Aviation in Malaysia-fireflyz.com

FlyFirefly Sdn Bhd (Firefly) has confirmed that it will introduce it’s maiden flight to the Indonesian cities of Surabaya and Bandung on August 12 and August 16 respectively.It will also fly to Bangkok at the end of the year.The Johore Tourism Department Director, Dr Shaari Mohd Nooh said that Firefly, a subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines, is serious in wanting to make the Senai Airport its southern hub.“Firefly will have two planes for the international flights and a set of crew permanently stationed here,” he added. He was speaking after launching the Johore Travel Fair 2011 at the Sutera Mall here.
Shaari also said that China Airlines is interested in flying to Senai from the southern city of Guangzhou and is now in talks with the Malaysian Department of Civil Aviation for landing rights.  Many Chinese citizens apply for visas at the Malaysian Consulate in Guangzhou.“So, it’s natural, that they want to fly out from Guangzhou airport.
“Having more international flights into Senai Airport will only increase tourist arrivals into Johore,” he added

 I was invited to the launch of fireflyz inaugural flight in Kuching International Airport in their newly announced Boeing 737-800 aircraft on 15th January,2011.

Sibu Central Market gives the town its colourful character.

Technorati Tags: Market,Travel

I am the supporter of the firefly football team for the coming 'MSRC Inter Airline Cup 2011 held in Kuching by end of his month.All the best to fireflyz team and I understand that Dato Tony is on the player list for Air Asia Team..hahaha.

I want my friends from West Malaysia to know what to see and where to go in Sibu Town. I know most of them have booked the air ticket already...In case you haven’t seen the Sibu Central Market before, here I have few photos for your eyes and I bet they are as good as you visit Sibu yourself as firefly Airline have granted our wish from KLIA/SBW/KLIA which will commence on August 1,2011 for detail please visit

FIREFLYZ.COM.MY

 

Photo from Google

THE Sibu Central Market can be best described as the top tourist spot in town.This is not an exaggeration considering the fact that there are 1,100 hawker stalls in the market on week days and an additional 400 to 500 stalls on weekends when Ibans and Orang Ulus (minority people from the interior) jam the tamu (open-air market) section of this market with their exotic jungle food and fruits.Certainly the largest and best-managed market in Sarawak, Sibu Central Market is vying for the title of Largest Market In Malaysia in the Malaysia Book of Records.An adjacent multi-storey car park built by SMC provides shoppers peace of mind as far as their cars are concerned when they shop or dine at SCM

 

Photo from Google image..

The SCM market was divided into sections according to the goods sold by the hawkers.The main sections are the wet and dry areas where hawkers sell fish and other seafood, slaughtered chickens and ducks, bean curd and bean sprout At the dry section they sell all kinds of local and imported vegetables, fruits, dried fish and prawns, spices, handicraft, flowers and ornamental plants, sundry goods, drinks, homemade cakes, buns, titbits and other confectionery.

 

 

 

Photo credit to Suhaili.

Every weekend, SCM is overcrowded when the temporary stalls are set up to form the colourful and noisy tamu. It is set up on Saturday afternoon and closes at noon the following day. The natives display for a rainbow parade of jungle and farm products on the floor or low makeshift tables

 

 

Photo credit to Abang Abdul Khalid of ABANA Photo.

Hawkers selling live chickens and ducks at the dry section attract the most attention from tourists. It is the way they bundle the feathery creatures that make them popular and famous.Each bird is wrapped in newspaper, tied with nylon strings and displayed in neat lines for customers to choose from

Photo credit to Suhaili

They sell all kinds of local and imported vegetables, fruits, dried fish and prawns.

Visitors are mesmerised by the activities of the natives, the majority of whom are Ibans from longhouses in Sibu and surrounding districts.
Among the unusual stuff sold are live sago worms, frogs, kasam (preserved fish, pork or venison), fried insect larvae, wild jungle ferns, young palm shoots and wild fruits. One will feel the overwhelming hospitality that Sarawakian natives are justifiably famous for.Everyone is friendly and helpful, and if you ask for permission, they will certainly let you take photographs with them and even allow you to taste some of the exotic fruits.Many local and foreign visitors have made the acquaintance with these natives during their visits to the tamu.

