Port Dickson (town)
Port Dickson, or PD to locals, is a coastal city and parliamentary constituency in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia. It takes just over an hour by car to travel from Kuala Lumpur to Port Dickson along the North–South Expressway.
History
This small town used to produce charcoal and therefore was called Arang - there used to be a carbon mine at the first mile of the coast road - but it was later developed as a small port by the British during the Straits Settlement period. Port Dickson was also known as Tanjung. The oldest shophouses were the four situated presently at Jalan Lama.Historically what is today Port Dickson and nearby Lukut were part of Selangor. On 30 July 1880, a meeting was held in Singapore between Sultan Abdul Samad, Raja Bot, Dato' Kelana of Sungai Ujong as well as the British, in which Selangor cedes the district of Lukut to Sungai Ujong.
Tin ore was plentiful in Lukut, an area within the Port Dickson district, during the 1820s, and it attracted Chinese immigrant miners. The British considered the area to have great potential as a harbour. It was intended to supersede the port in Pengkalan Kempas. The in-charge officer's name was Dickson, and thereafter the town was named Port Dickson. Others claim that Sir John Frederick Dickson, colonial secretary, a senior official of the Federated Malay States founded Port Dickson and Pulau Arang in 1889.
Port Dickson evolved into a busy trading centre. Railways were constructed to facilitate the growth and development of Port Dickson. Although Port Dickson experienced rapid development, the beautiful beaches are fairly well preserved.
Port Dickson is also home to many army camps of the Malaysian Army such as Sebatang Karah, Segenting, Si Rusa and Sunggala. In September 2009, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak declared Port Dickson as an "Army Town" in recognition of her role in the nation's military services.
Economy
Oil and gas production
Port Dickson has two refineries which make significant contributions to the local economy. Shell Refining Company has been operating since 1962 while Petron operates another refinery which began operation in 1963.Tourism
The 18 km long beach from Tanjung Gemuk to Tanjung Tuan is a popular holiday destination for local visitors, especially those who come from Kuala Lumpur. Many Singaporeans have invested in holiday homes in and around Port Dickson. Over the years, many hotels and resorts were opened to capitalize on the tourist draw. In the 1990s, Port Dickson boomed with new hotels and resorts being planned and constructed. Due to the Asian financial crisis of 1997 however, many of these projects stalled, leaving many unfinished buildings scattered along the Port Dickson coastline. While some of these half constructed resorts are still abandoned, with the improving economy of the 2000s many of the projects were eventually revived and completed.SEGAR CITY
Lukut, a new township which is also part of the Port Dickson district. Overall, it has residential, shop units, shopping mall, hotels and tourism attractions. Some of the famous attractions around here are Alive 3D Art gallery and Wild West Cowboy Indoor Amusement park, 5D cinema, Awake Horror Thrills, Skunk Show, Children Amusement. Almost all types of entertainment activities that can suit different group of people.In 2018, Tasik Villa International Resort, which includes a man-made lake, was launched and there is a music fountain show at 9pm daily. Beside that people who love jacuzzi can find it in some of its hotel rooms. This is one of the key differentiator it has comparing to the rest of the hotel. Then apart from that, guests can also get to enjoy their outdoor pool, nightclub, fitness facilities and outdoor facilities such as bicycle,electric scooter and buggy car ride. If they want they can do a mini sailing or dinner in boat floating on the lake.
P.D. Ostrich Show Farm
PD Ostrich Show Farm is a good place to spend a few hours with the family in Port Dickson. Kids may love it because It is a farm with quite a number of animals besides ostrich. There are goats, donkeys, turkeys, various breeds of chicken, cattle, guinea fowl, ducks and ponies. At here, guests can pet an ostrich and even ride one if you are brave enough. There are plenty of other farmyard and domestic animals to see and lots of activities to entertain the whole family. For those who think they are speed runners, occasionally there is a running competition for these guests to run and compete with ostriches that is able to run 43 miles per hour. Then, try stand on an ostrich eggs, see how it withstands your body weight.
Pusat Ikan Hiasan Port Dickson
This place, which is translated as Ornamental Fish Centre, is definitely one of the top Port Dickson attractions in a secluded place. The centre is located at the northern end of Port Dickson’s Teluk Kemang beach. Run by the Department of Fisheries, it has numerous spotlessly clean aquariums and tanks containing baby turtles, living coral, variety types of fish and marine creatures on display here. The fish tanks are spotlessly clean as the sea water from the bay is pumped into the centre’s storage tanks for cleansing and treatment before it is being used in their aquariums tanks. The place may be small but it sure has lots of sea creatures to see. Furthermore, entrance is free.
Extreme Park Port Dickson
This is another place for mini outdoor extreme activities such as go-karts, paint ball target shooting, archery target shooting, and all terrain vehicle riding.
Sailing related
Linking the Indian and Pacific Oceans, the Straits of Malacca is the shortest sea route between three of the world's most populous countries - India, China, and Indonesia. Inspired by the sea trade, expats founded the Royal Port Dickson Yacht Club in 1927, which still offers dinghy sailing courses and runs regattas. Unknown to most, Malaysia's developmental sailing teams, starting at the Optimist Dinghy level, train in and sail from the RPDYC to the Port Dickson Polytechnic.
The newer 5-star Admiral Marina & Leisure Club has good dock facilities for yacht travelers, sailboats and luxury cruisers. It is a transit point for racing sailboats joining the , Royal Langkawi International Regatta and Thailand's Phuket Kings Cup regattas. Admiral Marina also hosted the disabled sailing event of the 2009 ASEAN Para Games and the 2006 FESPIC Games.
Commerce
As of 2016, there around eight shopping centres in the town that serve its population.Politics
The town is represented in the Dewan Rakyat of the Malaysian Parliament as the Port Dickson. It is currently represented by Anwar Ibrahim of People's Justice Party.In turn, Port Dickson contributes 5 seats to the Negeri Sembilan State Legislative Assembly:
- Lukut;
- Chuah;
- Sri Tanjung;
- Bagan Pinang; and
- Linggi.
Following a September 2016 re-delineation exercise, the Port Dickson name was used for the whole parliamentary constituency replacing Telok Kemang, while the boundaries remain unchanged.
Transportation
Car
Port Dickson is easily accessible from most major towns of peninsular Malaysia. The SPDH or the old federal highway connects Port Dickson to Seremban, the state capital.Highway runs through downtown Port Dickson and links it to Malacca and then Johor Bahru due south, or Kuala Langat, Klang or even Ipoh due north.