Latest Update 03 February 2013

We have just crossed the South China Sea from Borneo and are now relaxing in Danga Bay Marina, Johor.  Thought we would send you the notes below in relation to Sebana Cove – we stayed there just before coming here.

The marina is empty apart from half a dozen unattended boats. The pontoons close to the resort are in reasonable condition but further out they are in desperate need of maintenance. The resort itself is partially closed.  Most of the resort is sadly in disrepair, including ceilings collapsing, rotten timbers/walls, closed off sections, building materials are strewn around.

When contacting the marina, we used our phone as the VHF was not responded to but, there were so many berths we could have just tied up and then visited the marina office (which is, in fact, the lobby of the hotel).

Facilities

• There is a restaurant (reputedly expensive), bar, and swimming pool that looked enticing. Laundry services were offered at $7rm/kg.
• The free wifi was the best we have used.  Fast and accessed from the boat.
• There is a shuttle to the nearby village which costs $10rm/pp/return.  Apparently, basic shopping could be done in the village. The shuttle operates Tuesdays and Thursdays only. Otherwise, taxis are the only form of transport available. We were advised by the Marina Manager that rental cars were unavailable.
• Fuel is unavailable at the marina, but there is a refuelling barge down the river, close to the river mouth.

Marina rental rates are variable but for a 40ft monohull, the rate was $45rm/day, plus electricity at tariffed rates (50 sen/kWh ) and water at $8rm/1000 litres.

The Marina Manager is welcoming.  He offers to undertake immigration/customs/harbour master paperwork/attendances but charges $80rm – mentions this ‘after the fact’.  In any event, it appeared to be negotiable.  Other yachties reported that some of the staff offered to help to access different repair services, but were unable to do so.

In summary, the marina is isolated, expensive (for the facilities available), lacking facilities/resources but very peaceful and scenic. Fine for somewhere to get away from it all, but not much good for provisioning or repairs.

Kevin and Trish Comer

Posted 07 February 2012

Reference report on Sebana marina 7-12-2011 on Noonsite. The pontoons have now been repaired, and restoration work has started on the walkways.

Terry Penton-Ford

Posted December 12, 2011

The initial approach from the Johor Strait should be carefully planned by skippers of deep draft vessels, as depths can drop to 2m in places. You can clear in and out of Malaysian CIQ directly at the marina.

Sebana Cove Marina is a beautiful location with a classic colonial style hotel and resorts with pool.

However, it has been falling into disrepair over the last 5 years since the regular ferry service from Singapore was cancelled, and should no longer be considered 5 stars. The marina and resort have had almost no maintenance work since then and care should be taken on the wooden walkways at night – some are rotten and have broken. The staff no longer monitor VHF radio calls since the VHF antenna was damaged in a storm.

Leisure and Dining

The marina restaurant is best avoided – it is relatively expensive and the food is pretty average – most of the menu is not available. Instead, hungry sailors should ask the receptionist to book a taxi to Desaru (around 60MYR) where there are some very good seafood restaurants. Desaru also has a fishing shop to replenish missing lures etc and some small shops to buy groceries.

Sebana Cove has a tennis court (nets were missing when I was there) and golf course, but on the day I visited, only 1 golf kart and 9 holes were in operation. This was not a problem as we were the only golfers that day. Service at the golf course was great, the manager came out with drinks for us halfway around. The swimming pool was a suspicious green colour and it would be advisable to avoid it until it has been cleaned.

Andy Dickens

SV Cin Cin