SCM’s upper floor is occupied by food and drink stalls and also stalls that sell fashion and tailor-made items and shoes.

The food and drink stalls are no less attractive, with many of them offering the best kampua (Foochow noodle) Chou Chai Hung Kan (rice vermicelli) Kong Bian (Foochow bagel) Yew Hu Eng Chai (squid with tou fu and kang kong), Wu Wei Tang (five-herbs drink) and Chia Luk (a concoction of jelly, red beans, sago pearls and coconut milk) to name just a few. Prices are competitive here because of the lower rent.

See you in Sibu Town, Cheers.

Firefly Airline : Johor Bahru to Kuching.

Technorati Tags: Airline,Budget Airline

The big ticket items in most trips involve airfares, accommodations and ground transportation. These things can be very expensive, but budget travellers can shop on the Internet for the best deals on these and other high cost expenses.Airfares rise and fall like stock prices. Buy at the right time and you can save a lot of money. Know the rules, find the Web sites with last-minute deals, use your credit cards or debit cards to snag free air travel and be certain your baggage doesn't cost you more money.In Malaysia for example try log on to fireflyz website 

FIREFLYZ.COM

Making Senai Airport a hub may also help spur the airport and the Iskandar Malaysia region.

The media & social media was invited @ Inaugural Flight KCH/KLIA/KCH on 15 January 2011.

Photo by Justin KC YAP media from The Borneo Post.

The three social media (blogger) invited ,in blue shirt Kuching's Daily Photo,with white T is

A Delicious Trip and black T is the founder of Sarawak Blogger Community CYRILDASON.com

Thank You to fireflyz.com and also

Tourism Malaysia  and as a social media we are very happy indeed to support our local low cost carrier and to promote Malaysia as tourist attraction..

 

 

Airline Firefly launches new hub in Iskandar Malaysia region

Malaysian local airline Firefly has banked on the Iskandar Development Region, launching a fifth hub in Senai. The area was currently an “ugly duckling” that would soon blossom, and is far cheaper than having a base at Singapore’s Changi airport, said the company’s managing director Eddy Leong.

Firefly aims to have nine aircraft flying by the end of 2011, including seven 737-800 and two 737-400 aircraft, the latter to be based at the new Senai hub. Leong stressed that his company didn’t intend to use Senai to compete with Changi, but to complement it. Transport services along the Singapore-Johor Bahru corridor are expected to improve in future, making Senai a practical alternative to low cost carriers.

Firefly also announced new flights from Johor Bahru to Kuching and Kota Kinabalu to begin in May/June, and is applying to operate flights even further afield to Bangkok and Jakarta, Surabaya and Bandung. The airline plans to carry 3.5 million passengers this year from Senai and its four existing hubs at Kota Kinabalu, Subang, Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Penang.

The Senai segment of the Iskandar Malaysia special economic region is growing fast, and within five years it should see mega projects constructed such as a new private hospital operated by Columbia Asia, a branch of the UK’s Marlborough College Malaysia, plus shopping malls and theme parks.

source & article: The Edge Malaysia

My first flight with fireflyz was on the 15th January 2011 from Kuching to Kuala Lumpur.Only a short month, firefly has proven  as a successful business model that has achieved many important milestones in the aviation industry.A new milestone add new route from Johor Bahru to Kuching (JHB/KCH/JHB) starting 19th of May,2011 for fireflyz.

Johor Bahru was once merely a conduit and brief stopover for tourists travelling to or exiting out of Singapore. Today, however, it offers a cornucopia of attractions of its own, luring sand, sea and sun-seekers, eco and agro-adventurers, shoppers, golf-crazies and, last but not least, the dining and drinking crowd. This fortuitous transformation occurred only recently, in the 1980s and 1990s, and coincided with the intensive development of its natural allurement and the growing disparity between the value of the Malaysian ringgit and the Singapore dollar.Johor Bahru sits right next to the national boundary between two inseparably linked countries and has all the blessings and blemishes to show for it. Nowhere else in Malaysia better displays the differences between two intertwining streams of history. Today, the city becomes known as a 'half-price bazaar' for everything from groceries to golf to thousands of Singaporeans, enriched by a strong currency.

