Perhentian Islands

Perhentian Islands (Pulau Perhentian in Malay) lie approximately 10 nautical miles (19 km) off the northeastern coast of West Malaysia in the state of Terengganu.

The two main islands are Perhentian Besar ("Large Perhentian") and Perhentian Kecil ("Small Perhentian"). The small, uninhabited islands of Susu Dara (Virgin Milk), Serengeh and Rawa lie off Kecil.

Like Besut, people here generally speak Kelantanese Malay, however English is widely spoken and understood to accommodate the growing tourism market. The Perhentian Islands have become a popular travel destination for families and backpackers alike due to the many lodging options that accommodate almost any budget.

Nature tourism provides the economic base for the islands. Both the islands have palm-fringed white coral sand beaches (that can be tough on the feet) and turquoise blue sea. Popular tourist activities include scuba-diving, snorkeling, and swimming. On most beaches, the water is shallow with many rays, cuttlefish and parrotfish. For diving, there are dozens of dive sites around both main islands, as well as several off-shore sites. Apart from these, activities like camping, canoeing, fishing, jungle trekking, and banana boat riding are also available. 

As for accommodation, most of it can be found on Perhentian Besar, the larger island. Hotels are usually aimed at budget travelers. A rise in tourism in Kuala Besar has led to the expansion of many different resorts and many options for snorkelers and divers alike. It is possible to get PADI certified at various locations and take advantage of the various wrecks and coral reefs.. The Perhentian islands are home to numerous different species of monitor lizards, poisonous spiders, and geckos. In the water and on the coral reefs, sea turtles, clownfish, cuttlefish, blue spotted rays, and black tipped sharks swim freely among many others.

Sarawak Cultural Village

Known as the 'Living Museum', the Cultural Village was set up to preserve and showcase Sarawak's cultural heritage. Located at Pantai Damai, Santubong, just 32km from the state capital, Kuching, it is the perfect place to get introduced to local culture and lifestyle. 

Sprawled across 17 acres, there are about 150 people living in the village, demonstrating traditional daily activities from Sarawak's diverse tribes like the processing of sago and the making of handicrafts. They wear traditional costumes and also put on dances for visitors. 

The village residents provide information on their various traditional cultures and lifestyles. You can see replicas of buildings that represent every major ethnic group in Sarawak; longhouses of the Iban, Bidayuh and Orang Ulu, a Melanau tall-house and a Chinese farm house among others. 

The village also has a theatre, where you can enjoy multicultural dance performances. Besides this, there is a restaurant and handicraft shop. You can even get married at the Sarawak Cultural Village, in traditional Iban, Malay, Bidayuh or Orang Ulu style. 

The Iban longhouse has separate rooms placed side by side, all of which open to a long communal hall, used for leisurely activities like wood carving and basket weaving. 

Pulau Payar Marine Park, Langkawi

The sprinkling of jade green islands that make up Pulau Payar lie just 30km south- east of Langkawi. From here, it is a 1-hour boat ride out to the best marine park on Malaysia's West Coast, making it an ideal choice for a day outing.

This well-preserved, uninhabited marine park extends over a number of islands, with Pulau Payar being the largest. Your base out here is the floating platform moored off Pulau Payar. But the real attraction of this platform lies below sea level.

Step into the underwater observation chamber to view the marine life surrounding a reef. Want to get even closer to the swirl of fishes that make these corals their home? Grab a mask, a snorkel and fins and join the spectacle!

If you’re into scuba diving, the best diving is along the reef system that skirts the south, east and west of Pulau Payar. Please check with your dive operator what the visibility is while you’re there, as conditions vary.

There is no accommodation in Pulau Payar as it is a marine park, but Langkawi, with all its fine resorts and restaurants, is just a speedy boat-ride away.

Cameron Highlands

The Cameron Highlands (Malay: ''Tanah Tinggi Cameron'') is one of Malaysia’s most extensive hill stations. The size of Singapore, it occupies an area of 712 square kilometres (275 sq mi). To the north, its boundary touches that of Kelantan; to the west, it shares part of its border with Perak.
Situated at the northwestern tip of Pahang, the “Camerons” is approximately 90 kilometres (56 mi) from Ipoh or about 200 kilometres (120 mi) from Kuala Lumpur. It is the smallest constituency in Pahang.

Discovered by Sir William Cameron in 1885, the outpost consists of three districts, namely Ringlet (5,165 hectares), Tanah Rata (2,081 hectares) and Ulu Telom (63,981 hectares). Its eight sub-districts are Ringlet, Tanah Rata (the administrative centre), Brinchang, the Bertam Valley, Kea Farm, Tringkap, Kuala Terla and Kampung Raja. All are nestled at elevations ranging from 1,100 metres (3,600 ft) to 1,600 metres (5,200 ft) above sea level.
The mean annual temperature of the retreat is about 18 °C (64 °F). During the day, the temperature seldom rises over 25 °C (77 °F); at night, it rarely drops to as low as 9 °C (48 °F) only at the higher reaches.^[2]

The resort has a diverse population of more than 38,000 people. It comprises Bumiputeras (Malay (7,321); others (5,668)), Chinese (13,099), Indians (6,988), non-Malaysian citizens (5,193), and other nationalities (202).^[3] Most of the residents here are entrepreneurs, service industry employees, farm workers, retirees or government servants. The languages spoken are Malay, Mandarin, Tamil and English. Islam, Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism, Christianity and Sikhism are the main religions of the haven.

