Malaysia has seemed one of the most complete destinations in Southeast Asia, it has everything: beaches, mountains, culture, adventure ... And this without moving from the peninsula, since we were not in Borneo, which has to be wonderful, although at Seem not very accessible for backpacking budgets.

The best without a doubt is the mix of cultures This country is home to: Hindus, Chinese and Malays live together under the same sky, although it has given us the impression that it is a peaceful coexistence rather than pure integration. Surely Malaysia is not the cheapest country in Asia, although it is clear that for European pockets it is more than accessible.

Here we bring our travel guide to Malaysia for backpackers. A complete guide to our trip through Malaysia. Visa, currency, when to go, travel, how much it costs, what is the best and the worst, reference prices, transport and more!

VISA

The visa is “on arrival”, that is, it is done upon arrival at the airport, and it is free. The only requirement is that the passport is valid for a minimum of 6 months. We can stay in the country until 90 days, entering both by land and by air.

CURRENCY

The currency used in Malaysia is the Ringgit (MYR). You can calculate the updated exchange rate in the following table:

WHEN TO TRAVEL

Malaysia is separated into two parts: the peninsular and the part of Borneo. As for the peninsular, it is usually quality and humid throughout the year, but the monsoons hit in different months depending on the coast: on the west coast it usually rains more between May and October, however on the east coast (where the Perhentian, Redang, Kapas or Tioman islands) suffers the monsoon between September and March, closing many of the island's lodgings and reducing the frequency of ferries. The part of Borneo has its dry season between the months of June to September

VACCINES

In Malaysia there is a risk of dengue and malaria, but in the latter case there is no need to worry too much because it is mostly concentrated in rural areas. The most tourist and urban areas are free of Malaria. In any case, take all possible precautions: wear a good mosquito repellent always, sleep every night with mosquito net, avoid the hours of greatest concentration of mosquitoes (sunrise and sunset) and the areas of greatest concentration (rivers, lakes and wetlands) and wear appropriate clothes.

The recommended vaccines They are: Hepatitis A and B, typhoid fever, tetanus and rabies (which you probably already have). And if you plan to visit rural areas also Japanese encephalitis.

• More Foreign Ministry recommendations for Malaysia
• More recommendations from the Ministry of Health

BUDGET

(Quick change € 1 = 4R). In these 23 days we have spent € 308.33 each, which are € 13.41 on average per person per day, thus broken down:

• Accommodation (21 nights in hostels and two in yuhuu buses): € 4.35
• Food: € 4.07
• Transport: € 3.81
• Tickets, activities and various: € 1.56

These are some reference prices

• Water: 1.5-2R
• Rice-noodles: 4-8R
• Double room: 30-50R
• Skewers: 0.7-1.5R
• Coca-Cola: 1.5-2R
• Mcdonald Menu: 6-9R
• Dress: 25-30R
• T-shirt: 10-25R
• Fruit: 1-1.5R
• Bus: 4-6R (the hour)
• Metro and urban bus: 1-2R
• Taxi: 3R (per km)

PLUG

The plugs that can be found in Malaysia are of three types: the A with two flat pins; Type C, the European with two round pegs, and the less frequent G with three square pegs, like the ones in the image. You can buy a universal adapter or get a specific one as soon as you reach your destination.

ITINERARY

Our trip to Malaysia for free lasted 23 days, entering by the north by the border with Thailand and leaving by the south, by the border with Singapore. We met the following places:

• Penang
• Ipoh
• Cameron Highlands
• Melaka
• Perhentian Islands
• Taman Negara

Later, we have made several more trips, to know the islands of Tioman and Redang, return to Kuala Lumpur or Penang, and more sites! Malaysia we love it!

HOW TO MOVE

Transportation in Malaysia is easy, accessible and fast compared to other countries in Southeast Asia. The roads are in good conditionThey are wide and there are no traffic jams, except in the immediate vicinity of Kuala Lumpur. Even so, the city does not suffer large congestions by having an efficient and relatively cheap public transport system.

You can move so much in buses(better to book well in advance), there are many companies with good buses both day and night; like in train. On the easybook website you can make both train and bus reservations, although for this last case you can also approach the stations directly in advance. You can see schedules and tours on the official Malaysian railways website.

