Tapah

This article is about a town in Malaysia. For tropical cyclones named Tapah, see Tropical Storm Tapah (disambiguation). For the fish, see Wallago attu. For the federal constituency represented in the Dewan Rakyat, see Tapah (federal constituency).

Not to be confused with Tapah Road.

Tapah is a town and the capital of Batang Padang District, Perak, Malaysia.^[1]It is one of the two gateway towns to the renowned hill retreat of Cameron Highlands alongside Simpang Pulai, with the latter situated approximately 39 kilometres (24 mi) to its north.

Tapah
Town and district capital
Tapah Town Bandar Tapah
Federal Route 1 running through downtown Tapah (main route blocked and diverted for maintenance works as shown in this photo).
Seal
Tapah Location of Tapah
Coordinates: 4°11′53″N 101°15′41″E
Country	Malaysia
State	Perak
District	Batang Padang
Government
• Type	Local government
• Body	Tapah District Council
• President	Ahmad Roslan Mohamed Nazir
Time zone	UTC+8 (Malaysian Standard Time)
Website	http://mdtapah.gov.my

Tapah District Council Majlis Daerah Tapah
Local Government Act 1976
Type
Type	Municipal Council of Tapah
History
Founded	1 September 1979
Leadership
President	Ahmad Roslan Mohamed Nazir
Motto
Menuju Kejayaan Towards Success
Meeting place
Jalan Stesyen, 35000 Tapah, Perak Darul Ridzuan.
Website
www.mdtapah.gov.my

Tapah in Batang Padang District

Tapah is located 49 kilometres (30 mi) to the southeast of Ipoh, the state capital city.

Name

The name "Tapah" is said to be originated from the name of a freshwater fish, "Ikan Tapah". The scientific name of the fish is Wallago leeri. The locals said that the name has been taken from the Perak Malay word which means "no worry" (Standard Malay: tidak mengapa, colloquial speech: takpa).^[2]

Geography

The Perakian/Pahangese Titiwangsa viewed from the Tapah Rest Area, North–South Expressway Northern Route.

The Batang Padang River constitutes the Perak River basin.

Lata Iskandar Waterfall

The Batang Padang River flows through Tapah.^[3] Major neighbouring towns are Kampar and Bidor. Attributing to its location on the western foothills of the Titiwangsa Range, there are some magnificent waterfalls within its vicinity. The Lata Kinjang waterfall is about 18 km from Tapah on the road to Chenderiang. It is an impressive series of cascades down a 100 m drop. The falls can be seen from the North–South Expressway (PLUS). The other one is the Lata Iskandar waterfall, located further inland along the main route linking the town with Ringlet of Cameron Highlands.

Transport

E1 toward Tapah Interchange.

Tapah is located on the trunk road between Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh. There is an entrance to the North–South Expressway (E1) at Tapah via exit 132. This town is also widely considered as the main entry point into the old Cameron Highlands route, which is a winding and narrow road uphill. The nearest train station is Tapah Road.^[4]