Hilton Kuching

Kuching International Airport (IATA: KCH, ICAO: WBGG) serves the southwestern region of Sarawak, Malaysia. The airport is located 11 km south of Kuching city center and approximately 25 minutes to Hilton Kuching.

"See Sarawak in Half a Day" is the claim made by Sarawak Cultural Village, a unique award-winning living museum offering an excellent introduction to local cultures and lifestyles. On a sprawling 17-acre site just a short walk from the nearby resort hotels, there are replica buildings representing every major ethnic group in Sarawak; Bidayuh, Iban and Orang Ulu longhouses, a Penan jungle settlement, a Melanau tall-house, a Malay town house with adjacent top-spinning court, a Chinese farm House and a Chinese pagoda. All the buildings are staffed with members of the various ethnic groups, in traditional costume, carrying out traditional activities. Each building has a "storyteller" who is expert in describing and interpreting traditional cultures and lifestyles. They will happily pose with you for photos. After touring the village, you can enjoy a multi-cultural dance performance in the village's own theatre. There is also a good restaurant and a handicrafts shop on-site. Sarawak Cultural Village can also host theme dinners and parties (check with your hotel), and you can even get married here, in traditional Iban, Bidayuh, Malay or Orang Ulu style!

Adjacent the Waterfront, the Main Bazaar is the oldest street in the city and the heart of old Kuching. It has some superb examples of Chinese shophouse architecture, many of which have been occupied by the same family for generations. These families still pursue traditional occupations such as tin-smithing,carpentry and petty trading. Kuching's highest concentration of antique and handicraft shops are to be found here, and shoppers can rest between bargaining sessions in a number of old-fashioned coffee shops with panelled walls and marble-topped tables. Jalan Carpenter, which is parallel to Main Bazaar, has a similar selection of small traders and coffee shops, as well as food stalls and two small Chinese temples. The whole area oozes charm and character. For aficionados of heritage buildings, there is a row of perfectly preserved 19th century Chinese houses at the nearby Upper China Street (off Leboh China).

A National Park since 1957, Bako offers the perfect introduction to Sarawak’s forests and wildlife. The park covers the northern tip of the Muara Tebas peninsula, an area of 27 sq km. Despite its seemingly small size, Bako contains a wide range of vegetation – swamp forest, scrub-like padang vegetation, mangrove forest, dipterocarp forest, delicate cliff vegetation and more. In fact, at Bako it is possible to see almost every type of vegetation found in Borneo. Bako also contains a rich variety of wildlife and a coastline covered with small bays, coves and beaches. The park has a number of well-marked trails offering interesting walks ranging from short pleasant strolls to serious full-day hikes. Unlike some national parks, visitors to Bako are almost guaranteed to see wildlife. Long-tailed macaque monkeys and silver leaf monkeys are ever present, wild boar are often found rummaging around the park HQ, squirrels and monitor lizards are also common. There is every chance of seeing the rare and unusual proboscis monkeys on trails such as Telok Paku and Telok Delima, particularly if you go late afternoon. You are more likely to see wildlife if you quietly follow the trails and keep listening.

Kuching Waterfront, which lines the south bank of Sarawak River, is THE place to sample the city's cosmopolitan vibes. During the daytime, it offers scenic views of the Astana, Fort Margherita and the Malay kampungs across the river; but night-time is when it really comes alive! It seems like half of the city is out meeting friends, watching a show, or just shooting the breeze. For something different, why not try jetty-hopping along the river on the local Penambang boats, and savour the different sights, sounds (and delicacies!) between the two riverbanks.

For over 20 years, the wardens here trained young orang utans, who had been orphaned or rescued from captivity, how to survive in the wild. The success of this programme has left the surrounding forest reserve with a thriving population of healthy adolescent and young adult orang utans, who are now breeding in the wild. The programme has been transferred to Matang Wildlife Centre, but Semenggoh is still home to its successful graduates, semi-wild orang utans and their babies. They spend most of their time roaming the forest but frequently come back to the Centre for a free meal. If it is the fruiting season in the forest, some or even all of them may not come to feed. This in itself is a good sign and another step on the way to full rehabilitation.