Notice: Not sure the road launch/official release by the gov or not?! If not, better drive safe than sorry; if you get into accident in between Pos Betau to Bertam Valley road, insurance may not be valid. FYI, if I'm not mistaken, the road was actually show in some GPS maps (such as Ovi Nokia - Updated March 2011) already; so is it officially launch and open to be use or else? I'm not sure, maybe somebody here can clarify this.

The road was officially open by the Sultan of Pahang a few months ago so it is already a gazetted public road. Yes, insurance is covered and also summons can be issued too if traffic laws are not followed.

Are you buying apartments or just renting apartments? Greenhill is new and I think the apartments are better than the Royal Lily's. If you get the ones at the top floor, you better plan to have your activities because the stair case is a killer! This is just a guess though as I never stayed in Greenhill before.

Other than the cooking facilities, apartments offers nothing else. As long as the beds are clean and there's Astro and TV (most have), that's about it. I mean if you have a group of 6 to 8 persons, it is a cheap alternative. Some can even bring their own pillows and comforters , maybe their 'bantal bucuk". Even hotels offers not much facilities with no cooking facility even. What else is there in hotels, karaokes, restaurants, room service and Strawberry Park has a heated pool, most of the facilities are unused by travellers.

3 rooms apartment, 2 to a room, averagely RM70.00 per night per room, compared to hotels of the same price you get budget inns. Depends on your group, if youa re just a couple, hotels is a wise choice but in families or groups, apartments are better.

It is safe if you drive within the rules, roads are good as it is the same road as the Simpang Pulai > Cameron Highlands > Lojing > Gua Musang. Cameron Highlanders likes to visit the pasar malam in Gua Musang every Thursdays and it takes less than 2 hours from Cameron Highlands to Gua Musang. In fact, during Fridays you see alot of cars with 'D' number plates. In fact another hour you reach Ipoh with this road.

This post has been edited by etigge: May 3 2011, 12:33 PM

Best way I think is to make your way first to Puduraya KL and then continue from there with the only two services from KL, ie. Unititi and Kurnia Bistari. Unititi is the better of the two, BTW.

Ironically, cheap hotels is easier to stay than those upper class ones. If budget is your requirements, don't worry, just go. Just walk in on the many budget hotels there. They seldom takes booking anyway. I think more budget hotels are located in Tanah Rata.

Wah! first we don't need calculator for Maths now a lot of students cannot survive without it. Then we have handphone to keep contacts as opposed to remembering them last time. If you lose your handphone, you can't even contact your friends. Now we have GPS to do all the routes. I think in 5 years time, if US decide to shut down the GPS satellite, all will stay at home, unable to commute anywhere.

I think if you were to walk in any tour company in Penang, they would able to arrange it for you. Other than that, it's quite hard to actually plan anything. Probably you can ask those smaller 'Bas Sekolah' guys.

DeLaFern is quite a new hotel and it should be nice. Situated right in the middle between Brinchang and Tanah Rata and only a stone throw from Smoke House. If you are driving, nowhere in CH is any attraction too far. Enjoy

Night life a bit 'susah' lah there. There is a Karaoke joint at the Rosa Pasadena Hotel. Although Cameroners are quite some drinkers, they tend to hangout in local coffeeshops. There's a pub in Tanah Rata, Highlander's but not a nice place. To me, I would rather get a few bottles (they have liquor shops there) and soome snacks and drink over a game of gin rummy or mahjong. More relaxed and private.

The coolest part of C.Highlands is Kea Farm (around Equitorial Hotel) and next is Tringkap. Other places is more or less the same. Probably your visit to Strawberry Park coincided with a cooler period of the year. If you really want cool you should plan your visit at the end of the year right up to CNY where temperature might go down to 16 degrees at night. Anyway whatever temperature it is, it is still way cooler than KL lorr.

Actually not many farmers want to grow corn nowadays as the maturity time is long and it is always plucked by Bangladeshis who loves them. Since most of the workers are Bangladeshis, the bounty is always lesser. There are exceptions though but be prepared to pay high prices for real Cameronian corn. Those RM10 for 5 or RM 10 for 7 are not from C.Highlands. Sometimes the real ones, the matured ones are priced RM10 for 3 and alot of tourist avoid it and go for the cheaper ones and .......................sigh gets cheated.

