Kampar vacation rentals

Kampar is a university town around two hours north of the capital Kuala Lumpur, in an area with a strong tin mining heritage. The region around Kampar is sprinkled with flooded tin workings, which has turned it into a land of lakes popular with anglers in search of pangasius and catfish. The town is at the base of Kampar Hill, which contains remnants of a World War II battle, and people come to explore the wooded Gunung Relau hiking trail, passing moss-covered boulders, tin shacks, and glossy ferns.

Kampar is split into two distinct districts — the old and new towns. The old town still retains many of the original, brightly-colored shops and houses typical of early 20th-century Malaysia. Nowadays, the shops are home to trendy coffee bars and boutique stores catering to the local university crowd. The new town is made up of a more modern residential and commercial district.

Located to the west of central Malaysia, Kampar has a tropical rainforest climate. Days are humid all year round. The skies are generally overcast, and the heat can feel oppressive until you get used to it. Monsoon season affects different parts of the country at different times, with western Kampar seeing the most rainfall in September and October.

Malaysia’s Mountain Trail Festival takes place in December, with competitors from all over the county. If you’re taking part, you’ll need plenty of stamina to complete courses as long as 84 kilometers through the rainforest. If you’re not running, there’s music and food to keep you busy while you’re spectating. The university also puts on the WOW Festival in March, which highlights the town’s tin mining history and promotes community relations between students and locals.

Kinta Tin Mining Museum

Kampar celebrates its tin mining past, and the Kinta Museum focuses on the gravel pump extraction method that has pockmarked the surrounding countryside. Life-size models illustrate the backbreaking work involved in extracting the tin by pumping and then panning the metal. The museum is open most days.

Kampar Green Ridge Battlefield

The Kampar Green Ridge battlefield is an official historic site. British and Indian troops fought a battle here to slow the Japanese advance in 1941. You can still see the area where the fighting took place, with scattered remains of downed Japanese aircraft and piles of used ammunition boxes easily accessible from the trails. You’ll also find a memorial that has been erected to the 500 soldiers on both sides who died in the battle.

Gua Tempurung

The coolness of the Gua Tempurung caves can be a welcome respite from the town’s heat. One of Malaysia’s most extensive cave systems, you can walk almost two kilometers through the galleries, some nearly 90 meters high. The cave complex is made up of five giant domes — you can see fallen stalactites on the floor of one of them, nicknamed the fallen warrior.