My last trip to Johor Bahru was in the year 2009 and  I'm yet to explore many tourist spot in JB to name a few let us go to Sultan Abu Bakar Mosque

"Perched upon a hill-top, the mosque combines the neo-classical Western and Islamic architecture, and is regarded as one of the most beautiful mosques in Malaysia."

The Sultan Abu Bakar Mosque is regarded as one of the most beautiful mosques in Malaysia, with its amazing combination of Western neo-classical and Islamic architecture. 

This mosque can accommodate about 2,000 worshippers at any one time. The mosque is strategically located on top of a hill on Jalan Abu Bakar, overlooking the Straits of Tebrau.

Sultan Abu Bakar mosque was named after the late Sultan Abu Bakar, the "Father of Modern Johor", who laid the foundation stone in 1892. Construction of the mosque was completed in 1900, a few years after his death. Today, the Sultan Abu Bakar Mosque is listed as a protected heritage monument by the Department of Museums and Antiquities.

 

 

Photo credit to http://www.johortourism.com.my

I have listed places of interest in JB in my list: Danga Bay, Abu Bakar Mosque, Johor Zoo, Sultan Abu Bakar Royal Museum, Johor Bahru Chinese Temple, Sultan Ibrahim Building and City Square (a shopping center)..Danga Bay, around 8 km away from city center, might be a good place to spend a night- hawker center, restaurants, Marine Club (left and middle), circus, Danga Bay Cruise and amusement park, most of them start operation at night.

Source & article: Credit to http://bettyandlingshing.blogspot.com/2010/09/johor-bharu.html

Kuching to Johor Bahru by fireflyz log in to this website 

fireflyz.com

Fireflyz to Miri and Sibu.

Technorati Tags: Low cost carrier,Airline,Budget Airline,Malaysia

 

Latest from fireflyz Must fly with Fifty-five! Check out the promo fares for new routes KLIA to Miri and Sibu as well as JB to KK and Kuching. Booking period: now to March 7, 2011. Travel period: March 5 to Aug 24, 2011! For details visit fireflyz.com.my.

When you plan your overseas holiday or travel by air locally you require to plan it correctly in order to get the maximum out of it. Because you invest a fair slice of your expenditure on the air tickets, it is a very good idea to book cheap flights to conserve money. It is not a challenging job to find cheap flights these days in Malaysia for example we have 'Community Airline that is Firefly Airline' and 'Now everyone can fly for AirAsia' both provide budget airfare in order to attract a lot more passengers to keep their airline companies afloat. The purpose is that due to fierce competition most of the airlines the world over run just on the border line between losses and profits.

SIBU TOWN.......

Photo credit to Ministry of

Tourism & Heritage Sarawak

Before choosing on your flight, you require to compare cheap flights offered by various airlines. When you go online flights could be checked quickly. This way you could find cheap flights to any destination. When you do so you can use the money saved to enjoy your vacation. It is of immense use understanding international airline booking program when it comes to finding cheap flights from anywhere.
There is also a new breed of airlines that charge rock bottom rates referred to as the low cost airlines. You can find cheap flights with these airlines also. They have reduce down costs by abolishing the on board food and drinks. You get a whole lot of these flights between Asian nations. For instance, you can buy a ticket to Jakarta,Surabaya,Bandung,Singapore,Koh Samui and Phuket for half the cost you pay for a typical airline

MIRI CITY...photo credit to Ministry of Tourism & Heritage Sarawak.

 

Firefly airline is a new Malaysian no-frills airline(they call themselve a'Community Airline"),which started flight in April 2007.The only and other Malaysian Low-cost carrier is AirAsia.There was some controversy over the choice of the name Firefly, with some feeling a better brand-name could have been chosen. A Malaysian Airlines employee said on an internet forum that the name Firefly was meant to be "evocative,emotive and unique" and on their website firefly airline describe a firefly as being 'Agile,Brilliant,charm and Fun".

Check out the promo fares for new routes KLIA to MIRI and SIBU as well as JOHOR BAHRU to KUCHING & KOTA KINABALU.

fireflyz.com.my

Firefly to make Senai next hub ?.

