Fireflies Tour in Cherating
4.5
Lowest price guaranteeReserve now & pay laterFree cancellation
from per adult
$15.50
Ages 2-80, max of 60 per group
Duration: 50–60 minutes
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
English
- Entrance ticket and lifejacket
What's not included- Transportation to/from attractions
- Departure details
- Jalan Kampung Cherating Lama, Kampung Cherating, 26080 Balok, Pahang, Malaysia Take the road of cherating beach and you will found our big bord of cherating fire fly and the parking of our place.
Return details- Returns to original departure point
- Not wheelchair accessible
If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 7694P1- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Children must be accompanied by an adult
- Most travelers can participate
- This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 60 travelers
- For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience.
- How much is Fireflies Tour in Cherating?
- Fireflies Tour in Cherating price starts from $15.50. Discover and book Fireflies Tour in Cherating on Tripadvisor
- What is the Fireflies Tour in Cherating cancellation policy?
- Fireflies Tour in Cherating cancellation policy: For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours in advance of the start date of the experience. Discover and book Fireflies Tour in Cherating on Tripadvisor
- Which company provides Fireflies Tour in Cherating?
- Fireflies Tour in Cherating is hosted by Cherating Fire Fly. Read reviews, discover additonal experiences or contact Cherating Fire Fly on Tripadvisor. Discover and book Fireflies Tour in Cherating on Tripadvisor
- How much time do I need for Fireflies Tour in Cherating?
- On average, this experience will take approximately 50m. Discover and book Fireflies Tour in Cherating on Tripadvisor
- If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 7694P1
Reserve your spot
from $15.50
Itinerary
- You'll start atJalan Kampung Cherating LamaJalan Kampung Cherating Lama, Kampung Cherating, 26080 Balok, Pahang, MalaysiaTake the road of cherating beach and you will found our big bord of cherating fire fly and the parking of our place.See address & details
- 1Cherating RiverStop: 20 minutesBefore embarking on the boat, you will have a briefing about fireflies and our safety measures. You will then take the river cruise at about 8pm, when it's pretty dark. You will travel down the river and the leader will shine his torch towards the trees and with that 100's of fireflies will slowly fly towards the boat. The leader will also share with you all about the behavior of fireflies, watching the little lights glide across the water to the boat is almost mystical. Join this tour and have a wonderful night with your family and kids!Read more
- You'll return to the starting point
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About the operator
Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator.
malaysianconnie
00Cherating Fire Fly whisperer
We booked a nite fire fly tour with Hafiz and was pleasantly suprised by his ability to call the fireflies to come…
lunarJade
00Keep your eyes peeled for wildlife
Cherating is not all about the beach. We went for a 1 1/2-hour mangrove river cruise with Hafiz's Cherating Activit…
MikeSealey
00Magical experience
A truly magical experience. The guide found so many fireflies along the river. Peaceful and tranquil.
Scooter2319
00DANGEROUS AND UNINSURED BUSINESS
My wife and I rented a kayak from Hafiz and after one hour of paddling, the kayak took in water and the kayak sank.…
Carfield
00Very good experience
For family who lives in the city and can't see the fire flies. This is indeed a must go tour. Along the mangrove ri…
Jamescmurray
00A magical experience
We did both the firefly and the turtle tour which were both excellent. The fireflies began with an introduction fro…
clare2901
00Wonderful trip
This was a wonderful trip. Hazif is clearly very passionate about the fireflies and their conservation, it was unbe…
Mokciknab
00Magical Experience
We take a boat into the dark recesses of the mangrove forest, and once we leave civilization and light pollution be…
JulianneH43
00A great experience
Highly recommend it was fantastic to hear the guide who by the use of torches gets them to fly to the boat.
Bernard C
00Magical
Being surrounded by firefly called on demand by the tour in the middle of a very dark night on a boat is surreal. N…
Sineadceinwen
00Magical
We loved seeing all the fireflies! It really was magical and exciting. They could make this tour better by actually…
JasLeeSH
00Romantic experience
We joined Hafiz’s Cherating fire fly tour to c this amazing fire fly. The tour is very well organize n informative…
Scott M
00Very enjoyable
A great couples experience. A brief talk before the boat ride to explain what we are going to see and to raise awar…
Michelle K
00A Must-Do Amazing Experience
The Cherating Firefly experience started with a briefing given by Mr Hafiz himself. He explained to us the things h…
Taajo_cz
00Nice tour to see fireflies but not magical
We were prepared to see other tourists and share the trip with other boats, so we enjoyed anyway this trip and we s…
Contribute
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions
4.5
39 reviews
Excellent
26
Very good
7
Average
4
Poor
0
Terrible
2
Dr Shawn Paul
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia63 contributions
Aug 2020
We booked through whatsapp via their number in Facebook. It was RM45 per person
The waiting area was well lit up, air conditioned, alot of parking available and toilets.
