Ulu Baram. Her authenticity, historical and cultural heritage, distinct from other regions of Sarawak. Home to the Penan and the Kenyah people, a place of lush flora and thriving fauna …read more
Ulu Baram – A Wilderness Romance
Gawai Carnival Redeems 2018
May 25-26
Gawai celebrations take every region by storm every year, and the annual Gawai Carnival Redeems at Kampung Apar Singai, Bau is no exception.
Gawai is a local native celebration to revel in the rice harvest season.
The Carnival features traditional food, arts, crafts and cultural performances and culture through a festivities and community sports.
For more information, kindly contact REDEEMS Secretariat Tel: 082- 450 450 or visit their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/redeems.apar.singai.bau
Selangau Festival
May 26 – 27
Selangau Festival takes place at Selangau in Sibu, just 74km from Sibu town on the weekend.
It features an annual Rafting Challenge on the Batang Mukah river.
With competitors weaving along a winding river and lush greenery, the Rafting Challenge has become a real crowd puller in the area.
Other water sports at the event are kayaking and radio-controlled boat racing while the “Selangau Bazaaar” takes place on the sidelines.
For more information, call 084-336077 or 084-324694
Lawas Community Tourism Programme
A community programme themed “Solidarity as a catalyst for Community Welfare in Tourism” will be held in Lawas on April 27-29.
Lawas spans less than 4,000km2 , is 1,200 km from Kuching and roughly 200km from Kota Kinabalu, with buses from Sabah and Brunei.
The Tourism Programme features an expo on local products, workshops on cultural heritage and arts and other running events.
“The objective of the programme is to nurture unity, solidarity and integration among the local community while at the same time creating a platform for the people to promote their products and crafts,” according to Assistant Minister of Community Wellbeing Datuk Francis Harden Hollis.
Newest Family Member
The Orangutans of Semenggoh Wildlife Centre welcomed their newest family member, bringing the number of free-ranging orangutan up to 30.
The birth is believed to have happened on March 22, to 16 year old orangutan Sadamiah, who previously gave birth to a female orangutan Ruby five years ago.
The baby is yet to be named.
Borneo Jazz 2018
The iconic Borneo Jazz festival in Miri is back and better than ever, with extended dates, a new venue and Zainal Abidin Mohamad as one of the performers.
The festival will now be held on 11 to 13 May, extending to three days instead of the usual two.
The new location has been announced, at Coco Cabana at the Marina Bay in Miri, a seaside location with an iconic seahorse lighthouse.
Having performed at the Borneo Jazz launch at Coco Cabana on March 21, internationally renowned artiste Zainal Abidin will be returning to Miri to perform during the festival.
Festival tickets are now available at https://jazzborneo.com/programme/tickets-info/
The Borneo Jazz is wholly owned by Sarawak Tourism Board and organised by No Black Tie Presents.00
Bung Bratak Day
May 1
For the first time in 5 years, the Bung Bratak Day has returned.
A day full of carnival-like festivities, the local Bidayuh communities showcase their culture and traditions in the form of games, dances, food and other performances and displays.
The festivities will take place at the newly launched Bung Bratak Heritage Centre, located off the 6th mile Bau-Lundu Road, via Kampung Tembawang Sauh in Bau, approximately an hour from the city centre.
Sarawak Performance at MATTA Fair
Kuching and Mulu have topped the list as the most sought after destinations in the state for domestic travellers at the recent MATTA Fair at the Putra World Trade Centre (PWTC) which was on March 16-18.
These were followed by Batang Ai, Bario and Ba’Kelalan, Sibu, the Sarawak Cultural Village, Serikin border market, Niah National Park as well as Bidayuh longhouses.
There were also number of honeymoon couples looking for nature attractions, particularly enquiring for the the Batang Ai Honeymoon packages, with Bako National Park and Mulu National Park as close seconds.
Amogha Tours and Travel, with support from Sarawak Tourism Board, showcased its Virtual Reality Teaser Tour of Sarawak in an attempt to increase visibility and interest of potential customers, resulting in an increase in sales as compared to last year.
Ashweein Narayanan, its executive director their sales at a 68.9% increase as compared to the previous MATTA fair.
“This goes without saying that having digital marketing initiatives such as Virtual Reality tours, as marketing tools is very effective and brings the scalability of the tourism sector to new levels of profitability and visibility,” Ashweein said.
The Sarawak Pavilion demonstrated various cultural related activities such as dance performance, blowpipe games, live Sape music as well as traditional cookies tasting, with many visitors taking pictures with performers.
Miri City International Deep Sea Fishing Tournament 2018
May 10 – 13
The 11th Miri City International Deep Sea fishing Tournament 2018 is taking place off the shores of Miri at the Luconia Shoals.
The event has attracted international fishermen from China, Hong Kong and Singapore over its 11 years.
The tournament is jointly organized by the Miri Anglers Club and Ministry of Tourism, Art & Culture, Youth and Sport, Maritim Malaysia, Jabatan Perikanan Laut Sarawak and Miri City Council, in conjunction with Miri May Fest.
Deadline for registration is on April 30th, after which registrations will be charged with a late fee.
For more information, call Vincent Lo at 017-8029002 or email [email protected].
Borneo Samariang Water Park Launch
The 30-acre Borneo Samariang Water Park half an hour from the city centre is expected to open its doors by the end of March.
Some of the promoted attractions for children are slides, a leisure pool, the ‘Aqua Play’ and a man-made ‘Mount Mulu Clearwater River.’
There will rafts, canopy slides, a wave pool, skydrop ride, galaxy slide, garden terrace and also a mangrove island at the Salak Beach section.
The highest slide measures at 80 metres from the ground, roughly six storeys high.
The park is estimated to accommodate between 2,000 to 3,000 visitors and is expected to draw crowds, both local and international, once their gates officially open to the public.
