MALAYSIA
PENINSULAR MALAYSIA – WEST COAST •• Cameron Highlands lonelyplanet.comSleeping
Book early during peak holiday periods (April,
August and December). Most guest houses
have a mix of rooms with shared and private
bathrooms, and all have hot water. Many also
have libraries, video lounges, laundry, internet
access and trekking information.
Daniel’s (Kang’s) Lodge (%491 5823; danielslodge@
hotmail.com; 9 Lg Perdah; dm/r from RM8/20; i) A giant
whiteboard proudly states ‘Fuck the Lonely
Planet’, but sticks and stones don’t break our
bones, we like this place! French guys roll
cigarettes, British gap-years get drunk in the
back garden and German hikers compare
boots. Rooms are clean and the management
is helpful.
Father’s Guest House (%491 2484; off Jln Gereja;
http://fathers.cameronhighlands.com; dm/s/d/tr from
RM10/25/30/50; i) Perched on a flower-bedecked
butte, Father’s excellent reputation is earned
from its tip-top management and cheerful set-
ting. Gardenside rooms have doors that open
onto a flower-filled patio, the old bunker-style
Nissen huts are surprisingly comfortable and
the dorm has a summer-camp camaraderie.
It’s a family-run business and is a couple of
minutes’ walk from Jln Besar.
Twin Pines Chalet (%491 2169; http://twinpines
.cameronhighlands.com; 2 Jln Mentigi; s/d from RM12/20; i)
Another social place where nights are spent
around a bonfire, watching films in the lounge
or sipping tea with other travellers on the
patio. Room walls actually seem to enhance
the sounds from the exterior but it’s a clean
and well-cared-for place.
Hillview Inn (%491 2915; [email protected];
17 Jln Mentigi; r RM55-140; i) This three-storey villahas large rooms well above backpacker stand-
ards, all with balconies overlooking a derelict
construction site (not as bad as it sounds).
You’ll pay more for a private bathroom,
though the communal showers are superior.Eating
The cheapest food in Tanah Rata is found in
the mainly Malay food stalls stretching down
Jln Besar towards the bus and taxi stations –
for a splurge in the same area try the steam-
boat (a Chinese-style fondue where you cook
your meat and veg in bubbling vats of soup).
Rosedale Bistro (%491 1419; 42-A Jln Besar; mains
RM5-18; hbreakfast, lunch & dinner;W) Very popu-
lar with travellers foreign and domestic, the
Rosedale’s menu spans several cuisine genres
(Chinese, Malay, European, Indian), comple-
mented by good coffee.
oRestaurant Bunga Suria^ (%491 4666; 66A
Pesiaran Camellia 3; set meals RM5-9; hbreakfast, lunch &
dinner) The best value in town is to be had at
this truly excellent South Indian joint. Meat,
veg, dosa, curry, whatever: it’s all good, spicy
and served in large portions on a banana leaf
for dirt cheap.
The best place to pick up local produce is
the Multicrops Central Market (%491 5188; 1 Arkid
Peladang Sungai Burung, Brinchang; h9am-6pm).Getting There & Around
From Tanah Rata, buses go to/from KL
(RM23, four hours, six daily between 8am
and 4.30pm). Another bus leaves Tanah Rata
bound for Ipoh (RM11, two hours, four daily)
and Georgetown (RM23). Buses also go to
Singapore (RM90, six hours, one daily). Book
tickets at the bus station. For east coast desti-
nations, connect through Ipoh.
CS Travel & Tours (%491 1200; 47 Jln Besar) sells
tickets for daily minibuses to Kuala Besut
(RM70, six hours) to catch a boat to Pulau
Perhentian or Kuala Tahan (Taman Negara;
RM95, eight hours). You can also take these
minibuses partway and get off at Gua Musang
to catch the Jungle Railway (see p486 ).
Local buses run from Tanah Rata to
Brinchang (RM1, every 1½ hours from 6.30am
to 6.30pm) and less frequently on to Kampung
Raja (RM3), passing butterfly attractions and
the turn-off to Sungai Palas Boh.
Taxi services from Tanah Rata include
Ringlet (RM18), Brinchang (RM7), Sungai
Palas Boh Tea Estate (RM20) and Boh Tea
Estate (RM25). For touring around, a taxiJIM THOMPSON
The Cameron Highlands’ most famous jun-
gle trekker was a man who never came back
from his walk. American Jim Thompson is
credited with having founded the Thai silk
industry and made a fortune, and today his
beautiful, antique-packed house in Bangkok
is a major tourist attraction. On 26 March
1967, while holidaying in the Highlands,
Jim Thompson left his villa for a pre-din-
ner stroll – never to be seen again. Despite
extensive searches, the mystery has never
been explained. Kidnapped? Murdered? A
planned disappearance or suicide? Nobody
knows for sure.458