Matta Fair 2011 Packages for Sabah

Matta Fair 2011 Packages for Sabah in Malaysia will be one of the sought after promotions as at the August Matta Fair in PWTC, Kuala Lumpur. As many local and foreigners will be visiting the fair for year end holiday promotions, you will surely be spoiled for choices here. The fair is held over three days from 8th to 12th August and spread over four huge sections at the convention hall. Walking around will be challenging as you will most likely end up with loads of holiday promotion pamphlets.

For this particular article, I am focusing on Packages to Sabah as many seem to like heading over to East Malaysia for wide selection of touristic activities offered. One of the highlighted travel companies which is Equator Adventure Tours will be participating at the Sabah Booth during the Matta Fair 2011. Having participated in the last two years, they are well know for some great deals on packages to Mabul, Kinabalu and even the unique Maliau Basin. Below are some of the group packages for Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.

Gayana Eco Resort on Pulau Gaya, Sabah

Kota Kinabalu Packages 4D/3N Sabah

Day 1	Kota Kinabalu Meet on arrival and transfer to hotel, follow by dinner at local restaurant.	D
Day 2	Kinabalu Park / Poring Hot spring Breakfast at hotel follow by a brief city tour before depart to kinabalu park. Visit the Pekan Nabalu for local handicraft or snap a nice view of kinabalu Peak. Upon arrived at the Park, visit the mountain garden or the park gallery. Lunch at local restaurant and check – in for overnight. Lunch at Rina Ria Restaurant / steamboat Dinner at Pine Resort	B/L/D
Day 3	Poring Hot Spring / Kota kinabalu After breakfast depart to Poring Hot Spring.  Visit the canopy walk or have a dip in the hot pool.  Back to resort for lunch and then check out.  Back to Kota Kinabalu.  Dinner transfer at Kampung Nelayan (with cultural show) Lunch at Local restaurant at Poring / Dinner at Kampung Nelayan	B/L/D
Day 4	Kota Kinabalu-Departure Breakfast at hotel. Free & easy for the whole day, while waiting for check out and transfer to Airport, for flight back home.	B

Price of package with selection of hotels around Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
 

Cost per pax	2 to 3 Pax		4 to 6 Pax
Hotel Use	Adult	Child W/B	Adult	Child W/B
Le Meridien	MYR1098.00	MYR813.00	MYR888.00	MYR701.00
Kinabalu Daya Hotel	MYR848.00	MYR568.00	MYR638.00	MYR456.00
Megah “D” Aru Hotel	MYR816.00	MYR593.00	MYR606.00	Rm482.00
Hamin Lodge	MYR784.00	MYR600.00	MYR574.00	Rm488.00

Kota Kinabalu Package above is inclusive of:

• 3 nights hotel accommodation of choice
• Transportation / Boat services as to tour program
• Sightseeing tour as to tour program
• Entrance fee as to tour program
• Meal as stated in the tour program
• English/Malay speaking tour guide

Packages do not include:

• Tipping for guide & driver
• Travel insurance & Laundry/Mini Bar/Call charges
• Airfare & Airport tax

Conditions:

• Reservation must be confirmed 30 days before date of travel.
• Full payment is required before 30 days from the date of travel.
• Cancellation - A 50% charge will be imposed on any cancellation of the tour after confirmation.
• No refund once the tour has commenced.
• Tour prices are subjected to change without prior notice.
• Equator Adventure Tours reserves the right to alter and modify the itinerary in anyway necessary without prior notice.

Pulau Manukan Beach Sabah with fishes in water

Sabah Tour Package 5D/4N Kota Kinabalu 

Below is a package that is catered to those wanting to explore Kota Kinabalu and its surroundings with visits to Kinabalu Park, the unique Klias Wetlands for a river safari and also the Tunku Abdul Rahman Islands. A nicely themed package for those seeking some adventure in Sabah.

