Back from Taman Negara!
Taman Negara is one of the national parks in Peninsula Malaysia. It encompasses 3 states, Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu. It is well know for its ecotourism.
I procured the services of NKS HOTEL & TRAVEL SDN. BHD (Tel : 03 – 20720336 / website: http://www.taman-negara-nks.com/) to organise my trip to Taman Negara. The cost was around RM425 which is inclusive of accommodation, transport, food and also activities. It was a steal!
My trip to Taman Negara lasted for 3 days 2 nights. The journey to Taman Negara took quite some time. First, we had to take a 3 hours bus ride to Jerantut, followed with a short ride to Kuala Tembeling and lastly a 3 HOURS boat ride to Kuala Tahan.
RM1 to move your bags down to the boat.
Our boat was a long boat made of wood with zinc roof. We had to sit in pairs, on a worn out cushion. We don’t have much space to move around. As such, sleeping was quite uncomfortable.
Nevertheless, the 3 hours boat trip was quite enjoyable in the beginning as we were able to enjoy the cool breeze and the view. However, halfway through, it rained suddenly. So heavy until we had rain water splashing at our face each second! By the time we reached Kuala Tahan, we were soaked!
Kuala Tahan is one of the gates to Taman Negara. It lies on the riverbank of Sungai Tembeling. On the other side of Kuala Tahan, divided by Sungai Tembeling, is Taman Negara.
Kuala Tahan on a rain day
Floating restaurants at Kuala Tahan
Although the price was a steal, it came with drawbacks.
Our meals were all scheduled at one of the floating restaurants along Sungai Tembeling. The service was crap. Food was crap. We had toast with lousy scrambled egg / pancake, chips which came with an ant infested ketchup bottle and fried rice with a bug. Then when I got home, I had diarrhoea.
Also, drinks were not provided. We had to pay for it. I was not told of this until I ate at the restaurant.
Further, our accommodation was far away from the jetty. We took us around 10 – 15 minutes to walk from our restaurant cum jetty to Tahan Guest House, our assigned hotel. Note that I said assigned hotel is because I did not choose the hotel. My travel agent did.
Tahan Guest House is not a pleasant place to stay. No hot water, toilet stinks, towel that doesn’t absorb water and also they do not provide free shampoo!
In our room, we had one notice informing guest of the rules and regulations of the guest house amongst others, “Please.. please respect Islam by not eating and drinking any alcoholic drinks or non halal items outside the room / dormitory and the compound area”. Ironically, on the other side of the river, Mutiara Taman Negara Resort is serving Pina Colada for RM23 per glass.
