[This is a sponsored article with Cyberview.]
When I think of Cyberjaya, the first thing that comes to mind is how it’s often considered the technological hub of Malaysia, filled with tech-savvy startups, entrepreneurs, and high-tech facilities at every corner.
But it is also a lively city with more to offer than just that, according to what we’ve been told by Cyberview, the tech hub developer of Cyberjaya.
To find out for ourselves what they meant, we did our research and shortlisted a few places of interest (with the help of Cyberview) to pay a quick visit to, excited to see what the city is all about.
A school with a history spanning nearly 500 years
For our very first location, we went to King Henry VIII College, a school with a history that spans nearly 500 years. What makes this college unique is that it is the first sister school of Christ College in Brecon, UK, founded by King Henry VIII himself in 1541.
According to a representative guiding our tour, the lobby inside and the building’s facade are exact replicas of their sister school located in Wales.
The school provides Cambridge Assessment International Education to children aged three to 18, and prides itself on how the students are educated in a similar manner at a university.
No matter their age, great importance is placed on honing the students’ independence, outspokenness, and leadership. In turn, this should make their transition to university later in life much smoother.
Here, we saw various clubs like swimming, dancing, robotics, and we were told that the founding and management of many of these clubs are left up to the students, with guidance from teachers.
Throughout the school, we also saw many art pieces and murals on the walls.
Turns out, they were created by the students themselves, a testament to King Henry VIII College’s dedication to nurturing young creatives. (Plus, their art facilities had us mighty envious.)
For many of us who grew up in public schools, the vibe and atmosphere here just felt so different, and it was good to see our younger generations have access to such quality education.
A centre where drone startups take off
Next, we headed towards the Obama Oval, which is part of Cyberview’s Collaboration Campus where we met up with Drone Academy, the first Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) approved Remote Pilot Training Organisation.
At Drone Academy, training is provided for those keen on becoming a certified remote pilot.
During our time there, they conducted a few flight demonstrations, including take-off and landing of the Matrice 300 RTK, an enterprise-grade drone by DJI mostly used for surveying and agriculture.
It’s capable of flying for 55 minutes, depending on the weather condition.
While we were there, we also spotted something: eMooVit’s autonomous buggy. Of course, we had to take a ride on it.
The route is limited to the vicinity of Obama Oval, which includes Cyberview Corporate Office, Futurise Centre, Axon Children’s Centre, and our next location.
Stops are pre-programmed in the route, so we can choose our destination and the buggy will then autonomously drive itself there.
It was quite surreal to sit in a vehicle with no one controlling the steering wheel, throttle, and brake, yet it managed to navigate itself with ease (most times).
Though it’s supposed to be completely driverless, current regulations require an authorised personnel to be in the driver’s seat in case things go south.
Once the technology matures and all regulatory concerns are addressed, we can expect more self-driving cars with a wider coverage area in the future.
To achieve that, there is a 7KM long self-driving vehicle testing route jointly developed by Futurise and the Ministry of Transport, in order to further the development of autonomous vehicles.
A hotel that emphasises on reusing
With the help of eMoovit, we made our way over to Dash Box.
It’s an accommodation by RIYAZ Hotels and Resorts that repurposed around 40 old containers and turned them into rooms and stores for guests.
I found the concept quite interesting because instead of wasting time and energy melting these containers down and turning them into other products, they repurposed them into a point of attraction.
Unfortunately, we could not see the interior of the container rooms because they were being refurbished, though we did see how they turned some containers into stores, a cigar lounge, and a restaurant.
Other than the container rooms, they have a few regular rooms around the garden and pool. Prices start at RM200 for the studio rooms, while the deluxe rooms with a balcony start from RM300 onwards.
They also have a grand ballroom with a maximum capacity of 250 pax, where guests frequently host weddings, large meetings, parties, and more.
A hub that nurtures more than just startups
After that, we went over to RekaScape, a retail and event space that’s purposefully built for entrepreneurs.
It’s home to TinkerScape, one of the many coworking spaces scattered around Cyberjaya.
They offer permanent desks and private offices, high speed internet powered by Allo, a local internet service provider, and a slide and swings for much needed work breaks.
Next, there’s KidzTech Centre, a learning centre specifically for kids that want to learn more about science, technology, engineering, maths.
Mohd Shukri Bin Muhammad, the programme coordinator highlighted that they teach kids robotics, programming, and Japanese too.
