friends booked their flight via AirAsia, I took the road trip to Langkawi via Plus liner bus. That was my excuse of not availing the promo fares of AirAsia as I really didn’t plan to visit Langkawi in the first place due to Vacation Leave availability but God is Good, out of nowhere a fellow Pinoy gave his VL’s to me. I rushed to Puduraya Terminal to purchase the bus ticket 2 days prior my departure to Langkawi since the AirAsia fare is too pricey.

I headed to Plaza Rakyat Station 30 minutes before my departure but the bus came late to my disappointment. I even thought I was on the wrong platform but they got an A for arriving ahead of time to Kuala Perlis. How did they do that? I wasn’t able to sleep for 6 hours being on the road due to alarming uneven tires or shall I say I was just paranoid not being used to Buses in Malaysia. There was only one stop over in the whole trip enough for a toilet break and little midnight snack.

The bus left at KL at 11:30 PM and arrived at Kuala Perlis at 5:30 AM. I never expected the long queue for purchasing the ferry tickets. I realized it was a holiday and almost the end of the year. All kinds of people were there, some were backpackers, lovers, group of friends and some were just locals going back to their hometown I presume. The Ferry is pretty much alike with Supercat Ferry in the Philippines. It has also first class, with good air conditioning and I really haven’t got the chance to see the toilet, though. The waters were calm during the entire Ferry ride and to witness the sunrise was a plus. I don’t mind taking the 6-hour road trip and a 45 minute Ferry ride to the island of Langkawi. It was worth it.

 

 

 

How to get there?

By Bus:

There are three ways to go to Langkawi via bus by going to Kedah, Kuala Perlis or Penang. My original plan was to go to Kedah however when I bought my ticket, the Local Girl at the counter told me that the best way to go to Langkawi is to take the bus to Kuala Perlis for two main good reasons: One: From the terminal, you don’t need to take the cab going to the Jetty Point and it’s true, the Ferry terminal is just a 5-10 minute walk from Perlis Bus Terminal. Two: if your start off point is Perlis, the ferry will only take 45 minutes unlike from Kedah it will take you more than an hour and 2 hours from Penang.

If you want to head on to Langkawi via Kedah (approximately 6 hours), Perlis (6-7 hours or Penang (6 hours), Take the KTM to Plaza Rakyat follow the signs going to Puduraya terminal it’s like a 5 minute walk, from Puduraya Terminal, you can purchase the tickets from different bus lines on the second floor. They will provide you the platform number to which your bus line is designated.

 

By Air:

Alternatively, you can fly to Langkawi via Airasia. This is the best deal if you avail the promo like my friends did, their round trip ticket is only cost 108 Ringgit each.

Tips:
– Bus fare is 42 Ringgit one way depending on the bus liner. You may check Easibook, Plusliner, transnasional and Catch that Bus.
– Ferry tickets cannot be purchased in advance, should be the same day of your desired departure.
– Ferry Ticket is 18 Ringgit one way
– Once you arrived in Langkawi, there are no busses to take you to your hotel, to the beach or any tourist spots. There are only taxis available and the minimum fare is 25, you can negotiate or use your haggling skills
– If you are planning to stay in Langkawi for 3-5 days, I suggest you rent a car, van or motorcycle.
– For car or van rentals, island hopping or even home stay inquiries you may contact Ayuni +60125899047