Technorati Tags: Airline,firefly Airline,low cost carrier

Firefly looks set to use Johor's Senai Airport as the second hub for its jet planes and is eyeing regional destinations like Jakarta and Bandung in Indonesia.

Photo Credit to  Senaiairport.com

 

Firefly has leased two Boeing 737-400 planes, and these will be positioned at Senai Airport. It is not known if any of the Boeing 737-800 planes ordered by the airline will be joining the fleet of Boeing 737-400 jets at Senai Airport.

It is understood, however, that Firefly is leasing the two planes on a short-term basis. Sources said subject to traffic rights approval, Firefly aims to operate the jets from Senai by the first quarter of 2011 and is eyeing routes such as Bangkok, Jakarta, Bandung, Kuching and Kota Kinabalu

"There is also great potential for other international airports like those in Kuching, Kota Kinabalu and Penang to serve as subsequent hubs for Firefly jets," one source said.

Making Senai Airport a hub may also help spur the airport and the Iskandar Malaysia region.

Senai Airport:

The airport, meanwhile, can expect to be infused with a new lease of life, following many repeated attempts by other airlines which had previously introduced international and domestic flights.These efforts had not taken off, resulting in an under capacity at the airport, which has recently been upgraded with a first of its kind Aeromall.The airport is currently served by Malaysian Airline,Fireflyz and AirAsia.

Fireflyz-New Hub & New Route.

Firefly said: Firefly starts a new chapter in its expansion plan with a new hub in Johor Bahru.The new routes is from Johor Bahru to Kota Kinabalu and Kuching.

Fireflyz   offer daily direct flights 2 times a day from their new hub of Johor Bahru (JHB) to Kuching (KCH) and Kota Kinabalu (BKI).The aircraft Boeing 737-400 first flight began on May 19 and June 16, 2011 .

In conjunction with celebrating the introduction of these new routes,fly for free promotions as low as RM9 one-way ticket (Fare RM0.01 + RM8.99 tax) for online booking starting from Feb 22 until Feb 28 2011

 

Photo credit to Airliner .net.                      (The interior view of Boeing 737-400)

The new exterior look, the new owner should consider retrofitting the seats, by just replacing the Business Class seats with normal Economy seats. Through this option, the Boeing 737-400 will have slightly more capacity at the same time retaining the luxurious seat-pitch it currently have.The new hub "The Sultan Ismail Airport" Johor Bahru is the first step to make it the site for Firefly continues to expand, especially in the next plan to introduce new international routes flying from Johor Bahru to Jakarta , Surabaya and Bandung .  Obviously "orange power" Firefly is now more advanced and faster after the successful invasion of the blue cloud of direct flights of Boeing 737-800 aircraft from their new route to KLIA to Kuching and Kota Kinabalu since January 15, 2011.

Congratulations ......

FIREFLYZ.COM

Tip from me:  All low cost carrier in Malaysia  is a perfectly good airline to fly if you book early, don't carry much luggage, have no special requirements, and you are certain that nothing will arise that will require you to engage with any aspect of the airline's "customer service". .

Hadrah is one of the Sarawak Malay Culture.

One more piece of good NEWS today: Firefly Airline is increasing their frequencies to KLIA-KK and KLIA-KUCHING routes to a total of six flights a day and seven flights a day respectively! Check it out at fireflyz.com.my now.

Kuching is a cosmopolitan city,and this is reflected in the faces on the streets.Kuching is home from people from virtually all of Sarawak's 26-plus ethnic groups.Sarawak is a unique and enjoyable tourism destination,and Kuching is the ideal base from which to go exploring.This rich and varied cultural heritage also make Kuching a great place to visit.One of the Kuching Malay Culture is  HADRAH.

The colourful attire and fashions worn by the people while performing hadrah. The performance of hadrah had indeed enlivened the celebration .

 

 

In the past,hadrah was only performs  during weddings,but now it is performed in open and public events,to greet honoured guest.
In a Malay weeding ceremony hadrah is played as the background music.Hadrah is played by some young and old people  and each player holds kompang.

The World's first Cat Museum......