If the kids do well, they will get the opportunity to join international robotic competitions. Previously, they won first runner-up, and champion the year after, against countries like India, Japan, and Taiwan.
They teach kids other skills not easily found in schools too, such as 3D printing, designing, and even using VR technology.
We also dropped by Corte Fino Barber, one of the first tenants when RekaScape first opened in 2019. They remained operational even after the pandemic, showing the business’s resilience with the help of RekaScape.
On Saturdays, RekaScape is home to the Cyberjaya Farmers Market where you can enjoy artisan goods, handmade goods, fresh produce and iconic local foods.
Depending on the season, the Farmers Market can host as many as 40 stalls that all accept QR Pay as a cashless payment method.
A mosque that has more than meets the eye
The Masjid Raja Haji Fi Sabilillah is not your regular masjid. The religious building received a Platinum Rating (the highest type) by the Green Building Index (GBI) as it takes advantage of natural light to illuminate its interior.
There are also a series of solar panels on its roof. These not only generate electricity used by the building, but any excess electricity is then sent back to the power grid, reducing the masjid’s overall carbon emissions.
Another interesting fact we learnt was that it was designed and planned to have an average daytime temperature of 26°C.
In fact, the mosque only turns on the air conditioner for two hours for Friday prayers, as well as special events based on the Islamic Calendar.
A unique retail hub filled with vegetation
For those who enjoy a nice mix of architecture and nature, Tamarind Square, our next stop, offers both.
When we first walked in, I was quite amazed by the many vines hanging off the building’s ledges, planted and maintained meticulously.
It’s a nice place to chill and hangout since it has almost everything you need.
In one day, you could grab a meal at the many restaurants, indulge in a mani pedi or spa session, get coffee or dessert after, buy books at BookXcess, stock up on groceries at Village Grocer, and update your closet with the thrift stores there.
It’s also a very Instagrammable spot, with walkways leading to the rooftop for better cityscape views. While we took our own pictures, we noticed other groups recording Instagram Reels and TikTok videos.
Once we were hungry, we visited Pastribella, one of the many cafes scattered around Tamarind Square, for some meals, drinks, and cakes. Just opposite, there is a board game cafe more suited to those who want some fun while dining.
A kid and adult-friendly place for horse-riding
Once the heat was more tolerable, we took towards the 3S Equestrian Centre. The facility has a number of stables filled with horses and ponies that we could ride on around the facility.
They also offer outrides where we can ride 20KM around Cyberjaya. We did not have enough time to try that out, and it’s only for those familiar with horseback riding.
After a quick chat with the owner, he revealed that we can even rent his horses for events, birthdays, parties, weddings, and convocation photoshoots.
For me, the main highlight there was when the owner let out his cage of about 20 pigeons and let us hand feed them. It was a memorable way to end our time there.
A dog-friendly park with a beautiful lake in the middle
Before we went to our final destination, we took a quick stroll around Taman Tasik Cyberjaya, a large dog-friendly park that’s great for a relaxing walk with family.
The park is so large, there are electric scooters available around it so visitors can move around much easier and faster.
For kids, there’s a mini train ride and playground to keep them entertained, along with an ice cream man for sweet cold treats on a sweltering day (we adults couldn’t resist either).
In terms of sights, occasionally popping out from the blanket of blooming lotus flowers were large fishes and terrapin turtles, all along the bridge leading towards the small island in the middle of the lake.
An open area where you’re spoilt for street food choices
For our final stop, we went to TAPAK, a place that specialises in providing an urban street dining experience.
While there were a few stalls that were not open, there were still quite a number of food choices to choose from. Of those that we ate, we enjoyed the deep-fried mussels and the burgers the most, washing them down with ice-cold drinks.
All the food trucks accept QR Pay, so cashless transactions were not an issue.
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Even though Cyberjaya is often considered as a tech hub, it’s clear that Cyberview is putting in a lot of effort into developing the place to be as accommodating and family-friendly as possible.
Our trip to Cyberjaya definitely showed us a different side of the city that many of us did not expect, and safe to say, we left impressed and better-informed.
If you’d like to spend the day in Cyberjaya too but are wondering about traffic around the city, we notice that driving around was much more relaxing compared to driving in KL, thanks to wider roads and overall less vehicles.
In fact, this trip has even convinced one of my colleagues that she might consider moving out of busy and congested Subang Jaya, into the green, peaceful, and accessible Cyberjaya.
- Find out more about Cyberjaya here.
