Kota Tinggi

Kota Tinggi was hardest hit in the flood that devastated Johor and some parts of Pahang, Malacca, and Negeri Sembilan. Nearly 100,000 people had to be evacuated to rescue centres.

The first flood wave started on 19 December 2006 and sunk almost the whole town of Kota Tinggi. With a height of 4.90 metres (16.1 ft), it broke the previous record flood level. The second wave, which began on 11 January 2007, at 5.45 metres (17.9 ft) exceeded even the height of the first wave. Kota Tinggi town was totally underwater for nearly two weeks and was isolated from other towns due to landslides and flooding.

The town spans over an area of 17 km².^[3] Its landscape is mostly flat with the Johor River runs through it.

Kota Tinggi town and the mukims of Kota Tinggi, Ulu Sungai Johor, Ulu Sedili Besar, Kambau and Sedili Besar are administered by Kota Tinggi District Council (Malay: Majlis Daerah Kota Tinggi) since 1 January 1977. While the initial coverage of the District Council is the entirety of Kota Tinggi District, the southern part of the district comprising Sedili Kechil, Johor Lama, Tanjung Surat, Pengerang and Pantai Timur mukims was separated from its jurisdiction area by the State Government on 16 January 2017 to form the Pengerang Local Authority Area, which later evolved into the Pengerang Municipality on 1 January 2020. This resulted in the Kota Tinggi District Council's administration area being reduced to only the northern portion of the District.^[4][5]

The higher administrator of this town called Pegawai Daerah (district officer), which is normally changed every 5–6 years as being promoted by the city council. His official home can be seen nearby the field of the city called Padang Kerajaan Kota Tinggi, near the highest building in Kota Tinggi, The Bangunan Sultan Iskandar. The building houses the district council offices.

Kota Tinggi is represented in the Dewan Rakyat of the Malaysian Parliament by Dato' Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin from UMNO, part of the federal ruling alliance Barisan Nasional.^[7]

On the state level, Kota Tinggi constituency contributes two seats to the Johor State Legislative Assembly:

• Sedili; and
• Johor Lama,

in which both seats were also represented by UMNO.^[8]

Kota Tinggi is known as a historical town because the Sultanate of Johor was established there. Many historical tombs are found here including the Sultan Mahmud Mangkat Di Julang Mausoleum, Makam Bendahara Tun Habib Abdul Majid and Makam Tauhid in Kampung Makam. Makam Laksamana Bentan is located in Kampung Kelantan.

The Kota Tinggi Waterfalls at Lombong, 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) north-west of town, are local tourist destinations.

The waterfalls are 36 meters high, and are located at the base of the 634 meter high Gunung Muntahak mountain. The river water drains through a series of shallow pools used for swimming.^{[citation needed]} The natural environment of some parts of the location has somewhat been spoiled by resort development with artificial landscaping.^{[original research?]}

There are also many beaches along the coastal part of Kota Tinggi. The most popular beaches are Tanjung Balau, Desaru and Batu Layar ('sail rock'), which are 58 km, 55 km, and 62 km from Kota Tinggi town respectively. Chalets and hotels offering reasonable rates can easily be found along the beach.

Teluk Sengat, located 25 km east of Kota Tinggi town, is a village visited by tourists for its seafood.

Museums in Kota Tinggi include Kota Tinggi Museum.