Danga Bay

Danga Bay is a one stop leisure and dining spot by the beach in Johor Bahru. It is located about 8km from the Malaysia/Singapore Causeway.

 

 

It offers all night long al fresco dining experience while enjoying the cool gentle sea breezes.

There is also a theme park to get the children excited especially during the weekend and public holiday.

The marina, fronting the Danga Bay Waterfront has a clubhouse, gym, spa, meeting rooms and business centre.

 

Also available at the marina is the berths that can accommodate 150 yachts 

Danga Cruise 8 is an exclusive sea cruiser which sails the Straits of Johor which offer sightseeing and cruise dining.

Sultan Ismail (Senai) International Airport

My last visit to Johor Bahru was in 2002 and last August I went there again en route to Singapore.

The airport definitely changed since my last visit 6 years ago. Obviously some section of the airport is undergone renovation to make the shopping experience at the airport more pleasant.

One will need to walk some 150m along this makeshift lane to exit the airport and take a taxi or bus. This area is not air conditioned and can be a bit hot in the afternoon.

At the end of the lane is a big hall. Here one can purchased the taxi coupon or bus ticket. Pick up and drop off point is also at this place.

I am quite impressed with the departure hall. They definitely refurbished it sometime ago. The seats had been replaced and are more comfortable to seat now.

There is a model displayed in the departure hall of how the airport will look like in the future after the renovation and extension had been completed.

Air Asia's aircraft parking at the apron of the airport

Johor Bahru Experience

Since we do not get to the city center in Johor Bahru, all is not lost. Just a stone throw away from Naza Hotel and Grand Bluewave is basically the Johor Straits. Just head to Jalan TG. Putri.

Along Tg. Putri road is a scenic walk, remind me of Gurney Drive at Penang. The coconut trees appear to be slanted. Along some part of the walk, one will also notice a small stretch of beach.

Singapore can be seen across the Johor Straits. Even the Singapore's Custom and Immigration at the Johor causeway is visible along the walk.

This bird was also found at the beach, looking for food. There is also simlilar bird like this in Sibu but the one in Johor Bahru is bigger in size.

Along the walk, we spotted some fishermen selling their catch of the day. NOTE: We took the walk in the morning.

The fishermen's boats can also be spotted here.

I came across this mangosteen structure along the way. Basically it is a stall selling sweets, snacks and fruit.

About half an hour walk, we arrived at the Zon, a duty free shopping complex. The pedestrian must follow the special path to enter and leave the complex. Johor Bahru International Ferry Terminal is also here.

This is how the shopping complex inside looks like. Cigarette, beer, liquor and chocolate are cheap here as they are tax free. But be warn not to carry a bulk of this things out from the complex to Johor Bahru as the custom officer out there will tax the items. Best way is to get them in small number and keep it in the bag or backpack. Better still buy and consume them inside the complex or the duty free compound.

Well, I had a bad experience at one of the shop, operated by the Zon, selling liquor and cigaratte. The staffs there are just plain rude. So, I ended up buying nothing from there as a result of their attitude.

There is a hotel attached to the complex, The Regency Hotel. It is a beautiful hotel as we managed to tour around the hotel.

Around the duty free zone area is an impressive selection of bars, karaoke and restaurants. The square is very well constructed and pleasant looking. The night life here would have been vibrant.

The giant horse statue in front of a karaoke center.

I spotted a rather interesting sculpture, called "The Birth" at the duty free zone area.

I have no idea who is the lucky baby girl is.

Overall, our journey at Johor Bahru was satisfactory. Not much to see and do, considering the location where we were staying. Our trip to Singapore was more interesting. So, stay tune for the future post.

Around Naza Hotel Johor Bahru

As I mentioned earlier, there is nothing much around the hotel. We went around the areas and here were our findings.

This is the new CIQ complex. Basically, this is the obstruction for the people on this side to get to the city centre, which is only about 200m away. An underpass for the pedestrian to get to the other side would have been nice and convenient

The areas around Naza Hotel Johor Bahru are mainly of old shop houses. I came across this spiralling stairs. One will not see a lot of this anymore nowadays

Also come across this funny restaurant with a strange signboard. Translated to be "New food stall, then become bald". Botak means bald. I been told this restaurant is famous for the fish head asam pedas (sour and hot)

I also came across this old terrace houses and spot these cute puppies with their mother