Cycle your way around Kuching
In uncertain times like right now, leisurely neighbourhood rides or multi-day bike-packing trips, navigating the backcountry roads while practising social distancing and sustainable travelling are the best forms of re-introducing oneself to travel after long periods of being stuck indoors.
Cycling is the newest travel trend. Since emerging last year, the trend has seen people hopping on their two wheelers to travel around everywhere. If the idea of exploring places on a bicycle gets you all excited, then Kuching would be the ideal place for you to do just that!
To make things easier and enjoyable, you’d want to explore Kuching with a cycling guide expert like Paradesa Borneo. They’ve got cycling tours of all sorts, and for all types of riders. Wow!
Explore the Malay village
A ride that is as easy as ‘peanuts’ would be a casual bicycle ride around a kampung (village) in Kuching. Located on the north bank of Sarawak River is a Malay kampung with traditional wooden houses on stilts. These houses, which come in various designs and colours, are becoming a rare sight as time moves on.
Paradesa’s Kampong Tour lets you ride past these traditional houses and gives you a glimpse into the daily life of the villagers there. This will be followed by a cruise across Sarawak River on a sampan boat before you enjoy a hearty meal at Kubah Ria’s open-air market, then feast on exotic fruits and vegetables, as well as local kuih (traditional desserts).
The best of both worlds Best of Kuching: Heritage & Kampong Bike Tour
If a tour around the Malay houses is not enough, then how about topping it off with a journey along the heritage area of Kuching city?
You’ll explore along the country paths of the Malay kampung first, then learn about the city’s rich heritage by visiting its historical landmarks and colourful temples, followed by a cruise on a traditional sampan boat along Sarawak River. The last bit of the tour brings you to the Kubah Ria open air market, where you’ll get to sample exotic local fruits, mingle with the local farmers and shop for artisanal treats.
This tour gives you the opportunity to see first-hand of how Kuchingites of different races and religion have lived side by side for years, in perfect harmony.
Sunset & street food
We totally get it. Kuching can be scorching hot during the day! So if being out in the sun makes you feel not just sluggish but hot and bothered, then a sunset ride would probably strike your fancy better.
In the Sunset Kampong Tour with Hawker Food, you’ll get to cycle around the traditional Malay kampung when the clouds turn orange, red and yellow (occasionally purple and pink!). One word to describe the atmosphere of the village during this time: heart-warming. You’ll see children laughing and playing around at the side of the streets, adults engaging in a game of ‘sepak takraw’, and the village folks starting a fire to prepare food at their roadside stalls. Such sights depict the essence of living in a village, sights so rarely seen in a modern-day polished neighbourhood.
Once you’re done cycling around the Malay village, you’ll stop over at the jetty, take the sampan, and enjoy the sunset view that makes for a dramatic backdrop along with the Astana, DUN building and Kuching floating mosque. On land, it’s time for some hearty ‘nasi lemak’ at a traditional hawker street dinner at the Kuching Waterfront. Yum!
A culinary bikexcursion!
Maybe tasting food at hawker stalls or restaurants isn’t enough. If this is the case, then strap on your apron, and bring a grocery bag along on your bicycle ride because it’s time to get cookin’!
The Kuching Bike & Cook tour will put you together with a bunch of like-minded people with a love for cycling and cooking! The first portion of the tour will bring you through the stretch of Malay Kampung along the banks of Sarawak River. Then, you’ll visit the buzzing Satok market to buy local produce, at the same place where you’ll also learn about the different ingredients needed to make authentic Sarawak dishes. And then it’s on to the kitchen where you’ll get hands-on lessons in cooking Sarawak’s iconic dishes!
The bikeventure of a lifetime Mountain Bike Gold Mine & Cave Discovery (Day Trip)
Touring the backcounty roads of Kuching is an amazing challenge. Even more so if you top it off with a history lesson and a caving experience!
This epic cycling discovery traverses off-road trails and will have you working up a sweat. Recommended for fit and advanced cyclists, this 20km tour begins with a visit to Tasik Biru in Bau, an old gold mining town with a rich breath-taking limestone karst landscape. Next, you will get off the saddle to enter Kuching’s most famous caves: The Wind and Fairy Caves. Marvel at wildlife like swiftlets and bats on the cave walls and ceiling. Continue the tour with a ride on a route that encompasses jungle terrains and rocky gravel roads – thrilling for sure! Along the way back to Bau town, you’ll pass by traditional villages and local farmhouses.
The best of this tour is saved for last, where you’ll be rewarded with a delicious local lunch to replenish your energy after a long journey of cycling.
Tips for an enjoyable bike tour:
Do your research earlier so you’ll know what to expect
Choose a tour and destination that is suitable to your abilities
Eat and hydrate well prior to the commencement of the ride
Find a good balance between comfort and convenience when it comes to what gear to pack
Don’t forget to have fun!
