Located in the center of Sumatra Island along the Strait of Malacca, Riau is one of the richest and fast growing provinces in Indonesia. Riau has lots of natural resources such as petroleum, natural gas, rubber and palm oil. The capital city of this province is Pekanbaru.

Pekanbaru, located at the busy strait close to Singapore, is known as one of the busiest trading port in South East Asia. The city name, Pekanbaru, is derived from the Indonesian words of ‘new market’, “pekan” meaning ‘market’ or ‘town’, and “baru” meaning ‘new’. Other major cities in Riau includes, Dumai, Bagansiapiapi, Bengkalis, Rengat and Siak.

Major tourist attractions in Riau:

• Pasar bawah, the market for antiques, ceramics, carpets and electronics
• Great Mosque of An-Nur
• Alam Mayang Fishing Garden
• Sang Nila Utama Museum
• Riau Cultural Park
• Princess Kaca Mayang Garden
• Limbungan Lake
• Sari Valley artificial lake

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