Developed in the 1930s, the tableland is one of the oldest tourist spots in Malaysia. Apart from its tea estates, the plateau is also noted for its cool weather, orchards, nurseries, farmlands, waterfalls, rivers, lakes, wildlife, mossy forest, golf course, hotels, places of worship, bungalows, Land Rovers, museum and its aborigines (Orang Asli).
The Cameron Highlands can be accessed by road via Tapah, Simpang Pulai, Gua Musang or Sungai Koyan. Tapah and Simpang Pulai are the two approaches from Perak. Gua Musang and Sungai Koyan are the entryways from Kelantan and Pahang, respectively.

Kellie's Castle

Kellie's Castle (sometimes also called Kellie's Folly) is located near Batu Gajah, and is about 20 minutes' drive from Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia. The unfinished, ruined mansion, was built by a Scottish planter named William Kellie Smith. According to differing accounts, it was either a gift for his wife or a home for his son.

History
William Kellie Smith (1870 - 1926) ^[1] was born in 1870 in Kellas, Moray Firth, Scotland. In 1890, at the age of 20, he arrived in Malaya as a Civil Engineer. He joined Charles Alma Baker's survey firm, who had won concessions from the state government to clear 9000 hectares of forests in Batu Gajah, Perak. With the substantial profits made from his business venture with Baker, Smith bought 1000 acres of jungle land in the district of Kinta and started planting rubber trees and dabbled in the tin mining industry.

In time, he named his estate Kinta Kellas after his home farm "Easter Kellas" and went on to own the Kinta Kellas Tin Dredging Company as well.With his fortune made, he returned home to marry his Scottish sweetheart, Agnes, and brought her over to Malaya in 1903. They had a daughter named Helen the next year.

In 1909 Smith built his first mansion, "Kellas House" and in 1915 with the birth of his son and heir Anthony he started planning for a huge castle with Scottish, Moorish and Indian architecture. He brought in 70 craftsmen from Madras India. All the bricks and marble were imported from India, too. Included in the plan for the 6 storey tower was Malaya's first elevator, an indoor tennis court and a rooftop courtyard for entertaining.

Pangkor Island

Pangkor Island (locally Pulau Pangkor) is a resort island off the coast of Perak, Malaysia. It has a population of approximately 25,000. Nearby islands include Pangkor Laut Island, Talang Island,^[1] Giam Island (Pulau Giam) and Mentagor Island (Pulau Mentagor). Major industries of the island are tourism and fishing.

Historically, Pangkor was a refuge for local fishermen, merchants and pirates. In the 17th century, the Dutch built a fort in an effort to control the Perak tin trade known as the Dutch Fort. In 1874, it was the location of a historical treaty between the British government and a contender for the Perak throne (The Pangkor Treaty), which began the British colonial domination of the Malay Peninsula. The old British name for the Pangkor Island group was the Dindings.^[3]

In 2003, Marina Island (a man-made island) was developed by the Marina Island Group of companies and began operation in 2010, with private investment of RM250million by 2013.^{[citation needed]} The integrated mixed development resort island consists of waterfront residential properties, a new jetty called Marina Island Jetty, a private commercial marina called Pangkor Marina Malaysia, service apartments, hotels and shop offices.

2004-2014 was a period of high growth and development for the island and the surrounding district.^[4] In 2006, a biotechnology centre, a joint venture of Global Hi-Q Malaysia S/B and Hi-Q Bio-Tech International (Taiwan) Ltd began operations with initial investments of RM100million (USD30m). Their operations include fish farming and aquaculture, and the first harvest was expected in 2009.

Redang Island

Redang Island, locally known as Pulau Redang or just "Redang" is one of the largest islands off the east coast of Malaysia. It is one of nine islands, which form a marine park, and which offer snorkeling and diving opportunities. Access is from Merang or Kuala Terengganu on boats operated by the resorts. Redang Airport is a small airport with services operated by Berjaya Air from Singapore (Changi Airport) and Kuala Lumpur (Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport).

The island is also an important conservation site for sea turtles. Previously, the indiscriminate economic exploitation of turtle eggs had caused fewer turtles returning to nest on the island. This has led the Terengganu state government to set up the Koperasi Setiajaya Pulau Redang in 1989, a cooperative aiming to develop and manage socio-economic programmes that could improve the livelihood of Pulau Redang locals without endangering its natural resources.^{[citation needed]}

The Pulau Redang archipelago comprises Pulau Redang, Pulau Lima, Pulau Paku Besar, Pulau Paku Kecil, Pulau Kerengga Kecil, Pulau Kerengga Besar, Pulau Ekor Tebu, Pulau Ling and Pulau Pinang. Pulau Redang is the biggest of all the islands in the Marine Park, measuring about 7 km long and 6 km wide. Its highest peak is Bukit Besar at 359 metres above sea level.

The boundary of the Pulau Redang Marine Park is established by a line linking all points 2 nautical miles (3.7 km) from the shores of Pulau Redang, Pulau Lima, Pulau Ekor Tebu and Pulau Pinang. The other nearby islands of Pulau Perhentian Besar, Pulau Perhentian Kecil, Pulau Lang Tengah, Pulau Kapas and Pulau Susu Dara are also gazetted and protected as Marine Parks. Today, only the bigger islands like Redang, Lang Tengah, Perhentian and Kapas have resort facilities for visitors. The management of Marine Parks primarily involves protection of the sensitive marine and terrestrial ecosystems by controlling the impact from human activities. These include waste & pollution management and conservation of coral reefs and terrestrial habitats.

The 2000 film, Summer Holiday was filmed on the Laguna Redang resort, and a replica of the tea house now serves as the resort's gift shop.