bluesman78

I have two weeks and was going to go to Malaysia or Singapore. can someone give me a decent itinerary that is fast paced but not rushed, keeping in mind the time of year - I'm having a hard time understanding which places are not advised at that time of year.

I'd like to get some historical and beach time in if possible!

Thanks!

Kathie

As much as I enjoy Singapore, I wouldn't stay there for two weeks! So I'll assume that you may want a stop in Singapore, but spend most of your time in Malaysia.

Not knowing your interests, it's a bit difficult to know what to recommend. I've been to all parts of Malaysia (east coast, west coast, east Malaysia [Borneo] in November, and while we sometimes encountered intense rains, it didn't rain all the time. So where to go depends a bit on how you feel about rain.

I'm not especially fond of KL. I find it less interesting than other Asian capital cities. But you might want a couple of days there.

We loved the Georgetown area of Penang, a world heritage site. It has fascinating history, a real mix of cultures and probably the best street food in Asia. Stay in Georgetown. If you want a beach go to Langkawi, but don't go to the Penang beaches which are not as nice.

I've also been to the Kuantan area in November. The weather is supposed to be bad then, but both times I was there in November the weather was just fine.

Malaysian Borneo, the provinces of Sabah and Sarawak are really special. There are beautiful beaches, world class snorkeling, and of course, rainforests where you can see orangutans. In November, we hit hard rains in Kota Kinabalu - flooded roads delayed our drive home from Kinabalu park. Out in the rainforest in the Danum Valley we had only one intense rainfall which lasted a couple of hours. And we did not run into rain in Sarawak, where we enjoyed dour time in Kuching and Damai (a beach area).

Get yourself a Malaysian guidebook and do some reading. See what interests you.

www.weatherbase.com is a good resource for historical weather data. But remember that the impact of climate change makes predicting weather more chancey than usual.

bluesman78

Thanks for your reply and your tips

I'm a solo traveler, and looking for a mix of nature, culture, good eating, some beach time. I was thinking about Borneo but was trying to avoid spending a lot of money on internal flights too much.

Kathie

There are now Air Asia flights to Kota Kinabalu and Kuching, so internal flights don't have to be expensive.

gcramos23

Hello,

If you are worried about the monsoon season which brings in more rain than usual, you should avoid the East Coast, or Borneo. Malaysia is a tropical country so it rains throughout the year, but the showers do not last long and clear up quickly. It even help cool down the temperature. I just came back from Malaysia. I had the chance to visit Borneo and it was one of the best experiences I have ever had. The jungle is beautiful International airfare is rather cheap so I wouldn't worry too much about that.

But again, if you wish to avoid the rain and additional airfare costs, I would stick to the West Coast. Kuala Lumpur is good for two days. To get the uniqueness of Malaysia, I would recommend Melaka for history Penang for food and history, and Langkawi for beauty and beaches. If you want to go to the jungle, try Taman Negara. It is on the West Coast, although I am not sure how far from Kuala Lumpur. Make sure you try roti canai; it's an Indian flat bread-very good.

Good luck!

mcbg1

I was in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore last November and it didn't rain much. Just a couple times for an hour maximum. Once the rain stopped, the sun came back out again. I'm going to Penang and Singapore in early November this year and I'm hoping the weather is about the same (or better haha).

Smeagol

We went to KL, Lnagkawi, Penang and Singapore about 3 Novembers ago ( our preferred month of travel for Long Haul) we saw quite a bit of rain in KL and had the odd very heavy burst in both Penang and Langkawi but nothing to spoil the holiday.

crellston

For good weather I would stick with the west coast of peninsula Malaysia as it is the dry season in Nov. KL is a great town if you take the time to explore and scratch beneath the surface a little with some fascinating museums and colonial architecture. It also has some of teh best and most diverse food in Asia with a mixture of cuisines - Indian, Malay, Chinese, Nonya..

There are loads of decent beaches on Langkawi which can be reached by, air or bus+ ferry (not a great deal else to do though). Taman negara is worth a visit for the nature side and Melaka is a fascinating town for a couple of days (again great food and colonial architecture dating back to Portuguese times.

The Cameron highlands provide an entirely different landscape and experience and to make the best of it you really need to rent a car.

Borneo offer far more on the natural/wildlife side but less of historical interest. If feeling enegetic then you could always climb Kinabalu which is an amazing experience and takes a couple of days. It does rain a lot and, if you take a look at the rainfall stats you will see that it is pretty much year round. Nov is probably one of teh heavier months but even then it rarely rains all day.



I can take or leave Singapore. Undoubtedly a great modern city state but I just find it a little sterile.