Tasek Lama Recreational Park

Tasek Lama sits on the edge of Bandar Seri Begawan within walking distance of the centre, a park of forested hills around a small reservoir with a waterfall at one end and a network of trails and stepped paths climbing to viewpoints above the city. It is where the capital exercises, busiest at dawn and dusk. Macaques live along the trails and the forest holds hornbills. The reservoir was the capital's original water supply, which is why the park exists at all in the middle of a city.

Background

The park was laid out in the early 1990s along Jalan Tasek Lama in Kampong Tasek Lama, close to Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien College, and counts among the oldest recognised parks in the country. In 1926 a concrete dam was built at the top of the waterfall to send water to Brunei Town, today Bandar Seri Begawan, and more work on the supply followed from 1937 to 1947. The Tasek Dam, covering 60 acres, and a treatment plant for 7,300 m3 per day were finished in 1964, and Sultan Omar Ali Saifuddien III opened the dam on 13 February 1965. Around 80 bird species have been reported, among them the straw-headed bulbul, white-rumped shama and oriental dollarbird.

Source: Wikipedia, "Tasek Lama Recreational Park"

Highlights

• The reservoir - the small lake at the centre of the park.
• The waterfall - the drop at the upper end of the water.
• The hill trails - stepped paths climbing to viewpoints over the city.
• The macaques - the troop living along the paths.

When to go

Year round. Dawn and dusk are when it is busiest and coolest. Midday heat and humidity make the climbs hard.

What to expect

The macaques are aggressive around food and bags. Trails are slippery after rain, which is often. The waterfall is modest and reduced in drier spells.

Nearby

Bandar Seri Begawan is west, and Bukit Shahbandar is northwest.

Key facts