Hafiz gave us a 20 minute intro to fireflies, how the male and females light up differently. He is a very charismatic person!
Then we got into the boats, very well maintained boats, life jackets and boarding platform.
Don't worry if you arent in the same boat as Hafiz, as he will call the fireflies to every boat! We managed to get a few fireflies to land on our fingers and it was truly a magical feeling when he calls them towards the boat.
Even though it was dark, we felt very safe during the entire tour, so do book it without hesitation!
The waiting area was well lit up, air conditioned, alot of parking available and toilets.
Hafiz gave us a 20 minute intro to fireflies, how the male and females light up differently. He is a very charismatic person!
Then we got into the boats, very well maintained boats, life jackets and boarding platform.
Don't worry if you arent in the same boat as Hafiz, as he will call the fireflies to every boat! We managed to get a few fireflies to land on our fingers and it was truly a magical feeling when he calls them towards the boat.
Even though it was dark, we felt very safe during the entire tour, so do book it without hesitation!
Written August 3, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Vickie S
19 contributions
We did the tour with our 4 year old daughter. We all had an amazing time. Hafiz was a fantastic guide. He was able to call the fireflies over to the boat using his specially designed torch and by calling to them. It was amazing. We have seen the fireflies in Kuala Selangor and, although there were more to be seen in the trees there, they didn’t fly around the boats like Hafiz made these ones do. It was amazing seeing them suddenly all fly out of the trees towards our boat. Hafiz was so good with our daughter too and allowed her to see the fireflies closeup. Definitely worth a visit if you are in Cherating. We are doing 2 other tours now with Hafiz.
Written July 19, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ymt888
Petaling Jaya, Malaysia1,890 contributions
Mar 2019
I have been to see fireflies i Kuala Selangor and didn't really think much about joining this tour since I thought that I do already know what there is to expect. But I must say that it was a wonderful experience that is not to be missed.Before the tour starts, we were put into a briefing room where Mr Hafiz explained about fireflies and he told us that he could summon the fireflies to him with a special technique. I was totally amazed when he actually did so. He seemed to have done a lot of research on fireflies and his tour is really enchanting. Absolutely Worth the time and money!
Written February 11, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CheratingFireFly
Thanks for your kind words about our Guide Mr Hafiz, who did a lot of research to share his passion to nature lovers...
Glad you enjoyed it much ! do not miss our Mangrove Tour day Time to see the beauty of our fauna and flora.
Written July 9, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Sally K
2 contributions
Sep 2020 • Friends
Me and my friends booked the Firefly tour yesterday. Thanks Irman, a friendly staff from Club Med Cherating who arranged the tour for us. Overall, the tour is still worth a visit for first timer to experience the magical night. But, I was so disappointed to see the organizer who did not put his mask on during the briefing session. A sensitive time like this with the covid19 cases is piling up, everybody should play their part, protect themself and the ppl around! So, Pls put your mask on!
Written September 27, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Elizabeth P
3 contributions
The passion of the operator of this tour for the fireflies is contagious. Wo derful tour being one with nature. Highly recommended. This was our second time doing this tour and just as good the second time,five years later.
Written July 4, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
s_explorers
23 contributions
We did the first tour with Hafiz in 2012, and we found it a fantastic experience for everyone visiting Cherating. Watching the behavior of the fireflies and learning about their uniqueness in the hundreds / thousands of species is really great.
Hafiz has come a very long way but his passion and involvement continues to be the same. Really committed to preserve the environment and ecology of the mangrove while providing an educational point to the visitors.
Don’t miss it!
Hafiz has come a very long way but his passion and involvement continues to be the same. Really committed to preserve the environment and ecology of the mangrove while providing an educational point to the visitors.
Don’t miss it!
Written August 14, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
T Wong
Leeds, UK79 contributions
Jul 2020 • Couples
It was fantastic out on the boats to see the fireflies. Mr. Hafiz is very knowledgeable and provides a lot of information about the fireflies themselves, including the chemical that causes them to light up! You will get up close and personal to the fireflies and it is very tranquil out on the river at night seeing the stars as well. I would highly recommend doing this tour while you are in Cherating.
