Emerging Medical Tourism

23 May 2010
My family and I went to the FELDA Plantation Resort at Sg Klah, Perak over the weekend. It was a very interesting trip indeed. FELDA had developed the hot springs within their 6.5 hectare oil palm plantation at Sg Klah to become a tourist attraction, complete with resort rooms, hot spring family spa and a picnic area where you can boil your own eggs and eat them!. The hot springs were carefully preserved and channeled to serve as therepeutic pools for the aching body, legs and the tired feet. The sulphur content in the natural hot springs can cure skin diseases, refresh and energise the body. Over the weekend, there were many cars with Singapore number plates, parked in front of the hotel lobby. As I ventured deeper into the surrounding area, I could sense the emerging medical tourism element making its mark here. Oil palm and medical tourism - a perfect combination!
It was awesome to see and feel the elegance of the oil palm trees as avenue trees leading to the picnic areas. (Oil palm was first brought to Malaysia and planted as avenue trees way back in the 1870's. It was later planted commercially at the Ist oil palm estate in Tennamaram, Selangor.) Visit http://palmoilis.mpob.gov.my/Vtour/index.htm  for a brief history of the oil palm/palm oil industry of Malaysia.
I hope the big players in the oil palm industry of Malaysia emulate this FELDA example, preserving the oil palm trees in their quest towards developing their land banks into property development.