When I read the slogan [ Malaysia  Truly Asia ] years ago, It was set in my mind one day I will go there for holiday. Little did I know I would be flying to Malaysia from Perth, Australia in 2018.

We had to have a holiday so Malaysia it was, Vietnam will have to wait. There is nothing not to love about Malaysia and the beautiful island of Langkawi – good friendly people, good hotels, good food and good infrastructure ( roads, transport).

If your going to Malaysia for a short stay then this is what I recommend below. I would not recommend a  longer trip more than 10 days in fact a week or less  would be just fine.

The weather is humid and you don’t need winter clothes most of the time. I visited Malaysia in July for about eight days and the weather was fine for me coming from Australia, but just a bit humid. Singapore and Malaysia have consistent weather year round and It’s best to avoid the heavier rainy season by travelling in November, February and March, however July had fine weather for us (with no rains).

In this post I am going to take you through what are the best place to visit (tourist places), stay (Hotels) and things you should do and see when in Malaysia.

Langkawi In Malaysia

If you are visiting  Malaysia then Langkawi is one place that should be on your itinerary, it is a beautiful island with nice beautiful beaches and a relaxing atmosphere and it is a duty free island which means cheap alcohol.

The best way to make your trip memorable in Langkawi is to book a nice 3 star to 5 star hotel right next to  the beach. The hotel we stayed in had a very three pools with a spa  included – so there was  a children’s pool, adult section  of the pool and separate spa area in the pool.

There was walking access from the hotel right onto the beach so that you can watch the beautiful sunset or just let the kids play in the sand if you have a family. As this is kind of a private area, it doesn’t get crowded yet there are options for hiring boats and water scooters f you like.

The hotel have  got a small minibar on the beach area too.

[The holiday villa beach and spa resort Langkawi]

They also have a infinity pool near to the beach, which give you a good view of the beach and makes taking those infinity pool pictures  so exciting for your memories of your trip. You have to pay a fee to use the infinity pool and they are regular  party nights or events (BBQ) held at the infinity pool with special prices.

[ Beach view of resort]

Langkawi is a duty free island  and so  even people from Malaysia visit  to get cheap alcohol. They are plenty of stores  selling cheap  duty free alcohol and chocolates, so make the most of it. I sampled both – not a fan of the chocolates available there, but it was always good to get a cheap  drink. There are lot of American beers,  spirits and  wines on the duty free menus in the shop.

 

Transport – From Airport  to Hotel (Langkawi)

Langkawi is mainly a tourist island  and most people depend on tourists for their livelihood.  You can easily get a taxi from the airport  to  your hotel.

There are some private taxi operators that also will ask you if you want a ride with them to the hotel, when you arrive at the Langkawi airport. The  person (private taxi) we went with turned out  to be cheaper and  later on he managed  to get another private tourist taxi driver  to drive us around  for quite a competitive rate for the next day, as I later found out.

Taxi in Langkawi – From our hotel to airport it took us 15 mins and 25 ringgit. It is small island so most  hotels trips will not go over 15 to 20 minutes unless you are in hotel a bit faraway next to the mountains. (the main island is only about 320 sq kms)

The lady who was a driving us around  was a lady wearing a hijab and I though that was quite modern for Malaysia, where I did not find many lady drivers on the road. The lady driver was quite insistent – insistent – insistent on us doing the boat ride tour a round batu caves, which we were not keen on. I assume they make some sort of commission if we take a boat ride, unfortunately  I don’t like bats so just a tip had to do to compensate her at the end of the trip for a good ride.

Taxi fares are pretty much standard if you take one from hotel or then from the streets. Our hotel concierge told us the rate before we decided to go anywhere, they arranged for the taxi at the entrance, which is always quick. Taxi drivers on the street would not attempt to RIP you off in Langkawi as opposed to quite a few Asian countries.

Uber is also popular in Kualumpur and Langkawi and they also have a local app called Grab, which is like the local Uber service.

Hotels in Langkawi

The hotel we stayed in Langkawi was the Holiday Villa Beach resort and Spa. This was a good hotel with a very good breakfast buffet service which had a wide range of breakfast goodies to choose from. It is a 3 star hotel, but as good in value as some 4/5 star hotels.

The location was awesome with nice private beach access.  They also have a nice little honeymoon or newlyweds beach hut where you can  treat your partner to  dinner on the beach while the sun is setting. The hotel has a infinity pool which is perfect for that infinity pool shots for Instagram or  twitter.

They have a sports bar where sports is on TV all the time and you can grab a drink as well from the bar.  we enjoyed the FIFA world cup matches over there.

