Gunung Jerai - 1,217m Height Mountain

Gunung Jerai, also known as Mount Jerai, formerly Kedah Peak is the highest mountain in Kedah with the height of 1,217 meters. Within Kedah itself, the mountain stands at the border of Kuala Muda and Yan districts. The mountain is a massive limestone outcrop and is a lone feature from the surrounding geography of the area.

I went there with Tiffany last few months, to explore the highest mountain in Kedah. The environment is clean and beautiful, however more creativity and innovation needed to make it even better tourism destination. We had coffee in Kedah Peak restaurant, enjoying the view of Kedah state. There are full of paddy field. If you are there, then you will understand why Kedah is the biggest paddy supplier in Malaysia.

What You Can Do?
Sight-seeing is a must-do activity, standing on the top and viewing the beauty of Kedah Paddy fields. It is a good place for relaxing, suitable family vacation, friends gathering and team building activities. You don’t have to worry about the hot whether there, it is high and cold. Besides that, you can enjoy jungle trekking, trekking from the bottom to the top of the mountain and even camping there.

The Regency Jerai Hill Resort
It is a resort on Gunung Jerai, offering pretty good accommodation service for the guests. There is a restaurant manage by the resort, called Kedah Peak restaurant. They offer buffet lunch. If you are staying in the resort, you can organize a BBQ parties at night. You can organize conference or seminar too, in their conference room, but I think it is not suitable due to the transportation issue. (Tel: 04-466777)

According to Wikipedia, the height of Mount Jerai relative to its surroundings allowed Indian traders and seafarers to use the mountain as a navigational point more than 1500 years ago. The mountain was considered sacred by the ancient Malays so they built temples from the foothills up to the summit. Hindu-Buddhist priests would pray at these stupas for the safety of Bujang Valley, the richest archaeological site in Malaysia located on the southern reaches of the mountain.

Getting There?
If you have GPS device, then you should use it. Using the North South Highway,take the Gurun exit. From Gurun town, turn towards Alor Star. After paying the Toll fees, turn left at the T-junction and drive to the end with another T-junction. Then, turn right to the main road. You can see many homestay ads along the way; find the road sign to The Regency Jerai Hill Resort.
There are 3 major ways to go to the top of the mountain. You can drive (own transport) to the top or request for transportation service from The Regency Jerai Hill Resort. If you love jungle trekking, you may explore the Gunung Jerai Forest with a group of friends and reach to the top.

Map (Gurun Exit - Gunung Jerai)

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