While many Malaysians have cancelled or postponed their travel plans overseas due to the Covid-19 coronavirus crisis, there are still many options to travel domestically and activities that one can do locally.
During the recent launch of the MYexperience booklet by Tourism Malaysia which showcases 500 niche travel packages by 109 industry players, Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi encouraged Malaysians to travel domestically.
“Travelling locally will help boost the tourism industry in our country in view of VMY2020, ” he said during the event in KL.
According to Ketapi, travelling domestically will help counter the decline in tourists from overseas due to the coronavirus outbreak as well as provide options for locals who are now unable to travel abroad.
There are 23 segments featured in the booklet, including adventure, agro tourism, angling, birdwatching, city tours and shopping, cycling, diving, ecotourism, edu tourism, food trails, spa and wellness, heritage, homestays, islands and beaches, luxury tours, meetings and incentives, mountain climbing, religious tourism, sports tourism, and weddings and honeymoons.
Here are some highlighted places you can visit and activities you can try out in Malaysia:
Cycle for culture
A good way to learn about a city’s culture and history is by going on a heritage tour. But this tour of Melaka is one with a difference – you get to cycle. Explore rural areas, including oil palm and rubber plantations, paddy fields, fishing villages, farms, cultural settlements, as well as interesting monuments on bicycle. But, don’t fret if you can’t cycle – there are walking tours too.
Head for the hills
With its cool climate and unusual flora, you might feel like you’re in New Zealand or in The Lord Of The Rings movie when you visit Gunung Irau (also known as the “mossy forest”). At 2,110m, it is the highest mountain in Cameron Highlands, Pahang. The moss grows as a parasitic plant on high altitude trees, and coupled with the cold and damp weather, mist and low-level clouds, the result is this “mossy forest”. You might see wild orchids, mushrooms and pitcher plants too. The terrain is rather muddy especially during the wetter months, and it can also get rather cold at 20ºC. A permit is required to hike here so you’ll need to hire a guide.
Longhouse stay
Live like the locals when you stay overnight in an Iban longhouse in an Orang Asli village in Sarawak. Interact with the locals and discover more about their daily life. You might also get to experience some local culture such as learning how to use a blowpipe and watching a cock-fighting demonstration.
Offshore adventure
Diving enthusiasts can explore wrecks and be enthralled by myriad marine life on a night dive at Pulau Perhentian, off Terengganu. Diving courses and equipment are provided. So are underwater photography services. Besides diving, other sea sports such as snorkelling and kayaking are also available.
For more info or to download the MyExperience booklet, visit: www.malaysia.travel/en/intl
Source: The Star Online