I wouldn't go to Bali for beaches, and I'm not at all a fan of Phuket (Khao Lak is ok, but I don't feel a strong urge to go to Thailand in general). Langkawi is great, but the Datai is crazy pricey, and the Andaman regrettably burned down (was insane value on BRG). I don't think the beaches in Desaru and Penang are anything special. Kota Kinabalu town stinks, but there are decent beach options nearby. I spent a few very pleasant and quiet nights at Hyatt Kuantan, but it's not much of a nightlife destination. I don't drive in MY/TH/ID, but outside of cities MY is fine, arguably better not to be dependant on crazy bus or Grab drivers.

Have you considered Phu Quoc? Beaches can be great or awful depending on the weather/currents, but there are some spectacular and reasonable hotels there (e.g., IC, Regent). Scoot is about to start flights SIN-PQC.

Unfortunately I'm not even a Hyatt member, but cash tastes look reasonable enough. Heavily leaving towards that option.

Thanks for the input regarding driving. TBH I haven't yet compared prices of car rental vs flying (although domestic flying in MY is crazy cheap). I was thinking more about the convenience factor and perhaps the flexibility of driving through Batu Caves on the way to KL and not having to commute in/out of KLIA.

Not too worried about Kuantan being quiet. With a kid in tow, bottom shelf booze from the lounge and the occasional off-site curry will be the wildest this holiday will get. Laying by the pool and calm seas would very much fit the bill.

Will look into Phu Quoc but frankly, Kuantan is ticking a lot of boxes.

Just be aware that the waters around towns and wherever there is a river is pretty, murky. Not very inviting. Cherating was the sole exception that we noticed.

FWIW, the KUL => JHB rental for a Proton Saga or similar is MYR 1,200-1,400 all-in. If you are coming in from Singapore, you could try Mayflower which rental location is at or very close to the (original) causeway.

Batu caves is on the NW side of KL IIRC (yeah, did drive there on a previous visit en route to Cameron Highlands).

Nikoi back 10 years ago was running $1000-$2000/night. OP's budget is exactly 10x less.

As far as beach place goes, Redang and Perhentian Islands will probably fit the requirements.

I was in Kuantan several years ago in March and beaches were - let's say - not inviting.

If you are looking for something Hawaii type/scale, nothing is available in this part of the world - for development/cleanness/water/beach quality.

I was in Krabi and it was... OK. Nothing special, just ok.

I just read about your Kuantan option. The Hyatt beach is decent, not the best for really swimming but more like dipping your toes and get some salt water on your skin. The resort ground however is nice with a great pool. There are some local stuff to do if you have a car, e.g. Sungai Lembing former tin mine (they have a small cute museum and local restaurant around there with some hiking too).

If you want a better beach but it a more remote area, maybe you can drive a bit further north to Tanjong Jara Beach resort in Kuala Dungun. Whilst I haven't stayed at this resort before, the beaches in Terengganu are generally better than those in Kuantan.

I assume you've seen the hotel thread on the Hyatt forum? I wrote a lengthy review in 2019, and there are subsequent posts (some not very positive). As for not having status, Hyatt stupidly made suite and club upgrade certs freely transferrable, and there's someting called Guest of Honor, which basically gives you the same treatment a top tier elite (Globalist) would receive. These certs are sold outright in various trading groups, and for a longstanding FT member it shouldn't be difficult to obtain one in CC or by asking around (wink).

I generally agree with this sentiment. Having been to a couple hundred beach loactions in Asia, I'd say, 50% of the time our thought upon arrival was, wow, we flew 20 hours for THIS?! 30% of the time it's ok, but often not becasue of the beach, but because it's a nice hotel or local attractions. And 20% of the time, it's quite nice to amazing, but often because of a specific hotel (e.g., IC Danang, Regent PQC, Andaman/Datai Langkawi, oceanfront villa in Khao Lak) rather than the quality of the beach.

+1 for the above, also good destinations to try diving.

And now I'm heavily leaning towards the Marriott Perhentians. There's a direct flight a day JHB-KBR making this a decent option. A 5 night stay with points is 157K points. With the current promo and my small current balance works out around U$200/night.

Driving to Kuantan just to sit a couple nights at the Hyatt seems a bit less attractive now.

I've been to the Perhentians (Kecil) 25 years ago and loved the diving and laid-back backpacker vibe but not sure I'd enjoy being trapped the whole time at the Marriott? Will try the property thread.