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Fraser's
Hill, located 1,524 metres above sea-level in the mountains
of Pahang is another enchanting hill resort. Like Rome, it is built on
7 hills. But, unlike Rome, it bears no claim to cosmopolitan fame - it
has about it, a rather quiet rustic air, more in keeping with the rustic
solitude of English countryside's.
The resort is named after
an English adventurer, Louis James Fraser, who, towards the end
of the nineteenth century built himself a shack in the hills, operated
a primitive mule train and embarked on the lucrative trade in tin ore.
This continued until the first decade of the twentieth century when he
apparently disappeared.
In 1910, Bishop Ferguson Davie of Singapore combed the mountains in search of Fraser. The search for Fraser proved fruitless but he had on the other hand discovered a perfect mountain retreat - one that was to become one of Malaysia's foremost hill resorts. Surveying work began in 1919 and set the stage for its development as mountain retreat.
Today, in spite of the spate of developments and the addition of modern hotels and luxury condominiums, Fraser's Hill retains much of its natural charm and quiet tranquillity through careful planning and engineering ingenuity.
(Tip: There are several petrol stations along the way and motorists are advised to fill up their petrol tanks whenever possible. There are NO petrol stations in Fraser's Hill. At Ulu Yam there is a supermarket (Stanta Supermarket) situated near the trunk road where a wide variety of daily provisions and snacks are offered.)
From Penang and North
If you
are travelling from the North, enter the North-South Highway and exit at
the Tanjong Malim Interchange. Take the trunk road towards South and look
out for signage indicating Kuala Kubu Bahru or Bukit Fraser (Fraser’s Hill).
Turn left into Kuala Kubu Bahru which is the last stop at the foot of Fraser’s
Hill.
From
Taman Negara, Kuantan and the East Coast
The access from the East Coast
is via Bentong and Teras ending up at The Gap. The journey from Bentong
to the Gap takes about 1 hour 15 minutes. Travelling time from Kuantan
to Bentong is 3 hours and from Kuala Lumpur to Bentong is 1 hr.
From Kuala Kubu Bahru towards
The Gap
From
Kuala Kubu Bahru, drive easterly following a winding road up to the Gap.
This stretch is 21 km and takes about 35-45 minutes if you are driving
at 60km/hr. Any faster than this would result in car motion sickness if
the passengers do not have enough sleep, taken a heavy meal especially
if it is spicy or oily, move around too much in the car or reading in the
car.
This road is winding but relatively short (35 min to 45 min). If you drive slow, the road is safe and your passengers will not feel the discomfort of car motion sickness. Enjoy the scenic mountain views as your cruise leisurely to the peak. If you are lucky, you may spot one or more of these - colonies of colourful butterflies fluttering around, monkeys along the roadside, python crossing the road, slow loris, squirrels, colourful birds, giant millipedes and many nature wonders of Fraser's Hill.
Look
out for oncoming heavy trucks and ALWAYS give way to them especially around
corners. They need wider space to turn and you do not want your car to
be squeezed between the truck and the hillside. Look out for fallen trees
and bamboo which sometimes happen after a heavy rainfall. Otherwise the
road is generally safe and hundreds of tourists have passed this road since
the 1800's.
From
the Gap to the Top
This
stretch (35 min to 45 min) is for one way traffic during the day and 2
way at night. It is narrow and wide enough for one car only except several
stretches where 2 cars can squeeze through.
Gates (Lower Gate & Upper Gates) control the passage of traffic at the last 7km stretch to Fraser’s Hill. The gate times are :
Going
Up (Odd Hours) Going Down
(Even Hours)
07.00am – 07.40am
06.00am – 06.40am
09.00am – 09.40am
08.00am – 08.40am
11.00am – 11.40am
10.00am – 10.40am
01.00am – 01.40am
12.00am – 12.40am
03.00am – 03.40am
02.00am – 02.40am
05.00am – 05.40am
04.00am – 04.40am
07.00am – 07.40am
06.00am – 06.40am
Between 8pm and 6am, the road is open to 2-way traffic where one has to be careful of oncoming cars. Put on your high beam and drive slow (less than 25km/hr). Look out for oncoming car headlights. Horn to let the oncoming car know that you are near. When the oncoming car approaches, lower the beam and slowly squeeze through. If there is wider space, stop to wait for the other car to pass.
Night car accidents on this stretch is extremely rare. The bigger danger is that if you are unfamiliar with winding roads, do not attempt it at night and if it is raining heavily, wait for the rain to stop or abort your journey. If you are using the road after a heavy rainfall, drive slow and watch out for fallen bamboo across the road.
Travelling Tip:
If you
intend travelling by bus to Fraser's Hill, you will be able to catch a
Tanjong Malim bound bus "Naeila" from Pudu Raya bus terminal in Kuala Lumpur
which has a stopover at Kuala Kubu Bahru bus station.
From
Kuala Kubu Bahru bus station, you will have to take another bus up to Fraser's
Hill. The bus travelling up to the summit leaves Kuala Kubu Bahru twice
daily, at 8.30 am and 2.30 pm, while the downhill bus leaves Fraser's Hill
at 10.00 am and 4.00 pm
.Bus Fares:
Taxis
plying directly to Fraser's Hill are also available from Kuala Lumpur.
You can call any of the radio taxis from Kuala Lumpur. The fare is between
RM120.00 to RM150.00 one way (max 4 passengers). You can try one of the
radio taxi companies at 603-2693 6213. Since the journey takes 2 hours,
ask for a newer taxi when you are making the booking.
Car Rental
You may also rent a car from
the many car rental companies in any city or airport. The telephone number
for AVIS Rent A Car is 603-241 7144 in Kuala Lumpur and 02-737 1668 in
Singapore. Car rental rates in Malaysia varies from RM310 per day upwards.
Air Connections
There
are air flights into Kuala Lumpur from most parts of the world. Fraser's
Pine Resort is also available under Malaysia Airline System (MAS)'s CityStay
Programme, Malaysia - on - Wheels Programme and Golden Holidays Programme.
You can walk into any MAS office worldwide to book rooms at Fraser's Pine
Resort. MAS's ticket reservations telephone number in Kuala Lumpur is
603-746 3000.
Rail Connections
E-Mail: pine_resort@hotmail.com
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