Day 1	Kota Kinabalu Meet on arrival and transfer to hotel. Free & easy for the evening.
Day 2	Kinabalu Park / Poring Hotspring After breakfast at hotel,depart to kinabalu park.Visit the Pekan Nabalu for local handicraft or snap a nice view of kinabalu Peak.Upon arrived at the Park,visit the mountain garden or the park gallery.Lunch at local restaurant. Continued our journey to Poring Hotspring located about 40km from southern part of the park.Have a hot bath at the open air pool or try out the canopy walkway.Depart back to Kota kinabalu. Lunch at Kinabalu Pine resort	B/L/D
Day 3	Klias Wetland Pick up from hotel at 1.30pm and proceed to the southern part of Kota Kinabalu, approximately 2 hours journey. Upon arrival at the resort, you will have some light refreshment. Have a cup of tea or coffee and taste some of the local cakes .Proceed with a boat cruise down the Klias river, in search of the ‘Proboscis Monkey’ or the local name’ Monyet Belanda or Bangkatan ‘.If you are lucky, you will be able to catch sight of the shy Silver Langur or the Local name ‘Lotong Kelabu’ and the long tail Macaque or the Local name ‘Kera’.By evening you will be able to sight the fireflies, villagers call it ‘Api-api’ or ‘kelip-kelip’. Return back to the jetty and enjoy a buffet dinner at the local restaurant before departing back to Kota Kinabalu. Estimate time back to your hotel is 9.00pm. Lunch at garden seafood / Dinner at Borneo Proboscis river Lodge	B/L/D
Day 4	Tunku Abdul Rahman Park-Manukan Island / Sapi island After breakfast at hotel, depart to Jeselton Point .Take a boat to the famous Manukan Island & Sapi island. Enjoyed the white sandy beach or try out some of the sea adventure game (own expenses).Around 3 or 4 pm, depart back to kota Kinabalu and back to hotel. Free time at the evening Lunch at island BBQ / Dinner at Kampung Nelayan Seafood Restaurant	B/L/D
Day 5	Departure Breakfast at hotel. Free & easy for the whole day, while waiting for check out and transfer to Airport, for flight back home.	B

Prices for 5D/4N Sabah Package

Hotel use	Adult P/p	Child(age5-12)	Single supp
Hotel Shangri-la (3*)	Rm1175.00	Rm940.00	Rm280.00
Best western Kinabalu Daya Hotel (3*)	Rm1165.00	Rm932.00	Rm260.00
Megah ‘D’ Aru Hotel (2*)	Rm1100.00	Rm774.00	Rm198.00
Tour Packages include : •4 nights hotel accommodation of your choice of hotel base of twin share •Transportation /sightseeing tour services / entrance fee as to tour itinerary •Local license guide service (Malay/English/Chinese) •Meal as stated in tour itinerary •Boat fee
Tour Packages exclude: •Tipping for guide & driver •Travel insurance •item that not stated at the above.

Mount Kinabalu view at Kundasang, Sabah

For more information about Sabah Travel Packages at Matta Fair 2011, please contact;

Equator Adventure Tour Sdn Bhd (KPL/LN 6185) (Co.No. 875486-W)
Lot G.5, Golden Centre, Putatan. P.O. Box 15457,
88863 KOTA KINABALU. SABAH
Telephone: 088-766351
Fax: 088-766352
Email: pat@equator-adventure.com

As the Matta Fair 2011 August is held at the PWTC Kuala Lumpur, you are advised to check the details, tips and information before going over there. For those seeking weekend trips or simply a family or group trip to KK, you can check out the Matta Fair 2011 Packages for Sabah.

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Borneo Eco Film Fest in Sandakan, Sabah Borneo

The Borneo Eco Film Festival (BEFF) Sabah will be held at the Rainforest Discovery Centre Auditorium and BALIN Roofgarden Bistro, NAK Hotel on 29th to 31st July 2011. Supported by EcoKnights, the founders of the Kuala Lumpur Eco Film Festival, BEFF is a free community-service event that aims to increase public understanding of environmental issues through the power of film and visual media.
The public will be treated to eye-opening film screenings, interactive workshops, insightful talks and exciting musical performances during this educational and fun-filled event. Thought-provoking and influential films from Sabah and around the world will be featured including Trek Through Borneo (Malaysia), The Seasmiths (Malaysia), Saving Planet Earth: Oceans (UK/Malaysia), Honey Hunters (Malaysia)and GREEN (Indonesia), just to name a few.

Environmental experts and international award-winning filmmakers will also be lending their talents by conducting interactive workshops and talks. The esteemed lineup includes Chris Chong Chan Fui, a Sabahan filmmaker whose debut film, Karaoke, was premiered at the 2009 Festival De Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight and 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. Karaoke was also named the Best Feature film at the 2009 American Express Maverick prize in Canada.

Rainforest Discovery Center (RDC) in Sepilok, Sabah

Also taking centre stage is Harun Rahman, founder of Novista, a leading documentary production company in Kuala Lumpur. The highly-acclaimed documentary “Among the Great Apes with Michelle Yeoh” produced by Novista was awarded the Best Wildlife Documentary at the 2010 Asian Television Awards and Best Wildlife Film at the 2010 Malaysia Documentary Film Festival.

