KUCHING: Beginning next year, all visitors to Bako National Park will be required to join a guided tour, said Deputy Minister of Tourism, Creative Industry, and Performing Arts Datuk Sebastian Ting.
He said the new policy is designed to provide a more organised and structured experience for visitors while also raising awareness about the importance of environmental conservation and biodiversity in Sarawak’s oldest national park.
“This initiative is necessary to safeguard the park’s delicate ecosystem and educate visitors on sustainable tourism practices,”he said in his speech at the Park Guides Course in Bako National Park on Tuesday (Sept 2).
Once the policy is enforced, every visitor will be required to engage the services of a licensed park guide to explore the park’s natural wonders.
“To ensure fairness and consistency, the government will regulate the fees for these guided tours, establishing a standardised pricing structure,”he said.
Currently, he said, Sarawak has 231 active park guides out of 400 licensed guides across the state. With the addition of 31 new guides presently undergoing training in Bako, the total number of park guides will rise to 262.
“The government aims to train at least 300 park guides by 2030 under the Post-Covid-19 Development Strategy (PCDS 2030). This means that Sarawak requires only 38 more park guides to meet this target,” he added.
He also revealed that Bako National Park hosted over 47,000 visitors last year, with 27,000 visitors recorded as of July this year.
“The total number of visitors is expected to either match or exceed last year’s record,”he said.
