A Few Words From Me…
Malaysia and Vietnam did something rather good for the region this week, six new names added to the ASEAN Heritage Park list between them, Bako and Lambir Hills among them. That sounds like the sort of thing that only matters to committee minutes until you realise Bako is a place you can be stood in front of a proboscis monkey within an hour of leaving Kuching, which is a different kind of recognition altogether, the kind that actually changes how somewhere gets visited rather than just how it gets described in a press release.
Elsewhere, a bamboo bike outfit in Manila and a coral restoration dive operation in Bali both picked up a modest but genuinely useful bit of financing this week, the kind of thing that rarely makes headlines but matters enormously to the people running it. And Brunei, a country I confess rarely troubles this newsletter simply because there’s rarely anything to report, signed a 20-year agreement to turn a forest reserve outside Bandar Seri Begawan into somewhere worth the detour. I’ll believe it when I see it, but I’m noting it down regardless.
Vietnam, meanwhile, is finally asking UNESCO to make official what anyone who’s had a proper bowl of phở already knew. As always, let me know what I’ve missed this week, or where you’ve been recently that deserves a mention. It’s always good to hear from you.
This Week in Southeast Asia
Malaysia and Vietnam Just Added Six New Names to Southeast Asia’s Most Exclusive Nature List
Six protected areas in Malaysia and Vietnam have been declared ASEAN Heritage Parks, bringing the regional network to 69 sites. The announcement came out of the 18th ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on the Environment, held in Langkawi from 2 to 4 September. Malaysia’s additions are the Tengku Hassanal Wildlife Reserve in Pahang, Bako National Park and Lambir Hills National Park, both in Sarawak. Vietnam’s are Pu Mat National Park, Dong Nai Culture and Nature Reserve, and Xuan Thuy National Park.
Two of these are already easy additions to a Borneo itinerary. Bako, Sarawak’s oldest national park, sits around 40 kilometres from Kuching, roughly an hour door-to-door once you add the 20-minute boat crossing; register and buy tickets at the jetty in Kampung Bako, and you can be watching proboscis monkeys from a rainforest trail within the hour. Lambir Hills, near Miri, adds waterfalls and one of the most biodiverse patches of lowland forest left in Borneo, reachable by a short taxi ride from town.
Vietnam’s Xuan Thuy, in Nam Định’s Giao Thủy district, was Southeast Asia’s first Ramsar site back in 1989 and remains one of the region’s best wintering grounds for migratory waterbirds, including the endangered black-faced spoonbill. Visitors join the park’s own boats through the mangroves; contact the park headquarters directly to arrange a guide, since some routes require prior clearance.
Southeast Asia now has 69 declared ASEAN Heritage Parks. Two further nominations, Cambodia’s Prek Toal wetland and the Philippines’ Mount Balatukan, are still awaiting final sign-off, and would take the network to 71 if both clear.
Bako National Park, one of Sarawak’s newest ASEAN Heritage Parks, is reachable from Kuching by boat within the hour.
A Bamboo Bike in Manila and a Coral Nursery in Bali Just Got a Financial Lifeline
A bamboo bike outfit in Manila and a coral restoration dive operation in Bali are the latest recipients of the Sustainable Tourism Impact Fund, a partnership between Agoda, WWF-Singapore and the UnTours Foundation now in its second round of financing. Each receives US$25,000 in loan capital, part of a scheme built to give small and medium tourism businesses in the region flexible, affordable financing tied to environmental and community outcomes rather than standard commercial lending terms.
Bambike, based in Intramuros, runs guided tours of Manila’s walled city on bicycles handcrafted from bamboo and abaca in partnership with the NGO Gawad Kalinga; book directly through Bambike’s own site or turn up at its headquarters inside the Plaza San Luis Complex, opposite San Agustin Church. In Bali, Livingseas Asia pairs dive tourism in Padangbai with coral reef restoration, training divers to help rebuild reef structures they would otherwise just be swimming past.
It is a modest sum of money by hospitality-industry standards, but it is aimed squarely at the kind of small operator that rarely gets a look-in from conventional tourism finance. If you are planning a Manila stopover or a Bali dive trip, either one is a more specific place to put your money than a resort chain.
Bambike’s bamboo bicycles are among the small operators now backed by the Sustainable Tourism Impact Fund.
