Santubong Archaeological Park Now Strengthens Sarawak’s Position As Heritage Tourism Hub, Here’s What You Need To Know

Published on October 4, 2025

Scheduled to beryllium an integral portion of Sarawak’s practice tourism offering is nan Santubong Archaeological Park, which precocious opened connected October 4, 2023. The parkland is situated successful Santubong, successful adjacent proximity to nan Sarawak Cultural Village (SCV) which is recognized for nan yearly Rainforest World Music Festival. The summation of nan parkland is apt to further heighten tourism to nan area, offering visitors nan opportunity to acquisition a deepened taste and humanities facet of their enactment successful Sarawak.

The 2019 initiated, 36.6 cardinal RM finance tourism practice task is designed to heighten liking successful Santubong wrong nan practice tourism sector. Park, according to Abdul Karim, will person a “completion effect” wrong nan park’s vicinity, culturally and people enriching nan section area, further enhancing its attractiveness for nan target tourism demographic.

Santubong’s Historical Significance and Tourist Appeal

Santubong holds a typical spot successful Sarawak’s history. Not only is it location to nan Sarawak Cultural Village, but it besides boasts a rich | archaeological bequest that dates backmost centuries. The Santubong Archaeological Park will beryllium an basal summation to this humanities narrative, offering visitors a chance to research ancient artifacts and study astir nan area’s important domiciled successful Sarawak’s early development.

The parkland encompasses respective humanities sites, including nan Sungai Jaong Archaeological Site, nan Bongkissam Archaeological Site, and nan Bukit Maras Archaeological Site, each of which were inaugurated during nan opening ceremony. These sites supply important penetration into nan early robust industry, maritime trade, and belief practices successful nan region. The opening of these archaeological sites besides marks a milestone for Sarawak, arsenic they item nan region’s heavy humanities roots.

A Rich Blend of Heritage and Nature

The Sungai Jaong Archaeological Site stands retired arsenic a unsocial practice location, nestled wrong dense forests and mangroves. Known for its petroglyphs, which are anthropomorphic stone carvings believed to day backmost to nan 9th to 14th centuries, this tract offers visitors a fascinating glimpse into nan ancient creator practices of nan region. The petroglyphs, depicting quality and animal figures, supply valuable grounds of nan taste and belief influences that shaped nan region’s early inhabitants.

Visitors to Sungai Jaong will beryllium capable to acquisition nan harmony of quality and history, arsenic nan tract combines earthy beauty pinch ancient heritage, making it an perfect destination for some history enthusiasts and quality lovers. The site’s scenic location successful nan bosom of nan jungle provides a tranquil atmosphere, inviting visitors to immerse themselves successful Sarawak’s prehistoric past while enjoying nan surrounding environment.

Bongkissam and Bukit Maras: Evidence of Ancient Trade Networks

The Bongkissam and Bukit Maras archaeological sites supply further grounds of Santubong’s humanities significance. These sites uncover that Santubong was erstwhile an important entrepot — a trading hub that attracted merchants from crossed nan world. Excavations person uncovered a scope of artifacts, including golden figures, beads, sculptures, and ceramics from nan Sung, Yuan, Tang, and Qing dynasties. These findings speak to Santubong’s strategical location on ancient maritime waste and acquisition routes and its domiciled successful nan speech of goods, ideas, and cultures.

The find of these items besides underscores nan power of Hindu-Buddhist traditions connected nan region. The Buddhist and Hindu symbols recovered successful nan area propose that Santubong was not only a commercialized hub but besides a halfway of taste and belief exchange, further cementing its spot successful nan history of Southeast Asia.

The Wallace Centre: Celebrating Natural History

Another cardinal characteristic of nan Santubong Archaeological Park is nan Wallace Centre, named aft Alfred Russel Wallace, a pioneering naturalist who spent important clip successful Sarawak during nan 19th century. Wallace, who is credited pinch processing nan mentation of improvement by earthy action alongside Charles Darwin, conducted extended investigation connected waste and acquisition and biodiversity successful nan region.

The Wallace Centre astatine Santubong offers an acquisition acquisition that focuses connected Wallace’s contributions to nan history of science, arsenic good arsenic nan region’s rich | biodiversity. The halfway features exhibits connected Wallace’s clip successful Sarawak and nan technological discoveries he made, peculiarly his study of nan island’s unsocial type and nan earthy situation that influenced his work. For visitors willing successful nan history of subject and exploration, nan Wallace Centre provides an invaluable opportunity to study astir nan important effect Wallace had connected some section and world technological knowledge.

Educational Initiatives to Promote Heritage Awareness

In summation to nan beingness attractions, nan Santubong Archaeological Park besides includes acquisition initiatives aimed astatine fostering consciousness of Sarawak’s heritage. The Museum Department of Sarawak precocious unveiled a caller publication, nan ‘Santubong Archaeological Heritage Book’, which will beryllium distributed to schools and institutions crossed nan region. This book will service arsenic an important assets for educating students astir nan rich | taste and archaeological history of Santubong and Sarawak.

The inaugural intends to merge practice acquisition into nan curriculum, ensuring that nan younger procreation understands and appreciates nan value of their taste heritage. Schools specified arsenic SK Santubong, SMK Santubong, and nan Centre for Technology Excellence Sarawak (CENTEXS) will person copies of nan book, reinforcing nan value of preserving nan region’s history and civilization for early generations.

A Boost for Sarawak’s Heritage Tourism

The motorboat of nan Santubong Archaeological Park is simply a important measurement successful enhancing Sarawak’s entreaty arsenic a practice tourism destination. The parkland not only showcases nan region’s archaeological and humanities value but besides provides an opportunity to acquisition nan earthy beauty of Santubong. By combining history, culture, and nature, nan parkland offers a broad tourism acquisition that will undoubtedly pull some section and world visitors.

Tourism authorities successful Sarawak dream that nan Santubong Archaeological Park will go a cardinal subordinate successful nan state’s tourism landscape, helping to diversify nan section tourism offerings and pull visitors seeking some escapade and education. With its rich | history and unsocial operation of practice and nature, nan parkland is group to go a must-visit destination successful Sarawak.

A New Chapter for Sarawak’s Heritage Tourism

The Santubong Archaeological Park has opened arsenic an integral starting constituent for Sarawak’s tourism industry. While starting caller developments successful attracting early visitors successful Southeast Asia soon, nan parkland has nan opportunity successful nan early successful preserving Sarawak’s practice successful nan exhilarating caller opportunity of presenting nan history of Sarawak of nan region’s past successful an beautiful earthy setting.