The other good hotels that are nearby are Ritz Carlton  and Westin and on the same stretch near holiday villa beach you can find Frangipani Resort and Camar resort.

You could  find some good hotels in hotels.com(Langkawi)

Langkawi – Tourist area CENANG

If you want  to stay someplace central then it is best  to stay  somewhere close to Cenang In Langkawi, as cenang is the main tourist area  where you can do a bit of shopping and is also lined up with good restaurants to have breakfast, lunch or dinner.

What else can you do in Langkawi ?

• Take a backwaters tour near batu caves
• Visit Underwater world
• Visit the 3d Musuem (Art in paradise -3d painting and murals)and The oriental food court next door for some local authentic Langkawi food
• Take the Langkawi cablecar ride among the clouds up the hill ( 3d Musuem next door)
• Helicopter rides are available  to tour the island
• There is a Go cart racing  field if your feeling the need for speed

[Hand made durian icecream made right in front of you]

Dont know what durian is ?

Malaysia is durian crazy. You will see this weird looking and weird smelling fruit anywhere and everywhere.  It s a tropical fruit readily available in Malaysia. The locals cant just get enough of it  and i was game only to try it in the ice-cream form and it was quite nice.

Best visiting time for Langkawi/Malaysia :

Don’t visit Langkawi in January to march as its superhot and sticky. A 15 minute walk from your hotel to cenang street can drain you totally and get you dehydrated and sweaty.

Is Kuala Lumpur a good destination to visit

Kualalumpur is the capital of Malaysia and so many people will want to visit  this place.

[Not the petrobras towers :/]

Kuala Lumpur In Malaysia

Some might say that visiting kuala lumpur is obligatory as it is the capital of Malaysia. I would say if you plan to do it- do so! but do not keep a lot of time for it as you could possibly do kuala lumpur in  day. If you have plenty of time you could make it a two day visit.

The main attraction over here is the twin towers called the “Petrobras towers” and they are quite impressive when you get right next to them. It is best  to booking advance to get tickets to visit  the top of the towers  or if you want to go upto the connecting bridge as tickets get sold pretty quick.

If you got kids you  could book yourself at the Sunway lagoon resort and enjoy the water theme park  or book yourself a hotel nearby and buy tickets to the theme park.

The “Alor street food night markets” is a local  street food market that should be in your  to do list if visiting kualalumpur and you like  food. This night street food market is a lane in Alor lined up with restaurants and food stalls selling all kinds of local street food and a lot of seafood as well.  There is a good line up of snacks  and sweets available too over here.

The atmosphere at these markets is busy and bustling  and the same time relaxed and enjoyable. Google Maps gives this a good 4 star rating by 7,391 people so far.

Biggest Bird Sanctuary in Asia

Kualaumpur also boasts having one of the biggest “Asian bird sanctuary” and it is all on a hill. The Lakeside gardens tram tour 15 for adult 10  for child takes you around Asian biggest bird sanctuary, Polis (Police) Musuem , national mosque which is all located within the same big hill, right bang in the center of the city.

We went from the Lakeside garden to Petrobras towers via  taxi and bargained from 25 to 20 ringgit to get there. We discovered that  there are three different ticket fares for Petrobras towers with the highest being 200 ringgit – The taxi guy agreed it was a bit steep and perhaps we should look to get a helicopter ride  instead for the same price.

 

Money In Malaysia

Malaysia is cheap if  you are coming from western or well off Asian country as prices for hotel, food, transport  and drink is reasonable. In fact food is quite cheap.

[ A yummy nasi lemak in malaysia ]

The currency in Kuala lumpur and Langkawi Malaysia is the Malaysian ringgit. 1 ringgit is made up of 100 sen (cents)

There isn’t a limit on the amount of foreign currency that you can bring in, but all foreign currency above an equivalent of US$10,000 must be declared. The British Pound Sterling, US  and AUD Dollars are also widely circulated and exchanged.

Foreign exchange tip:
DO not exchange AUD to Malaysian ringgit in Australia. You will get charged a $12 commission for money exchange at Perth airport(where I travelled from). The exchange rates are also less attractive. There is no commission charged in Malaysia airport or in Langkawi so its best exchanging

Once you board your flight with Air Asia, everything is charged in ringgit through you can pay in dollars too.  You can also pay for food in the airlines(Air Asia)in Australian dollars or USD and get some Malaysian money back, they do not give change back in AUD.

Do I need a visa for Malaysia ?