Brunei Is Betting Twenty Years on Turning a Forest Reserve Into a Proper Destination
A 20-year agreement between Brunei’s Forestry Department and Borneo Eco Resort will redevelop Berakas Forest Recreational Park into what the Ministry of Primary Resources and Tourism has called a world-class ecotourism destination, part of the country’s build-up to Visit Brunei Year 2027. It is a small step in global terms, but a notable one for a country whose tourism story is usually told through Ulu Temburong’s rainforest rather than anywhere this close to the capital.
Berakas is an 18-kilometre trip from Bandar Seri Begawan, easily reached without a car via Brunei’s public bus network at roughly BND 1 a ride, or by the ride-hailing app Dart if you would rather skip the timetable. The reserve is a regenerated kerangas heath forest with marked trails, picnic and barbecue spots, and lookout points over the coast, open daily from 6am to 6pm. What the new agreement adds, according to the Forestry Department, is a proper slate of visitor activities and services beyond the current basic facilities.
Brunei rarely features in this newsletter simply because there is rarely fresh tourism news to report. Visit Brunei Year 2027 should change that.
Berakas Forest Recreational Park, an 18-kilometre trip from the Bruneian capital, is the site of a new 20-year ecotourism development agreement.
Vietnam Wants Phở and Water Puppetry on UNESCO’s List. Neither Should Be a Surprise
Vietnam’s government has instructed the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, alongside authorities in Hanoi, Hưng Yên, Ninh Bình and Hải Phòng, to prepare formal nomination dossiers putting both phở and traditional water puppetry forward for UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list. Water puppetry has been a national intangible heritage listing since 2012; phở followed in 2024, with both the Hà Nội and Nam Định culinary traditions recognised.
Neither needs much of an introduction to visitors, but both reward a slightly more deliberate visit than most itineraries allow. Hanoi’s Thăng Long Water Puppet Theatre, by Hoàn Kiếm Lake, runs several performances most evenings and is the easiest place to see the art form done properly, brightly painted puppets gliding across a water stage to live traditional music. For phở, Nam Định is the dish’s home province and still the place locals point to for the most authentic version, though Hanoi’s own broth traditions have their fierce defenders too.
No timeline yet for when either dossier reaches UNESCO. Until then, two of the most recognisable things about Vietnamese food and culture remain, technically, unofficial.
What’s On
This Week
MALAYSIA DAY (HARI MALAYSIA), Kuching, Sarawak and nationwide, Malaysia | 16 September 2026
The national holiday marking the 1963 formation of the Federation of Malaysia takes its main stage in Kuching this year, with the official ceremony at the Borneo Convention Centre alongside a free public exhibition on Malaysia’s formation running at Plaza Merdeka through the day itself.
PENANG COCKTAIL WEEK, George Town, Penang, Malaysia | 15-20 September 2026
Now in its fourth year, Malaysia’s biggest cocktail festival returns under the theme “Welcome Home,” with guest bartenders from across Asia working shifts at George Town’s independent bars through a week built around five local hospitality pillars, closing with a party at Hin Bus Depot.
TANA TORAJA FUNERAL FESTIVAL SEASON, South Sulawesi, Indonesia | Ongoing through September 2026
The Toraja highlands’ elaborate, multi-day Rambu Solo funeral rites are at their most frequent during the dry-season months, with respectful visitors typically welcomed by families through a local guide rather than by turning up unannounced.
Coming Up
JOHOR INTERNATIONAL ASEAN FESTIVAL, Kramsau, Johor, Malaysia | 24-28 September 2026
A five-day showcase of cultures, cuisines and performances from across ASEAN, organised by Yayasan Warisan Johor as a platform for regional cultural exchange.
MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL, Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia | 25 September 2026
Lantern processions, mooncakes and lion dances mark the year’s biggest harvest festival across three countries at once, with Hanoi’s Old Quarter, Singapore’s Chinatown and Kuala Lumpur’s Petaling Street all running dedicated street celebrations.
Worth Reading
For more on what makes Borneo’s protected areas worth the detour, this piece on the island’s wildlife sanctuaries pairs well with this week’s Bako and Lambir Hills news: Borneo: The Greatest Island Wildlife Sanctuary Where Your Money Funds Conservation Efforts.
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