Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Cycling Holiday: Terengganu coast has the advantage

There many types of holidays. These include adventure, budget travel, cultural tour and  family holiday. I found there are quite a number of tourists who like cycling holiday. They bring their bicycles with them on plane and when they reach their destination, they use their bicycles to move around.

Recently I met a family of four from Holland who cycle along the coastal road of Terengganu i.e.from Kuala Besut to Kuala Terengganu. Their bicycles are special and tough. It has many bags and carriage. I asked this family what made them cycle? The father said," Through cycling we enjoy the place more, learn more things and feel the environment" . "We were in Perhentian Island yesterday. We cycled 79 km  to this place yesterday." His wife smiled and nodded confirming what her husband told me. 


Three bicycles for four. The father carries the daughter. 

The mother and children.

Their son and daughter just remain silent as they can not communicate with me due to language barrier. I observed they are a happy family. They carried detailed road maps of Terengganu and Malaysia to guide them. 

"Do you book your accommodation? " I asked. The father said, "No, we just walked in..last night we were in Merang, The price is reasonable ..I paid RM100." "Today we are cycling to Kuala Terengganu." 

"Do you feel safe here?" I added another question. "Yes, we feel safe here. Everywhere we go, everybody seems to say hello to us, " he replied. I responded that most Malaysians are lovely people.

The conversation was just for a few minutes but I managed to get more information on cycling holiday. Before they drove off cycling, he bid farewell to me with these words: Nice to meet you.

This family planned to spend three weeks in Malaysia. Their last destination will be Mersing off to Tioman Island then go back via Singapore. 

Based on this observation, I found Terengganu has potential for this kind of holiday. The basic infrastructure must be there. Reliable information on tourism in Malaysia must be disseminated to the world. People must be polite, friendly and do not take advantage of other people. 

Terengganu coastal road has unique fishing villages, serene coastal towns, variety  food stalls, beautiful beach, lots of rest areas, picturesque scenery, full of coconut and casuarina (rhu)  trees and friendly people. Only the hot sun and high humidity deter people from cycling. However the picturesque scenery that Terengganu had  certainly a good asset to promote cycling holiday.  Happy travelling and cycling.

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