Written July 8, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CheratingFireFly
Thanks Tasha for your kind review !
We are very happy that you enjoyed our firefly tour !
do not hesitate to join our Ceclo Boat tour during day time, it's our new electric boat, very quiet and peacefull way to discover the beauty of mangrove fauna and flora.
Written July 9, 2020
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Samantha C
7 contributions
Feb 2018 • Family
I was on the firefly watching tour two weeks ago, I hope they will stop this practice of luring fireflies from their safe habitat to boats just so tourists can touch or catch them, I believe this is directly causing the decrease in numbers of fireflies in the wild. They fly across the river when they saw the signal and by the time they realised its not another fireflies waiting to mate, and wanting to fly back they are exhausted and fell into river eaten by fish. If you are planning on going to this tour and care about the wild, share your opinion with the owner. I'm sure we can still watch them from far.. As a business, I'm sure they will want to preserve this natural wonder too so that they can continue this tourism business for longer period of time, please respect the fireflies spaces and right to live. Thank you.
Written March 1, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dear Samantha,
Thanks for your comment taken into consideration. The tour we offer are first for educational reason, we are trying to sensitize people about the mangrove and the risk of deforestation and its devastating effects on our nature. If no more forests and mangroves, fireflies will disappear, so we are trying our best to share with our visitors.
As you probably noticed during our briefing, we also request our guest not to touch or catch our friendly fireflies but we cannot act like police during the tour.. so everyone should act responsibly. Hope to welcome you again, and thanks for your visit.
Your Cherating Fire Fly's Team
Written April 16, 2018
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
PappanMajumdar
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia260 contributions
Apr 2019 • Family
The company name is Hafiz Activities Cherating. And yes, it is owned by a very interesting gentleman Hafiz. It's his show. It's his magic and its wonderful. Everything about this tour is flawless and worthwhile.
Firstly, its night time. Secondly, you go on boats in stark darkness. And finally, you get the most magical experience of seeing thousands of fireflies and Hafiz with his special technique makes the fireflies come towards you from their home in the mangrove trees. All these things make this really unique and worthwhile.
A little bit about Hafiz. He will first enter at the orientation hall like a Bollywood hero. And then he will give a fascinating short briefing on the tour with aggressive hand movements and funny stories. So, very interesting. Then he will take you for the tour. Yes, he not only comes for the tour, but actually operates 1 out of the 4 boats. And then he does magic. He has few torch lights (if I remember correctly 4) which emit different kinds of light. The light will appear red. But as per Hafiz it is not red. Also, these are made by Hafiz himself as in from his own experience he has made these lights which emit a kind of light and in that intensity which creates magic. And the magic is this. You are sitting in stark darkness in the boat in the mangrove river and you can see the fireflies all around on the mangrove trees. But they are sitting in the trees. All the boats are still and quiet (engines shut off). And then Hafiz takes out his magic torches and starts flashing them in a particular fashion and my god, like magic, the fireflies start going towards him and therefore will come all over the boats. Some may even sit on you. Some you can just gently cusp in your hands and see them emitting their chemically reacting lights. Wow, simply breathtaking. And Hafiz is the magician. Not only that he does the tour in flawless and effective manner. The arrangements are top class. The briefing, the jetty, the boats, everything is so well organized. Truly worth every penny you spend.
Few observations/tips:
- On google maps, you will find the place as Hafiz activities. Easy to find the place though Waze or Google Maps. Also, Cherating is a small place so wont be more than 5-15 minutes from wherever you are staying.
- The tour starts at sharp 7.30 pm. You are advised to reach at 7.15 pm and you can spend some time at the briefing/waiting hall and go through all the valuable information on fireflies and mangrove.
- There is enough parking space for cars, buses. So, not need to fret on that.
- There is a air conditioned waiting / briefing hall. This has information all over on the walls on mangroves and fireflies. Very valuable information about how fragile our ecosystem is and how we should be responsible global citizens in protecting nature.
- Hafiz does a 5 minutes briefing at 7.30 pm sharp. Please listen to him carefully.
- Post briefing you are given your life vests and then taken to the jetty. Then they call out each group by name and tell you to proceed to the jetty which is a very nicely organized jetty made of floating boxes with 4 slots which has 4 boats. Each boat can seat around 30 people. There are 10-12 rows of 3 seats in a row.
