A Full Guide to Travel Cameron Highlands, Malaysia
I actually don’t know how to start this guide. Perhaps a straightforward opening could be easier. So this post is a guide to travel to Cameron Highlands, a destination in my 5-day trip to 3 countries that I just did at the beginning of the year 2019.
About Cameron Highlands
As far as what I know, Cameron Highlands is a district in Pahang, Malaysia. Along with other subdistricts such as Ringlet, Brinchang, and Tanah Rata, all the areas formed one of the best places to visit in the country.
As well as my love for Dalat, all the cold-weather-destinations are always attractive to me. With a featured weather of a highland, Cameron Highlands focuses primarily on agriculture. Going to the area, it’s not hard to find the broad and green tea plantations, the glasshouses with many kinds of flowers, and the special environment of a highland, quiet and peaceful!
When is The Best Time to Go to Cameron Highlands?
From Apr to Sep, Cameron Highlands has the best weather with the average temperature at around 16 degrees Celsius at night and around 25 degrees Celsius in the morning. At this period, the weather is really good for any outdoor activities at day or night.
From Oct to Mar, the weather is colder with a lot of rain. I went to Cameron Highlands on the day of Jan, and I had to come back hotel early at night to avoid the cold weather. It was just approximately 8 p.m. and the sky was raining slightly.
CAMERON HIGHLANDS WEATHERHow to Go to Cameron Highlands?
Anywhere in the world, the simplest way is taking a flight from your destination to IPOH (IPH), or Sultan Azlan Shah Airport, then getting a taxi to directly go to Cameron Highlands. The taxi may cost around $35-$45 USD for nearly 90km.
By another way, you can fly to Penang Airport, then take the bus 102 to Terminal Sungai Nibong, and finally get a bus to Tanah Rata Bus Terminal. For any travelers who love to spend more time discovering around Malaysia, this route will be great! For the two buses on this route, it could cost about $15 USD. Furthermore, you can definitely see a lot of things in the country while on your way.
On my 5-day trip to 3 countries, I went to Cameron Highlands only by bus taken in Singapore. As Singapore was my starting spot, I used a carrier search engine to find a bus from the city to directly go to the highland. If you also love to discover Singapore, this may be a good choice.
Moving Around the Destinations
I actually intended to move to the attraction part. However, I just realized that this part should be written first.
In the highlands, transportation for tourists could be an issue. As there is no public transport in the area. There are only three ways to go around the spots. As far as I know, travelers who come to Cameron Highlands can wander around using taxis, motorbikes, and walking.
When I was in Brinchang, I found a taxi station in the center of the town. The other way to call a taxi is to ask the receptionist at your hotel. At the place, all the taxis have a common deal for tourists. They charge 75RM for 3 hours of service, and for 3 spots that you want to visit. It means that, even if you go to 3 places in less than 3 hours, like just 2 hours for example, their service will end, and they will take you back to your place. Therefore, taking a taxi is not an ideal choice, in my opinion. Unless you have a lot of money, and you want a safe choice for your trip.
At the hotel where I stayed, the Wan Alyasa Hotel, the receptionist told me that I could get a motorbike to travel around if I had a driver’s license. Unfortunately, it was Cameron Highlands’ election date, there were a lot of police in the towns. Hence, I only had the taxi option left. Nevertheless, I would prefer this option the most. It was not because I come from a country with a lot of motorbikes, but I could visit all the spots in the area without the limit of 3 hours or 3 places. At Cameron Highlands, you can rent a motorbike with 35RM for a half-day, 60RM for a full day (up to 10 hours), and an extra charge of 20RM until midnight.
The last option is walking. However, this one is only suitable for those who stay around the center of the towns. Furthermore, there are, of course, not so many spots to visit at the center except the restaurants, and old markets.
Cameron Highlands Attractions
I actually think of describing all the destinations brilliantly. Then my laziness forces me to list them all below, in more organized info. And I think that could be a better way for you to follow.
