Gua Musang is a small town in Kelantan surrounded by mountains, forests and caves. If you have only one day here, there are several interesting places to visit and things to do, especially if you enjoy exploring places with a little history and something different from the usual tourist attractions.
For this trip, we wanted to see some of the interesting places around Gua Musang, starting with one of the best-known attractions in the area, Shui Yue Gong Temple, also known as the Water and Moon Temple.
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Shui Yue Gong Temple in Kampung Pulai
Our first stop was Shui Yue Gong Temple, located in Kampung Pulai, about half an hour's drive from the center of Gua Musang.
At first look, it seems like another ordinary Chinese temple, with the familiar setting that we have seen in many places.
But once we started looking around, we realized that there was an interesting story behind this temple.
We were not really sure what we should be looking for, but fortunately, we met a local lady who knew the temple very well. She told us that the temple is more than 600 years old and that its history is connected to people from China who came to this area in search of gold during the Ming Dynasty.
One of the most interesting things she showed us was a piece of cloth with the image of the Goddess of Mercy, Guanyin.
According to her, this was the original piece of cloth brought from China. During those days, it would have been difficult to bring a heavy stone statue over such a long journey, so the cloth served as a portable representation of Guanyin.
Today, it is placed at the center of the altar and is worshipped as the representation of the deity.
There are also several old items in the temple, including incense burners that were brought from China.
The local lady also told us that some of the old items were damaged during World War Two. She pointed out that some of the incense burners had what appeared to be gun holes in them.
I found this quite interesting because we came here simply to see an old Chinese temple, but ended up learning about some of the history of the people who lived here many years ago.
The Old Gua Musang Railway Station
After visiting the temple, we went to the old railway station in Gua Musang.
According to the restaurant owner we met there, the old station is no longer functioning and has not been used for more than 10 years. However, the railway line is still being used, and trains now stop at the new station.
The old station has since become a tourist attraction, and there is also an eatery operating there.
It was interesting to walk around the old station and see a little of what remains from the earlier days of railway travel in Gua Musang.
Nasi Kerabu for Lunch
By then, we were getting hungry, so it was time for lunch.
We had Nasi Kerabu at Restaurant Naim, which is just opposite the new railway station.
Nasi Kerabu is one of the local dishes we wanted to try in Gua Musang, so naturally we wanted to give it a try.
The Nasi Kerabu was quite nice, and it was not expensive. I would say the price and quality were well balanced.
According to the restaurant, they have three branches. The shop opens in the morning until around noon, closes for a while, and then opens again in the evening.
If you are looking for Nasi Kerabu near the railway station, this is a convenient place to try. It is also clean and easy to find.
A Quiet Evening at Gua Musang Lake Garden
In the evening, we walked to the Lake Garden.
It was pretty quiet when we arrived, and there was plenty of parking space. We walked slowly towards the lakeside and enjoyed the scenery.
The reflection of the mountain and the town of Gua Musang on the water made it a pleasant place to spend some time.
There is nothing particularly spectacular to see here, but like many towns in Malaysia, Gua Musang also has a recreational park where people can come to relax, take a walk, do some light exercise, or jog around the lake.
For us, it was simply a nice and peaceful place to slow down and enjoy the evening.
A Quick Visit to Gua Neon
We also dropped by a cave called Gua Neon.
Apparently, the cave is lit up with neon lights at night, but because we visited in the evening, we did not get to see the lights.
We went inside for a quick look. There is underground water inside and a platform where you can walk across.
It is only a very short walk, but it was still interesting to have a quick look before we called it a day.
Princess Cave, or Zi Xia Cave
There is another cave very close to Shui Yue Gong Temple called Princess Cave, also known as Zi Xia Cave (Zi Xia Dong 紫霞洞).
We originally planned to visit after the temple, but because it was raining, we decided to come back early the next morning before leaving Gua Musang.
This turned out to be a good decision because the weather was much better.
There is a bridge from the temple leading towards the cave, but instead, we took an alternative route and drove a four-wheel-drive vehicle to the entrance.
From there, we could see a long red-colored staircase leading up to the cave.
The View from Zi Xia Cave
After climbing the red staircase, we reached the top and were rewarded with a very clear panoramic view of Gua Musang.
There are no other hills nearby to block the view, so we could see the town quite clearly from above.
Once we finished climbing the staircase, we also came across a huge rock with the name of the cave written in Chinese, Zi Xia Dong 紫霞洞.
We then continued further into the cave.
Inside Zi Xia Cave
The path led us to a platform, and just inside the cave, next to the platform, was a huge statue of the Goddess of Mercy.
It was pretty impressive, and I wondered how they managed to build such a large statue inside the cave.
We walked further in and came across another cave dedicated to 拿督公 (Na Tuk Gong / Datuk Gong).
The passage looked a little narrow at first, but it was actually quite easy to walk through as long as you have a good pair of shoes.
However, be careful if it has been raining because some parts can be slippery.
We also saw some bats inside the cave, which made the experience feel even more like a real cave rather than simply a tourist attraction.
Looking Back at the Temple
From the cave, we could look back towards Shui Yue Gong Temple.
From this higher position, we could see the bridge and the pathway connecting the temple area to the cave.
This also made us realize that if the weather is good, it is possible to walk from the temple towards the cave instead of driving all the way to the entrance.
Our Visit to Gua Musang
That was our short trip to Gua Musang. We had a good time exploring the temples, caves, local food and some of the quieter places around the town.
If you would like to see more of what we did and what these places look like, you can watch our video below.
🎬 Watch Our Gua Musang Video
We’ve put together a video from this trip, which you can watch on YouTube by clicking the image below.
Read our other travel stories from Kelantan, where we share the places we visited, the hikes we explored, and the experiences we had along the way. 🌿
