For those not familiar, you may wonder what is at Pahang? Well, today we are going to talk about 3 main attractions here; Genting Highlands, Bukit Tinggi and Cameron Highlands. For the first day, we would be covering Genting Highlands as it is definitely a must see whenever you come to Malaysia. Want to know more about Genting Highlands? Check out our post on the 10 THINGS TO DO IN GENTING HIGHLANDS, MALAYSIA
Cameron Highlands – Pahang
Now, just a brief history on Genting Highlands for those interested. Genting Highlands is located in between the state of Pahang and Selangor with an elevation of 1,800m/5900 ft. It was established by Lim Goh Tong in 1965, with Resorts World Genting as its main attraction. Genting Highlands is place for both adults and kids to unwind with its casinos, hotels, shopping malls and theme parks. In early February 2022, the resort launched its long awaited outdoor theme park (Genting Sky Worlds) and we were thrilled to hear about it.
Genting Sky Worlds (Image credit: rwgenting)
Day 1
To get here from Kuala Lumpur you can either rent a car, take a taxi or take a bus (from KL Sentral, Pudu Sentral, 1 Utama or Terminal PUTRA LRT Gombak) It takes approximately 1 hour to drive from Kuala Lumpur to the Awana Sky Central. Bus tickets and schedule here. Since we had rented a car from our friend, we decided to drive ourselves to Awana Sky Central. Make sure to start your journey early as the traffic can get congested on the way here. You can opt to head directly to Genting Highlands (additional 1 hour journey from Awana Sky Central), or stop at Awana Sky Central and take a cable car up from there (10 minutes cable car ride).
We parked our car at Awana Sky Central
Long queue for the cable car
As we wanted a more scenic view and a faster trip we took the cable car from Awana Sky Central. Cable car tickets and schedule here. The cable car will make a stop at Chin Swee Station for those wanting to explore the Taoist temple at no extra cost. The temperature at Genting Highland ranges from 10 °C to 25 °C, so make sure to pack accordingly.
Family wefie in the cable car
Taoist temple at Chin Swee Station
Cable car scenic view (Image credits: rwgenting)
Due to time constraints, we were only able to do a day trip to Genting Highlands. We do suggest that you spend at least a day or two here if it is your first time at Genting Highlands. For us, Genting Highlands has been a favourite family destination for many years, which probably explains why we only require a day trip here.
Genting Highlands indoor theme park
Family photo
Wefie at the entrance of Genting Highlands resort
Durian the “King of Fruits”
After having lunch and exploring Skytropolis (indoor theme park), we headed to Genting’s SkyCasino to try our luck with the slot machines. We spent a few hours there and managed to win a little pocket change. Since Genting Skyworlds outdoor theme park was closed during that time, we decided to call it a day and headed back.
Let the games begin
Before heading back, we made one last pit stop at the famous durian store located at SS2 Durianman to satisfy our craving. There are many types of durians sold here, ranging from the regular old durian tree to the famous “Musang King” and “Black Thorn”. To sum it up, trip to Genting Highlands was a short but sweet one. We will definitely revisit Genting Highlands once the outdoor theme park opens and do a blog update again.
Enjoying our Musang King durian
SS2 Durian
SS2 Durian
Day 2
If you plan to spend a few nights at Genting Highlands, we do suggest that you also check out Bukit Tinggi. Bukit Tinggi also known as Berjaya Hills is a favourite spot for visitors returning from Genting Highlands as it is located only 1 hour away. To get there you can ask for the shuttle schedule at the hotel reception or just grab a taxi at the entrance. You can opt for a day trip here or even spend a night or two at the Colmar Tropicale Resort or The Chateau Spa & Organic Wellness Resort (both operated by Berjaya Hotels & Resort). Unlike Genting Highlands which is focused on casinos and theme parks, Bukit Tinggi is known for its medieval French village, Japanese gardens and European themed buildings.
Berjaya Hills (Image credit: Berjaya Hotel)
View at night (Image credit: Berjaya Hotel)
We drove up to Bukit Tinggi a bit later than usual, around 10 am since it only took us 1 hour to get there from Kuala Lumpur. When driving here or taking a taxi, make sure to set your destination as Colmar Tropicale, Berjaya Hills instead of just Bukit Tinggi. We made the mistake and just typed in Bukit Tinggi in Waze/Google Maps and it took us to one of the apartments in Bukit Tinggi. So make sure not to make the same mistake we did 😋
Colmar Tropicale
If you are not planning to drive here, why not take the Berjaya Hills resort shuttle services from Berjaya Times Square, Kuala Lumpur to Berjaya Hills resort. They do offer complimentary entrance tickets to the Japanese village, Botanical garden and Rabbit Park if you book with them, so make sure to check them out. We arrived here around 11 am and proceeded to the French inspired village, Colmar Tropicale. The resort is situated around 800m/2,700 ft, and has an average temperature of 25°C, which is just nice for a relaxing stroll.