South East Asia’s leading underwater filming and photography company, Scubazoo, will also be presenting. The works of Scubazoo have been broadcasted on the BBC, National Geographic, Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, CNN, and ITV. Other presentations of interest will be a workshop led by renowned Sabah wildlife photographer Cede Prudente, and a talk by the Borneo Sun Bear Conservation Centre (BSBCC) team.

Rhinoceros hornbill (Buceros rhinoceros) from Borneo

Another unique feature of BEFF is the Community Filmmaking Program led by the Global Diversity Foundation (GDF), an international NGO, along with Cypriot videographer, Inanc Tekguc. Each year, BEFF invites a local community to participate in a BEFF community filmmaking training workshop that adapts filmmaking techniques specially for communities to make their own films based on the traditions, culture and issues surrounding the people. This year, villagers from Sukau, Kinabatangan will participate in this unique programme  as well as meet with all the international and local filmmaking talent on show at BEFF 2011.

Local and national artistes such as Roger Wang, Amir Yussof, Angelina Perete and Hezekiah Asim will also be performing during BEFF, which greatly supports the creative arts.

For more information, call +60 88 218315/ +60 12 2071044 (Anton), fax to +60 88 221594/ 89 272879, e-mail borneoecofilmfestival@gmail.com or visit the official website. You can also get more information from the BEFF Blog.

BEFF Details

Date: 29th - 31st July 2011

Venue: Rainforest Discovery Center (RDC) Sandakan, Sabah

Tickets: Register on official website

How to go to the RDC in Sabah?

A map and details is in this RDC Sabah Post.

For those who are interested, book now as this is the first time it is being held and in beautiful Borneo. As there are many budget airlines that fly to Sandakan, this would be an exciting experience for everyone at the The Borneo Eco Film Festival (BEFF) Sabah.

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Hat Yai Food Picture in Thailand

Hat Yai Food is my picture of the week. This busy town in Southern Thailand that borders Malaysia is a very popular destination for many local Malaysians who visit the place over the weekends. Known for great Thai Food, Hat Yai (หาดใหญ่) is also very popular for shopping and entertainment.But one has to be careful of quality when shopping here. Cheap does not mean good therefore you need to really shop around for quality items.

In the picture above, you see some really huge fresh water prawns grilled and ready to be eaten which was sold by local vendors along the main area where Central Hat Yai Shopping Mall, Hotel Novotel and Hotel Centara are located in town. I visited Hat Yai for the first time in 2010 where we had a stopover for a night before heading back to Kuala Lumpur via bus. That night, I explored the main city area seeking some local Thai Food when I chanced upon many stalls selling deep fried and grilled food. Barbecued Seafood was hot on the list here as many stalls were seen selling them.

Apart from the general things to do, you can also visit the Phu Pha Phet Caves which is about one and a half hours drive from Hat Yai town. Don't forget to check out the Floating Market in Hat Yai when you visit as you will be in for a surprise with the types of local Thai food being sold here which are really cheap and unique. Food in Hat Yai is a must try when visiting here.

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Pictures of Klang, The Royal Town

Pictures of Klang, The Royal Town in Malaysia. This former capital of Selangor state in Malaysia was short lived from the year 1974 to 1977 until Shah Alam became the current capitol. Klang or Kelang as some people still refer to has been around for many centuries since the early Sultanates of Malacca and has always had a royal connection to the place. Back in 1874, even the British administration had control over this place for a good 6 years. While current day people would know the place being famous for the great local food, it is also an upcoming urban dwelling area apart from being the main gateway to some of Malaysia's busiest ports and access to some of the beautiful coastal towns. 

Many locals from around the Klang Valley namely Petaling Jaya, Subang Jaya and even Kuala Lumpur make their way to Klang Town for the famous Bak Kut Teh (肉骨茶), a Herbal Pork Soup meal which seems to have the originated here while creating headlines in neighboring countries. Many may debate this matter but the reality shows that history was in fact right and has made southerners realize the truth. Another fancy fact is that people from all areas would drive hours just to eat this popular Hokkien dish here. Apart from the many types of local delicacies here, one can simple explore the place with a camera and capture some beautiful photographs. Below are some of the photos I took while I made my way on foot around Klang Town minus the food pictures.

