Kuching Travel Guide

Kuching Travel Essential Info

Kuching’s Climate

Climate in Kuching, is slightly different from climate in west Malaysia, although generally the climate in Malaysia (including Kuching) is hot & humid, & rainy season during November to February. However during the rainy season, it gets more rainfall comparing to some of the city in the West Malaysia such as Kuala Lumpur or Johore Bahru, especially now, at time of writing (year 2009), I noticed a significant difference during this wet season, which well-developed city in West Malaysia such as Johore Bahru is not as wet as Kuching is getting. During the dry season in Kuching, the hottest you can feel is during April to August, which the temperature can go as high as 33 degree Celsius. But to travel in Kuching or Sarawak, this is the best time for most jungle activities, such as trekking in the National Parks.

Festivals & Events Calendar in Kuching

Kuching sharing almost the same festivals as other part of Malaysia, however there are some local festivals that only Sarawakian celebrates, such as Kuching Festival & Hari Gawai (Dayak end-of-harvest festival).

1 January – New Year’s Day. Public Holiday through out the whole Malaysia, Kuching has no exception too.

January/February- Chinese New Year. Chinese new year is fall on 1st day of the lunar calendar, which can fall on any days during January or February. Google it for exact date of the certain year you want to know, eg. “Chinese New Year 2010”. Travel to Kuching 2 weeks before the Chinese New Year is the best time to see the locals getting ready for the Chinese New Year festival. People of Kuching is always busy shopping for Chinese New Year goods & goodies during this time. On the Eve of Chinese New Year, locals will do their final shopping before noon, & after 2pm generally the Kuching is like a ghost town. Shops close, businesses end, people are at home getting ready for their reunion dinner. If you are still at Kuching on this day, the only place you can have your dinner is KFC or McDonald. In the midnight when the clock strike 12am, the whole city is like in the war, you will be amazed by the fireworks on the sky & firecrackers, and it will last for at least half an hour to an hour before you can get a good sleep. It’s illegal though to play fireworks or firecrackers, however it’s not been fully enforced in Sarawak. You won’t get this if you are in the West Malaysia especially Kuala Lumpur. Most businesses remain closed in Kuching from the first to the forth day of the festival, you still have to dine at the fast food restaurant if you still residing at Kuching. However, cafe, pubs & bars are normally opened when the day turns dark.

March/April – Good Friday. Nothing much special in Kuching during this day, it’s simply a public holiday.

1 May – Labour Day. Simply a public holiday. Business as usual for shopping malls & restaurants.

May – Wesak Day. It can fall on any day during May depend on which year. If you are at Kuching during this time, pay a visit to the Buddhist temples, where the crowds are gathered during this special occasion.

1 June – Gawai Day. The very important festival for the Dayak (indigenious people) in Sarawak, which celebrating the end of rice harvesting & welcomes the new planting season. All people in the longhouses in Sarawak will start to celebrate the festival from the Eve of the Gawai day. On the Gawai day, traditional rituals are held, dancing, lots of local foods especially Bamboo rice & bamboo chicken. If you are traveling in Kuching during this special occasion, you can participate in the Annah Rais Homestay program & experience the fun of the Gawai festival together with the locals people. No walk-in tourist will be entertained during this day in the longhouses, except for pre-arranged tour from the tour company, or invited guest by the local people. As for Annah Rais Longhouse, simply participate in the homestay program & you will get a chance to witness how the local people celebrate the festival at Annah Rais longhouse.

June – Dragon Boat Festival. As the name suggest, you can witness the dragon boats competition during this day through out most part of Malaysia. In Kuching, you can witness the dragon boat competition along the Sarawak River, at the Kuching Waterfront. Local Chinese will be making their own rice dumpling during this special occasion for their family.  Most Chinese coffee shops in Kuching do selling them too, so you should try it!

July – Rainforest World Music Festival. These are the infamous global event that will be held in Kuching every year. Rainforest World Music Festival will bring together the world famous musicians around the globe & indigenous musicians from all parts of mythical land of Borneo. Such event will last for 3 days & will be held at Sarawak Cultural Village, next to Damai Puri Resort (formerly known as Damai Lagoon Resort), about 30 km from Kuching. For more information about Rainforest World Music Festival, please visit their official website at http://www.rainforestmusic-borneo.com. Very often during this period of time, Kuching hotels occupancy rate is high & can be fully booked at times, so you are advised to book early if you plan to attend to such global event. Resort that within the walking distance to the Sarawak Cultural Village is Damai Puri Resort & Permai Rainforest Resort. Damai Holiday Inn Resort is also within a walking distance, however it takes you a longer walk, approximately 10 to 15 mins I guess!

