PRIME Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's parliamentary constituency -Tambun- is poised to become a major player in tourism, especially with the "Visit Malaysia Year 26" campaign underway.
Renowned for its rustic traditional Malay villages, the constituency has close to 300,000 residents, the majority of whom are civil servants, farmers, small and medium entrepreneurs and traders, while about half are registered voters.
In the 1980s, as the tin mining industry began to cave in worldwide, residents there shifted to growing pomelos, hence the name Tambun, which in Malay stands for the rounded greenish fruit, which has a mixture of bitter and sweet taste.
While farming remains a major income for the residents and villagers, of which 67% are Malays, tourism has steadily become a force here for the suburban centre, which is just about a 30-minute drive from the state capital of Ipoh.
It began when tycoon Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah, through his conglomerate - the Sunway Group, established its Lost World of Tambun, an adventure park in 2004.
Image from https://sunwaylostworldoftambun.com/
It's a park with natural hot springs, 400-million-year-old limestone hills, and 10 distinct parks with 88 attractions.
It serves as a day-and-night destination, including the Lost World Hot Springs Night Park, offering activities like Saphira’s Lair and the Luminous Forest, while there are hotel accommodations provided within the property.
The park frequently hosts events, bringing in thousands of tourists to the Silver State, with tourism now a key focal point of the state's economy.
Next to the Lost World is the majestic The Haven luxurious condominiums, which were developed by Peter Chan, a unique technocrat with vast international experience, in 2014.
Within a decade, two budding hotels have emerged in Tambun, one by Sunway and another, The Haven Resort, in collaboration with Europe's biggest travel operator, TUI Blue, appointed by Chan.
An affable personality, Chan has made his mark in Ipoh, as he dismissed naysayers about investing in a high - rise property next to a lake in a non-developed virgin forest surrounding. Chan was confident the settings, concept and facilities would be the right tonic to stimulate tourism.
He spoke of his determination to see The Haven attract more visitors to the state, which has improved in its positioning as a quality weekend getaway and for the meeting, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) segment.
Chan's optimism was reinforced by feedback from the state exco for tourism, Loh Sze Yee, who said Perak had achieved 8.4 million tourist arrivals last year, surpassing its original target of eight million.
In 2023, it was around seven million.
Tourism Perak has captured the essence of the state as a scene for arts and culture, sports tourism, eco-tourism, gastronomy, heritage and community-driven activities, of which Tambun is a key player here.
Tourism receipts recorded in 2024 were in the vicinity of RM180 million.
Chan believes that Perak does have a certain way to go, but it does have potential, especially with Anwar overseeing the growth of Tambun.
He sees The Haven as mirroring what Ipoh had endured, which is experiencing a comeback after the tin mining industry slumped in the 1980s, although he has acknowledged that there are stiff challenges due to wholly unreasonable complaints by a handful of parcel owners.
The Haven, consisting of a hybrid of branded hotel /residence of the 516 parcel units in three towers, is managed collaboratively with TUI Blue.
Chan expects that The Haven will grow exponentially in popularity due to its uniqueness, rarity and services, besides its strategic position to the capital, adjacent to the master city developer of the Sunway township there.
He also wants to assist in changing the perception that Ipoh is a "boring" capital city, saying that medical services and business travel can be strong contributors towards the growth in tourism.
With Keretapi Tanah Melayu's move to bring in more efficient and faster ETC electronic train services between Ipoh and KL Sentral, Chan said the property market can boom in Perak because people can stay here and work in Selangor or Penang, or even Singapore, due to the direct daily flights.
“It is already happening, but we want it to speed up.”
“We have attracted more than 150,000 foreign tourists from over 120 countries on our own in the past decade, and indeed, there’s lots of room to grow."
There are also eco-attractions in line with the nearby Lenggong's status as a UNESCO geo-park landmark, of which The Haven is promoting.
There are also eco-attractions such as the Tambun Cave, a spot inspired by Anwar called the Madan Recreational Park, the Mirror Lake, the GoChin Agro (Pomelo) Farm, a hiking trail at the Gunung Lang Park, the Han Chin Pet Soo Historic Museum and the Qing Xin Ling cultural park.
Chan hopes to collaborate with the locals and tourism authorities to further tap the tourism sector for the state.
He also hopes that various packages can be drawn up since Ipoh is strategically located in the middle between the Klang Valley and Penang. - February 26, 2026.
