Pulau Payar Marine Park
The Pulau Payar Marine Park is located in the northern part of the Straits of Malacca, off Kuala Kedah. It is about 20 nautical miles south of Langkawi and approximately 40 nautical miles north of Penang. Consisting of four islands, it was declared a marine park in 1985. Pulau Payar, together with smaller islands of Pulau Kaca, Lembu and Segantang form of the park. It was the first marine park to be established off the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia and studied by WWF have documented 36 genera of hard coral, 92 other marine invertebrates and 45 genera of fish species. 
For most tourist, a day trip to the park is the only option. It can be accessed by boat from jetties in Kuah on Langkawi Island (one hour), Kuala Kedah on the mainland (1 hour 40 minutes), Kuala Perlis (45 minutes) and from Penang (75 minutes). The best times to visit the park are from October to March although it can be visited throughout the year. At Payar there are four beaches sloping off with hard corals to depths of 10m to 15m. Rocky shores and bays with depths averaging 15m to 20. offer lots of soft corals and anemones. The southwestern end of the island is home to some beautiful coral gardens with lots of soft multi-hued corals. Sea ferns, sea squirts, feather starfish, anemones, rainbow runners and ghost fish are also very common. 
Payar also has a visitors' center, hiking trails, gazebos, barbecue pits and restroom facilities. Those who do not dive or snorkel can still view the spectacular underwater domain from Malaysia's first and only underwater observation chamber. Your hotel or local tour operator will be able to arrange the day trip for you. Except for staff of the Fisheries Department, no one else lives on the island of Payar. There is no accommodation for visitors on the islands.
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