MY TRAVEL: KUALA TERENGGANU

BY HJ ZULHEIMY MAAMOR

31/10/2026

Kuala Terengganu, colloquially referred to as 'KT', located 449 km northeast of Kuala Lumpur, is also Terengganu's royal town and largest city. Besides being a major political and economic centre to the state, the city is also the main gateway to many of the state's tourist destinations. 

In 1996, my mother and I followed a group from our residential area to explore Terengganu and Kelantan. This included Kuala Terengganu. However, there weren't many memorable photos taken during the visit.

Photo from my visit to Kuala Terengganu in 1996

While working with Yayasan Jantung Malaysia, I have been to Kuala Terengganu several times to coordinate the health screening programme there. 

Among those programmes are:

1. 14 February 2015: Dewan Perhimpunan Tionghua, Kuala Terengganu

2. 25 April 2016 - Kolej PTPL Kuala Terengganu

3. 17 July 2017 - MSU College, Kuala Terengganu

4. 2 April 2018 - MSU College, Kuala Terengganu

2015 - KUALA TERENGGANU

On 14 February 2015, at the Tiong Hua Assembly Hall in Kuala Terengganu, the Malaysian Heart Foundation, in collaboration with Lion Heart of Terengganu, organised a Heart Disease Health Check for the public. This programme has received a favourable response from nearby residents.

Lebuhraya Pantai Timur (East Coast Expressway) is an interstate controlled-access highway running parallel to the northeastern coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The currently operational 433-km segment of the expressway runs through Karak, Pahang and Kuala Nerus, Terengganu. 

HEALTH SCREENING PROGRAM

On 14 February 2015 at the Tiong Hua Assembly Hall, Kuala Terengganu, the Malaysian Heart Foundation in collaboration with Lion Heart of Terengganu organised a Heart Disease Health Screening for the public. This programme received an encouraging response from the local residents.

After the programme, we took the opportunity to tour around KT, visiting places such as the KT Museum, Crystal Mosque, and others.

THE CRYSTAL MOSQUE

The Crystal Mosque, or Masjid Kristal, is a mosque in Wan Man, Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu. A grand structure made of steel, glass and crystal, the mosque is located at the Islamic Heritage Park on the island of Wan Man. The mosque was officially inaugurated on 8 February 2008 by the 13th Yang DiPertuan Agong, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin of Terengganu. 

The Crystal Mosque is able to accommodate up to 1,500 worshippers at a given time and also made its name internationally famous for its beauty. 

Masjid Kristal in 2026

ISLAMIC HERITAGE PARK

Taman Tamadun Islam in Malay is a famous tourist attraction in Kuala Terengganu, located on the island of Wan Man. It was opened on 2 February 2008. The park features 20 representations of monuments from all over the world, including the Taj Mahal, Al Hambra Citadel Granada, Masjid An-Nabawi Madinah, Masjidilharam Mecca, etc.

TERENGGANU STATE MUSEUM

The biggest museum complex in Southeast Asia, with four main blocks besides having a maritime museum and five traditional houses. It was built with a beautiful garden landscape and resembles Terengganu's glory, which is rich in cultural history until today. Located on a 27 hectare land on Bukit Losong, Kuala Terengganu, it exposes an attractive architecture which is an inspiration from the old castle in Terengganu. 

The Terengganu Inscription Stone (Batu Bersurat Terengganu) is a granite stele carrying Classical Malay inscription in Jawi script that was found in Tersat River in Kuala Berang, Hulu Terengganu, in 1887 CE by a Terengganu nobleman, Pengiran Anum Engku Abdul Kadir bin Engku Besar, and his tin-prospector friend, Saiyed Husin Ghulam Al Bukhari. 

In 2009, a meeting of the UNESCO's International Advisory Committee (IAC) held in Barbados included the Inscribed Stone of Terengganu in a heritage list of the Memory of the World Programme, making it the fourth heritage recognition accorded to Malaysia after the Hikayat Hang Tuah, Sejarah Melayu, and the correspondence of Sultan Abdul Hamid in 2001.

PASAR PAYANG KUALA TERENGGANU

The main and largest market in Kuala Terengganu opens daily from as early as 7.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m. Located on the side of the Terengganu River, it is the most well-known tourism destination in Kuala Terengganu. The market offers various kinds of traditional handcraft products such as batik, silk coin, songket, brocade cloth, metal products and fresh vegetables. 

