orcabhinav

Hi , I would be traveling from India, and I am planning for a honeymoon in Malaysia and Bali , sometime in November. First of all is this the right time to visit these places ? or I should look out for some other places.

Trip would be of 8 days.Rough Plan :
4 days in Bali : Mainly relaxing in some beach resort and some water activities along with it.
4 days in Malaysia : Here I would like to cover :
2 day in KL
2 days in Genting highlands

Suggest me if the break up is OK?

Malaysia : Mainly city hoping(KL) , Genting Highland , Batu caves, petronas towers etc, also please suggest some imp places to cover in Malaysia.

Bali : Primarily relaxing on beach , ubud , Kintamani for active volcano. Stay here at Grand Hyatt Bali, Nusa Dua : http://bali.grand.hyatt.com/hyatt/hotels/index.jsp?null

Having this as background please suggest me a itinerary for it (No. of days Break up for each country)
I'd like to know your kind advice on:

Best areas to concentrate/must sees
Time you advise to stay in each place
Best way to move around (rent a car/ get car with driver from place to place, ....)
Accomodation in Malaysia : Which should be strategically best place to stay consider our plan.
All other advise you feel good for the trip.

Thank you in advance for your help!!

Kathie

Frankly, with just 8 days, I'd recommend that you spend all of your time in Bali. Divide the time between Ubud and a beach location. Nusa Dua is not a location I recommend, as there is little of Bali there, being purpose-built as an international beach resort. I prefer the Sanur area. There is a lovely Hyatt there, with gorgeous gardens and swimming pools and a nice beach. It will be rainy in Bali in November, but the rain is often short but intense. I've been to Bali in November several times and enjoyed it.

On Bali, get a car and driver to take you around.

For Malaysia, I'm not a fan of KL. I think there are more interesting places to visit. I'd recommend the Georgetown area of Penang, for instance. If you want a more intersting city in the area, I'd recommend Singapore.

crellston

"First of all is this the right time to visit these places ?"

November is the beginning of the rainy season on Bali so if the beach is your priority then probably not the best time. However, rain is likely to be conifned to short and very heavy bursts. On the west coast of Malaysia however, it is the beginning of the dry season so you are likely to experience much better weather.

If sticking with Malaysia then Langawi is a good bet for beach time. The Four Seasons & The Datai are the best hotels on the island both have good beaches. Bon Ton is also a very nice place to stay and a lot less expensive. Tanjung Rhu is also worth considering.

Its not often that I disagree with Kathie but I do like KL. The museums (particularly the Islamic Arts Museum) are excellent, petronas, Petaling St, Chinatown, Bukit Bintang. IMO the best an most diverse food in Asia is to be found in KL, encompassing Indian, Chinese, Malay, Nonya etc.

I agree that Georgetown in Penang is worth considering as a non - beach location and can easily be reached by a very nice ferry trip from Langkawi. Also, take a look at Melaka for a couple of days

qwovadis

Komaneka.com Monkey Forest and Beach Hotel

asiarooms.com booking.com

too expensive much cramming to do the rest

Pare back for better more romantic experience.

Congrats!

qwovadis

weather2travel.com Climate guides not the best time for beach

when you factor in travel time/expense between your proposed

destination u will have VERY little time to enjoy your HM.

Pare back careful research yields better experience...

Either way have fun.

orcabhinav

Thanks a lot Kathie. I know 8 days are little less, can only stretch out a day or two more
I also just wanna cover Bali, but the thing is I'll be traveling from India and Flights from India --> Bali cost too much, whereas India --> KL --> Bali is dirt cheap. That's thinking of doing it this way.

Ohh ! so it would be raining in Bali Should I consider some other places in SE Asia in November time frame ? Pls suggest some , if not bali + Malaysia.

Thank a ton !

orcabhinav

Hi Crellston, Thanks a lot for your comments.

Yaa, my primary motive to go bali was to relax at beach. If November is going to be too rainy, then its waste

In that case suggest me something else to plan. or How would Langkawi be at that time ?

orcabhinav

Thanks qwovadis , weather2travel.com is such a amazing website. Thanks Much !

crellston

orcabhinav - "In that case suggest me something else to plan"

I thought I had in my original post!! - November is a great time to visit Langkawi as it is the beginning of the dry season on the Andaman coast. Langkawi has some great beaches and wonderful hotels (see my previous post)and 99 other small island close by to explore, but not a great deal else. A few days in Penang or Melaka would complement your beach time well

Kathie

Yes, if you want Malaysia, crellston's idea of Langkawi and the Georgetown area of Penang would be a perfect combination. In Georgetown, stay at the E&O or at Clove Hall, both honeymoon-worthy hotels.