So at the highlands, you can:
- Be surprised by the enormous BOH Tea Plantation – not only with the verdant hills covered by the lush leaves of tea trees, but the whole process to produce one of the greatest tea in the town, or even in the country. I really don’t know how to describe my feelings at that moment. But in a really short time, I was really knocked out by the beautiful vista of nature from the finest tea shop I have ever seen. Moreover, I was pretty interested in the progress of making tea. Honestly, I’m planning to open a nice coffee and tea shop in Ho Chi Minh City. This tea manufacturing was kinda attractive to me. Perhaps, this BOH manufacturer has made the name of Cameron Highlands tea.
- Go back to the past at the Time Tunnel Museum – and immerse yourself in the past life of the locals. Indeed, this museum lets you experience the locals’ life by interacting with items and equipment. You can even have a cup of tea, or play some vintage games. In my point of view, if you carefully prepare your clothes and the stuff you carry with you, you can even turn this museum into a studio for your nice photos of the past. A black & white one could be a great idea.
- Enjoy the beauty of flowers at Lavender Gardens – any time you feel a little bit bored with the whole highlands covered by green blocks, you definitely must go to this place. Lavender Gardens has a carpet of different colors of flowers which will impress you right after you get in the entrance. I’m not an expert in flowers. However, I can see a mixing picture of purple, yellow, red, white, and green flowers has taken my eyes up to another level of enjoyment. Furthermore, you shouldn’t forget to try the lavender ice cream. Honestly, I haven’t tried the same thing before, and this one really to my food experience.
- Enchanted yourself by the colorful butterflies – at the Butterfly Farm, there are a lot of butterflies that will delight any visitors, and ready to become a fancy background for any photographer. Additionally, the farm is also home to many spiders, insects, reptiles, and even a few ducks and fishes.
- Taste the sweetness of the strawberries – at many strawberry farms of the highland. Nevertheless, I especially love the Big Red Strawberry Farm. It’s not solely because of their sweet and good strawberries, they also have a cafe shop where you can spend a few minutes relaxing while enjoying their special Chocolate Fondue. Furthermore, they have a shop with many strawberry-made products that you can buy as souvenirs for your family or friends.
- Study agriculture at Mardi’s Agro Technology Park – honestly, I didn’t visit this destination on my last trip to the highland. Nevertheless, I especially recommend this place to anyone who loves to learn about agriculture. I just feel it interesting to know more about this field nowadays. At Mardi, you can see gardens of tea, roses, and herbs growing. Also, you can buy seeds, or plants alongside a big bag of agriculture knowledge from its information center to bring home.
- Experience the spikes of the cactus.. – of course, I’m just kidding!? But you can have a look at varied cacti of different sizes, shapes, and colors which come from many places around the world at Cactus Valley or Cactus Point.
- Explore the local markets – there are many local products that you may interested in. I stayed at Brinchang, and I spent a few hours walking around the town to see things. As it was on the election date, there were not so many things for me to see except the restaurants and the street foods. Until I found the local market, where I had spent nearly my morning to discover. They had many things from local foods and stuff that I could buy as souvenirs.
- Be impressed with the all-related bee things – at the three bee farms around the area, as far as I know, including Ee Feng Gu Bee Farm, Highlands Apiary Farm, and Cameron Tringkap Bee Farm. All the farms will give visitors a detailed look at the honey production, as well as the life cycle of the most hard-working creature. As usual, the farms have honey-made products such as jars, honey-flavored stuff, or even honey soaps, and hair products to sell to visitors.
- Trekking through the Mossy Forest – at the highest peaks of the highlands. I actually didn’t go to this destination. Then later on I regretted my decision after doing a search about the destination. From what I have seen on the internet, this place would be ideal to do trekking while experiencing its beautiful nature of diverse fauna and flora. The tall trees which provide plenty of shade will support a lot of its visitors. When I was at Brinchang, the taxi driver didn’t include this place in the package. The destination is also far and wide to discover. Therefore, you should plan carefully before traveling to Mossy Forest.
