Friday 5 March 2010

Fraser Hill trip - Prologue

I make a mental note to myself that I want to visit all the hill resorts in Malaysia after I read a Malaysia hill resorts guidebook.

I have been to Cameron Highlands, Bukit Tinggi and Genting Highland, left with Fraser Hill, Maxwell Hill and Penang Hill. This time round, I'm heading to Fraser Hill (福隆港). I wonder why it's chinese name is 福隆港 and yet it is not located near the sea.

Location of Fraser Hill



I was casually chatting with Joe in msn about going to Fraser Hill with Wheels for fun which organise car convoy tours to Malaysia. Other than Wheels for fun, Automobile Assocation of Singapore and Footworks Media (a subsidiary of Spring Travel) also organise such tours. However, the trip to Fraser Hill is from Friday to Sunday which means I have to apply for a day leave, hence we decided to go there ourselves over the weekend. There are altogether 4 of us going - me, my sis, my cousin Huiping and Joe.

Fraser hill together with Cameron Highlands and Genting Highland are located at the Titiwangsa mountain range of Penisular Malaysia. Rising 1,500 meters above sea-level, it is the smallest and lowest resort of the three. There are actually seven hills with altitudes between 1,220 to 1,525 meters (4000-5000 feet).

Fraser's Hill derives its name from Louis James Fraser, a Scottish trader who set up a tin-ore trading post in the 1890s. Using a mule train to ascend the hill, Fraser traded in tin-ore until the fateful day when he dissapeared in the forested hills.The bishop of Malaya at the time, Ferguson Davis, mounted a search for Fraser. The search failed to find him but the potential of the hills as a cool gateway was uncovered. The hills were surveyed and in 1919 developed into a hill resort named after the missing Scotsman.

Fraser’s Hill can be reached via Gap where there is a gatehouse which controls traffic going up and down the hill. The road is wide enough for one lane only and therefor odd hours from 7am - 7pm are reserved for traffic going up hill and even hours from 8am - 6pm are for traffic going down hill. There is no traffic control from 8pm - 6am.

What attracts people here are the its greenery, forest walks and fresh air. Frasers hill remains one of the few tourist destinations in Malaysia that has not been over run by tourists and over crowded with the typical hustle and bustle of a tourist trap. Fraser's Hill is the venue of the annual Bird Race which attracts many foreign omithologists.

I have booked a 2 rooms apartment with Fraser's Silverpark Resort. I tried to email them for some enquires but no reply, hence I have no choice but to call them for booking. Contact: +60 9362 2888 and address: Jalan Lady Maxwell, Bukit Fraser, 49000. I did thought of renting a bunglow but the price of renting a 2 room bunglow is almost twice of renting an apartment. Moreover, the view from an apartment would have a paranomic view of the surroundings since it's higher than a bunglow. The 2 room apartment cost RM 258.75 which includes breakfast. It can accomodate a maximum of 6 people with extra charges for additional mattress.

Budget for 2 day 1 night:

- S$25 for accomodation

- S$25 for petrol and toll charges

- S$50 for meals

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