ATTRACTION SHOPPING PLACE AT CAMERON HIGHLANDS

STRAWBERRY FARM

Strawberry farms are immensely popular attractions at Cameron Highlands, as visitors are fascinated with the idea of dainty fruits of temperate origin growing on local soil. The cold climate makes it suitable for cultivating strawberries all-year-round; some of the harvest ends up at supermarkets and grocers across Malaysia and Singapore, but much is snatched up by tourists. You can find many strawberry farms around Tanah Rata, Brinchang and Kea Farm, but a minimum purchase is often required (conveyed by self-plucking) to see the actual farm. Consequently, growing strawberries is one of Cameron highland's most important economic sources and activities.

Non-buying visitors can only ramble around the farm's shop and cafe. A basket is given to place their pickings, and weighted and charged accordingly at the exit. The price usually hovers around RM 20-25 for half a kg, which is significantly higher than buying them from markets; you are in essence paying for the farm visit and plucking experience. The exception is Big Red Strawberry Farm (Taman Agro Tourism), located at the back of Brincang town, which is free to enter without a minimum purchase. While many visitors obsess silly with eating strawberries, continental tourists are conversely amused - fruit plants native to their land, growing and producing substandard strawberries in a tropical region, all for the amusement of locals.

CENTRAL MARKET

Multi Crops Central Market is a tourist shopping complex situated by the main road about 1km after Brinchang town, or 2km before Kea Farm. Catering mostly as a one-stop shopping center for visitors, the complex sells a mixed bag of popular highland products, including flowers, tea, ornamental plants, strawberries, souvenirs and handicrafts. The arrangement of Central Market is even like a small indoor park, complete with benches, fountains, a landscaped garden (that doubles up as a nursery), translucent awning (back portion, for natural lighting), and even a cafe that sells pastries and drinks. The market opens daily from 9am to 6pm.

NIGHT MARKET

The Brinchang Night Market is a popular shopping attraction among visitors that occurs every Friday and Saturday in town, starting from 4pm and ending late night. The bazaar occupies two tarmac clearings opposite each other across the main road; one faces Star Regency Hotel, while the other lies along the police station. This evening market consists of glimly lit stalls that retail the best products from Cameron Highlands, including strawberries, vegetables, flowers, plants and kitsch souvenirs for tourists. It's also an excellent place to go food hunting, with many hawker stalls that cook up local favourites and even continental snacks, such as fondue.

BEE FARM

Bee farms are a novelty for visitors in Cameron Highlands, allowing them to see how local honey is cultivated. There are three bee farms; Highlands Apiary Farm in Habu, Ringlet; Ee Feng Gu at Kea Farm, Brinchang; and Tringkap Bee Farm. Often, these farms combine some form of activity or attraction to make their places more interesting, rather than just watching bees buzz around. Ee Feng Gu has landscaped their farm into a colourful park and shopping center complete with giant bee statues, small museum, cafe and maze section for children. Highlands Apiary has a flower nursery while the Tringkap Bee Farm has a strawberry patch and vegetable stalls.

KEA FARM

Kea Farm is one of most popular shopping destinations in Cameron Highlands, located 3km after Brinchang town. While mostly an agricultural district, the center of activity lies in a day market next to the main road, just before Equatorial Resort. Every morning till evening, traders and farmers sell their crops here to visitors and locals alike. Flowers, ornamental plants, souvenirs and handicrafts are other products sold in the market besides fruits and vegetables. On holiday weekends and national festivals, the road that leads past Kea Farm Market may be cluttered with cars parked (or parking) along the sides, causing a massive jam that stretches all the way to town.

While agonising for travellers caught on the wrong side of traffic, this is a brisk time for farmers and traders. Prices are quite cheap due to intense competition, but bargaining is encouraged if you intend to buy more. The market mostly consists of stalls by the roadside, but there are some shoplots on the right. A few local restaurants can even be found among these shops, the largest situated closest to the main road that serves Chinese and steamboat cuisine. Some of the most popular products among tourists are strawberries (probably the cheapest in Camerons), sweet corn (a highland specialty and crowd favourite) and freshly budded roses of many different colours. If you travel further down the road, navigating the crowd of people, you'll reach the Rose Center and various vegetable farms nestled among the hills. 

BUTTERFLY GARDEN

The Butterfly Garden is one of two such adjoining parks in Kea Farm along the main road to Tringkap, 3km after Brinchang town or 7km from Tanah Rata, and a stone's throw away from Equatorial Resort. One of Cameron Highland's oldest tourist attractions; it's essentially a garden enclosure built along a hill slope, filled with free-flying butterflies and strange insects displayed in aquariums. The park also has a tortoise pen, scorpion pond, reptile exhibits, mini insectarium and a small zoo section (mostly domestic animals). Open daily, tickets are RM5 per adult and RM 2 for children; a garden caretaker kindly gives visitors a free guided tour when available.

BUTTERFLY FARM

The Butterfly Farm is the second of two such neighbouring parks in Kea Farm, Brinchang. Like the Butterfly Garden, it has a similar structural arrangement, but with more cement and newer furnishings. The name is really a misnomer, as the park does not 'farm' butterflies; by breeding and cultivating them, rather, they are restocked from wild populations on a regular basis. The Butterfly Farm consists of a garden section, where butterflies roam in a landscape of shrubs and flowers, and a larger zoological wing, where other insects, lizards, snakes and mammals are displayed in enclosures or tanks. Open daily (8pm-5.30pm), tickets are RM5 per adult and RM2 per child.

TIME TUNEL(MUSEUM)

Time Tunnel is a local museum dedicated to preserving the historical memory and cultural heritage of Cameron Highlands. Located in Brinchang, the museum occupies a basement within Kok Lim Strawberry Farm, perched next to the main road 2km after town or 3km before Kea Farm. The 1,000 odd exhibits are the private collection of See Kok Shan, a Cameron local with a penchant for vintange items and memorabilia. Having acummulated much junk over years of domestic travel, See partnered with the owner of Kok Lim Strawberry Farm to open Time Tunnel - a way of sharing his treasure trove and memories with visitors from all walks of life.

Since 2007, the Time Tunnel has been a steady tourist attraction, especially among seniors. Walking down the passageway, it is clear that meticulous care has gone into recreating past scenery and landscapes for visitors to explore. Most prominent are the snapshots of life during the colonial era and subsequent years after Independence; a classic pubhouse, Chinese coffee shop ('Kopitiam'), traditional hair saloon, Peranakan dresssing room and even an old kitchen, complete with cans and utensils of extinct brands. Notable personalities are also highlighted, such as; legendary Thai silk trader Jim Thompson, who disappeared mysteriously from the Cameron Highlands in 1967; Singapore's first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, who spend some holidays in his youth here; and P. Ramlee, an ancient but influential musican.

Structurally, Time Tunnel is one long passageway that loops to the end, with exhibits along the sides or nested within recesses. Many of the 'artifacts' on display are simple (but ancient) items of popular culture; cigarette boxes, drink bottles, vinyl discs, cuckoo clocks and ceramic toys and other common stuff that have now become collectibles, due to their rarity and sentimental value. The museum even has sections on the agricultural activities, tourism development and aborigine lifestyles in Cameron Highlands. Meanwhile, soft evergreen tunes play from speakers, echoing through the basement to set visitors in the 'right' mood for a history lesson. Time Tunnel opens daily from 9am to 6pm; tickets are priced at RM5 per adult and RM3 per child.