Berjaya Hills
Entrance to Colmar Tropicale
Berjaya Hills
French café – Berjaya Hills
Berjaya Hills
Berjaya Hills
Berjaya Hills
Berjaya Hills
Once you arrive here, you will be greeted by colourful castles, French themed villages, street performances and also live bands. We spent about an hour at Colmar Tropicale before driving to the Japanese Garden which is a 5 minutes trip from the resort. You can also take the free shuttle provided by the resort to the Japanese Garden.
The first Japanese Tea House in the Tropical Forest
Berjaya Hills
Japanese Garden – Berjaya Hills
Japanese village
(Image credit: Ally Theanlyn)
The zen garden consists of a Japanese Tea House, Botanical Garden, Tatami Spa, Ume Tatami Suite and Ryo Zan Tei Restaurant. You can also join the Japanese tea ritual at the tea house, or just sit back and relax in the hot bath at the spa.
Tatami Spa
Image credit: Berjaya Hills
Since we planned for a day trip, we only managed to explore the gardens and tea house here. We also skipped the horse trail and rabbit park at the time as there was too many people lining up. For golfers there is also a challenging 18-hole golf course awaiting you at the Bukit Tinggi country club.
Exploring the gardens
After we were done exploring the Japanese Garden, we decided to call it a day and headed back home. The trip to Bukit Tinggi was a nice getaway for us away from the hustle and bustle of the city. It is a place that you should visit, time permitting while you are here. Want to know more about Bukit Tinggi ? Check out our post on the 10 THINGS TO DO IN BUKIT TINGGI/BERJAYA HILLS
Day 3
For the last day, we will cover on Cameron Highlands and how to get there. From Bukit Tinggi we have a few options which should help you get there :-
1) Take the bus back to Berjaya Times Square. Then, take the (LRT) train from Hang Tuah station (10 minute walk) to Tasik Bandar Selatan (TBS station). From there hop on the bus at the station (TBS to Cameron Highlands bus tickets)
2) Similar to option 1, take the bus back to Berjaya Times Square. From there take a taxi to the TBS station and hop on the bus to Cameron Highlands.
3) If you have a car, drive yourselves to Cameron Highlands.
For us since we started our journey from Kuala Lumpur, it took us around 3 hours to reach Cameron Highlands. We started our journey early (around 7 am) to avoid the traffic jam and had our breakfast in the car to save some time.
View of Cameron Highlands tea plantation
What is Cameron Highlands ? Also known as the “little piece of England in Asia”, Cameron Highlands is well known for its tea plantation, cool weather, golf courses, spas and hotels. It is located in Pahang with its borders occupying Kelantan and Perak. With an elevation of 1,450 m/4,750 ft , the temperature here ranges from 15 °C to 25 °C. Cameron Highlands got its name from a British explorer and geologist, William Cameron whom was given the task to map the Pahang and Perak border.
Freshly grown vegetables on the side of the road
Boh Tea Centre entrance
Take note that the road up here is pretty windy, so make sure you are equipped with vomit bags and nausea tablets in case you get motion sickness. After a few hours driving, we finally arrived at the largest (465 hectares) tea plantation in Malaysia, BOH Tea Garden. Here you can join a tour of BOH’s tea factory, have a nice cup of tea at BOH Café, or if you are feeling adventurous, go on a short (10 minutes) hike to the view point. We opted to go for the hike up to BOH view point first, as we noticed the weather was looking gloomy.
Pathway leading to the hiking trail starting point
Halfway there
Finally reached the view point
Literally breath taking view
Enjoying the lush greenery
After taking dozens of photos, we went back down the trail and headed to the BOH Café for a nice cup of tea after the ‘tiring’ hike. 😂. We decided to head back to Kuala Lumpur after a quick lunch as it was starting to drizzle. The roads here are notorious for being slippery during a downpour, so make sure to be careful if you are driving here yourselves.
BOH Tea
As we made our way back to Kuala Lumpur, we made a quick stop by a bee farm. You will be able to see many bee farms along the way to Cameron Highlands so make sure to drop by if you have the time.
Sunflower taller than me
Hydroponic farming
Strawberries
Unique flower
Honeycomb
After visiting the bee farm, we managed to make our way back just in time, before the downpour started. All in all, Pahang has a lots of places to explore even though it may require some extra travelling to get here. We only managed to cover so much during our time there and will do a blog update the next time we revisit Pahang. Want to know more about Cameron Highlands ? Check out our post on the BEGINNERS GUIDE : TOP 6 ATTRACTIONS IN CAMERON HIGHLANDS, MALAYSIA
