violetm

Hi,

We are in the early stages of planning a trip to Malaysia in March. Initially we are thinking 2 nights in KL (we love shopping), then 1 night in Kota Kinabalu mainly so we can go the next day to Borneo Rainforest Lodge (2 nights) in the hope of seeing Orangutan in the wild, then back to Kota Kinabalu (1 or 2 nights) then we want to finish off with 5 or 6 nights at a beautiful beach before heading home ...

We are considering Langkawi, but wondered if we are missing a trick - maybe there are better beach places in Borneo, or elsewhere in Malaysia?

Also we could probably squeeze a few extra days in somewhere else that was not to be missed (Cameron Highlands, Kuching, or any other ideas?)

We are a couple in our 30's, (no kids) and would like a 4/5 star hotel, good beach and choice of restaurants nearby ...

Any advice gratefully received

Thanks.

Kathie

Why not go to the lovely beach outside of Kota Kinabalu? There are two Shangri-La hotels near KK. The one closest to the city gets the best reviews.

Good luck at seeing the Orangs - what a fabulous experience. Enjoy the Borneo Rainforest Lodge!

violetm

Thanks for your reply Kathie.

It was your Borneo trip report that inspired us to go to the Rainforest Lodge. Initially we were just going to do KL and Langkawi ... the more research I do, the more I think it might be a shame to go to Borneo for a few days and leave if there's a lot more to see there (or should we be trying to see more of other parts of Malaysia?)

We're now considering Kuching for a few days and then beach. Maybe it would make more sense to have our beach bit in Sabah or Sarawak (can anyone comment which is better, these or Langkawi?)

My only other concern was the weather mid-late March, I don't mind if it's wet at the Rainforest but I'd prefer better weather for the beach ...

Thanks again

Kathie

If it were me - and it isn't - I'd skip Langkawi and visit a beach near either Kota Kinabalu or Kuching. Langkawi is really just a beach resort area, nothing else of interest there. Also, cutting Langkawi will make logistics easier.

TravelTwiddle

If you can afford Borneo Rainforest Resort, then Nexus Karambunai Beach Resort in Sabah could be your cup of tea. You do not need to go all the way to Langkawi.

violetm

Thanks so much for your replies, I've looked at the options and still not come up with a solution that we're happy with. I'm going to post a different question to try and help sort out ALL the aspects of this trip planning as I'm just confusing myself even further!!

Thanks again.

enricomaria

Hi Violetm,
We have been to borneo last year but the weather was so terrible that we had to move to langkawi.
In Kota kinabalu we stayed at the Shangri-La Rasa Ria just in between the ocean and the forest. The hotel has just developed a new deluxe wing, very nice, just the reatsurant weren't much to write home about except are all quite expensive. We also visited the Tanjung Aru shangri-La but we didn't like it much.
In Langkawy we stayed at the andaman which has its own beach and you could use all the facilities of the next door sister hotel the Dati, a bit more luxurious.
We enjoyed there as the beach is white sand and teh service top notch. From the andaman you could get a taxi and go to the marina where you'll find another 10+ eateries and shops.
Hope this will help.
Ciao

Kathie

Violet, you might want to do a search here on the names of the two Shangri-La hotels, as there have been a number of reviews here.

suziuno

Hi,we have been to borneo twice in march/april,and had fantastic weather (hot and sunny) everyday ,both times.We stayed at the tanjung aru,its a great hotel,and you can get a boat very easily to one of the 5 offshore islands, we went to them all,on sulug? we were the only ones there, had the whole island to ourselves, there are some gorgeous beaches there. We have also been to langkawi,and although we enjoyed our trip there, borneo is far superior in our opinion.we have just got back from mexico,but borneo still remains our fav spot.
suzi

violetm

Thanks for your advice. We did wonder about the weather in Borneo ... however, we're almost there with our itinerary (my head is bursting with all the research!). We've always quite fancied Langkawi so I think we're goig to do both. If we love Borneo and want to go back we're not too far and cn always do that. Thanks again.

jimyee

i know some beach like redang beach, lang tengah and pulau tioman quite nice. and this agent organize a lot beach trip http://www.summerstarholiday.com/