- Each boat is handled by a person who sits behind. Hafiz is the commander of a particular boat. Don't feel bad if you are not on his boat. Doesn't make a difference as everybody gets to experience the fireflies.
- Then the boat move briskly in the dark. And hats off to the pilots who command the boats. In all the darkness, the 4 boats will go next to each other. But, not even once will they touch each other. The hallmark of a well orchestrated show.
- Hafiz will ensure that each boat gets to experience the fireflies properly. By turn.
- You will get to experience the fireflies coming to you at least 4-5 times. So, just sit back and enjoy each one. You cannot get enough.
- For God's sake please don't grasp the fireflies or hurt them in any ways. Be very careful when you hold them in your hands. Please don't hurt them. They are too beautiful to be hurt.
- For God's sake please forget your cellphones and enjoy the spectacle with your eyes for once. Anyways, Hafiz makes it very clear not to use the phones to click pictures and everybody obeys. The situation is such that you will not feel like taking out your phones.
- The office area also has a cafe which has basic stuff like cold drinks, water, etc. Also, few local merchandise which is nothing special.
- The tour takes 1 hour exactly. So, by 8.30 pm you are back.
- You don't need to be worried about mosquitoes. At the beginning we saw lot of people applying mosquito repellents. But, trust me they are not required. Because when you are on the mangrove river in the dark, there are no mosquitoes.
- The boats go under a low level bridge which is also quite amusing. You are sitting and the bridge just goes very near your head. You can touch with your hands! Please don't stand up because you will get big time hit by the low level road bridge going above the river.
- We booked through Trip Advisor and through their company, Viator. For 4 of us, it costed RM 250. So, it is RM 62.5 each. Am sure you can book directly with Hafiz also but have no idea what the price is. Will be a good idea to check and see which one is cheaper.
- We booked in advance. But, the phone number given by TA/Viator of Hafiz Activities on the voucher is WRONG!! TA/Viator please make a note of this. So, I got the right number from Google.
That's it. Have nothing more to say except that YOU MUST EXPERIENCE THIS!!!
Firstly, its night time. Secondly, you go on boats in stark darkness. And finally, you get the most magical experience of seeing thousands of fireflies and Hafiz with his special technique makes the fireflies come towards you from their home in the mangrove trees. All these things make this really unique and worthwhile.
A little bit about Hafiz. He will first enter at the orientation hall like a Bollywood hero. And then he will give a fascinating short briefing on the tour with aggressive hand movements and funny stories. So, very interesting. Then he will take you for the tour. Yes, he not only comes for the tour, but actually operates 1 out of the 4 boats. And then he does magic. He has few torch lights (if I remember correctly 4) which emit different kinds of light. The light will appear red. But as per Hafiz it is not red. Also, these are made by Hafiz himself as in from his own experience he has made these lights which emit a kind of light and in that intensity which creates magic. And the magic is this. You are sitting in stark darkness in the boat in the mangrove river and you can see the fireflies all around on the mangrove trees. But they are sitting in the trees. All the boats are still and quiet (engines shut off). And then Hafiz takes out his magic torches and starts flashing them in a particular fashion and my god, like magic, the fireflies start going towards him and therefore will come all over the boats. Some may even sit on you. Some you can just gently cusp in your hands and see them emitting their chemically reacting lights. Wow, simply breathtaking. And Hafiz is the magician. Not only that he does the tour in flawless and effective manner. The arrangements are top class. The briefing, the jetty, the boats, everything is so well organized. Truly worth every penny you spend.
Few observations/tips:
- On google maps, you will find the place as Hafiz activities. Easy to find the place though Waze or Google Maps. Also, Cherating is a small place so wont be more than 5-15 minutes from wherever you are staying.
- The tour starts at sharp 7.30 pm. You are advised to reach at 7.15 pm and you can spend some time at the briefing/waiting hall and go through all the valuable information on fireflies and mangrove.
- There is enough parking space for cars, buses. So, not need to fret on that.
- There is a air conditioned waiting / briefing hall. This has information all over on the walls on mangroves and fireflies. Very valuable information about how fragile our ecosystem is and how we should be responsible global citizens in protecting nature.
- Hafiz does a 5 minutes briefing at 7.30 pm sharp. Please listen to him carefully.
