Langkawi is known as the Jewel of Kedah, which is a north-western state in Peninsular Malaysia. Although, the Langkawi archipelago consists of 99 islands in the Andaman sea, most people will only visit the main big island of Langkawi itself.
Locally, Langkawi is known as a land of myths and legends. There are stories of Mahsuri, a pretty maiden who cursed the island for seven generations, the legend of the Pregnant Maiden and the Field of Burnt Rice. But our favourite story is that of the quarelling giants.
The story goes that there were once two Giants living on the island, Mat Raya and Mat Chinchang. The two were great friends, to the extent that their children became betrothed to wed. Unfortunately at the wedding reception, Mat Raya and Mat Chinchang got into an argument and began to quarrel.
Each grabbed items close to them and began to throw at each other. A pot of gravy was thrown and spilled on the ground. The place where it fell became known as Kuah (which means gravy in malay) and is today the main town on the island. A pitcher of hot water fell at Ayer Hangat (hot water in malay), where today you can find a hot spring. Lastly a jar fell at Belanga Pecah (broken crockery) and the handles or rings of a pot fell into Selat Cincin (Strait of Rings), the channel which separates Langkawi from Tarutao island in Thailand.
A third Giant, Mat Sawar, managed to stop the fight and mediate between the two warring giants. In remorse and anguish, they decided to atone for their mistake by being turned forever more into mountains. Mat Raya was turned into Gunung Raya, the tallest mountain in Langkawi today, and Mat Chinchang became Gunung Machinchang, the second tallest. Mat Sawar the mediator was also turned into a small hill between the two giants, to separate the two and guard the peace for eternity.
Today Gunung Machinchang stands guard in the heavily forested north-western corner of Langkawi island. The area was declared a UNESCO Global Geopark due its unique geo-diversity, with its exposed palaeozoic sedimentary rocks from the Cambrian to the Permian period. It also has great biodiversity in its flora and fauna.
For a long time, there was no way to get to the top of Gunung Machinchang, other than through an arduous trek through the jungle. Then in 2003, the Langkawi Cable Car was opened to the public, after 2 years of construction. With a total length of 2.2km, the cable car took you from its starting point at the Oriental Village in Burau Bay, up to the top of Gunung Machinchang in about 15 minutes.
The cable car is said to have one of the steepest inclines in the world, at 42 degrees between the base station to the middle station. It is also said to have the longest free span for a mono-cable car, at 950 metres. From the middle station, another span takes you up to the top station.
Today the entire operation is run by Panorama Langkawi, which has numerous other attractions in the Oriental Village, such as 3-D Trick Art, Time Travel, 6-D Cinemotion, ATV's and the like; but the main attraction is and will always be the Langkawi Skycabs.
You can either buy your tickets online through their website or queue up on site at the Oriental Village. Please note that the Skycabs do close for periodic maintenance from time to time, so make sure it is not closed at the time you chose to visit! It may also close in times of bad weather or high winds.
If you chose to buy on site, you can either opt for the normal queue or buy express lane tickets at higher price. There are also options for a glass floor gondola, private gondola and even a VIP gondola. The tickets also cover admission for some other attractions like the SkyDome, SkyRex and 3-D Art.
Once you have paid, you queue to get on your gondola and then off you go!
 |
| The Skycab takes you over old growth jungle. |
 |
| Truly a wondrous sight to behold all this unspoilt greenery. |
 |
| You also get a glimpse of the Telaga Tujuh (Seven Wells) waterfall. |
 |
| Soon you come to the middle station where you dismount. |
 |
| A wonderful view of Telaga Harbour, Pantai Kok & Burau Bay from the middle station. |
 |
| You then take the cable car up to the Top Station from the middle station. |
 |
| From the Top Station you can pay extra to take the Skyglide down to the Skybridge. |
 |
| Alternatively you can chose to trek downhill to the Sky Bridge. |
 |
| The skybridge is an impressive feat of engineering. |
 |
| At the opposite end of the skybridge is a platform with an amazing view of the Machinchang range. |
 |
| The jurassic park looking moutain range. |
 |
| View of the Top Station from the Sky Bridge. |
 |
| From the Top Station, you can climb up staircases to the topmost platforms. |
 |
| There are two platforms on top of the mountain. |
 |
| View of the Skybridge from the top platform. |
 |
| The very scenic view of the surrounding jungles in the mist. |
 |
| The Thai island of Koh Tarutao can be seen in the distance. |
 |
| Last view of the Skybridge. |
Langkawi is truly the Jewel of Kedah, a beautiful island in the Andaman Sea. And no visit to Langkawi is complete without going up the Skycab to the peak of Machinchang!
Panorama Langkawi Sdn Bhd
Address: Cable Car Station, Oriental Village, Burau Bay, 07000 Langkawi, Kedah.
Telephone: (604)-959 4225
E-Mail: info@panoramalangkawi.com
Operating Hours: 9:00am/9:30am/12 noon to 5:00pm/7:00pm