Tourism Ministry has no plans to revive Pelagus Resort spelling the end of the ill-fated project
Some locals believe the huge rocks responsible for creating whirlpools that drowned many boats and lives were part and parcel of the package that made Pelagus Resort special.
KUCHING: The State Tourism Ministry has no plans to revive the Pelagus Resort which has ceased operation since Oct 2010.
Its minister Datuk Amar Abang Johari Tun Openg told The Borneo Post that at the moment, the ministry did not intend to revive the resort which is situated in the midst of a rainforest about one hour boat ride from Kapit town.
The RM6-million resort which was built based on classic wooden Iban longhouse style has been abandoned for five years – a giant white elephant in the middle of lush green setting in the upper reaches of the mighty Rajang, reachable only after passing treacherous rapids.
Former Pelagus assemblyman Larry Sng when contacted said he hoped to see the resort revived as it was an important tourism attraction in Kapit.
“There has been a lack of tourism attraction in Kapit and the little that we have is forgotten,” said the Sarawak Workers Party (SWP) president. He said if the resort were to be abandoned, the government had to come up with a new tourism product to replace it. When The Borneo Post Adventure Team 5 was there, some locals pointed out that the Pelagus Resort became a tourist attraction because of the notorious Pelagus Rapids but with the boulders blasted away, the resort had lost its edge.
The argument was countered by other locals who pointed out that the 40-room resort had been losing visitors due to the lack of promotion as it had long lost its charm even before the blasting of the huge rocks in the river.
The resort also suffered from poor accessibility as the only way to reach the it is from Sibu by taking a three-hour express boat ride to Kapit. From Kapit, one has to take another hour boat ride to reach this resort that a visitor had described as ‘delightfully remote’.
A check showed that some of the most popular online travelling advisory websites still mention Pelagus Resort in their recommended list under hotels in Kapit though there is a reminder that reservation cannot be made through the websites. The reviews were all outdated – the earliest ones in 2009 and most of them said Pelagus resort had great potential but lacked activities for visitors to participate.