- Post briefing you are given your life vests and then taken to the jetty. Then they call out each group by name and tell you to proceed to the jetty which is a very nicely organized jetty made of floating boxes with 4 slots which has 4 boats. Each boat can seat around 30 people. There are 10-12 rows of 3 seats in a row.
- Each boat is handled by a person who sits behind. Hafiz is the commander of a particular boat. Don't feel bad if you are not on his boat. Doesn't make a difference as everybody gets to experience the fireflies.
- Then the boat move briskly in the dark. And hats off to the pilots who command the boats. In all the darkness, the 4 boats will go next to each other. But, not even once will they touch each other. The hallmark of a well orchestrated show.
- Hafiz will ensure that each boat gets to experience the fireflies properly. By turn.
- You will get to experience the fireflies coming to you at least 4-5 times. So, just sit back and enjoy each one. You cannot get enough.
- For God's sake please don't grasp the fireflies or hurt them in any ways. Be very careful when you hold them in your hands. Please don't hurt them. They are too beautiful to be hurt.
- For God's sake please forget your cellphones and enjoy the spectacle with your eyes for once. Anyways, Hafiz makes it very clear not to use the phones to click pictures and everybody obeys. The situation is such that you will not feel like taking out your phones.
- The office area also has a cafe which has basic stuff like cold drinks, water, etc. Also, few local merchandise which is nothing special.
- The tour takes 1 hour exactly. So, by 8.30 pm you are back.
- You don't need to be worried about mosquitoes. At the beginning we saw lot of people applying mosquito repellents. But, trust me they are not required. Because when you are on the mangrove river in the dark, there are no mosquitoes.
- The boats go under a low level bridge which is also quite amusing. You are sitting and the bridge just goes very near your head. You can touch with your hands! Please don't stand up because you will get big time hit by the low level road bridge going above the river.
- We booked through Trip Advisor and through their company, Viator. For 4 of us, it costed RM 250. So, it is RM 62.5 each. Am sure you can book directly with Hafiz also but have no idea what the price is. Will be a good idea to check and see which one is cheaper.
- We booked in advance. But, the phone number given by TA/Viator of Hafiz Activities on the voucher is WRONG!! TA/Viator please make a note of this. So, I got the right number from Google.
That's it. Have nothing more to say except that YOU MUST EXPERIENCE THIS!!!
Written April 17, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Roxanne
1 contribution
Nov 2019 • Couples
Hafiz’s Cherating Activities knowingly rents out damaged kayaks. Our kayak suddenly took on water and sank in the mangrove river. We floated in the river for about 500 meters before finding a place to land and get help. Hafiz admitted that he was Previously aware that the kayak was not water worthy and has refused to compensate us for our losses. Hafiz also advised us that his business is under insured. His blatant disregard for the safety of his customers is alarming and likely to extend to his fleet of firefly tour boats. Please exercise extreme caution if considering going on a tour or renting equipment.
Written November 9, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
CheratingFireFly
Dear Roxanne,
Thank you for your message, I will reply same as I did yesterday to your husband. We refuse to fall into the threat and ask you to stop continuing to smear our reputation.
Your have asked for 3400 MYR=800USD or you would write bad comments to break our business.
We refuse any financial blackmail.
You told us that if within 24 hours you didn’t have that amount you would undermine our online reputation and call all the hotels, which you did.
For your information our Public Liability Insurance is in good standing and up to date but does not cover material losses. (camera, telephone or wall.
We dont accept any financial blackmail, our reputation is already solid thanks to excellent Customer feedbacks.
Angel
Customer Service
Written November 11, 2019
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
We are planning to visit Cherating on Hari Raya Holiday.
Is it available on Hari Raya Holiday?
576wendyn
Hong Kong, China102 contributions
Hi, I can't find the exact assemble point of the trip. It just stated Cherating Beach Village and I can't find it in Google Map. Do you know the details of the trip?
Just find the tanjung inn..the fireflies jetty is just opposite it
576wendyn
Hong Kong, China102 contributions
Hi, I cannot find the exact assemble point of the trip, where would it be?
Sungai Lembing, Pahang 26200, Malaysia I stay at this location is it far from the meeting point
Karine Q
2 contributions
Bonjour,
Nous serons au club Med Cherating beach au mois de juillet 2018. Faut-il prendre un transfert pour faire l’excursions fire fly ou le départ se fait-il depuis le club ou environs. Avez-vous une idée du prix de l’excursion et du transfert? Nous souhaitons aussi faire le river cruise et la visite des mangroves
Merci et bien à vous