As an avid scuba diver, I’ve researched this quite extensively, actually.

First, most dive boats leaving for Pulau Payar Marine Park depart from Kuah—which is a mere 10 min from the St Regis. The St Regis is overwhelmingly the closest luxury resort to the Kuah harbor. The Datai is a 1 hr drive from Kuah, and both the Four Seasons and Ritz Carlton are over 30 min drive away.

Second, while you may prefer the Datai, Four Seasons, and perhaps even the Ritz Carlton, calling the St Regis a substandard luxury resort puts things into perspective for me. The St Regis looks to be hardly less of a luxury resort than any of those others mentioned. There’s a difference between preferring one hotel over another and referring to one as substandard. Especially without qualification. I must reject your assessment.

Third, I am not built to laze around a resort for more than a few days without having some sort of excursions and activities beyond the resort. If I’m going to a tropical resort location, I will want to scuba dive. If the diving is good, I’ll end up wanting to dive more. If I’m going to be in the tropics, picking a resort from which I can easily scuba dive is most certainly a big factor for me. But I still want to stay at a luxury resort.

Fourth, while some have complained about the muddy beaches at the St Regis, it turns out that similar complaints have been voiced for the Ritz Carlton and even the Four Seasons. In addition, seasonally there are jellyfish issues at the northern Langkawi beaches, including those for the Datai and Four Seasons, so those resorts also have issues at times. The St Regis beach is much less prone to any jellyfish issues. The Datai looks lovely....but doesn’t serve my interests for scuba diving in the slightest.

The St Regis clearly ticks all the boxes for me as a wonderful luxury resort option if I want to be on Langkawi as a scuba diver. And to enjoy the beaches without jellyfish. The fact that I am a fan of St Regis and have massive status with SPG is just icing on the cake.