August – Mid Autumn Festival. Also called Mooncake or Lantern Festival. Nothing much special accept eating mooncake (lots of mooncakes, everywhere is selling it) & watching kids carrying lantern at every corner of the streets when the day turns dark. Amateur photographer will really appreciate such festival.

31 August – National Day. It’s a nation public holiday, & in Kuching, it’s celebrated each year, check out at Central Padang at Kuching.

August/September – Hungry Ghosts Month. It is believed by the Chinese that in the 7th month of lunar calendar, ghosts are returned to the earth to feast. In Kuching, check out the “hungry ghost event” held near to the old central post office. It’s always packed with crowd.

25 Dec – Christmas Day. It’s also another important event for the Christian in Kuching. However, special events arrangement mostly limited to each individual church only. Clubbers also gathered at certain pubs for counting down during eve of Christmas. Nothing much special in Kuching, better spend your time in Singapore’s Orchard Road I guess, if you happen in this region!

Visa & Immigration

Entering into Malaysia is Visa free for tourist from certain countries such as Australia, United Kindom, USA, New Zealand, majority of the European & Asian countries. For more information about Visa requirements, please visit Malaysia Imigration website.

Enter into the Sabah & Sarawak (Kuching), your passport will stamped again for the new-stay permit, usually 30 days (extension is allowed & can be done at immigration office). Such rules apply to Malaysian citizens from west Malaysia too. Both of these States are governing there own immigration system & you are treated like entering into a separate country. For more information about Sarawak (Kuching) Visa requirements, please visit Sarawak Tourism website .

Getting In To Kuching

Getting in to Kuching is pretty straight forward & lots of flight from different parts of Malaysia is connected to Kuching by Malaysian Airlines & AirAsia. There are many flights daily from Kuala Lumpur, & also directly from Singapore (Singapore Airlines, SilkAir, AirAsia, Tiger Airways & Jetstar). So long you are able to get a flight to Malaysia or Singapore, you have no excuse for not getting a flight to Kuching! Check out the following websites for flights to Malaysia & Singapore – Kayak.com

Getting Around in Kuching

Upon arrival at the Kuching Internation Airport, you can take a taxi (fixed rate of RM22 taxi coupon can be purchased at the airport taxi stand) to any part of Kuching city. The traveling time is approximately 20 to 25 mins depending on the traffic condition. Anyway, the traffic is not that bad in Kuching & it’s far better than in Kuala Lumpur or Johore Bahru.

You can also hire a car from the car rental companies, which they have their booth setup at the arrival hall. Driving in Kuching is easy as the road is not complicated at all & you will be surprised that the local Kuching drivers are polite and respectful.

Taxi can be hired for getting around the Kuching, & generally most taxi drivers in Kuching are honest and over-charging is not their practice. However, always ask & agree on the fare first before getting in. As a guide, getting around the Kuching city by taxi will cost you approximately RM10 only one way.

Bus is available to travel around Kuching, it’s cheap, but the schedule is not consistent at all & can be very frustrated at times. If you are traveling beyond Kuching, such as Lundu, Bau, Bako, or to another town such as Sibu, Bintulu, Miri, bus can be very economical & schedule is fixed daily.

Language spoken in Kuching

Main languages spoken in Kuching are Hokkien (Chinese dialect), Mandarin, Malay & some English. If you are an English speaker, you will find that you have no problem to travel around Kuching as most people can speak simple English, the only problem is that most of them speak a broken one. But at least communication is not an issue for you.

If you want to learn some Malay words when meeting with the Malay, you can visit this website.

Money

Currency used in Kuching are Malaysian Ringgit, denoted in RM / MYR. They are RM100, RM50, RM10, RM5, and RM1 notes. Coins are in 50 cent, 20 cent, 10 cent, 5 cent & 1 cent. Money changers are available at major shopping centres & airport. Credit card is widely accepted at restaurants & hotels only. Cash is the only mode of payment accepted in most local cafes, shops & etc. So to travel around in Kuching, cash is a must!