IPOH: After being listed as among Lonely Planet’s Top 10 ‘must visit’ regions last year, the Silver State continued to carve outs its name in the world map, especially when it came to tourism.
This time, the state’s capital city, was highlighted in The New York Times’ Travel section, in an article entitled ‘Why Ipoh, Malaysia, Should be on your Travel Radar’. It was published on February 28.
The article kicks-off with a historical background of Ipoh which was the centre of the country’s tin production, in the 1900s.
The collapse of tin prices and closure of tin mines in the 1980s however led Ipoh to lose its lustre as a booming and bustling town of Perak, existing primarily as a pleasant place to retire or as an eating stop for traveler.
It, now, is roaring back in style. It also has a number of well preserved shop-houses and heritage buildings around the capital’s Old Town, such as the Railway Museum playfully referred to by the British during the colonial era as the Taj Mahal of Ipoh.
The article also highlighted several cafes which continued to open in the town’s colonnaded shophouses, tucked between established businesses as well as hotels.
Among the cafes are Burps & Giggles, Patisserie Boutique, Plan B, Chokodok Reggae and Thumbs Cafe, Zakka Loft andArtisan Handmade Bread.
These places are free from hipster posturing and have an easygoing ambience.
For the hotel, the article recommended Sekeping Kong Heng Hotel, which is located on the Kong Heng Square in the city’s Old Town.
Besides that, M Boutique, a hotel that mixes the rustic, industrial and whimsy is also one of the must-stay hotels if you are visiting Ipoh.
State Tourism, Arts, Culture, Multimedia and Communications Committee chairman Datuk Nolee Ashilin Mohammed Radzi said it was exciting to read about Ipoh especially since it was published by an internationally renowned newspaper.
“The state believes that it will bring high promotional value for Ipoh in terms of tourism and putting it on the roadmap for international tourism.
“The coverage is also good as it covers readership not only confined in the United States but also worldwide with its distribution around capital cities.
“We hope that the article will help the state in establishing Ipoh as an international destination, in line with the state’s strategy this year,” she told the New Straits Times Press, today.
Last year, Lonely Planet, published its annual Best in Travel list, and Malaysia’s Silver State received a nod.
Perak was ranked number 9 after Choquequirao (Peru), Taranaki (New Zealand), The Azores (Portugal), North Wales (United Kingdom), South Australia, Ayse´n (Chile), The Tuamotus (French Polynesia) and Coastal Georgia, USA. The Skellig Ring, Ireland was ranked number 10.