From my mail box this morning from Malaysia Airline System (MAS).

or you also can go to Kuching from KUL (KLIA) by log on to this website 

FIREFLYZ

For those from West Malaysia who wish to visit Kuching,Sarawak now is the time to plan & book your seat.You don't need many things to carry if you are travelling to Kuching .A small bag pack to put necessary things like.map,travel document,camera and a bottle of drinking water .Clothing(cotton) and shoes is casual and comfortable (sport sneakers).

If you are within Kuching City,beside walking the Kuching Street and enjoy the Kampong view from the Kuching waterfront, I suggest you take a tour to the World's first Cat Museum in Petra Jaya Kuching.

The World's first Cat Museum,is devoted to all things feline,is in Petra Jaya in the Kuching City North City Hall.Cat lovers will find range of exhibits,photos,feline art and cat

City North City Hall.Cat lovers will find range of exhibits,photos,feline art and cat souvenir open daily 9am to 5pm (closed on public holidays).The admission is free but if you have camera......fee is Rm3.00 for camera and Rm5.00 for video.You can take a green bus from Kuching City centre and ask the local.

"Saya mauk pegi opis DBKU' or 'Saya mauk pegi museum Pusak (pusak is Cat in local Malay of Kuching).

See you in Kuching.

Museums in Kuching City.....

Honestly,I have found the most reasonable air fares directly from the official airline websites.And if you subscribe to their newsletter or like their facebook or twitter you are always informed of the upcoming discount or package well in advance,sometime even before it's out in the press for e.g.

Firefly Airlines

We have an EXCITING announcement tomorrow that involves NEW routes and LOW fares! How low can we go? Check back tomorrow (Feb 22) after 3pm (local time) for the juicy details... :)

Firefly Airline is flying to KCH from KLIA .....

 

The Sarawak Museum.....

If you have no time to travel to the entire Sarawak, you owe a visit to the Sarawak Museum. Some travelers commented that simply spend an hour at Sarawak Museum is as good as traveling to the entire Sarawak for a week. There are simply too many things to tell you about Sarawak in this museum. It’s located right in the city centre, and within a walking distance from major hotels in Kuching, especially Merdeka Palace Hotel. The best part of it is, the entrance to Sarawak Museum is free of charge, and no ticket purchase needed, nothing, so why not?

The rear view of Islamic Museum.....

The Islamic Museum is open daily from 9 am to 4.30 pm.It is located on Jalan P.Ramlee in the beautiful restored Maderasah Melayu Buildinh (1930).It is also accessible from the rear of the Sarawak Museum's new wing.The Islamic Museum present a clear picture of the rich historical heritage and special culture of the Muslim community in Sarawak and throughout the Malay-Indonesia archipelago,the traces connection with the development of Islam in the rest of the World.The museum consists of 7 galleries set around a central courtyard garden.each with a different theme.

Your Travel Destination- Kuching,Sarawak.

Beautiful scenery awaiting you at Anah Rais Long House......

FIREFLY AIRLINE Irresistible fare !!! fly from KLIA to KUCHING from RM28.00

All-in air fares from Rm28.Booking from now till 16 Feb 2011. Travel period from 17feb to 31 March.

Travelling to Kuching on your own is not difficult as you may think.To-day I am going to list down one of the few places or attractions that you should not miss when travelling in Kuching.

 

 

If you want to stay over night just drop by this little Home Stay in Annah Rais Longhouse.

If you really don’t have time and budget to travel inland to places like Rejang river’s Iban longhouse, then Annah Rais Bidayuh Longhouse is your best choice. This is a very real authentic Bidayuh longhouse located at some 90km away from Kuching City Centre .They are working very hard to preserve the way it should be. If you prefer to stay back and to experience yourself the local way of living there, you can opt to stay with one of the local villager there who run a homestay program called Annah Rais Longhouse Adventure.

 

Beautiful isn't it...experience walking thru bamboo floor .

It is patronised by the tourists daily and many say that it has become a tourist place. Nevertheless, the local people still carried on with their traditional life there, despite lots of tourist visiting the longhouse everyday.

They still use traditional way to crush sugar cane for juice and the oldest skull still on show case and don't forget to ask them what the history behind the skull. Although the longhouse itself has already equipped with satellite or antenna, the main longhouse structure still remain pretty much original.

 

Even though the modern way of cooking is available but the people here still prefer using fire wood.

