Step Back in Time on Malaysia’s Orchid Trails

The orchid trails being developed in Malaysia will allow visitors to take a step back in time to an era when intrepid orchid hunters crawled through dense jungles in search of the exotic treasures we call orchids. A joint project of Tourism Malaysia and the Sabah Tourism Board, the project was recently announced as part of the Southeast Asia nation’s efforts to attract tourists.

Malaysia’s plans include development of several scenic flower trails, a trail directory, training of well-informed trail guides and tourism packages centered on orchid trail exploration. Tourism Ministry officials said they hope to start booking the first orchid tours in March. Malaysia is already angling to host a future World Orchid Conference (held every 3 years) in Sabah once the final phase of the orchid trail project is complete.

Orchids provide a compelling and ready focus for this unique Malaysian project. Encompassing a peninsula (the southern-most point on the Asian continent) and a number of islands, Malaysia is an equatorial land of luxuriant rain forests, lush foliage – and orchids. With more than 3,000 species of orchids native to Sabah and neighboring Borneo, the tropical paradise offers orchid fans a feast for the senses. Nearly 1,000 orchids are found in the Mount Kinabalu area alone. Rising high above Malaysia’s green jungles, Mount Kinabalu is the country’s highest peak and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. To maintain the pristine beauty of the area, Malaysia established Kinabalu National Park where several of the new orchid trails will be constructed.

The orchid trail project hopes to provide orchid lovers with a sense of what it must have been like when orchid hunters first crept through the jungles and climbed the slopes of Mount Kinabalu centuries ago in search of exotic orchid species. While designed to make the country’s orchid plants accessible, trails will wind through jungles and mountain slopes so tourists can see the flowers in their natural settings.