But Lanchang? A small rural town surrounded by plantations and jungle, what could Lanchang possibly offer the curious traveller?

While the nearby Bentong has a number of decent food destinations to visit, Lanchang, a two-hour drive from Kuala Lumpur, may seem to have little to offer in comparison.

Located 8km away from the famous Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary, the Deerland Park is the lesser-known animal menagerie of the two.

However, it is still worth a visit, and most visitors to the elephant sanctuary do in fact stop by the park to make the most of their day.

The Deerland Park is located deep within the jungle, and the roads leading to this spot are narrow and winding, so do drive safely.

At present, tickets for Malaysian citizens are priced at RM7 for adults, so do remember to show your ICs when asked.

You are free to walk around as you wish once inside, guided by walkways that will take you past the sights of the park.

Given the name of the place, the main attraction is the deer enclosure, where a herd of these gentle creatures reside.

There are about two dozen deer here. Used to human presence, they do not flee or seem anxious when visitors drop by to spend time with them.

Visitors to the park are free to feed the deer potato slices from a basket placed there.

Despite their gentle appearance, the animals do get a little excited for these little snacks, so they might end up nipping at your fingers if you take too long to feed them.

Either way, most visitors end up snapping photos here, as the deer are quite willing to get up close and personal for the perfect shot.

In addition to the deer, the park is home to a variety of birds and small animals, living in their own separate cages throughout the park.

The park has an abundance of fowl; not the commercial ones meant for the kitchen, but their distant cousins from the jungle.

While it is enlightening to discover just how many subspecies of jungle fowl there are, it is rather baffling to find such an extensive collection of them in a deer park of all places.

The park is also home to a variety of reptiles and rodents; there was even an iguana spotted crawling around casually.

Given that no staff were available on the day of the visit, it is hard to tell if the iguana was an escapee or just a passer-by visiting its relatives.

To the park’s credit, the place is clean and well maintained with all facilities in perfect working order.

The park is built within the jungle, giving visitors an air of serenity and of being at one with nature. However, there is an acute lack of signage, resulting in many wandering around aimlessly, without much information about the animals they are looking at.

This is a lost opportunity as a visit to this park could have been an educational experience for visitors, particularly children.

Another area for improvement would be the animal enclosures, some of which are too open, leaving the critters living within at the mercy of visitors.

One example would be the rabbit enclosure where ill-behaved children poked and prodded at the nervous creatures since there was nothing preventing them from reaching in.

Perhaps the state of the park can also be explained by a newspaper cutting posted on the bulletin board outside the gift shop.

Apparently, the park was hit by floods repeatedly and damages were costly. Worse yet, some wildlife drowned.

With natural disasters and loss of business during the Covid-19 pandemic making things worse, it is understandable why the park is in need of funds for upgrading work.

Hence, visitors should consider making a donation at the box outside the gift shop; times are hard for everyone, but the animals still need looking after.

Deerland Park
Jalan Bukit Rengit
28500 Lanchang
Pahang

Operating hours:
10.30am-4pm: Monday-Thursday
10.30am-5pm: Saturday-Sunday
Closed on Fridays

Contact: 013-988 1345