10Nov

Promoting Sabah to backpackers

SEMPORNA: Members of Sabah Backpackers Association (SBA) are working together to offer diversified tourism products to attract travellers to stay longer in the state. Its president Richie Lee said backpackers would get the opportunity to know Sabah more as they tend to stay longer. “Backpackers rely heavily on word-of-mouth, social media and the Internet to choose and decide on their travelling destinations. “After their visit to Sabah, we want them to go back to their countries and write good reviews that will attract more people to the state,” he said at an “End in Sipadan” programme, here, recently. The programme is organised by the Tourism and Culture Ministry. SBA is a strategic partner that helps the ministry promote dive trails in Sabah. Lee added that each operator should offer different products to allow divers to explore more. “People usually fly to Semporna (in Tawau) and end up diving only in Sipadan, but Sabah is blessed with three seas (South China Sea, Sulu Sea and Celebes Sea) and there are definitely more diving trails to experience in the state. “The ‘End in Sipadan’ is a voluntourism programme designed to encourage tour operators to offer packages for divers to build artificial reef conservation,” he said. He added that divers engaged in the work could return to check the progress of the reef. Besides that, the association had also been engaging education institutions to be a part of their programmes. “College students are involved in internship programmes with our members. Through this, the younger generation gets hands-on experience and learning opportunity. “After their graduation, the association hopes to help produce quality frontliners in the tourism industry.”   Source: New Straits Times
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10Nov

Kiulu tourist arrivals up sharply

KOTA KINABALU: Promoting the uniqueness of Kiulu with the objective to make it a prime ecotourism destination has been bearing fruit so far, according to Sabah Tourism Board chairman Datuk Joniston Bangkuai. Tourist arrivals to Kiulu came up to 27,000 last year and their numbers surged to nearly 40,000 between January and September this year alone, he told reporters in a press conference for the third Kiulu Adventure Challenge (KAC), yesterday. “What we want to highlight and promote through the KAC is the uniqueness that Kiulu has to offer. “The run itself is unique, because it does not only combine cycling and running, but rafting as well. “We also made sure to include family involvement, with the introduction of a 5km Family Fun Run this year, in addition to the existing Kiulu Mini Carnival,” he added. Joniston said the KAC was organised as one of the many efforts to promote rural tourism and empower the local community by creating tourism and business opportunities in Sabah. “Kiulu locals are heavily involved in organising the KAC because we want them to really be able to feel the benefits of expanding ecotourism opportunities in their hometown. “We don’t want Sabah to be known only for our Mount Kinabalu. We want Sabah to also be associated with richness in traditions and culture from its interior parts,” he added. Earlier, KAC race director Auther J Kimon said flag-off would be at 6.30am on December 3, at Rumah Tradisi Kiulu. The route includes 13 kilometres of running and 30 kilometres of cycling along the hilly earth trails passing through villages and hanging bridges, alongside white-water rafting along the scenic Kiulu River. “The first five kilometres of the run will be on asphalt road while the second part will be on gravel. It’s all undulating surfaces so that’s why we call it a challenge. “There are even some parts of the route where participants will have to carry their bicycles, hence the term ‘mini challenge,'” said Auther, adding that the highest peak of the route reaches up to 140 metres. He also said each checkpoint is complete with markers and crew, and that the route was chosen due to its low risk and convenience for emergency evacuation, which provides accessibility to injured participants. The Kiulu Mini Carnival will also be held on the same day in Kiulu town, featuring stalls operated by locals selling authentic local food and handicrafts. Other activities include traditional games, catch-a-duck competition, stone painting, coconut bowling and tug-of-war. Approximately 430 adventure enthusiasts have registered for the challenge so far, while interested parties can still register till November 25. Those interested can submit registration at the Kiulu Tourism Association office in Tamparuli Point, Chanteek Borneo in Tamparuli, KLK Ponohuon Lodge in Kiulu, Riverbug office in Wisma Sabah here or through WhatsApp at 017-7698862 (Suzie).   Source: Borneo Post
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07Nov