Besides those, you can visit the Tour Sam Poh Temple, the main pagoda of the land. There are also several waterfalls for those who love to swim in cold weather. For example, the Thompson Falls, Parit Waterfall, or the Robinson Falls. In addition, if you are a golf enthusiast, there is an 18-hole Cameron Highlands Golf Club with a nature scenic of mountains and plantations which will satisfy all the golf lovers.
How is Cameron Highlands Food?
When I stayed in Brinchang, all I knew was the only KFC store surrounded by a lot of Chinese restaurants in the center of the town. Anyway, I pretty much enjoyed the Chinese cuisine. They had many kinds of food from noodles, rice, etc. with some traditional drinks that travelers can try.
When night came, those restaurants all had a common signature of the town, the Charcoal Steamboat hotpot. Honestly, I didn’t know if it really a special food of Cameron Highlands, but almost all the restaurants had that one. The hotpot has a special look with a tall aluminum tube heated by the burned charcoal put under the pot. When the tube is hot enough, it boils the soup then the eater can dip meats and vegetables in to use.
While exploring the land, I stopped by Tanah Rata, which seemed like a more suitable place for foreign visitors. Tanah Rata has dozens of restaurants that sell burgers, spaghetti, fast food, etc. It also has a Starbucks store and some bars. If you feel bored with Chinese cuisine, perhaps Tanah Rata could be a better place to stay.
What is the Best Accommodation at the Highlands?
I started with Airbnb to find a cozy homestay for my 1-night stay. If you have read my post about leveraging the Airbnb bonus credit, you would know that I especially prefer the platform to find travel accommodation. Nevertheless, as I didn’t plan ahead I couldn’t find a suitable one for me and my friend. I then booked a hotel room, at the Wan Alyasa Hotel, which was near the center of Brinchang, about min 5 walk away.
Honestly, I initially thought that the old town could be more fun. There I would learn more about the culture and tradition of Cameron Highlands. Moreover, the place could reach different destinations more easily. Nevertheless, I figured out that Tanah Rata was possibly a better choice with many restaurants of different kinds, alongside the bars, and Starbucks. And to move to Cameron Highlands attractions are almost required a taxi or motorbike. Anyway, we all need a nice place to stay in the highlands. If you haven’t had any idea yet, I believe the tool below may support your decision.
This article is now available online on GPSMyCity. You can free download it here to read offline and use it as a tour guide. Or you just need to upgrade with a small fee for a planned trip with destinations shown as written in the article.
IF YOU LOVE THIS CAMERON HIGHLANDS GUIDE, ‘PIN IT’ NOW!
73 Comments
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crisshex88
It is a place that I would never have considered, but the beauty is this, discovering places that are different from those in which we travel.
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Thelittlelai: Beyond limits
This guide is absolutely amazing! I love that all the important information about Cameron Highlands is all in the blog post. I haven’t been to Malaysia yet, and perhaps I will include this place in my places to visit. Thank you so much for sharing this with us.
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joancajic
This looks like such a great place to visit and have a great experience too. I love the greenery and how rich it looks.
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kittyslifestyle
Wow that place surely looks beautiful… I would love to visit once 😊👍🏼… I will share this post with my friends who are planning to visit Malaysia..
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Tara Pittman (@momknowsbest15)
This place sounds wonderful. I would love to take in the strawberries and butterflies.
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It's Danica
Great guide. I spent some time in Singapore last year and hoped to take a train to Malaysia but I didn’t have the time. I will definitely do this trek and keep your suggestions in mind.
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briezyy97
I’ve never been here but it looks so beautiful!! I’ll have to put this on my travel list.
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thevirginianymph
Such beautiful Imagery and so greatly informational. This truly was a great guide to this travel destination.
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Sarah Bailey
This looks like such a beautiful place to go and explore I have to admit Malaysia is somewhere I have never thought of going but it looks beautiful.
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Roshni
Wow the greenery there looks so lush! I love the flowers there too, so unexpected.
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Samantha
It looks so beautiful there! I wanna visit so bad! Also the good looks amazing!