From Kuching city go to Annah Rais Bidayuh longhouse will take you about 90mins drive.Although the journey take a very long on single dual road but your will not feel bored because you will be amazed by the scenic countryside view,like the beautiful mountain range,limestone hill and paddy field.I found that taxi is  the only public transport to go here.This is because, Annah Rais Longhouse is so remote and not many local people come here. So, no bus services as the Bidayuh in this longhouse are mostly working in the city and almost all of them own a car. The only public transport available for visitor is Taxi. Generally, the local taxi will charge RM90 to RM110 for 1 way transfer from Kuching city to Annah Rais Longhouse. Besides, the other way  to go here  is rent car. The normal price is RM70 by small private car Perodua kancil, maximum 3 adult; or by 10-seater van at RM120 or the best way is join the local tour agent.

Backpacking in Kuching

Kuching is one of the cheapest cities in Malaysia for a vacation.Backpacking is favourite as the city has lower crime rate and English is widely spoken.If you need directions,or wish to order food from hawkers stall rest assured that someone will be able speak with you in English.

Enjoy the Sarawak river cruise  by sampan or cruise ship...

Some planning is in order to stretch your vacation money for a maximum if you are a backpacker........

This is one the many Bed & Breakfast in Kuching city.

Travel Experience-No frill,but it got me there.

I am quite surprise at some of the negative reviews for the low cost or budget airline in Malaysia,which express the lack of comfort and/or extras etc,etc.How many LCC that we have in Malaysia ?. It is all a low cost .basic,no frills service.If you want all the fancy like travelling in business/first class or what ever...try flying full service airline but be warned you will pay heavily for them.

 

 

The faces of happy media onboard Firefly Airline.......

I yet to finish talking to a friends who have flown with our new LCC Firefly Airline a subsidiary to Malaysia Airline.He talk about the cabin,the flight and the crew.The cabin of the firefly's B737-800 were always reasonable tidy and his overall impression of the cabin crew was that they were young and inexperienced merely going through the motion of their work with little interest or enjoyment in their jobs.They seemed a bit harried and over worked.However they were friendlier and all of them were pretty responsive to passengers needs.

This are the faces of pretty responsive to passengers needs...Friendly firefly's cabin crew with a new image & smart uniform.

I heard three gentlemen complaining about just a matter of not getting window seat,well if I were that gentlemen  I need to pay for a window seat if it is so important to you or just pre book your seat at a small fee.Remember you are flying LCC and that few extra Ringgit won't break your wallet empty.If you want full services go for premium package.

But in saying that I flown Firefly Airline before and I'll fly with them again because those low fares are what I need .Why not try fly with firefly's by log on to this web site

Firefly Airline

All the above photos CREDIT to JUSTIN YAP---Thank You man !!!!!

Travel Experience....

Lately I try to conduct my own research and talk to people who have flown with Firefly Airline.I ask him about how you manage to book your low fare ticket.Firefly has a pretty easy to use Firefly's website and I am able to pick seats and order meals in advance. It is user friendly and I also like the fact that it offers a Premium package  which include a free hot meal, bottled water, extra legroom seats, baggage allowance and priority baggage delivery and he say It will be nicer if it can include priority boarding.

Kuching International Airport Boarding gate.......

Now can you tell me the check-in process at the counter in Kuching International Airport?? I find this experience to be the most disappointed part of the whole travelling experience.In KIA the MasWing conduct the check-in and boarding and two counter are used for check-in activity .The agent (MasWing) was not particularly friendly or polite and were really slow in processing the check-in especially with bags.

Kuching International Airport night view........

What about boarding activity ? . Well in KLIA boarding supposed to take place according to row number and of course ended up like everyone board at once.However the boarding staff  at KIA just let every passengers board at once,except the family with small children or special care passengers.There was no attempt to form a single file line and it was chaotic.I think if they should enforce the boarding order,the boarding would take much shorter time.

Firefly Airline is adding a 3rd aircraft, a B737-400 to its fleet very soon, and it will be used to serve destinations within Peninsular Malaysia. Firefly Jet's flights also code share with MH's.For more information and online booking just log on to firefly's web site 

FIREFLY AIRLINE.