Interesting Places To Visit

Siti Khadijah Market (Pasar Besar Siti Khadijah)

Siti Khadijah Market (Pasar besar Siti Khadijah), as its name implies, is a local wet market. Its name after Prophet Muhammad's wife, whom is known for her entrepreneurial skill, as this market is mostly run by women. Apart from the usual fresh goodies like seafood, vegetables and wide variety of fruits, you can also find ready-to eat food like 'ayam percik', nasi ulam and a variety of noodle soups, all unique in flavors and taste of Kelantan, serves freshly for you. Not to forget to taste the local desserts like 'kuih muih' (cake sort of), tempeh and a glass of hot milk tea, which is the staple drink for Kelantanese.

Gunung Stong State Park

Gunung Stong State Park is a forested area, surrounded by many mountain peaks at the backdrop, including Gunung Ayam, Gunung Tera, Gunung Saji and ecetera. By now you would have guessed, the word 'Gunung' means mountain in local language. It holds an area of more than 20,000 hectares, surrounding mountain peaks, rivers and caves. With its dense forest, it house a variety of wildlife, including tigers, elephants, nears and a good variety of birds like hornbills. Unique flora and fauna, including the world's largest flower, rafflesia can also be found. Apart from that, the Stong Waterfalls is believed to be the highest waterfalls in Sourtheast Asia region, standing about 495 meters above sea level. Gunung Stong State Park is truly the place for adventures lover.

Pantai Bisikan Bayu (Beach of Whispering Breeze)

Pantai Bisikan Bayu (Beach of Whispering Breeze) located at Kota Bahru, the capital of Kelantan, is amongst the popular beaches in Kelantan. Other includes Pantai Cahaya Bulan (Moonlite Beach) and Irama Island Bachok (Pantai Irama Bachok). It is also known as Pantai Dalam Rhu, which is just 50km drive south to Kota Bahru. As its name implies, when the gentle breeze rustle the trees along the beach, making the gentle hush-hush sound, which some says sounds like a soothing whisper.

For surfers, a good time to hit the beach is from November to April during the North-East Monsoon. The each is rather crowded during school holidays and long weekends.

Handicraft Village and Craft Museum

Handicraft Village and Craft Museum, also known as 'Balai Getam Guri' in local language, is a place to showcase local handicraft industry in Kelantan, and it's supported by the state government. It's a fine craft museum, houses many Kelantanese craftsmanship, including traditional embroidery, batik, silverware and matting. Interestingly, curious visitor have the opportunity to witness and learn the process of making those craft, where demonstration of traditional embroidery, songket weaving and batik drawing are done skilfully by the artists. Souvenirs are available for sales as well. Another worth visiting museum is the Jahar Palace (Istana Jahar), which was once the royal residence, built back in 1855. It's a wooden palace, which displays interesting wood carving and traditional handicraft.

Istana Jahar (Jahar Palace)

Istana Jahar (Jahar Palace) is built by Sultan Muhamad 11 in 1887 for his grandson Long Kundur. It has luxurious woodcarvings that showcase the excellent craftsmanship of the Kelantanese. Apart from that, photographs, artifacts and traditional handicraft reflect on the Kelantan rich and sophisticated heritage. The palace is now converted to a museum, to share the uniqueness and beauty to the world. There are also a Malay Weapon Gallery which house many unique weapons such as keris and pisau. The museum is open daily from 8.30 a.m to 5.45 p.m except for Fridays.

Kuala Krai Dabong River Cruise

Kuala Krai Dabong River cruise is one of the ways to explore the untouched nature of Kelantan. It's a must for eco-lovers and the cruise will starts from Sungai Kelantan into the lush dense rainforest, which take about 2 hour ride. As you cruise along the river, the wonderful wildlife and flora and fauna will unfold themselves. You might also catch a glimpse of the little villages along the river bank doing their daily chores. Upon reaching Dabong, you have about 3 hour to stroll around before the boat will bring you back to Kuala Krai.