Malaysia Entry Requirements – Required Travel Documents for Travel to Malaysia.

Malaysia tourist visa is not required for citizens of Australia for a stay up to 90 days. American citizens do not need to obtain a Malaysia visa in advance for a pleasure or business trip if their stay in Malaysia is 90 days or less, the same as Australians. Make sure your passport is valid for at least six months to enter Malaysia. Check with your country travel agent, consulate, embassy for further details.

Driving in Malaysia

Infrastructure and transport is pretty good in Malaysia and so is the road network. If you are new to Malaysia, their road merging in kualalumpur and CBD are a bit confusing  and if you miss exits or merging roads you can spend a lot of time trying to get anywhere, but once you get out of the  city roads or central business areas the roads are straight forward to drive in.

You can drive in Malaysia with an international driver’s licence for up to 90 days.  General speeds are 90 km/h (56 mph) by default and go up to  110km/h  depending onw which roads you are driving. Speeds go lower on town roads and there are signs  to follow for speed limits.

 

Intent
Good hotels in Malaysia / Langkawi
Options of holidays after Malaysia, nearby.

Genting islands & Singapore

Many people don’t know about Genting islands which is  right on the doorstep of Malaysia. This is another popular  destination for tourists. They also have casino just outside  Malaysia. Singapore is just across the border so  you can easily make Singapore you next trip from Malaysia.

Flights to Malaysia

Air Asia Fly’s from Australia to Kualalumpur
While Air Asia is a budget carrier airline, it is value for the money you pay for the flight. The seats on the airline are a bit cramp but ok for a budget airline. Taller and larger people will find the seats a bit cramped. The isle’s on the aeroplane are much smaller and if a drink trolley comes through your screwed, the passageway is blocked (toilet will have to wait).

It is better to Pre book meals when booking flight at roughly 15 rinngit as you will pay $20 to $25 for a main meal if you order it inflight.

KL international airport (KL1 and KL 2)
At KL 2 terminal they are heaps of eating places. There is a express train from terminal 2  as well. 

Around this terminal and train station, is where most of the good food eating outlets – including food places like Hometown, Old town, Macas (mac donalds), Nandos, Subway, KFC, Noodle boat etc. There is a good mix of international fast food chains and local foot outlets.

There is not much in KL1 terminal, so its a good idea to come down here (KL2) if your looking for some good food.

Beware there is no sitting spaces in the airport( really weird and bad for such a good airport) so if you are stuck with a long gap in your connecting  flights, be prepared to get wobbly legs or  spend money in starbucks or restaurants  just to get sitting space.

Airport Train Kualalumpur

If you want to travel quick and easy there is also a  train from  the airport. The Train from Klia 2 terminal is an express train to  KL City  which takes approximately 30 mins and costs  35 to 55 ringgit. The train also goes to terminal 1. There is a enquiry/ticket counter just adjacent to the shopping centre adjacent to terminal 2 .

Parking is average of 5 ringgit an hour in KL city.

 

Good to know

Most of your fellow travellers will be people visiting from India , china and surprisingly  a lot of people from middle east – as this is primarily a Muslim country and many middle east people feel comfortable  visiting Malaysia.

The locals are a mix of Indian and Chinese that have migrated years ago and people who are called Malay.

Most people understand and speak English here though most speak Malay, which is the local language.

Alcohol is generally prohibited for Muslim consumers in the country as Malaysia’s sharia law forbids Muslim from drinking and selling alcohol to them.

 

Prices In Malaysia (FOOD,DRINK etc)

2.90 roughly 1 AUD dollar for can of tiger beer 320 ml.
Mixed drinks roughly 4.50 ringgit
Snacks for drinks peanuts chips {medium pack  roughly 2 to 3 ringgit per pack}

Is Malaysia a safe place to travel?

Some people might have their reservations about Malaysia and ask – if its a safe place to visit for  different reasons. However I can assure yo that we  did not have problems while on our trip over there and people are generally good and nice to you and helpful too if you need help.

Malaysia is a good place to visit for couples,  though suited more to the touristic crowd and also families with children.  Langkawi  can suit most types of travellers.

For a business trip or meeting convention there possibly could be better places to choose from rather than Kuala Lumpur and Langkawi.

Have you already been to  these places or other places in Malaysia worth seeing drop us a line  below and we can  check it out on our next visit and add it over here.  Have a good trip!

[ PS: I didn’t think i did enough justice to the food we savoured on our trip, so i have made and entire new blog post on all the food we enjoyed in our trip to Malaysia and Langkawi.

Go Check out our continuation of this post over here >