StanKase

We found the Genting Highlands a bust. On the other hand the cameron Highlands, though they are 2.5+ hrs. from KL are "heaven on earth" but we were there in March. I do not know about Nov. but if the weather is good you will find it spectacular especially if you have a driver take you around the are to visit the gypsy communities that are in that region. We found 1 full day without shopping was sufficient for the excellent museums and monuments and the Petrones Tower (but get there at 8 AM). I am partial to Agoda.com for booking rooms in Malaysia, Bali and Thailand. Though they do require the money upon reservation their customer service is excellemnt. Penang is an other option but plan on 3 days/4 nights,IMO. The Hyatt in Sanur is lovely but if you have a room in in the last building it is about 1/4 mile to get to it. The comments are correct based upon early investigation that Nov. is the rainy season. The good news is the rates are lower but it is not beach weather. But the beautiful scenery if you get a guide/driver and spend 2-3 days traveling through the island is simply wonderful. This trip we are using Putu also referred to as Balifriend and many on tripAdvisor and the Forum have used him.
In KL we thought the Sherton-LUXURY Collection was nicer than the Mandarin or Westin we had stayed at on earlier trips and less expensive.
Enjoy.

orcabhinav

Thanks everyone for quick responses.
So, As suggested by you folks I have decided of Malaysia ONLY trip.
Tentative itinerary is as follows :

*India Mid nite flight --> Reach KL morning -- > Connecting flight to Langkawi

*3-4 nights stay at some Lankgawi beach resort : Cable car at langkawi : relaxing at beach : some shopping : snorkeling : spa.

(Good resort here ?? I found Rebak Island resort good, another one is sheraton beach resort .. Please suggest which one would be better.)

* 1-2 days visit at Penag / Genting Highlands(Rides )

*1-2 days at KL : Batu caves, petronas towers etc etc.

* Evening flight back to india.

Please suggest if the plan looks OK ? Day's break and all ?

Which Resort to book ? Rebak Island resort or Sheraton beach resort. Good point in favor of Rebak one is, its on a private island : this adds to rich/luxurious feel to it.
Though the con is its on island which is 10 mins ferry distance from main land, so could restrict our movement, if needed be. Please comment.

Kathie

For Penang, the only part I'd recommend is the Georgetown area of Penang (The E&O or Clove Hall). You'll have better beach at Langkawi. A number of people here like the BonTon on Langkawi, and I have a friend who loves the Sheraton there.

teropong

Hey travellers, am from Malaysia. As a Malaysian ofcourse i will support you to visit KL, Genting,Langkawi.. & lotsa places. In KL itself, you can eat tons of food!!!! haha.. i love my Malaysia, whenever i travel to foreign countries, Malaysia's food still the best.

i do recommend UBUD Bali....so heaven.. it is so tradtional kind of feeling & owh..i love ubud spa, so damn cheap!! but, since u have made up your mind, maybe next time!!

Happy travel!!

gcramos23

I've never been to Bali, but I'm sure it's wonderful. On the other hand, I went to Malaysia earlier this year and had a great time. KL is a huge city, but if you're looking for a more romantic setting I would recommend Langkawi; it's beautiful! Also Georgetown in Penang is a great place to visit with a lot of charm. Domestic airfare within Malaysia is very cheap! Congratulations and have fun.

lincasanova

see www.airasia.com for inexpensive flights within malaysia.

orcabhinav

Hi All,

Almost final draft of my itinerary :

Day1 late check in around 11pm @ Hotel in KL (suggestions required)

Day2 Local KL. Night stay at KL

Day3 Early morning 7:30 am flight to Langkawi . Night stay.

Day4 Day5 Day6 -- Stay at Langkawi.

Day7 early morning 9:15 am flight to Penang . Geroge town visit. 8:30 pm Star Cruise libra for 1 night cruising.

Day8 Early morning arrival at Penang by cruise and flight at 12:00 to KL. Then from KL --> Genting taxi from airport.Night at Genting

Day9 Local Genting + Rides . Night at Genting.

Day10 Early morning taxi to KL. Local KL and then 6:30 pm flight to back home.

Suggest me if its fine ? Actually plan is adjusting to accomodate Cruise which runs only on the date falling on Day7. Please let me know if it can be made better.

Thanks, Orcabhinav