Bazar Warisan

Pasar Payang in 2026 (my wife photo)

BATU BUROK BEACH RESORT

We stayed at Batu Beach Resort during the programme in Kuala Terengganu. Batu Burok Beach Resort is located approximately 20 minutes from Kuala Terengganu Airport. This is where we stayed throughout the programme in Kuala Terengganu. It is a resort located near the famous Batu Burok Resort Beach in Terengganu.

Batu Burok Beach Resort and Pak Maidin Restaurant in front of this resort belong to the late Kamaruddin Maidin, a former Malaysian athlete who once represented the country in the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960 with Shahrudin Mohd Ali and M. Jegathesan. The late Kamaruddin Maidin once won 4 consecutive gold medals in the long jump event at the SEAP Games (now SEA Games).

2016 - KUALA TERENGGANU

In 2016, the Heart Foundation of Malaysia conducted 2 health screening programmes in Kuala Terengganu, namely:

1. 25 April 2016 - Kolej PTPL Kuala Terengganu

2. 22 July 2016 - SJK (Cina) Chung Hwa Wei Sin, Kuala Terengganu

KOLEJ PTPL KUALA TERENGGANU

22 APRIL 2016

PTPL College Kuala Terengganu (now known as MSU College) is located in Jalan Sultan Omar, Kuala Terengganu. The distance from our accommodation at Intan Beach Resort, Batu Burok Beach, is 2.9 km, taking only 7 minutes to travel.

During the course of the programme, a total of 129 students and staff attended a health screening test.

INTAN BEACH RESORT

PANTAI BATU BUROK, K. TERENGGANU

24 APRIL 2016

We stayed at Intan Beach Resort in Pantai Batu Burok, Kuala Terengganu, throughout the programme. The hotel offers a tranquil resort for travellers seeking a peaceful getaway, a perfect spot for relaxation, just a few steps away from the beautiful beach. 

REFERENCE:

TERENGGANU : PANTAI BATU BUROK

SJK (CHINA) CHUNG HWA WEI SIN

22 JULY 2016

The Community Program, in collaboration with the Lions Club of Kuala Terengganu, took place at SJK (Chinese) Chung Hwa Wei Sin in Kuala Terengganu on 22 July 2016.

SJK (Chinese) Chung Hwa Wei Sin, located on Jalan Sultan Mohamad in Kuala Terengganu, was established on 1 May 1915 under the name of Chung Hwa Wei Sin. A total of 119 people underwent the health screening throughout the programme.

R&R Paka – On Lebuhraya Pantai Timur 2 (LPT2) E8, the extension of LPT1, northbound to Kuala Terengganu and southbound to Kuantan/KL. 

Located at Jalan Kemaman-Dungun, the LPT2 has 10 toll plazas: Cheneh, Cukai, Kijal, Paka, Dungun, Bukit Besi, Ajil, Telemung & Kuala Terengganu. 

MSU COLLEGE, KUALA TERENGGANU

17 July 2017

The Health Program in Kuala Terengganu was held at MSU College (formerly PTPL College) on 17 July 2017, located at Jalan Sultan Omar, Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu.

A total of 104 students, lecturers and staff have undergone the Health Screening test.

2017 - KG. LOSONG, KUALA TERENGGANU

Kampong Losong in Kuala Terengganu is well-known as a fishing village and also for its "Keropok Lekor". Here, you can sample a variety of Keropok Lekor using many types of fish. 

Keropok Lekor is a traditional Malay fish cracker snack originating from the state of Terengganu. It is made from fish and sago flour and seasoned with salt and sugar. 

MSU COLLEGE, KUALA TERENGGANU

2 APRIL 2018

After finishing the programme at University College Bestari in Setiu, Terengganu, we continued our journey to Kuala Terengganu for another health screening programme on 2 April 2018.

The distance from Setiu to Kuala Terengganu is 59.2 km and takes 1 hour 2 minutes to drive.

On 2 April 2018 we conducted a health screening programme at MSU College Kuala Terengganu (formerly known as PTPL College). MSU College Kuala Terengganu is located at Jalan Sultan Omar, Kuala Terengganu.

