Category: Updates

KUCHING: The Annual Kuching Festival, with a total of 281 food and 11 trade fair stalls, a garden corner and a large stage for nightly performances, is now happening at the Kuching City South Council compound for 24 consecutive nights starting from 6.00pm until 11.00pm nightly from July 26 to August 16, 2019.  

This year’s food fair with choice delicacies ranging from traditional, modern to fusion.  Celebrated as part of a programme for the Kuching City 31st Anniversary Carnival, the Kuching Festival is organised by Kuching City South Council to commemorate the Kuching City status which was announced on August 1, 1988.  This festival is held annually to boost the local tourism and food industry with this year’s theme, “Happy Kuching”.

This year edition of the food fair is introducing SarawakPay, the State’s online payment system aimed to encourage customers going cashless when purchasing food and products on sale.

MIRI- With sports fishing fast gaining popularity in Miri, anglers can now enjoy and experience deep sea fishing with the availability of the cruise boat, Seamax Explorer available for rental.

Armed with an experienced crew on board, this specially designed fishing cruise boat   caters up to 20 passengers including crew and captain at one time.

It is recommended that the best season for sea fishing is during the months of March till October.

For those interested to charter the Seamax Explorer for offshore fishing trip expeditions, please contact Mr Vincent Lo Kiun Sin – Miri Anglers Club (Secretary) at 6017 – 802 9002.

July is here with full of activities, entertainment, in celebration of arts, cultures, foods and festivals.

The month of July will kick start with the first ever Rainforest In the City to be staged from July 2 – 11.

The Rainforest Fringe Festival from July 5 – 12, presenting the best of Sarawak, will showcase music, arts, crafts, films, photography, food and culture. This event is happening throughout the Kuching city.

The 22^nd Edition of Rainforest World Music Festival, to be held from July 12 – 14 at Sarawak Cultural Village in Damai, will see 30 countries, 30 nationalities and 200 performers from over the world sharing one stage to showcase culture, arts, music and heritage.

To conclude the month of July, the 14^th Edition of the Borneo Jazz festival will be held from July 19-21 at Coco Cabana, Miri, featuring a series of international world renowned artistes, such as “Crazy Rich Asian” Jasmine Chen, Malaysian R&B singer Najwa and hip-hop ambassador Joe Flizzow and DJ Maestro from Amsterdam. For Info and tickets sales can log on to sarawaktourism.com

The Star Clipper with a capacity of 170 passengers including 74 crews from Star Clipper Monaco arrived at Senari Port, Kuching on 3 June.

The ship was on its 10 nights “eastbound” journey, starting from Kota Kinabalu, Pulau Tiga, Bandar Seri Begawan, Miri, and Kuching with its journey ending at Nongsa Point, Singapore.

The cruise passengers were given a Sarawak traditional welcoming ceremony by 10 member’s cultural troupe from Sarawak Tourism Board with series of cultural dance performances to introduce the uniqueness and diversity in Sarawak.

While in the city, they also had a chance to visit the Semenggoh Nature Reserve for feeding Orang Utan and Bako National Park to visit the beautiful rainforest and mesmerizing the nature.

The Star Clipper will be making another two trips to Sarawak this year and the ship will sail to Miri port for the first time.

Sarawak’s three iconic festivals set to welcome Bruneian to Sarawak, thanks to the easy access to Kuching by Royal Brunei and the efficient cross border crossing at Sungei Tujuh in Miri.

The festival’s promotional campaign, dubbed, “3 festivals 1 destination” was held in Bandar Seri Begawan Brunei on June 13.

The Malaysian High Commissioner to Brunei Darussalam, His excellency Ismail bin Salam joined by the Chief Executive Officer of the Sarawak Tourism Board, Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor hosted the festival promotional campaign for partners including travel agents, foreign dignitaries and the local media.

The festivals will be kicked off on July 2 with the 3^rd edition of the Rainforest Fringe Festival, the 22^nd edition the Rainforest World Music Festival on July 12 – 14 both to be held in Kuching and to be concluded with the 14^th edition of the Borneo Jazz Festival on July 19 – 21 in Miri.