Minaret from one of the mosque here

A mosque in Klang Town

Floating Mosque of Klang

Parrot Fortune Telling Services

One of the old buildings known as the White house of Klang

Sunset at Jambatan Kota in Klang

While Klang is easily accessible via road and train, the areas here are well spread with a famous Little India street, seafood restaurants around Teluk Gong and Pandamaran area, old heritage buildings and interesting places of worship throughout the town. For those seeking cooler situations, there are shopping malls which are very up to date. For those who plan to spend a day here, weekends are the best time to visit as the traffic is much more relaxed. Walking around would be one of the best methods to fully see the town area.

Golden domes of a mosque

Little girl feeding pigeons 

Little boy checks out the Parrot Fortune Teller in Klang

Just so you know, I am no professional photographer and only use a Nikon D60 DSLR Camera with standard kit lens. I learn along the way and enjoy my time in this. Seeing the actual thing in real life is always the best thing and pictures are to remind me of the beauty around.

Throughout my explorations around the state of Selangor, I would easily say that Klang is one of the places I have been on many occasions for the good food and recently for the Selangor Photo Carnival in Klang organised by Tourism Selangor in June 2011. The fun event took many photographers on a picture hunt around the old town here where over 150 keen photographers participated in this. With that, I managed to win a consolation price with some of the Pictures of Klang I took.

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My 7 Links

Barbara Weibel from Hole in the Donut, a well seasoned travel writer whom I had the pleasure of meeting on one of my trips to Penang, Malaysia has invited me to participate in a fun travel blogger exercise called “My 7 Links.” The goal of the project, which is the inspiration of Tripbase, is to share lessons learned and create a bank of past but not forgotten blog posts that deserve to see the light of day again. So with no further ado, I give you my seven links below; 

Sunset in Tanah Lot, Bali - One of my picture perfect moments

My Most Beautiful Post:

Among all the articles I have published, I have to say that my most beautiful post would be Tanah Lot Sunset in Bali Picture. I don't know why, but the timing was perfect in every way.

My Most Popular Post:

I don't know how to say this but in late December 2010 and early January 2011, I ran an online travel contest called 'Travel Contest January 2011' where I gave out a total of USD$5,500 in cash and prizes. That article gained over 2364 likes on Facebook and was spread like wildfire in the Southeast Asian online community. 

My Most Controversial Post:

Not that I am a controversial writer but one of my early postings about the Naga Jolokia, Worlds Hottest Chilli in Kuala Lumpur sort of  sparked many locals telling me that I was wrong about this. They did not really reply in the post but the number of emails I got from local Malaysians telling me it was not the jolokia. Till today, I will never know if it was indeed the chili or a hybrid.

Rumah Mode Factory Outlet in Bandung, Indonesia

My Most Helpful Post:

Probably from the emails and replies I have gotten from my Bandung Factory Outlet Hotel List in Indonesia. I think this would be the mot helpful posting I did. Many people emailed me directly to ask about information though it was all put on the site. Till today, I still get messages on email and facebook asking about places to stay which are near the factory outlets. 

A Post Whose Success Surprised Me:

Usually I write about travel related articles and once in a way, I would highlight some articles on concerts, fairs and events around Malaysia for those Southeast Asians who travel for this. My one article, Justin Bieber Concert in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, went ballistic with replies and shares on facebook and so on, I could not believe that the article managed 100,000 page views over a span of 20 days and this totally surprise me.

Aquarium at The Green Connection in Sabah Borneo

A Post That I Felt Didn’t Get the Attention it Deserved:

As I try to promote Eco related places around Southeast Asia, one place called The Green Connection in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah which is a self-funded Eco-theme park, Marine research and Educational center did not meet many of my readers interest. Maybe people are still slowly accepting this over here.

The post that I am most proud of:

At the moment, nothing seems to have hit that note but I would say the articles I write about Malaysia's Largest Travel Fair called the Matta Fair August 2011 at PWTC Kuala Lumpur. For my own personal reasons (and not paid), I would troll the fair for all three days meeting all kinds of people, talking to them and even interviewing them about travel venues and packages. This is where I get first hand information about certain places I plan to visit and also about the loopholes and 'tricks' used to lure unsuspecting travelers. I then share my experiences in my articles informing the public about the pros and cons of visiting a travel fair in Malaysia. I have been doing this for the last 3 years too.

And now it’s my turn to nominate five other travel bloggers to share their 7 links, drum roll for;

1. Nellie Huang from Wild Junket
2. Brendan from Brendan's Adventures
3. Isabelle from Isabelles Travel Guide
4. Simon from Wild About Travel
5. Elaine from Trail of Asia

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