BATU BUROK BEACH RESORT

PANTAI BATU BUROK

KUALA TERENGGANU

1 APRIL 2018

In Kuala Terengganu we stayed at Batu Burok Beach Resort, located in Kg. Batu Burok, Kuala Terengganu. This is the fourth time we have stayed at Batu Burok Beach Resort.

Warong Pak Maidin, located next to Batu Burok Beach Resort, is owned by former national long jump champion, Kamaruddin Maidin, a local from Terengganu who once represented the country at the Olympic Games in Rome in 1960. He passed away in 2009.

After the programme at MSU College Kuala Terengganu, before returning to our hotel, we take the opportunity to go for a walk around Kuala Terengganu. Among the places we visited was the famous Pasar Payang.

Among the items sold at the Payang Market are turtle eggs. The sea turtles have chosen the beaches in Terengganu as their nesting spots each year from April to October every year; visitors flock to the beach at night. 

However, please note that under the Turtle Enclosure 1951 (Amendment 2021), which, among others, imposes a total ban of all types of turtle eggs and provides for heavier penalties for offences against the marine life species. 

R&R PERASING

The rest and recreation area at Perasing, located in the Chukai district of Terengganu. There are many horror and mystery stories told by drivers who stop here. Thank God we didn't have any horrifying experiences while stopping here.

R&R Perasing: One of our favourite R&R and the most talked-about R&R in Malaysia for 2 reasons: the design and the ghost stories.

Located at Chukai, Kemaman, Terengganu, near the border of Pahang and Terengganu. This is among the R&R that was listed as one of the top 5 most haunted R&R in Malaysia. There are many hauntings shared by drivers who stopped and passed by this R&R, such as the woman in a black robe with no face, whistling sounds inside empty toilets, a voice of a woman singing while changing a baby diaper, but toilet empty, and many others.

Because the location is surrounded by thick forest, it was a former communist mass grave area during the Emergency at the Perasing stretch, according to local oral stories, and it's very isolated at 2-4 am with no other buildings for kilometres.

R&R Bukit Besi : Just north of Paka, Jerangau-Talong, the nearest Plaza Toll Bukit Besi, a famous mining town with an old iron ore mining history.

There are rumours, and people talk about the whole LPT2 stretch, Paka-Bukit Besi, as the famous "Haunted Corridor".

According to Radio Senyap compilations of LPT2 stories, the mistik cases mostly happen at 4 R&R, such as R&R Ajil, R&R Bukit Besi and Susur Ajil, R&R Perasing and between Paka and Bukit Besi.

Bukit Besi was the biggest iron mine in Southeast Asia and a deserted ghost town after the 1970s. They report many accidents in the same spots.

KUALA TELEMUNG

Kuala Telemung is a mukim in Hulu Terengganu District, we stopped by to refuel on our way to Kuala Terengganu and Setiu for Health Screening Program. 

The name of the town Kuala Telemung reminds me of the history of Haji Abdul Rahman Limbong, a Malay religious scholar and fighter feared by the British colonialists and regarded him as a rebel. 

KUALA TERENGGANU DRAWBRIDGE
The Jambatan Angkat Terengganu, also called Ghetok Congek Tranung. The first drawbridge was built in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. It was opened to the public in 2019.
The tower drawbridge is 638 metres in length, while its 76-metre bascule can be raised & lowered using counterweights to allow vessels to pass. It connects Kuala Terengganu and Kuala Nerus – it carries motor vehicles and pedestrians.
The 4 towers with sky bridges are inspired by London's Tower Bridge, but with Terengganu motifs.

I Love KT

Despite the rapid modernisation Kuala Terengganu retains plenty of charm. Here you'll find one of eastern Peninsular Malaysia's prettiest and most interesting Chinatowns, and old kampung-style stilt-houses can still be found just across the river. 

However, from October to January is highly unsuitable to visit Kuala Terengganu as rainfall is very high reaching about 342 km in the month of December. 

Further Readings:

1. Things to do in Kuala Terengganu

2.  Malaysia: Why you shouldn't Skip Kuala Terengganu

Hj Zulheimy Maamor

Lembah Keramat, K.L

31 October 2026: 12:40 a.m.