Tanjung Piai riding experience

Pontian’s Tanjung Piai is best experienced with a folding bicycle ride

PONTIAN is Johor’s Southernmost state and this district has plenty to offer especially among adventure cyclists.

One of the attractions here is Tanjung Piai, affectionately known as land’s end.

From the Klang Valley, the distance to reach this location (N 01 17 098, E 103 30 503) is roughly about 400km one-way.


Mission accompli shed : At the monument in Tanjung Piai

Recently, I attempted to cycle from Muar to Tanjung Piai (covering a distance of 196.3km) with Michelle, my wife and staged the ride through towns like Parit Jawa, Batu Pahat, Senggarang, Rengit, Benut and Pontian.

To get things going, we left Muar in the wee hours of the morning to begin our ride and rode past Parit Jawa, a place known for its assam pedas.

The road leading to Batu Pahat, which is about 53km away from Muar, is wide enough to accommodate the folding bicycles which was laden with our luggage.

From Muar, it took nearly six hours to reach Batu Pahat, which is one of the largest towns around Johor’s Northern districts.

After a brief rest, the ride resumed towards Bukit Kelichap, with plenty of short and long climbs which became one of the more challenging stages in the journey to land’s end.
Stopover: The cyclists in Parit Jawa.

From Senggarang, we pushed towards Pontian where we stayed a night before completing the final leg of the journey to Tanjung Piai.

There are ample accommodation facilities in Pontian Kecil and the total distance covered on the first day of our cycling tour was 130.2km.

After a good rest, we resumed our ride to Tanjung Piai and made a detour to Kukup town to do some sight-seeing there.

The main attraction at the tip of the Peninsula, is a scenic village and a state park with a monument to commemorate land’s end.

It took us two and a-half hours to reach our destination and we wasted no time by snapping some photographs to record our achievement.

After a brief ride in Tanjung Piai, we proceeded to Pontian and terminated our attempt there after clocking-in a total distance of 196.3km on our bicycle’s GPS and transported the bikes and luggage to Muar with a chartered car.

~News courtesy of The Star~

Tioman Diving Map

Firefly launch of new route

Firefly treats kids to lunch in conjunction with launch of new route

Firefly celebrated the launch of its newest route by treating 50 children with a hearty luncheon filled with a series of activities with renowned local singers and actors here.

Pop singer Ezlynn, nasyid group Al-Mawlid and actress Fiffi Natasya had feted the children from Yayasan Kebajikan Anak-Anak Yatim Kelantan (YAATIM) and PEKA YATIM at a restaurant in town.

The company’s head of marketing and communications Angelina Fernandez said Firefly had made it a point to include children or the less fortunate in significantly celebrate the milestone.

“It is wonderful to see an excited group of young individuals who have built a strong bond over a short span of time with the artistes who have volunteered to collaborate and make this event possible together with Firefly’s team.”

An interactive session took place between the local celebrities and the children

with the day ending with Firefly’s staff presenting gifts to their guests.

Fernandez said that Kota Baru has been one of the most popular destinations among Firefly’s passengers.

“Since the inception of this route, we have received continuous support from the residents here who also contributed to the expansion of this sector.”

Firefly’s service between Kota Baru and Johor Baru would commence on April 26 with flights every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday.

Due to popular demand, the airline would also increase its frequencies to seven daily flights between its city hub in Subang and Kota Bahru from April 6.

～News courtesy of The Star～

Mersing Laguna

Royal visit to boost tourism

Royal visit to boost tourism

British royal couple Prince William and his wife Duchess of Cambridge Princess Catherine’s visit to Johor was a bonus and helped to boost the state’s image in the international scene.

State tourism and domestic trade committee chairman Hoo Seong Chang said that the royal couple’s visit to the state in September this year would help make Johor well-known throughout the world.

“Their would not only boost Johor as a place to invest but also as a tourist attraction.

Popular: JPO teeming with shoppers.

“The visit comes timely as the state tourism department has prepared many new products,” he said.

Hoo added that the Johor government through its tourism department hoped the visit would help attract tourist from European countries especially from Britain.

“With Legoland Malaysia opening in September this year and Johor Premium Outlets (JPO) already in business, we hope their visit to will increase the number of tourists coming in,” he said.

It was recently reported that Princess Catherine, famously known by her maiden name Kate Middleton, and Prince William would visit Johor as part of their tour to several countries in conjunction with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

In another matter, Hoo added that people especially those coming in from Singapore still go to JPO for shopping.

“The JPO has become one of the main attractions for the state where visitors have been increasing and we hope to achieve a high number this year.

“JPO received many shoppers especially on weekends and public holidays. We hope it will stay that way,” he said.

～News courtesy of The Star～