Masjid Kampung Laut (Mosque Kampung Laut)

Masjid Kampung Laut (Mosque Kampung Laut) being one of the oldest mosques standing in Malaysia, although the actual age of the mosque is unknown. However, judging from the architectural and design, many believes it to be around 300 years. The unique architectural is being adopted into many Kelantan official buildings. The mosque was once the meeting venue for Sultan's meeting and was also used as a trader point sometime later. There was a massive touch up was carried out in the late 80' and it was estimated to cost about RM160,000.

The refurbishments include replacing the wall and roof, building additional towels, toilets and electricity. The entire build-up area now is 74 feet by 71 feet and top to end pillars. Unfortunately, non-Muslims are not allowed into the mosque. However they can stroll around the outer compound. The best time for Muslims to visit is at evening. It is definitely worthwhile to stay a night or two in Kota Bahru as there are so much more to see.

Muzium Islam (Museum Islamic)

Muzium Islam (Museum Islamic) is a place where you can trace the root of Islam in Kelantan. The building itself resemble the mosque-like building. It contains various artifacts and inscriptions documents of how Islam got introduced in Kelantan and how it became such an important element in the everyday life in the state of Kelantan. It was once known to be the Verandah to Mecca also known as 'Serambi Mekah'.

Pantai Cahaya Bulan (Moonlight Beach)

Pantai Cahaya Bulan (formerly known as Pantai Cinta Beach / Beach of Passionate Love) was believe to name by a lovelorn British soldier during the World War Two. Till today, there are some locals still prefer to us the old name. It has a beautiful long and wide sandy beach, a popular spot for family outings and picnics. It also have a variety of water sports and horse riding. There are some food stalls and restaurants along the beach, which offers fresh barbeque seafood.

Pantai Irama Bachok (Beach of Melody)

Pantai Irama Bachok (Beach of Melody) got its name from the gently hushing sound of the sea breeze. It's known to be the most beautiful beach in Kelantan and is a common hang out place for families and friends. The beauty of the beach does not lie only to its clear blue water, but also to the facilities available for visitors. Apart from basic facilities like motels, public toilets and restaurants, there are also water sports, boat for hire and barbeque facilities to make your visit more interesting. 

Jalan Temenggong (Temenggong Street)

Jalan Temenggong (Temenggong Street), located in the centre of Kota Bahru town, is well known for its haven shopping site amongst the locals and visitors. The street is lined with colorful craft stalls and shop, made by local artisans. If you are lucky, you can catch a glimpse of the making of jewelry by the artist too. There are variety of gold and silver lewlry, batik and textiles, wood carving, traditional handicrafts like songkek and wau and whole load more. Most of the goods are price reasonably, however, be prepare to bargain to get the best deals.

Istana Balai Besar (The Grand Palace)

Istana Balai Besar (The Grand Place) is a single story palace built by Sultan Muhammad II over 170 years ago, as the official residence of past sultans. It is believed that bullfights used to be held in the palace for official Royal ceremonies Jahar Palace (Istana Jahar). It was built for his grandson, and it was built up from wood, furnished with unique wood carvings until mid-1900. The palace is now used for official state functions and is not open to public. 

Muzium Diraja Istana Batu (The Royal Museum)

Muzium Diraja Istana Batu (The Royal Museum) was built in 1939 under the reign of Sultan Ismail I of Kelantan (1920-1944), as a wedding gift for his nephew Yahya Petra (1960-1979) whom was the eventual successor of Kelantan. It has a pale yellow structure and served as the palace for crown's prince. It was then donated to the state and now it's open to public for viewing. The richly furnished rooms will give you a glimpse into the past royal life.

Bank Kerapu (War Museum)

Bank Kerapu was built by Mercantile Bank in 1912, on a land that apparently belongs to Nik Yusof, a renowned local chieftain. It is also believed to be the first stone. In 1941, during the Pacific War (1941-1945), Japanese troop landed near Kota Bahru. During the occupation, Bank Kerapu was used by the Japanese as their 'Kempen Tai', which is a secret police station for war coordination. Upon the fall of Japan and the return of British, Bank Kerapu continued to function as bank until 1992, when it was turn into a war memorial by the Kelantan Museum Corporation. It houses more than 1,000 exhibits relating to the war and a mixture of Japanese tool used during the occupation, including Japanese bicycle. Photographs, articles and artifacts in this memorial can bring you back to 1912 using your imagination.