Moonriver Lodge
Driving to Moonriver Lodge from Kuala Lumpur took us less than 3 hours. All thanks to a good planning and good driver. We were planning on a year-end vacation and then what appeared as the first choice in Booking.com got us hooked right away. As a family, we were searching for a place where the little one can run and explore around freely, at the same time connect with nature and expand his curiosity. Moonriver Lodge appears to be just what we were looking for to have our holiday away from the hustle and bustle of city life in Kuala Lumpur. Booking made, and off we go on a road trip up the highlands.
Situated less than an hour drive from Cameron Highlands, Moonriver Lodge appears to be a great place to be to unwind and relax. Knowing that we will have a peace of mind being far away from phone signal and wifi. No regrets whatsoever, in fact we were hoping not to have wifi but you know, there's always 'in case of emergency'. So there you go if you need to be connected. Also if you are a long-term traveler and need the internet to plan your trip, it will be helpful. Just so you know, the strongest wifi signal is at the breakfast area.
We felt at peace and relieved the moment we walked into Moonriver Lodge. It was one o'clock in the afternoon when we arrived, where Carmen - the receptionist was out for lunch. There was a sign placed notifying us to come back later. We decided to walk around the area to start exploring. As we walk past the 'Edible Wall' section - where we can see Parsley is being grown. We were feeling good and fresh to be close to nature. Feeling the cool air at 1500m above sea level, up we go further and we can see Koi fish pond in 4 different ponds. The fish were all swimming around excitedly welcoming us. Swimming close to us brought excitement for the little one. Carmen soon appeared in front of us as we made our way further up. Once we were done with the registration, we were being told that the room is only available at 2pm. So we decided to drive up to Cameron Highlands to grab lunch and necessities before it turned dark. Because there will be no shops and restaurants nearby to get our tummy filled.
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| Pitcher plant found along the way to fish farm |
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| Onion rings anyone ? |
In less than an hour, we arrived Tanah Rata, Cameron Highlands. Had our lunch fixed and bought takeaway dinner with snacks, we then headed back to enjoy the evening at Moonriver Lodge. Reading a book by the couch at the lounge or opt for the hammock is a great way to spend the day. Just be sure to have your insect repellent on as the 'organic' mosquito are hungry during the afternoon and evening. Basanta, a Nepalese who have been working with Moonriver Lodge for close to 4 years now gave us all the insights and what were the facilities and that we can use the kitchen facilities including cooking and the washing machine to do laundry. We appreciate his service and hospitality. He is also the in-house chef, housekeeping, and farmer who takes care of almost everything that is going on around Moonriver Lodge. He knows how to prepare food for the animals around the farm, such as chicken, swan, duck, and turkey. You bet you can not only connect to the sound of nature of insect and waterfall, but also the awakening sound of the chicken and turkey in the morning. The chicken apparently starts its morning call at 5.30am. Having said this, it did not interfere our sleep at all. In fact, we enjoyed being away from screen time than complaining about the chicken.
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| Corn plantation on the way up to fish farm from Moonriver Lodge. |
We had a deep sleep for the first night there as we were the only guest at that point of time. It was cold and we did not have to switch the fan on at all. We enjoyed the coldness by keeping the windows open throughout the night. As we were the only guest at Moonriver Lodge, breakfast was specially made by Basanta to be served just for us. The breakfast area is situated next to the waterfall. Felt special with all the peace and quietness. The sound of crickets and insects kept us company during breakfast, besides the little one running around and excited to start the day. We then walk around the farm and nursery before heading out for some excursion around Cameron Highlands.
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| Piano & guitar for self entertainment |
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| The room that we got. |
We did not have a good night sleep on our second night there at Moonriver Lodge as more guest started to arrive and chatted their way to 3am. The walls are made of wood and not bricks, hence the sound of a simple hum can go a long way. Whats more happy cheerful laughter and loud voices. We had to get them to lower their voice, but still it was definitely not the best sleep that night. Thankfully, we all managed to have a good sleep during our third night there as they went to bed early too after that incident.
On our last day at Moonriver Lodge, Carmen and Basanta brought us to a night market located at Lojing, not far from the lodge. A mere 5 minutes drive is good enough to put our little to a deep sleep while we explore the night market. Nothing to shout about, but still it was a good experience to see how the locals do their weekly thing. Held every Thursday evening, most of the patrons are of the local workforce people, comprising majorly close to one hundred percent of foreign workers who visit regularly to get livestock. Definitely felt like being out of Malaysia for that moment. We bought Apam Balik ( turnover pancake - a type of griddle pancake common in Southeast Asia ) to go. That was our last activity before we check out the next day and head back to the city of Kuala Lumpur.
Overall if you are on a budget and own a transport, you can get your meal fixed at RM5 from the nearest Kampung Raja town, about 20 to 30 minutes drive up. Alternately, you can also buy your own fresh vegetables and cook up a tasty meal by utilizing the kitchen facilities at Moonriver Lodge as all cooking utensils are being provided. We had a great time staying at Molison lodge ( our room ) and would go back sometime in the future. We were told upon booking that there is no attached bathroom in all rooms at Moonriver Lodge , it was to my surprise to find that there was indeed a room with attached bathroom as we would prefer to take that, as opposed to common shared bathroom to accommodate our little one during the night. Just hope that the management of Moonriver Lodge will take the noise level seriously and improvise their honestly during booking to serve guests better.
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