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妈妈易妈妈网
隔三差五来一趟,每次都有新气象!
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Holly Lasha
Oh wow…Malaysia seems like such a lovely place to visit. I love this guide! I definitely need to put this on my bucket list of vacations!
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Brittany F
This seems like a great trip to take. Strawberry farms and cacti shopping! Lots of diverse adventures.
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Chris
Looks like a great hiking destination, and more importantly, prices are looking sweet as well. Now, I just need a ticket for Malaysia 🙂
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Alexithymia_Shubhi
The Charcoal hotspot is something I am seeing first time. I love these green lushy photos. I think this place is great for nature lovers. I had been to Malaysia but I did not know this place. Maybe, I will visit it next time.
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Lyosha Varezhkina
Malaysia sounds awesome to me as well. It is unique and amusing! you cna not go wrong with it
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Krysten (@WeirdGirlBlog)
Wow, this place looks amazing to explore. Thank you so much for sharing this with us!
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Passion Piece
I’ve never had a chance to visit Malaysia, but it looks like a wonderful place for a summer holiday! I’m putting it on my bucket list right now! 🙂
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liveloveandadventure
What a great review And I love your photos, everything is so green!! it’s definitely one of those places I have not thought about travelling to but want to add to my travel list!
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itsasweetsweetworld
A lot of my friends have visited Malaysia but I have never heard anybody mention the name of Cameron Highlands. It looks like a wonderful place to visit and I would love to try out the local cuisine, especially the Charcoal Steamboat Hotpot as it seems very interesting.
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Erin
Wow! Cameron Highlands sounds amazing!
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Gian and Sheila
Lovely place. It’s looks very much like our very own Central Cebu Highway. I bet there are great hiking trails there, right?
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Cindy Ingalls
I love how lush everything looks in Cameron. It seems like there is plenty to enjoy, from the food to the natural wonders of the highlands.
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Tom
This place is good for my next time visiting Malaysia!
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Ana Ojha
One of my girlfriends went to Malaysia last year and absolutely loved it! Your pictures speak for itself how splendid is Cameron Highlands. Would love to visit someday!
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Tadpoles And Mud Puddles
Your trip sounds amazing. So many things to do. I love that you did so much nature stuff with the farms and the hiking. And I’m sure the local market was fun. I visited a few local markets when I was living in China it’s one of my favorite places to go.
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Kevin | Caffeinated Excursions
Thank you for sharing this and opening my eyes to a region I’ve never heard of before! It looks like there is so much to see and do here, and all of it seems to have a bit of a nature theme with the flowers, butterflies, and tea plantation. The food also looks so delicious, including that interesting hot pot!
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Swathi
Thank for sharing the information about Cameron highlands looks beautiful. When I plan a trip for Malaysia sure I will try to visit this place . Great exploration of nature.
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Emily
Thank you so much for sharing this awesome guide! I love how much detail you gave about the places to go/things to do! Saving this! 🙂
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Alexandra Cook
I would love to go exploring in the highlands. I recently went to the mountains in Alaska and had a blast.
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thefinishingtouchokc
I have never heard of Cameron highlands but wow it is beautiful! Gives me serious wonderlust!
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Laura G
That’s a wonderful guide! We’re on the fence of visiting Malaysia… This definitely makes me want to go there!
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Peachy A.
Oh my gosh! Malaysia is one of the places I want to visit. I wannna explore the place and try the food!
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增大网
送你一片大海,让你一帆风顺;送你一个太阳,让你热情奔放;送你一份真诚,祝你开心快乐;送你一份祝福,让你快乐天天!
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Tiffany
The place looks amazing and I want to try their foods! Thanks for sharing ♥️ ♥️ Interested in doing collabs? xx
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Angela
Fabulous article. I’m planning a trip to Malaysia at the moment and it’s hard to find detailed information on travelling in the Cameron Highland so this is both timely and very useful.
.Fad
Amazing article! All i know about Cameron Highlands that it is cooling for a place like that to be in Malaysia! Didn’t know you can do trekking too!