When you book a trip to the National Park "Taman Negara", the bus will leave at 9 o'clock in the morning from the Crown Plaza Mutiara Hotel in Kuala Lumpur. Tour bus ticket is included, but not your boat ticket and the permits you need.
Tip: Stay the first night in the Mutiara Hotel*****. It's situated in the Golden Triangle of the city. You don't have to get up early and you can spend your day sight-seeing or shopping.
De bus leaves at 8 o'clock and does not wait for you! The journey takes four hours. There's only one stop at a petrol station. When you arrive in Kuala Tembeling, there are two counters.
- one for the "permits" for Taman Negara and to pay for your camera and fishing permit.
- one for your confirmation of the boat.
This is the way to do it quickly:
1. Go to counter 1 (permits Taman Negara/camera/fishing)
2. then go to counter 2 (confirmation for the boat)
3. Go back to counter 1 to receive and to pay for your permits
Backpackers can also buy bus- and boat tickets and permits.
After receiving your permits, you can enjoy a wonderful lunch under the trees, looking at the river. The boat will leave at 2 o'clock for the National Park. The boattrip takes 3 till 4 hours. You'll arrive around 16.30 in Taman Negara.
Tip: There's also a speedboat going to Taman Negara. It leaves at 1 o'clock and the trip takes 1 hour. Now you can spend the whole afternoon in the Park. We visited that afternoon an Orang Asli settlement. So we did an extra excursion.
After a panoramic boattrip on the Tembeling river you'll arrive in Taman Negara (16.30). After climbing up banks of the river you can check-in and you can go to your chalet. There is also a youth hostel and camping is allowed on some places. There are two shops and one restaurant. If your dinner is not included in your package, you can have dinner across the river on one of those floating restaurants. Across the river is....outside the Park (Kuala Tahan)
