#AsiaCityRace

3 exhilarating hiking destinations in Asia for your travel bucket list

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Hiking in Asia

We orienteers love outdoors—what’s better than exploring the world with orienteering and hiking? Get these places in your bucket list and explore them when these places open up to tourists again:

1. Hong Kong

Hiking in Asia
Sharp Peak is the tallest mountain in this photo of eastern Sai Kung.

Turns out, the financial centre of East Asia has a lot of nature to offer. From the easiest hikes around Victoria Peak, to the exhilarating views of Dragon’s Back, to the demanding climb to Sharp Peak (seen from afar in photo), Hong Kong always has something to offer in terms of natural beauty.

Join us this December for a three-week long training camp with City Race and Metvigator in Hong Kong.

2. Malaysia

Malaysia is more than just beaches and rainforests.
Malaysia is more than just beaches and rainforests.

The Malay Archipelago (Malaysia/Indonesia) has some of the tallest mountains of the region. Mount Kinabalu in Sabah is the tallest of these at 4,095 metres, earning the island of Borneo third place among the tallest islands of the world.

While East Malaysia is known for its nature, West (Peninsular) Malaysia also has a lot to offer in terms of hiking. The Cameron Highlands is one of the most popular holiday destinations for Malaysians and people from nearby countries. Nearer to cities, hiking experiences are plenty around Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

Next Chinese New Year, join us for a new edition of Tropical Orienteering Week in Penang and explore this beautiful multicultural nation in Southeast Asia. Mark your calendar for 11-14 February 2021.

3. Thailand

Hiking in Thailand often means exploring the many Buddhist temples in the country.

The north of Thailand is host to many tall mountains, including the tallest mountain in Thailand, Doi Inthanon.

Hiking in Thailand is not just about nature, but a journey of culture and the soul, with the hill tribe cultures of northern Thailand and the many temples that adorn the landscape. Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and many other cities in the north of Thailand offer hiking experiences for you to explore.

If you missed our Thailand International Orienteering Championship 2019 in Chiang Mai, join us in 2021 for a week-long training camp in Nan, Thailand.

More Asian orienteering events on Metvigo

Thailand

Featured new venue for 2021: Nan, Thailand

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Phra That Chae Haeng near Nan, Thailand

ORIEN.ASIA will release its new 2020/2021 calendar very soon. One new venue will appear on the map of world orienteering: Nan, in a remote part of northern Thailand.

A region of nature and culture

Nan is an ancient city near the border of Thailand with Laos. Historically its own kingdom, it was associated with the Sukhothai Kingdom for a time before the 14th century, when it joined the Kingdom of Lanna based in Chiang Mai (where, coincidentally, we also held the Thailand International Orienteering Championship in 2019). The city was deserted after the Burmese invaded and took all inhabitants as slaves, only to be repopulated in the 18th century as a semi-autonomous kingdom in alliance with Siam. It was so remote that not until 1931 did it come under control of the central government in Bangkok.

Being far away from other major conurbations or tourist centres of Thailand, Nan has kept much nature and culture inherited from the Sukhothai and Lanna kingdoms. Much of the province is forested, with six national parks that provide adventures far away from crowds of tourists. Like other northern provinces, Nan Province is also settled by many hill tribes such as Hmong and Kamu. The city of Nan is home to many temples and, in October, the annual boat racing festival.

Phra That Chae Haeng near Nan, Thailand
Phra That Chae Haeng near Nan, Thailand
(photo: public domain)

Nan is largely unexplored by foreign tourists; only 3% of tourists are from outside of Thailand. You’ll have a chance to explore this less-travelled part of Thailand ahead of many international tourists when you join our Thailand International Orienteering Championship 2021, scheduled for the autumn of 2021. ORIEN.ASIA will also hold a training camp for clubs from Thailand and abroad, especially European clubs who might want to take advantage of the autumn break, such as the Swedish höstlov.

Stay tuned to ORIEN.ASIA (Facebook @orienteeringasia) to keep updated!

Asia

Orienteering events in Asia, virtual and physical

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Orienteering events are returning to Asia.

We’re seeing the light in the tunnel of the coronavirus pandemic, and orienteering events are continuing or resuming. Here we’ll make a brief report on where virtual and physical events are going on in Asia.

Virtual events

Besides the Let’s Go Thailand! virtual orienteering competition that’s running until 13 June, we’ve a few more virtual orienteering tours on app.metrunner.com.

Physical events

While lockdowns and assembly restrictions are still going on in some places of the world, physical events of a smaller scale are still happening.

In Taiwan, where the pandemic has been successfully kept in check, the orienteering scene is still active with many physical events going on. Ohelper.tw, a Facebook page run by orienteers in Taiwan, keeps on adding upcoming events to its list.

Hong Kong’s orienteering federation started to use Eventor this year, thanks to a cooperation with the Swedish Orienteering Federation (SOFT) which produces and markets that platform. Some physical events are going on over the summer in Hong Kong, provided that the pandemic restrictions are to be further relaxed.

In Mainland China, where the pandemic is largely considered to have ended, a multi-stage colour-coded event marketed as the Decathlon Cup started in the southern city of Guangzhou last weekend on 24 May. Colour codes are used in countries like Sweden and the United Kingdom to show the difficulty of orienteering courses. Guangzhou’s event likely took reference from Hong Kong’s colour-coded events, in turn introduced from the United Kingdom, with white being the easiest course and brown the hardest.

Orienteers all over the world are hoping that lifting of restrictions and opening of borders will enable the orienteering world to pick up again. Where will you go for your next event after the pandemic?