SINGAPORE: For 29-year-old Nur Fatin Amira, planning to scale Malaysia’s mountain trails will now require more careful logistical planning after authorities introduced new rules aimed at tightening safety measures.This comes after a spike in the number of costly search-and-rescue (SAR) operations that have been linked to hikers following social media trends to venture onto unauthorised trails or speed through multi-day hikes. What could have been “day hikes” have now been expanded to multi-day trails to account for safety - something that Fatin said would impact how often she would be able to go on such adventures. “The new rules do affect me. Planning around my annual leave gets harder and (the) cost goes up too, since longer hikes usually mean higher expenses,” Fatin, a Sabahan who works in the industrial manufacturing industry, told CNA. Even so, members of the hiking community - including Fatin - have welcomed these tighter measures even as they expect higher costs and changes to their hiking itineraries. These measures include restrictions on "day hikes" or compressed hikes, the mandatory use of mountain guides at 189 high-risk locations as well as pre-climb screening procedures for hikers.“There may be a slight increase in package costs … but this is a small and necessary price to pay for enhanced safety,” said Yeo Ching Khee of Singapore-based X-Trekkers, which organises hiking expeditions, including to Malaysia.