hroark

Hi, My wife and I are going to be in Singapore on business in early September, and are planning on taking 3-4days off to visit Malaysia. Would prefer for the trip to not be hectic, ideally would like to find a good beach to hang out at. Going through the posts on this forum, seems like Langkawi may be an option, but not sure how long it will take to get there from Singapore (and how convenient it is to get there). Any suggestions/pointers on where to go to (either Langkawi or other places) would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

Smeagol

You can fly direct with Tiger air and firefly (i think) takes about 1.5 hours. Both very cheap and good carriers
Check out Bon ton resort (gorgeous individual malay houses) with a great restaurant(best food we had on Langkawi) or their sister property next door Temple trees (we stayed in the Palm Villa in the Bon ton bit and loved it) be-aware there are cats everywhere so if you dont them it won't be for you.
www.bontonresort.com

Smeagol

just checked Tiger and there are indeed fares to langkawi in Oct (some are even taxes only!) so i would take a look at those asap.
I have flown Tiger and they do enforce the baggage allowance rules BUT their excess charges are not horrendous and we found them a very good carrier.

crellston

I would agree with smeagol re Langkawi and Bonton. However, the weather on west coast Malaysia is not great at that time of year (some friends were their last week and had a couple of reasonable days (clouds but no rain) and two days of heavy rain.

East coast will probably have better weather and there are some nice hotels close to Kuala Terrenganu (Tanjong Jara) or maybe Kuantan. Renag Island is also worth considering, particularly if you are into diving or snorkelling but it does involve a ferry ride of a couple of hours to get there from Terranganu.

Kathie

You could opt for the east coast of Malaysia... There used to be non-stop flights from SIngapore to Kuantan.

Another option: Georgetown in Penang. This is the historic port area (not a beach, though if you stay at the E&O, it's right on the water). Penang has a fascinating history and there are wonderful old buildings: temples, a fort, Chinese shophouses, the Fat-Tze Mansion, British colonial architecture... And Penang is famous for the hawker food. If you like Indian food, the best I've ever eaten as in Penang. Just staying at the E&O is worth the trip. If you click on my name. you'll see a list of my trip reports, including on a few years ago of Penang. While there are beaches nearby, they aren't much. If you really want beach, don't choose Penang.

rhkkmk

not the beach but malecca is a very nice place for a few days and is just up the west coast from singapore....there are lux buses...

hroark

Thanks for all the suggestions. After visiting the E&O website, have decided on going to Penang/Georgetown. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for the three days we are there..

Thanks again for all your help. Much apprecaited.

Kathie

The E&O is one of my favorite hotels. It alone it worth the trip to Penang! Even if it pours, it doesn't rain all day. There is a lovely pool, with loungers and a nice man to bring you drinks... If you have other questions about Penang that I can help with, do ask. Oh, in addition to my trip report, you might want to look at our photos: www,marlandc.com

rhkkmk

not to divert you from the E/O, but please look at the clove hall also in georgetown

Smeagol

i LOVED penang, do make sure ou take one of the twice dail tours round the blue mansion. (only 12 MYR) think the are at 12 and 3 (you would need to check) and its minutes from the E & O.

Do check out Clove hall that Bob suggested as we would have loved to stay there (it wasn't open last Nov) we stayed at the E & O which was nice BUT it really does depend on which room they give you (we had 4 different rooms so i am speaking from a bit of experience.)

hroark

hi smeagol, tx for post! any particualr rooms you would recommend staying in (or not staying in) at the E&O. Checked out the Clove Hall website, looks great.

Kathie

We stayed in a Premier suite, which gives you a small balcony overlooking the sea.

Smeagol

Kathie it does depend where your premier suite is as we had 3 different ones and the first one was awful (very plain, right at the other end oth the hotel drab interior, needed an update) and if we had stayed in that for the whole 6 days we were there it would have REALLY coloured my view of the E & O.
The nicest one we had was directly over the pool in the older building, very lovely colonial design and decor.
Hroark i will try and dig out the number but yes as kathie says the premier suites are the way to go.

hroark

thanks kathie and smeagol.

Smeagol, wld really appreaciate it if u can get me the number. thanks!

Kathie

Really, smeagol? I had no idea they were so variable. OUrs was just lovely.

hroark

hi kathie, do u happen to remember which room u stayed in? reading reviews of E&O online, most ppl seemed to love it, but some ppl do complain about bad rooms (no balcony etc). thanks!

FromDC

When we stayed at the E&O in November, we were in room 313. It was really lovely, had a nice balcony and the room was quite spacious. Try to stay on the top floor, as the views are best.
We had such a great tour guide at the Blue Mansion that we arranged to have her take us on a private heritage tour the next day, a walk through the old colonial area. I searched through my files but couldn't find her card.Her name is Joanne.
One of the best dinners of our entire trip (5 1/2 weeks in SE Asia) was at Ocean Green Seafood Restaurant, a short taxi ride from the hotel. Avoid Passage to India. We really loved the hawker stalls and wish we'd had more time to sample the best. Enjoy Penang, we loved it.

Kathie

We were in room 231. It was a premier suite, and all premier suites have balconies. So when you reserve, choose the type of suite you want. While I tend to like high floors, I liked being on a lower floor at the E&O.

From DC, we must have had really different experiences at Passage to India. We actually ate there two nights - something we rarely do. We love Indian food. I cook Indian food at home, have roasted and ground my own masalas, etc. The first night we got into a long conversation with the waiter about Indian food and he and the chef came up with some dishes to make for us that were not on the menu. That was really special!

I wouldn't eat dinner at the E&O - I thought the dinner was mediocre. The breakfast buffet was wonderful, however.

We loved the hawker food. There are some recommendations in my trip report.

We really enjoyed Penang. I expect you'll have a great time.

Smeagol

Make sure your premier suite is one that overlooks the pool (in the original building) the first one we had was horrible (and next to a very noisy aircon unit) right over top the far left of the hotel.
When i get chance i will go up in the loft and find out my paper work with the number of the nice room.

hroark

Thanks for all the information. I am booked for a Straits Suite, called the hotel and requested a room on the 3rd floor. Hopefully this has a nice view (and is quiet).... My wfe and I love Indian food, looking forward to sampling it in Penang. thanks again for all the help.