Sam Poh Temple, Cameron Highlands: entry, history, trails

Sam Poh Temple

Photo: Google Maps

Type

Buddhist temple

Address

Jalan Pecah Batu, Brinchang, 39000 Brinchang, Pahang

Area

Brinchang

Entry fee

Cameron.com.my says there is usually no general admission fee, though donations may be welcomed.³CameronHighlandsInfo.com also lists the temple as free entry.⁹

Google rating

4.4 (1,405 reviews) on Google Maps, checked October 2026

On the map

Open in Google Maps

Opening hours on Google Maps, checked October 2026

Day	Hours
Monday	08:00–17:00
Tuesday	08:00–17:00
Wednesday	08:00–17:00
Thursday	08:00–17:00
Friday	08:00–17:00
Saturday	08:00–17:00
Sunday	08:00–17:00

What to expect at Sam Poh Temple

Sam Poh Temple is a Buddhist temple on the southern edge of Brinchang, and it’s said to be the fourth-largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia². It makes a calm change of pace on a plateau where trekking² fills most itineraries.

Wikivoyage reckons it’s worth a visit if you are tired of hiking². That makes it an easy stop for a rest day, or a short break before a walk.

How do you get to the temple?

Head for Brinchang first: the temple sits south of Brinchang², and Google Maps gives its address as Jalan Pecah Batu, Brinchang, 39000 Brinchang, Pahang¹.

1. 01

   Bus or train up to Tanah Rata

   Buses from Kuala Lumpur's Terminal Bersepadu Selatan take about 4½ hours to Tanah Rata. By rail, use Tapah Road, then a bus from Tapah.

2. 02

   Tanah Rata to Brinchang

   The two towns are about 4 km apart.

3. 03

   Brinchang to the temple

   The temple is just south of Brinchang, on Jalan Pecah Batu.

Cameron Highlands is reached by road only⁴, so every option ends on a bus or in a car. From Ipoh the drive up is about 85² to 90 km⁵.

If you come up from Tapah, the road meets the route from Raub at Ringlet, which is 6 km from Tanah Rata⁴. There’s more on Ringlet if you’re thinking of stopping on the way. Fares and other routes are on the KL and Ipoh transport page.

Brinchang is the highest of the three towns⁴, so pack a layer. For rooms, food and the town itself, see eating and sleeping around Brinchang.

Entry fee and opening hours

Entry to Sam Poh Temple is free, according to both travel guides that list it.

Google Maps lists the temple as open Mon–Sun 08:00–17:00¹ (checked October 2026). Those are Google’s hours, not ones the temple publishes, so check the listing before you set out late in the day.

For quieter visits, BOH Tea says June and September are off-peak months, while November to January⁶ is the high season, especially around the holidays.

The forest trail that starts at the temple

Trail 2² starts in Brinchang at Sam Poh Temple, so the temple doubles as a trailhead. You can visit the temple in the morning and start walking straight from there.

Is Sam Poh Temple the same as Sam Poh Tong?

No. Sam Poh Tong is a separate temple in Ipoh, Perak⁷, so if you’ve been reading about its history, that’s a different place from the one in Brinchang.

	Sam Poh Temple	Sam Poh Tong
Where	Just south of Brinchang2, Cameron Highlands	About 5 km from Ipoh city centre7
What it is	Buddhist temple1	Chinese temple built inside a limestone cave7
Built	19722	1950s7

Sam Poh Tong’s story goes back to 1890⁷, when a monk from China, walking through the area from Ipoh, founded the cave site that became the temple.

Nearby in Brinchang

You can pair the temple with a few stops in and around Brinchang town:

• Cactus Valley, at Pekan Lama, Brinchang, within walking distance of the town².
• Big Red Strawberry Farm, within walking distance of Brinchang town². There are more in the round-up of Brinchang’s strawberry farms.
• The night market (pasar malam), opposite the police station².

Further out, a BOH tea factory tour is a natural next stop: Tourism Pahang names BOH Tea and Bharat Tea⁴ as the plantations most set up for visitors. For something busier, try the Tokyo Town guide.

Seeing the temple on a tour

If you’d rather not drive, Discover Camerons says its full-day tour visits a butterfly and insect farm, an orchid and rose garden, local markets and Sam Poh Temple⁸. Hours and fees for the other stops are in the things to do details on the hub page.

To book a guided day out online instead, Klook sells a Cameron Highlands guided day tour with lunch. Its listing doesn’t confirm a stop at the temple, so check the itinerary before you book if the temple is the point of your day.

Questions people ask