Visit the Sg Palas Boh Tea Plantation and other Cameron Highlands, Malaysia Things to Do Tips

You must drop by the Sg Palas Boh Tea Plantation. Have a look around and you'll learn all about tea planting, fermenting tea, the types of tea available, which teas are to be drunk in the morning and which are better for a good afternoon cuppa.
You can have your own mini tour. Best of all, it is educational and informative, especially for the kids.
Check out the view of the tea plantations-it is quite spectacular & very relaxing.
If you have more time, you can stop for a break for some scones and English Tea at the tea shop there.

Warning: The windy 2 km road leading up to Sg Palas estate can be quite a harrowing drive. There is only one lane so the traffic can really build up during school holidays and public holidays. There is also limited parking spots so try not to take too many cars up if you are in a larger group.

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Address: Sg Palas, Brinchang, Cameron Highlands

The town of Tanah Rata is one of the main towns in CH. I do love Tanah Rata as my earliest memories of Camerons were of this town.

Tanah Rata has grown since those early days & now sprawls across the main road, with a few new & fairly ugly apartments and shop houses and small hotels catering to backpackers, local and foreign tourists. These are modern but not unique and in my opinion "spoils" the feeling of what had once made Tanah Rata unique.

Once here, do look out for the cosy & old Post Office, a small but modern HSBC Bank (side story: HSBC, being a foreign bank, is not allowed to open up any new branches in Malaysia, so it continues to hang on to this one in Cameron Highlands!) , hawker stalls, a numnber of old cafes/restaurants such as Rose Lane (it serves a good Western set lunch with chicken chop & souop), Chinese restaurants serving a mean steamboat/hot-pot (esp with vegetables-cost is approx RM15-20 per pax), Indian restaurants serving tandoori, naans and yummy manggo lassi, a government hospital and a police station. The old clock tower from my childhood days is still around located within the park and playground that is located at the end of the street. Do take some time to walk around at the park and discover the trails that are aplenty.

Tea-shops are also a good way to pass time. One of them that is quite famous is located above the MarryBrown Chicken shop. It serves scones, tea and local food.

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Warning: The town tends to get very jammed during public holidays and school holidays, so "exercise" patience, or give up your car & take a walk instead! If you are staying at Tanah Rata & trying to get to Blue Valley, you'll be stuck in traffic for hours. Don't say I didn't tell you! (the main reason is that the ubiquitious stalls that dot the road and congregate around Equatorial tends to attract a crowd & cars tend to park haphazardly all along the main thoroughfare which consists of only one lane, going either way)

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Address: Tanah Rata

Updated July 2007: Strawberry picking/plucking

Strawberry picking is an activity you and your kids might want to try. Some strawberry farms allow this, and those that you pick, are charged at minimum RM20 per half kilo. Now before you wonder, this is not like in England where you can pick strawberries in an open field. Due to the difference in climate, the strawberries here are grown in pots which are placed in rows, and shaded from the noonday sun by a large plastic sheet roof.

By the way, you're also not allowed to pop them in your mouth while you're picking. However, a small amount of sampling is permitted. Do visit Kok Lim farm - go ahead an enjoy some fresh strawberries!

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Address: Kok Lim Strawberry Farm
Directions: Not far from Equatorial Camerons Resort/ across the road from Uncle Sam Flower farm

Updated July 2007

The town of Brinchang is one of the two major towns in Cameron Highlands. The other is Tanah Rata, which is at a lower level. Brinchang town is nearer to the vegetable farms and has a number of small hotels, a number of Chinese restaurants, a rather famous Indian restaurant and a few of petrol stations-Shell is on the main road.

The car-park here is renowned for the night market and stalls start setting up at around 5pm. I've written up about the Brinchange famous night market under shopping tips.

Brinchang also has its own post office, a school and its own police station. It is also very close to the Chinese temple on the hill.

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Address: Brinchang Town
Directions: A few km from Tanah Rata

Updated: July 2007

Just atop a little hill within Brinchang town itself is the Sam Poh Chinese temple. Due to its location, the temple has a good view of Brinchang town and the houses that dot the little hills surrounding Brinchang. While not particularly unique, the temple is quite pretty and has been well-maintained by residents and monks.

Surrounded by a bright yellow wall, the temple is serene and peaceful. Take a moment or two to breathe in the cool air while enjoying the koi fish that swim in the small garden pond. There are pretty red, orange and white flowers growing within the temple compounds too. Further up the hill from the temple is a wooden house where I believe the caretakers of the temple live. When in Camerons, do find time to visit this temple.

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Address: At Brinchang town

Updated July 2007

If you are driving to Cameron Highlands using the Simpang Pulai route, you will come across Rose Valley on your left. It is only several km away from from Blue Valley.

Rose Valley has been around for many years. I've visited it with my family a few times. If you like flowers and have 2-3 hours to spare, why not drop by here to take a look around. You need to pay a small entrance fee. I think children pay a bit less.

If you like flowers and especially roses, besides the beautiful red rose, and mult-coloures ones, they also have a unique variety of green roses!
Outside Rose Valley. you'll find a multitude of stalls that sell fresh produce and little key chains and other souvenior items.

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I have included an old picture which I had taken some years ago. When I had this picture taken seated there among the sweet smelling roses, I felt like a princess waiting for her prince, or a bride on her wedding day. (yup, I have to admit that am a romantic at heart, LOL).

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Phone: +05-4961620
Address: Rose Valley, 148 Tringkap, Cameron Highlands.
Directions: Drive past Brinchang town towards Tringkap. Rose Valley is at the start of Trngkap town.

One of the farms that most people love to visit is the Butterfly Farm. Although I don't think this is an activity that everyone would enjoy, I am sure those who like flowers and butterflies would love to visit with their family. The unique Raja Brooke butterfly (see scanned pics) which is large, with gorgeous black and green wings may be found here, alongside other local varieties.

Apart from flowers and butterflies, you can also see the unique stick insect and leaf insect at this farm.

There is a small entrance fee charged. Children pay a smaller sum.

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Address: Butterfly farm, a few km from Brinchang
Directions: Near Kea Farm area.

Updated July 2007

There are a number of large Cactus centres at Cameron Highlands. The one I have visited was just outside Brinchang town, in front of the police station.

Visit Cactus Valley to see the different varieties of cactus & cactii (is this grammatically more proper? LOL). It is a nice way to spend a morning. Apart from being amazed at the variety and sizes of the cactus, it is a nice place to take photos. Besides cactus, they also have grow orchids and other types of flowers here.

You can also buy a few potted cactus to take home with you. The smaller ones are suitable for home decoration and very hardy. The ones I purchased are still alive and well despite that I am not very good at looking after them.

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Address: Cactus Valley, outside Brinchang