Kuching Hotels - Malaysia

<body bgcolor="#FFFFFF"> <h2 align="center">Kuching Hotels</h2> <p>Find a hotel in Kuching, Malaysia. Get the best discounts on <a href="http://www.hotels-travelnow.com/asia/malaysia/">Kuching hotels</a> - up to 70% off the regular rate. Make reservations online. Malaysia travel information.</p> <p><b>Holiday Inn Damai Beach<br> Crowne Plaza Riverside Kuching<br> Hilton Batang Ai</b></p> <p>On the whole, KUCHING - the capital of Sarawak - is underrated by visitors. Most unfortunately only stay for a day or two to organize trips to Bako National Park, the longhouses and the interior. It may be long enough to pick up on Kuching's appeal but not to fall for its special magic. It is a highly attractive place: the courthouse and Astana (palace) still serve their original purpose, while the commercial district - in the heart of the old town - is a warren of crowded lanes and home to Kuching's Chinese community. Main Bazaar, the city's oldest street, sports the remains of its original godowns, now converted into shops but still overlooking Sungei Sarawak, Kuching's main supply route since the city's earliest days when the Rajah Brookes ran the territory. The city is culturally as well as architecturally exciting and has one of the finest museums in Southeast Asia. The city keeps late hours too: the area around the Hilton Hotel and Holiday Inn is full of bars, pubs and plazas. But what's really unique about Kuching is its atmosphere. It is at once both buzzy and laid back, vibrant and mellow: a town where no one's ever too busy to introduce themselves to you and ask you where you're from. It's quite a unique place in fact, even for friendly Malaysia.</p> <p>The central area, sandwiched between Jalan Courthouse to the west, Jalan Temple to the east and Reservoir Park to the south, is usually referred to as colonial Kuching. Set just below the padang on Jalan Tun Haji Openg, is Kuching's prime tourist attraction, the Sarawak Museum (daily except Fri; free), whose main building dates from the 1890s and is set in lovely gardens. Part of the museum displays the diverse natural history collection of the nineteenth-century naturalist Alfred Russell Wallace, who spent two years in Sarawak in the 1850s. Upstairs, the excellent ethnographic section includes an authentic wooden Iban longhouse, a Penan hut, some fearsome Iban war totems, and woodcarvings from the Kayan and Kenyah ethnic groups. Across the road, in the new wing, there's an unparalleled collection of antique Chinese storage jars, brass kettles and cannons from Brunei, plus prehistoric relics and early trading goods. Behind the new wing of the museum, the Islamic Museum (daily except Fri 9am-6pm; free) exhibits diverse aspects of Islamic culture, from architecture to weaponry and textiles to prayer.</p> <p>The grid of streets running eastwards from Jalan Tun Haji Openg to the main Chinese temple, Tua Pek Kong, constitutes Kuching's Chinatown . On busy Main Bazaar and, one block south, on Jalan Carpenter, there are numerous stores and restaurants operating out of renovated two-storey shop-houses, built by Hokkien and Teochew immigrants who arrived in the 1890s. Overlooking the river on Jalan Temple, Tua Pek Kong is the oldest Taoist temple in Sarawak (1876) and attracts a stream of people wanting to pay their respects to Tua Pek Kong, the patron saint of business. You can learn about the history of Sarawak's Chinese community at the Chinese History Museum (daily except Fri 9am-6pm; free) across the road.</p> <p>Boats cross to the north side of Sungei Sarawak from several jetties on the waterfront, itself a pleasant esplanade, with cafés, bars and seating. One boat leaves from opposite the courthouse on Main Bazaar (every 15min, daily 6am-10pm; 20 sen) to Sapi jetty, close to the Astana, formerly the Brookes residence and now the home of the Head of State of Sarawak. Another route takes you closer to Fort Margherita, 1km east of the Astana; the only one of Sarawak's twenty historic river forts that's open to the public. It now houses a Police Museum (Tues-Sun 10am-6pm; free but take your passport), which features old weapons and uniforms, and a reconstructed opium den. From the fort, it's easy to thread your way eastwards and down to the atmospheric Malay kampung over which it stands guard: Kampung Boyan segues into Kampung Gersik, which in turn is assimilated by Kampung Sourabaya Ulu. From this side of the fort, boats will deposit you near the Riverside Majestic Hotel on the east side of the city centre.</p> <p>Local specialities such as wild boar and deer sometimes crop up on Chinese menus; in addition, Kuching has its own laksa, a rich soup where rice vermicelli is combined with shredded chicken, prawns and beansprouts in a spicy coconut gravy. The city's best bar is De Tavern, a Kayan-run watering-hole opposite the Hilton on Jalan Borneo. Should you develop a taste for tuak (rice wine), try the range at the Telang Usan Hotel 's Dulit Terrace and Tuak Bar.</p> <p>Choon Hui Café , Jl Ban Hock. Storming laksa and filling kolok mee (noodles, Kuching-style) make this plain coffee shop near Kuching's Hindu temple a huge breakfast-time hit.</p> <p>Denis' Place , 80 Main Bazaar. Western-style café-bar with superb international cuisine, coffee and pastries.</p> <p>Jubilee Restoran , 49 Jl India. Excellent Malay restaurant serving tasty kacang goreng (peanuts in fish paste) and sayur (green beans in chilli and lemon). Full meals from RM8 for two.</p> <p>Minangkabau , 168 Jl Chan Chin Ann. Excellent Indonesian restaurant with a range of unusual dishes like chilli-hot fish curries and beef rendang. RM10-15 for two.</p> <p>Nam Sen , 17 Jl Market. Lovely old coffee shop, complete with marble tables and "No spitting" signs. Handy for snatching an early-morning coffee or noodle soup before catching a bus.</p> <p>National Islamic Café , Jl Carpenter. Serves halal (Islamic) food, curries and unleavened bread from mid-morning until about 9pm. Very popular and inexpensive at RM3-4 a head.</p> <p>Red Eastern Seafood , Jl Ban Hock. Popular steamboat place.</p> <p>See Good , Jl Ban Hock, beside Telang Usan Hotel.</p> </body>