Sarawak Cultural Village opened in 1990 with a simple idea: bring together traditional houses from Sarawak's major ethnic groups — Iban, Bidayuh, Orang Ulu, Melanau, Malay and Chinese communities among them — into one walkable site, each staffed by people from that community demonstrating their own crafts and daily life. It's often called a 'living museum,' and the label is earned; nothing here is a static diorama.
A visit typically moves from house to house — an Iban longhouse, a tall Orang Ulu house on stilts, a Melanau tall house — with hosts demonstrating blowpipe-making, weaving, sago processing or traditional cooking depending on the day. The afternoon cultural show gathers dances from several of these traditions on one stage, ngajat included, as an introduction for visitors who won't have time to visit each community in its own region.
Set right at the base of Mount Santubong with the mountain rising dramatically behind it, the Cultural Village is an easy, well-organised half-day trip from Kuching — and since 1998 it has also hosted the Rainforest World Music Festival on these same grounds every summer.