BY RABIATUL KAMIT
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN – A popular nature lodge in Temburong is set to expand its glamping accommodation in a bid to draw more visitors to the district’s pristine rainforests.
Sumbiling Eco Village manager Leslie Chiang said construction is under way for 10 more glamping tents, a type of outdoor lodging that combines glamour and camping, bringing the total number of such accommodation to 15 by early 2017. He explained his decision to build these tents came following a strong demand from locals after the concept was introduced in 2015.
Unlike conventional camping, glamping accommodation does not require any assembling and often includes basic amenities such as a bed, fan as well as lighting.
Glamping tents in Sumbiling Eco Lodge allows guests to experience nature in comfort.
Guests are also provided with access to nearby bathrooms, kitchens and outdoor activities.
“It allows most people to experience nature in comfort and with convenience, because not everyone wants to camp as it can be a bit rough,” said Chiang.
The new tents will be situated around Sumbiling Eco Village’s three acres of land nestled in the Iban village of Sumbiling Lama, overlooking an upstream stretch of Temburong River and lush greenery of the jungle.
Constructed with mostly recyclable materials, the new tents will vary in size to accommodate solo travellers to families or groups.
“So far we’ve had many locals come to experience glamping. They love it and they come back for it… It’s a nice feeling to be close to nature. We only began introducing glamping last year, so it’s still new but now everybody is asking for it,” said the manager.
Besides the additional glamping tents, he said their expansion plan also includes a number of new packages such as personalised health retreats in partnership with Raw Food Asia.
These activities were previously organised as one-off events, but now visitors keen to reconnect with nature will soon be able to make bookings throughout the year for health retreats that are customised to their needs.
— Courtesy of The Brunei Times
