GUNUNG LEDANG NATIONAL PARK

    Gunung Ledang National Park lies just inside Johor's border with Melaka state, about 30 km from the town of Muar. The park surrounds the fabled Mount Ophir, now called Gunung Ledang.

The mountain is 1276m high (4186ft). According to a sign at the entrance to the park, Gunung Ledang is Malaysia's 64th highest mountain and the 6th most difficult to climb Ledang is actually only the 134th highest peak and it does not rank in the top 20 peaks in terms of difficulty.

Be that as it may, it is the highest mountain in Johor state and its accessible location, being only a couple of hours drive from both Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, means that it is one of the most popular and frequently climbed mountains in Malaysia.

   That does not mean that it is easy to climb. It is a 5 to 6 hour energetic hike to the summit for a reasonably fit person and there are some steep rocky faces to negotiate with the aid of ropes. Accidents happen and there have been some fatalities which is why it is compulsory to engage a guide from the Ranger's office.

The most popular trail from in front of the Gunung Ledang Resort is closed for climbers until further access so when I visited recently I had to content myself with a short 20 minute trek along stone pathways and steps to the Puteri Waterfalls, a cascade of about 60m with pools and a pleasant picnic and bathing area further downstream.

THE ROYAL ABU BAKAR MUSEUM

   The Royal Abu Bakar Museum is one of the oldest buildings in Johor. It is too, one of the main attractions in the state. This building was built in the year of 1866. It is formerly the Grand Palace of the Johor Sultan and has turned to a museum since 1982. The museum is filled with information and rare artifacts of the Royal Family. Besides, there are picture gallery featuring the family tree since decades and decades ago. The belongings of the Royal Family are exhibited there including the weapons of Malaysia.

There are a few nearby attractions which are related to the history of Johor and the Sultan himself. They are the Sultan Abu Bakar State Mosque and the Sultan Abu Bakar Monument. Johor hotels around that area that are suitable for accommodation are the Thistle Johor Bahru Hotel and Citrus Johor Bahru Hotel.

SENAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Senai International Airport is located in one of Malaysia's strategic development zones, with a structured highway and a proposed railway network, which will eventually stretch to China as well as providing easy access to the modern port facilities of the Tanjung Pelepas Port, Johor Port and Singapore. 

Our immediate neighbours are Singapore, Thailand and Brunei Darussalam; with Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia in the vicinity. In addition, the region's dynamic economic and tourist centres are within a mere four-hour flight radius, reaching out to Hong Kong, Macau, Guandong, North Australia, India, the Philippines, Indonesia and Indochina.

JOHOR

   Johor is a Malaysian state, located in the southern portion of Peninsular Malaysia. It is one of the most developed states in Malaysia. The state capital city and royal city of Johor is Johor Bahru, formerly known as Tanjung Puteri (Malay for Princess's Cape) and Muar respectively. The old state capital is Johor Lama.
Johor is surrounded by Pahang to the north, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan to the northwest, and the Straits of Johor to the south which separates Johor and the Republic of Singapore. The state also shares a maritime border with the Riau Archipelago from the east and Riau mainland on the west by the South China Sea and the Strait of Malacca respectively, both of Indonesian territories.
Johor is also known by its Arabic honorific, Darul Ta'zim, or "Abode of Dignity", and as Johore in English.

RAWA ISLAND

   

     Pulau Rawa is known as the Royal Island. The late Tunku Mohd. Achibald chanced upon this island and discovered it was a perfect fishing gateway. He often visited the place with his friends. Today, two generations later, it is popular with European aristocrats as well as the leisure tourists. This is the 'Fantasy Island' of Johor although it is only half the size of Pulau Aur. The fishing around Rawa is truly fantastic and some of the youngsters even go on lobster hunting trips. The water is great for snorkelling, scuba and clear enough for good underwater photography.

KOTA TINGGI WATERFALLS

Kota Tinggi waterfalls

     Waterfalls is what comes to mind when Kota Tinggi is mentioned. The falls at Kota Tinggi are a great favourite among the locals. On most weekends, there will be at least 1000 visitors who come here to bath, picnic or just to laze on the rocks. Many come just to enjoy the cool air and the sight of the falls splashing down some 36 metres into the clear pools below. The surrounding greenery, falls and people make a good photographic subject and very often the visitor will be able to meet foreigners, and locals too, with camera at the ready to capture that elusive scene.

LEGOLAND MALAYSIA!

   Legoland Malaysia is a theme park that has opened in Nusajaya, Johor, Malaysia on September 15, 2012 with over 40 interactive rides, shows and attractions. It is the first Legoland theme park in Asia upon its establishment. The official opening of Legoland Malaysia was made by Sultan Ibrahim Ismail, Sultan of Johor on September 22, 2012. It is the centrepiece of a 5,500,000 sq ft (510,000 m²) integrated complex in the Nusa Cemerlang industrial park, within the Iskandar Malaysia economic region, consisting of a lifestyle retail centre, offices, hotels, service apartments and residential units. Besides the Legoland Malaysia, other Lego-themed attractions nearby will open sometime. The first one will be a Lego-themed water theme park opening in mid-2012  and the other one is The Legoland Hotel, a Lego-themed hotel located at the theme park and also the first to open in Southeast Asia which will open in the first half of 2014. The hotel is built under a management agreement between the company and LL Themed Hotel Sdn Bhd, a joint-venture company owned by Destination Resorts and Hotels Sdn Bhd and Iskandar Harta Holdings Sdn Bhd. The cost of Legoland Malaysia and the water theme park is RM720 million, while The Legoland Hotel costs RM190 million. Only halal-certified food served at the Market Restaurant of Legoland Malaysia. This includes local and foreign delicacies. Legoland Malaysia targets 1.5 million visitors when it opens its doors and generate more than RM100 million in the first year of its operation.

FAMOUS FOOD AT JOHOR

List of famous food to be found in Johor

Nasi Briyani Gam:- Nasi Briyani Gam are specialty in batu pahat johor. It is rice cook with malaysian herbs and spice, very aromatic and mouth watering.

Mee Bandung:- Mostly famous from Muar, some restaurant even name the dishes mee bandung muar to let the customer knows that their mee bandung is indeed special. It is a dish of yellow mee with special gravy ussualy have slices of beef, prawns, dried shrimps, together with crushed peanuts.

Asam Pedas Lada Hitam:- This is a lunch time dish, ussually found in mix rice stall. This dish is specially for few kind of fish only such as catfish. The extra ingredient in this dish are the black pepper and daun kesum.