Taman Tugu is a 66-acre forest park for the public which aims to conserve, protect, and preserve a secondary forest located in the heart of Kuala Lumpur. It is a not-for-profit corporate social responsibility initiative led by Khazanah with the support of various public sector agencies and civil-society organisations like MNS, FRIM, DBKL and many others.
The park has hiking trails, rest areas with drinking water, and toilet facilities. The trails are suitable for beginners and all age groups. Each trails have full loop length about 1-5 km. Therefore, depending on time availability and fitness level, one can choose to do the trail suitable for them. There are also scheduled weekend activities in the park.
The Story of Taman Tugu
The 66-acre Taman Tugu site, was brought to Khazanah’s attention as a proposal to be converted into a for-profit tourist attraction theme-park. At the same time, other developers were pursuing the land for commercial development purposes.
Based on feedback from various communities and engagements with organisations such as the Malaysian Nature Society (MNS), Khazanah motioned to convert the site into a public park and conserve the secondary forest contained within it.
In partnership with the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM), up to 1,000 trees within the site have been identified and tagged for preservation. These include indigenous species such as Jelutong, Tembusu, Pulai and Gaharu – many measuring more than 1-meter in diameter and are potentially 100-years old.
More than 5,000 trees averaging 8-10 years old consisting of more than 230 indigenous Malaysian rainforest species have been added to the site. These trees, sourced from nurseries include 1,000 trees which are categorised as “Endangered” or “Critically Endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) such as the Keruing, Meranti and Mersawa species.
One of the criteria in selecting the trees being added is the type of fauna it will attract. An increase in fauna will enhance the biodiversity of the site and promote the ecosystem including natural pollination. If this happens well, the site could eventually have more than 200 trees per acre – similar to a rainforest.
The trails are created in a “discoverable” manner ensuring that none of the FRIM tagged trees are compromised. As trails were created, it appeared that the site had become an illegal dumping ground. Thus far, more than 300 truck-loads of rubbish has been removed from the site – this included construction debris, household rubbish and even needles believed to have been left by substance abusers who frequented the site.
As you walk the trails you will notice quite a number of palm oil trees. These are believed to have been brought in by the British prior to independence when the site was home to British residences. The British initially brought in palm oil seeds from West Africa and planted it for ornamental purposes.
[via Taman Tugu]
FEATURE
- Hiking trails suitable to all
- Various forest trees species
ACTIVITY
- Walking around
- Hiking
- Relaxing
- Observe plants around the forest
- Photography
Check Friends of Taman Tugu Facebook Page or their Instagram for more scheduled weekend activities at Taman Tugu.
FACILITY
- Open parking
- Toilets
- Rest huts
- Hiking trails
- Lawn
- Open space area for events
- Merchandise shop
- Taman Tugu Booth (drinks and insect repellent also sold here)
- Nursery
- Park Office
- Surau
Other building and facilities in the park area:
- Madrasah Bustanul Ulum
- Khazanah ILMU Bungalow
- Kuil Sri Maha Mariamman Devasthana
- Persatuan Perkhidmatan Tadbir dan Diplomatik
- Institute of Strategic and International Studies – Malaysia
Check out Taman Tugu virtually via VirtualProperty.my here.
Hiking Trail
The trails are suitable for beginners and all age groups. Most of the trails are adopted by CIMB Islamic. The length of full loop of the main trails are:
- Green – 1.5 km
- Yellow – 1.6km
- White – 1.2 km
- Orange – 1.2 km
- Nursery – 1 km
FEE & ADMISSION
- Admission: Free
- Parking: Free
- Inside Taman Tugu : 7.00 am – 6.30 pm
- Padang Merbok (gate open on weekends): 7.00 am – 1.00 pm
- Operating hours: 7.00 am – 6.30 pm (last entry 5.45 pm)
- Please be advised that the park will be closed due to weather conditions or safety concerns
- Attire: No restriction but please use comfortable clothes (ex: t-shirt, shoes)
- Bring water and prepare insect repellent for the hiking
For more information, please refer to Taman Tugu website.
Event Space
There are open air event spaces available to rent for events like family picnics, birthday parties, dinners and corporate events. These spaces offers capacity about 20-30 peoples per time. The open space beside The Kiosk, The Roundabout can also be booked and tents setup to cater to bigger events or larger crowds.
For more information about event spaces, refer to Taman Tugu website.
GALLERY
Photo credit to Friends of Taman Tugu FB, Tripadvisor, and petitgo.com.
REVIEW
Tripadvisor
Foursquare
Facebook Review
ireka.com.my | Kuala Lumpur’s Green Jewel – Taman Tugu Urban Forest Park
theperpetualsaturday.com | Everything You Need To Know Before You Visit Taman Tugu
petitgo.com | Taman Tugu
ACCESS
Maps
By Train
Take LRT Sri Petaling/Ampang Line to Bandaraya station then exit through Bank Negara KTM station connection walkway. Alternatively, you also can take KTM Komuter to this station. Go left and follow the road (Jalan Dato Onn) until the end then go right and follow the road (Jalan Sultan Salahuddin). Walk until you reached Lanai Kijang Resort entrance road. The park’s Lanai Kijang Entrance will be on your right.
Malaysia public transport guide:
BUS | TRAIN | FLIGHT | CAR RENTAL | FERRY | TAXI
CONTACT
Taman Tugu
Address: Taman Tugu, Persiaran Sultan Salahuddin, 50480 Kuala Lumpur
Tel: –
Email: ask@tamantuguproject.com.my
Facebook Page: @friendsoftamantugu
Website: tamantugu.my
Last updated on September 2022
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