Group with Children to Malaysia
Jan 13th, 2008, 12:13 AM
#1
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Group with Children to Malaysia
We are a small group of 8 adults and 5 children (6-10yrs old) wanting to go to Malaysia in the last week of March.
Concerns: Weather, which area is the best to go to.
Accomodation: we all want to be together but have some activities during the day for the kids and for adults, maybe tours...and snorkelling is way up there.
Looking for any experiences that people have had.
Thanks
Sara-Jane
Concerns: Weather, which area is the best to go to.
Accomodation: we all want to be together but have some activities during the day for the kids and for adults, maybe tours...and snorkelling is way up there.
Looking for any experiences that people have had.
Thanks
Sara-Jane
Jan 13th, 2008, 08:13 AM
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Malaysia is a big country. It's difficult to know what to recommend. You mention snorkeling - are you only interested in a beach location? You mention tours - any particular interests? And do you want just one place to go in Malaysia? Where are you coming from and how much time do you have?
You might start by looking at the weather www.weatherbase.com
You might start by looking at the weather www.weatherbase.com
Jan 13th, 2008, 05:28 PM
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Before anyone could offer suggestion, it's best you tell us which part of Malaysia you're looking at.
March is usually the transition period between Indian Ocean monsoon and South China Sea monsoon. As a local, I won't give a hoot about the weather anymore - except if I'm tripping Perhentian/Redang island. This is January, it's supposed to rain heavily in east coast peninsula Malaysia, coastal Sarawak/Sabah and very dry over west coast. Well, it's not happening.
Anyway, in March, I'd bet on Spore-KL-Penang-Langkawi corridor for good weather. This region is more developed and has enough spots for beach, island, shopping, rainforest, culture and good food to keep everyone on their toes.
March is usually the transition period between Indian Ocean monsoon and South China Sea monsoon. As a local, I won't give a hoot about the weather anymore - except if I'm tripping Perhentian/Redang island. This is January, it's supposed to rain heavily in east coast peninsula Malaysia, coastal Sarawak/Sabah and very dry over west coast. Well, it's not happening.
Anyway, in March, I'd bet on Spore-KL-Penang-Langkawi corridor for good weather. This region is more developed and has enough spots for beach, island, shopping, rainforest, culture and good food to keep everyone on their toes.
Jan 13th, 2008, 08:50 PM
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I know you live in Vietnam, so you are probably familiar with the monsoon patterns. IN GENERAL, the east coast of Malaysia is in the winter monsoon from mid-October until early February. March would therefore be OK for the east coast. March is also generally OK for the West coast which has its rainy season in the summer months. See weatherbase.com for details. This year has been an unusual one, but I think you should go on historical info.
In my personal opinion, the snorkeling n the east coast is better, particular in the northern areas like the Redang/Perhatian island groups mentioned above. The problem you may have is that there is not much else to do if you are on these islands. For a week, however, this may be all you want to do. It's hard to find a snorkel location that offers a lot more, unless you go someplace like Hawaii or the Caribbean which are much more developed. You could also stay on the coast someplace around Kuala Terengganu and take day boat trips out to the island areas for snorkeling. This would give you access to more village life. I am not sure exactly what "activities" the adults are looking for. There is not a lot of nightlife even in Kuala Terengganu. There is someplace like Tioman which would offer some more resort-type hotels, but I don't think that the snorkeling there is any good, you could however take boat trips out from there for the day. The Kuantan area does not really have good snorkeling either.
You could try East Kalimantan (i.e. Borneo) where you might get a good mix of beach and other things to do (like going upriver to "headhunters"
and climbing Mt Kinabalu. I have not snorkeled off the beaches there and can't comment on that, perhaps others can. March is a good month there weather-wise.
You should probably get a guidebook and do some reading on the various options in Malaysia.
In my personal opinion, the snorkeling n the east coast is better, particular in the northern areas like the Redang/Perhatian island groups mentioned above. The problem you may have is that there is not much else to do if you are on these islands. For a week, however, this may be all you want to do. It's hard to find a snorkel location that offers a lot more, unless you go someplace like Hawaii or the Caribbean which are much more developed. You could also stay on the coast someplace around Kuala Terengganu and take day boat trips out to the island areas for snorkeling. This would give you access to more village life. I am not sure exactly what "activities" the adults are looking for. There is not a lot of nightlife even in Kuala Terengganu. There is someplace like Tioman which would offer some more resort-type hotels, but I don't think that the snorkeling there is any good, you could however take boat trips out from there for the day. The Kuantan area does not really have good snorkeling either.
You could try East Kalimantan (i.e. Borneo) where you might get a good mix of beach and other things to do (like going upriver to "headhunters"
and climbing Mt Kinabalu. I have not snorkeled off the beaches there and can't comment on that, perhaps others can. March is a good month there weather-wise.You should probably get a guidebook and do some reading on the various options in Malaysia.
Jan 13th, 2008, 09:16 PM
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Hi
My wife and I went to KL, Perhentian and Langkawi in March a couple of years back. Here is my trip report with pictures and links http://gardkarlsen.com/malaysia_kuala_lumpur.htm . Hope that you can find some useful info there
Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures
My wife and I went to KL, Perhentian and Langkawi in March a couple of years back. Here is my trip report with pictures and links http://gardkarlsen.com/malaysia_kuala_lumpur.htm . Hope that you can find some useful info there
Regards
Gard
http://gardkarlsen.com - trip reports and pictures
Jan 14th, 2008, 07:26 AM
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I made a trip to Malaysian Borneo (Sabah and Sarawak) several years ago and really enjoyed it. There is much to see and do, as Cicerone has mentioned. You can read my trip report, though the Sabah portion is mostly focussed on a stay in the rainforest to see wildlife. There are some lovely beach resorts in both Sabah and Sarawak. The Indonesian portion of the island, called Kalimantan, is less accessible and less developed.
