Malaysia Travel Guide

Home to both the towering twin peaks of Kuala Lumpur’s Petronas Towers and rural tea fields, plus rust-bucket boats floating in age old harbors, the contrasts of ancient and modern, rich and poor make Malaysia a welcoming and captivating place to visit. 

Cosmopolitan Kuala Lumpur still has the age-old hazard of falling to the sewer and the sugary stench of Durian, but it’s fast becoming a must-see Asian city. Staring up boggle-eyed at the soaring skyscrapers and wandering amongst the temples and shrines of Malaysia’s harmonious religious mish mash is seductive, as is the market stall laksa (coconut noodle soup) and the non-stop haggling of the colorful night markets.

As great as KL is, though, most come to Malaysia for those characteristic forested hillsides and white sand beaches. You’ll find them both on the Perhentian Islands, where astonishing tropical waters meet lush jungles, and teeming reefs wait just offshore. You can stay in stilted houses hovering over the water (some even incorporate glass floors), and sip from your coconut with a straw as you ride out to some even more far-flung islands.

Borneo’s indigenous tribes and orangutans have drawn tourists for decades, and whilst well developed, offer a mesmerizing look at extraordinary tropical wildlife, whilst the adventurous can head for the heart and summit the heights of Mt. Kinabalu. Hiking in the Cameron Highlands takes you past endless tea fields, while Kota Bhalu is home to temples galore, and a famous night market where day-trippers from Thailand can snap up shadow puppets and vivid handmade kites. In Penang you can glance back through the centuries by exploring the colonial architecture, or head for the resorts of Pulau Langkawi to bask in sumptuous luxury.

Food is the locals' main reason for being. A melting pot of different cultures provides for a heavenly feast when dining out, whether it's a roadside stall or an upmarket restaurant, nothing excites the senses than the burst of of flavors found in the local cuisine.

For all its glories, one of the biggest draws of Malaysia is its ethos. With a host of national parks and wildlife projects, and lacking the inbuilt hassle-factor that comes with travel in large parts of Asia, Malaysia is a country on the up, and modernizing fast. That’s not to say you won’t stumble across tribes living out their lives in shambolic log houses in the middle of the jungle, though, and the experience is all the better for it.