A new integrated tourism project in Desaru Johor, Arubay Eco-Resort combines agro-tourism with eco-tourism, especially focus on eco-education for nature conservation. With interactive and educational activities like Harvest-Bay and Edubiz Leisure facilities, our resort not only supports leisure but also learning and business events.
Powered by the YHL Group and supported by Malaysia government, we have just had our ground-breaking ceremony and now in the design stage.
Various ecosystems at Arubay: from beach to coconut farm, and from coastal forest to peatswamp.
Arubay Eco-Connection
While waiting for the construction of resort facilities, we welcome you to explore and help discover our forest and surrounding ecosystems.
Discover our rich biodiversity and learn how you might help to conserve them. A day of exploration with our ecologist, starts from RM1000 for a group of four pax, is available upon request.
Some wildlife we’ve observed at Arubay, which you might also see on our educational excursions:
From our camera traps, we found mammals like (clockwise from top left): mouse deer, sambar deer, Eurasian wild pig, Malayan porcupine, and many others. Unexpectedly, a couple of us have come across the very rare & endangered Asiatic golden cat.Some nocturnal (night) creatures seen during night time (clockwise from top): savanna nightjar, sleeping white-breasted/throated kingfisher, and Asian/common palm civet. If you’re lucky you might even see the elusive slow loris.If you’re interested to start bird-watching, Arubay can be a good place for you. Other than the crested serpent-eagle (left), white-bellied sea-eagle (top right), and oriental-pied hornbill pictured here, one may regularly spot the Black-winged kite, red-wattled lapwing, collared kingfisher, red junglefowl, white-breasted waterhen, etc.The Asian glossy starling and pink-necked green pigeon (left) are the most common birds at Arubay, thanks to the abundance of regularly-fruiting figs, or buah Ara. Also found feeding on the figs are the charismatic coppersmith barbet (top right) and oriental-pied hornbill.Some tree-dwelling wildlife seen during daytime (clockwise from top left): plantain squirrel, common flameback woodpecker, chestnut-breasted malkoha, and greater coucal or crow pheasant.
Arubay CSR
To help maintain and increase the population of wildlife, we are committed to not only conserve existing forests, but also to enrich degraded habitats with native fruit trees like figs, Tampoi, Rambai, Beruas, and many more. Ultimately we hope to connect two separate forests in the resort landscape so that wildlife may co-exist harmoniously with our visitors.
Working with organisations like the Free Tree Society, Rimbun Dahan, and A Little Wild, we will also plant saplings of native forest trees, to help conserve Rare, Threatened & Endangered (RTE, or High Conservation Values, HCVs) species such as Merbau, Kempas, Balau, Chengal, Keruing, and Resak.
Walk with us and learn about culturally-forgotten trees that formed part of our national heritage, like Ipoh, Kemunting, Kulim, Melaka & Sentul, that not only lent their names to Malaysian towns but also help provide foods to our indigenous communities.
ESG with real impacts
We also welcome your organisation to adopt a reforestation plot, to realise your ESG potentials. Or as part of your CSR, join us hands-on in planting back the forest and help capture carbon in trees and in soil.
Learn from our ecologist and friends, scientific agro-ecological techniques from permaculture and syntropic agroforestry that helps accelerate ecosystem restoration.Plant a forest, not a tree: adoption of a plot or line of HCV-trees and wildlife food plants, supported by fast growing biomass plants, starts from RM10000, inclusive of a full day of hands-on soil enhancement & planting workshop, plus maintenance of up to 10 years (or when the forest is self-sustainable).By creating connection with additional habitat and food source, you might help reduce the pressure of wildlife crossing roads and be accidentally-killed (these unfortunate slow loris, leopard cat, reticulated python, Malay civet, and white-breasted waterhen were all recorded around Desaru).
Activities available currently at Arubay: riding along sandy beach with retired race horses, and feeding rabbits with fresh plants from our food forest.While waiting for us to develop resort & programs, you may also join our friends at Junglewalla Desaru in their nature tours to the rainforest in Panti Forest Reserve, mangrove in Sungai Lebam, and the beach & tidal pool in Desaru Coast. Let us help design a bespoke experience, uniquely for you.