Nope. More likely from Gua Musang area, Lojing to be precise. Real cameron corn, the kernels are uneven in size. The kernels zig zag and not in line. The outer layer or ears are thicker and the size bigger and they taste sweeter. There are two types there the usual crystal corn and also the milky kind where the kernels are milky in colour. They are usually more expensive.

I think renting an apartment is cheaper is there's a group. You can call those that are in the earlier threads. At normal seasons you can get it for less than RM200 or cheaper for three rooms and fits perfectly 6 persons or maybe more if you cram. That's about RM35 per person per night. There are even cheaper ones in Tringkap but a bit off the way from Tanah Rata and Brinchang. I have experienced cheap hotels before and you will regret it. Blankets are smelly and pillows are stained real bad. I have to use my towel to lay on the pillow and towel to sleep and that even I can't sleep the whole night.

Holidaying during the top seasons (busiest time for resorts) is not a holiday anywhere you go. Then I am sure the whole of CH is jam packed at that time. I am sure in the privacy of your room there is no kids screaming unless it is yours. I actually rather go visiting during the lowest seasons even monsoon seasons to East Coast. I don't mind the rain, in fact I liked the rain Been once to Club Med and they replaced two days free because it rained two days.

If Tringkap, go to Restoren Tringkap (caution just Restoran Tringkap and not Restoren Tringkap 77). The proprietor is Ah Kow as locals usually calls the place Ah Kow's place rather than the name of the restoren. It is not situated at the main road anymore and have shifted to the apartments on the hillside in Tringkap. Ask around for Ah Kow's, all the locals know him. Ask for his famous 'chiew pai yee' his signature dish. Also steam kampong chicken and deep fried oyster mushroom.

Kg. Raja, I can only think of Ngau Kee Restoren but it is not cheap. He specialises in wild river fishes like Kelah, Temoleh and Tapah (lim yee) suppplied by the orang asli. I had a not so good experience there but it was busy at that time. I was treating my friends at that time and when they were ordering they bring this whole tray of fishes to show you and with tiny little price tags which you can't really see. I had a greedy friend at that time he chose the biggest the most exxpensive. A head of a Temoleh and cost RM250. It was not steamed properly and the fish head was wasted. Then that's the most famous restaurant in Kg.Raja and other than Hai Peng there's not much to choose except near the temple.

To me, after 3 years staying there, my opinion is CH is not a place to eat I rather save the stomach for a really gooding treat in Ipoh. Walk into any restaurant in Ipoh and I bet the food is many times better than CH.

There are in both villages. 'Tai chow' is more to dishes, soups , seafoods etc and 'sai chow is just fried noodles and fried rice but 'sai chow' has also added 'tip chai fan' nowadays, literally one plate dishes like sweet and sour pork rice, fragrant chicken rice etc. One thing I do know CH's 'tai chow' is never cheap. Steam boat is cheaper than a meal with 4 types of dishes. In CH steam boat operators allows customers to bring their own green veges bought from Kea Farm or anywhere else. So, if you order say, for 4 person and usually about RM15 per person plus another RM10 for drinks and you can buy another RM20 veges from Kea Farm, you are not going to finish it.

Only place to board buses to CH is in Puduraya. Both the express buses company is there namely Kurnia Bistari (avoid it even if it is free ) and the other Unititi. Tickets can be bought in Puduraya. BUT if you are travelling back from CH to KL, they do stop in Sentral for passengers disembarkation. Unititi usually has 3 departures daily, 9.00 am, 12.00 noon nad 3.00 pm (give and take an hour) and price for tickets is RM35.00 one way till Tanah Rata.

I don't see how far is Puduraya in comparisons to Sentral. Just take a taxi there.

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Added on July 26, 2011, 11:22 pmYou can hire a taxi for half a day or daily but I think half a day would suffice. There is a taxi stand near the bus station there. Alternatively you can take the dialy tours from the tourist counters in Tanah Rata. They have jungle hikes, half day tours which includes tea plantation and a few other attractions, Mossy Forest, even to the Lata Iskandar waterfall (you will see this waterfall on the way up to CH). There's even a Thursday tour to Gua Musang 'pasar malam'.

This post has been edited by etigge: Jul 26 2011, 11:22 PM

You can try calling Michael at 012-5066070 . He deals in real estate there and he hanndles a lot of apartments there. You can ask him about rooms too. It is the beginning of the peak season so my guess is not many want to rent out long term. But you can try, maybe there are a few not so well furnished units that he can rent out a few months. Good luck.