Three festivals will highlight the very best of Sarawak arts, diversified cultures, and authentic delicacies, showcasing the lifestyle of people and presenting various rhythms of music.

For more information on the festivals and tickets online sale, log on to rwmf.net and www.borneojazzfestival.com

 

 

The Sarawak Government has taken steps towards getting several locations within Kuching city to be assessed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) to be recognised as world heritage sites.

According to the Chief Minister, Datuk Patinggi Abang Johari Openg, the state government and the Kuching North City Hall will be taking measures to identify these historically significant sites within the city.

Kuching was recently recognised as a “World Craft City” by the World Craft Council City of Crafts, bringing recognition to the art heritage in the city, and the added recognition of historical sites and locations in Kuching will be another feather in the cap of Sarawak’s capital city.

The Sarawak Tourism Board has prepared nine divisional brochures which feature the lesser known divisions of Betong, Bintulu, Kapit, Limbang, Mukah, Samarahan, Sarikei, Serian and Sri Aman, which are often overlooked in favour of Kuching, Miri and Sibu.

These brochures aim to encourage visitors to consider these divisions when planning their holiday, as these areas are full of local community-driven events and experiences that take you off the beaten track.

Though some of the divisions border on rural, the areas have their own charm and every location is rich with culture and an authentic way of life unique to any other part of Sarawak.

The brochures will be available at visitor information counters in Kuching, Miri and Sibu.

They will also be used for international promotion during roadshows and trade events abroad.

The nine brochures will also be available for download on the Sarawak Tourism website once they have been launched.

The Rainforest World Music Festival has released the performer’s list for this year’s concert performances and workshops, featuring 30 bands of 30 diverse nationalities.

There will be five groups from Sarawak itself, namely At Adau, Kemada, Suku Menoa, Staak Bisomu and Suk Binie’, performing everything from contemporary-meets-ancient music to authentic Iban rituals and chants.

This Festival will feature bands from Spain, Rapa Nui, Chile, Bhutan, Nagaland, Vietnam, Ireland, Japan, Colombia, Jamaica, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Madagaskar, Iran, Mongolia, Estonia, Scotland, Mongolia, Morocco, Mauritius and Canary Islands and many more.  

For more information on the performers, visit the RWMF website here…

Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) celebrated International Friendship Day at Riverside Secondary and Wellington Primary Schools in Singapore recently with opportunity to highlight Sarawak product experiences to the school’s teachers, students and parents.

Showcasing Culture, Adventure, Nature, Food and Festivals, the focal themes in the Visit Sarawak Campaign, the guests had their first-hand experience in watching cultural stage performances and sampling of food such as Sarawak layer cakes, pepper sweets and tebaloi (sago crackers).

STB Chief Executive Officer, Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor  said “We are currently focusing on different customer segments which include school children, as one of the most distinctive changes in markets over the time is the expansion in the choice of destinations available.”

“It is timely as we are now promoting aggressively our Visit Sarawak Campaign.” she went on.

Singaporean arrival into Sarawak in 2018 stood at 43,734, an increase of 3.69% compared to the previous year.

STB hopes that participation in this event will encourage more teachers and family groups from Singapore to choose Sarawak as one of their future holiday destinations and study trips, taking advantage of the 4 daily direct flights between the two destinations.

The Chief Executive Officer of the Sarawak Tourism Board, Sharzede Datu HJ Salleh Askor, attended the Chengdu Music Cities Convention as a speaker, as part of Sarawak’s music tourism initiatives, which uses Sarawak’s unique sounds to promote Sarawak as a tourism destination.

She presented the future of music in the city of Kuching and throughout Sarawak’s other cities, from the preservation of the cultural music and more modern types of music, to the prominent musical festivals in the state such as the Rainforest World Music Festival which has had a successful 22-year run.

Also presenting was Giacherie Tipik, President and Founder of CatSound.co, an independent non-profit agency based in Kuching. Tipik spoke on his company’s role in bringing Sarawak musical talents to the world stage as well as the work they do on the grounds to nurture talents.

The Music Cities Convention is the largest and most extensive global gathering on the topic of Music Cities, bringing together leaders from governments, academics, music organisations and the music scene to discuss the situation and future of music in cities and their role in the city’s development and identity.