Malaysia Things to Do

What was once an uninhabited island transformed into a busy port when the British East India Company moved onto Penang. Today, it retains much of its British and Chinese heritage. Penang’s real draw is its natural beauty, beauty you can experience for yourself on a short day trip.

Drive about an hour and a half outside of the skyscraper jungle of Kuala Lumpur, passing through the tropical rainforest, you’ll find the Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary. The staff at this jungle outpost have been working for the past 30 years to save Malaysia’s endangered Asian elephants.

Traveling through Malaysia’s sprawling city Kuala Lumpur really means doing one thing, shopping. Sporting some of the best malls and shopping venues in all of Southeast Asia, Kuala Lumpur affords plenty of opportunity to buy any and all consumer goods you can think of and in due time you will get what you need, but your first stop should really be Central Market.

The summit of Mount Kinabalu is the highest point in the Malay Archipelago, and it is famously easy to ascend. The typical route takes just a few days, and there are clearly marked paths, fixed ropes and stairs that make the journey feasible for anyone other than the very young, aged or infirm. There is also perfectly adequate, dormitory-style lodging roughly two-thirds of the way up the mountain. If you’re really looking for a challenge, however, and you’re not a seasoned climber, try tackling the summit “via ferrata” (Italian for “iron road”), a mountain route equipped with fixed cables, stemples, ladders and bridges that would otherwise only be accessible to experienced climbers.

While the popular Mount Kinabalu is the highest point in the Malay Archipelago, Mount Trus Madi poses a considerably more serious challenge to trekkers looking for a memorable climbing experience. Though located roughly 25 miles southeast of its taller and more high-profile sister peak, Trus Madi is a great place to take in dawn views of Kinabalu and the surrounding region.

With a name that translates simply as “national park,” Malaysia’s Taman Negara is the largest single swath of protected rainforest anywhere in Southeast Asia. Extremely lucky visitors will catch a glimpse of endangered Sumatran rhinos and tigers, while many more will observe elephants, wild deer and oxen, serows, sambars, mouse deer, wild pigs, and other animals from one of the many hides placed near salt licks and waterholes.

The Malaysian melting pot of Kuala Lumpur is the very definition of fusion. The cross-pollination of countless cultures and ethnicities combined with a massive economic boom has rendered modern Malaysia an almost psychedelic assemblage of humanity. If you want to explore the real roots of regional culture, however, it pays to leave the bright lights of the big city behind and head out into the jungle. There are few better places to undertake such a journey than the state of Sarawak in the Malaysian section of the Island of Borneo.

The oldest national park in the province of Sarawak, Bako National Park contains cliff-side views of the South China Sea, pristine coves and headlands, inland waterfalls that empty into freshwater pools that are perfect for swimming, and a network of trails through dense jungle terrain that make the park an ideal place for hiking and camping.

Miri has been a bustling economic hub since oil was discovered there in the early 20^th century. Today, it is part of a regional economic explosion in Malaysia. Since being designated a city in 2005, it has invested a considerable amount in local tourism. Such efforts have paid off, and modern Miri is an excellent place to visit for travelers seeking some cosmopolitan fun.

Malaysia‘s only oceanic island, Sipadan, is one of the most famous scuba diving destinations in the world. Located in the Celebes Sea off the coast of the state of Sabah, the island is surprisingly difficult to visit despite (or perhaps because of) its international appeal. It is nonetheless more than worth the effort.