Rejuvenating Kiulu nature trekking

KIULU: THE Kiulu district has come up with what is believed to be the first dedicated trekking trails spanning 45km from Tamparuli, here, to the hilly Pekan Nabalu. It offers the “Riverside Lung Washing Trekking Trails”, which live up to its reputation as a destination for adventure enthusiasts. The term “lung washing” has a scientific explanation associated with the act of taking a break in nature. Such an experience, away from city life distractions, is said to boost the immune system and help rejuvenate the body. Kiulu assemblyman Datuk Joniston Bangkuai, who is the Sabah Tourism Board (STB) chairman, launched the trails at Kampung Lubok, here, recently. He said the trails passed through several villages. Trekkers were recommended to spend three to four days there. They could start their journey from either Pekan Nabalu or the Tamparuli town, which is about an hour’s drive from Kota Ki- nabalu. Guides will be assigned to help them and they can spend their nights in community-managed base camps or village homestays. The routes were categorised from “easy” to “challenging” and trekkers could follow well-marked trails over undulating, small uphill sections. “Trekkers would be able to explore the Borneo lowland forest, learn basic jungle survival skills from the natives, identify wild indigenous medicinal plants as well as edible plants, and they can experience the culture and hospitality of the local people and see unique species of flora and fauna in the Kiulu forest. “Kiulu offers you an experience of a lifetime by taking you through one of the loveliest and untouched parts of Sabah,” said Joniston. Kiulu Tourism Association (KTA) president Dr Edmon Guntis added that trekkers could also expect to cross numerous suspension bridges, rivers and tri-butaries. “You can have local expert guides who can share their knowledge of the jungle, and at the same time, show you how to use the natural resources from the forest to your advantage in order to survive,” said Dr Edmon. The Tourism and Culture Ministry (Motac) Sabah office director Awang Ahmad Zaki Abu Bakar said the move to introduce the trekking trails was timely as the Tourism and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz had described Kiulu as a model for rural tourism development in Ma-laysia. A few years ago, Nazri visited Kiulu’s tourist attractions and had a first-hand experience of white-water rafting along the Kiulu river, as well as trying out Sabah’s longest zip line at Kampung Rangalau Lama. Ahmad Zaki said locals would also benefit from this by giving the services required by trek-kers. “Besides offering services as guides, villagers along the trekking trails could also offer homestay services or open up stalls offering authenic local delicacies and handicrafts, among others,” he said.   Source: New Straits Times
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01Nov

‘Proposed temple in K Penyu to attract tourists’

Kuala Penyu: The proposed construction of the Wong Tai Sin Temple here is to attract foreign tourists to Sabah, said Kuala Penyu Assemblyman Datuk Limus Jury. He clarified that the proposed construction of a third temple outside of Hong Kong after Macau and Vancouver was not for other purpose as spread in social media. "My recent statement on the proposed construction of the Wong Tai Sin Temple posed a bit of confusion in certain quarters and a handful of people. "The proposed project is to attract foreign tourists from all over the world to Sabah, especially Kuala Penyu, as the public know that such temple has a significant impact on Buddhism. "On the contrary, we need to be grateful that Kuala Penyu is lucky to be selected as the third location of Tong Wong Tai Sin in the world, apart from the one in Hong Kong as its centre or main base. "In fact, I have informed Chief Minister Tan Sri Musa Aman and Minister of Special Tasks Datuk Teo Chee Kang at a briefing and site visit by delegations from Hong Kong," he said. According to him, the effort to bring the project to the district is to make it one of the major tourist destinations in the State. "We bring this project as a way and opportunity to transform the development landscape of this district into a tourist destination. "This is because it not only generates income in terms of tourism but also will change the district's sleeping town status for a long time due to the absence of prominent economic activities," he said. When the project is implemented, the youths will get a portion of economic pie and they do not need to go to cities to find jobs, said Limus. More importantly, he said, the proceeds from the construction of the temple would be channelled back to the welfare of the needy community regardless of race and religion. He noted that in Hong Kong, the temple has brought many benefits to the community as it has 17 schools and seven hospitals built from the collections of more than 300 million Hong Kong dollar a year. Limus said the matter had been thoroughly refined and studied before deciding to proceed. Hence, he requested the State Government to provide funds or grant to realise the construction of the project. He was speaking at the opening ceremony of the 17th Menumbok Fishermen Festival and CTC Mobile programme (Mobile Community Transformation Centre) at Mempakul Beach, near here. Sources : Daily Express
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31Oct

Hotel construction to boost tourism in KK

KOTA KINABALU: The Sabah government welcomes construction of hotels to complement the current state’s economic growth, part of which depends on the tourism and service sectors, Chief Minister Tan Sri Musa Aman said on Monday. He said in the service sectors, hotels were crucial to complement the current economic growth in the state, apart from infrastructure development provided by the government. “Efforts to promote Sabah is very dependent on cooperation with the right partners from the private sector and tour associations. “Therefore, construction of the Kota Kinabalu Mercure Hotel is very much welcome and I can assure that the decision to invest here is very apt,” he said when opening the hotel here on Monday.
Musa said the state government would remain committed to develop the state's tourism sector with the cooperation of private entities.
“The tourism sector will continue to help develop the state's economy,” he said, adding that Sabah had various products to attract tourists, including places of attraction, food and culture. He said measures had been taken by the state government to ensure the sustainability of tourism products in Sabah. Musa, who is also state Finance Minister, hoped more investors, local and foreign, would help develop and promote the state's tourism and service sectors. Source : The Star
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