WHAT TO EAT

Malaysia is a paradise for lovers of good food: Indian, Chinese and Portuguese influences are noticed both in its streets and in its dishes. Few know that Malaysia is one of the countries with the greatest gastronomic culture in the world: here all is about food, as they proudly say. But what are the Malaysian dishes that you should not miss? Here our selection:

- HOKKIEN MEE. These fried noodles are always a success, especially in Kuala Lumpur. The main ingredients are fried noodles in soy sauce, meat, cuttlefish, cabbage and pork rinds.

- NASI LEMAK. Nasi lemak, rice cooked in coconut milk and accompanied by anchovies, boiled egg, sambal (spicy sauce), peanuts and vegetables, is one of the symbolic dishes of Malaysia. We don't like it, everything has to be said.

- SATAY. Malaysian famous chicken / veal skewers are delicious. They are made on the grill and are accompanied by peanut sauce, cucumbers and some croquettes of glutinous rice (ketupat).

- CHICKEN RICE (HAINANESE STYLE). One of our favorite dishes. As simple as it is tasty, this chicken and rice dish is for finger licking. And repeat (again and again!).

- CHARSIEW RICE. Another dish of rice with meat, this time it is barbecue pork that has a sweet taste that simply falls in love. Mmm, how delicious!

- LAKSA. If you travel through Malaysia you will realize that the options to eat soup are not lacking (there are meat balls, shrimp, noodles, vegetables, fish head ...) although if you have to choose one ... that is laksa! There are usually two types of laksa: that of noodles cooked in coconut milk (our favorite, of course) and that of noodles cooked in fish and tamarind soup.

- ROJAK. It is not our favorite dish although you have to try it at least once: it is a pineapple, cucumber, turnip, churro salad (or something very similar :-p) seasoned with tamarind sauce, lemon, peanuts and sugar.

- ICE KAKANG. This dessert is delicious: it is a mountain of wet ice with syrups of super colorful flavors and with some other surprise (corn, beans, jellies ...). Lety loves ... Rober can't say the same!

- ROTI. Rotis could be defined as Malaysian pancakes ... they are ball doughs that are prepared by stretching them, throwing them in the air and finally cooking them on an iron. You can usually eat them in Malaysian coffee shops (kopitiam) although it is not uncommon to find them also in Indian restaurants. These are the 3 rotis that you should try yes or yes: roti canai, roti boom and roti tisu.

• Roti Canai: The original, flat and delicious, that gets wet in curry, usually lentils, (dhal) or chicken.
• Roti boom: More round and plump, bathed in sugar and butter.
• Roti tisu: Crunchy cone-shaped roti, it is sweet and sugar and condensed milk are added.

But the rotis don't end here: there are many more to try like:

• Roti telur (egg)
• Roti bawang (onion)
• Roti pisang (banana)
• Roti sayur (of spinach) ...

Recommendation: if you take a sweet roti do not forget to accompany it by Teh Tarik!

- TEH TARIK. We cannot finish this section without encouraging you to try teh tarik: the tea with condensed milk they prepare by throwing it from one container to another. It is said that the more foam you have, the richer you will know ... it is delicious for us!

Obviously there are much more dishes that you should try in Malaysia such as nasi goereng (fried rice), mee goereng (fried noodles), beef redang (spicy beef stew), cendol (another rare dessert that Lety likes and that Rober doesn't ), chicken tandori (Indian cuisine is VERY present in Malaysia), lok lok (hot pot) ...

If you want to see pictures of the dishes you can read the articles: 10 dishes that you should try in Malaysia and Roti, the Malaysian pancake.

THE BEST AND THE WORST

This is one of our favorite sections, here we tell you anecdotes of the trip, personal sensations of the place, things that we have loved but also that we have not liked anything ... in short summary of our passage through Malaysia.

The best

• Malaysian, Chinese and Hindu food, very good and varied
• Snorkeling sessions in the Perhentian islands and its thousands of blue waves.
• The green of Cameron higlands, although there are points that are too “tourist circus” to walk through the plantations are worth it.
• Listen to the Spanish and Italian anthems under the evening of Sepang, celebrating the vitoria of Alonso during the Malaysian F1 GP.
• Stroll under the Petronas Towers, especially at night.
• The chocolate indulgence, the best cake in all of Malaysia, of the “secret récipe” chain. If you see her, don't let her escape! Mmm ...
• Find a nursery in the village of a tea plantation in Cameron Higlands and meet the kids that were there, half asleep.
• The chocolate milkshake that we have put in coral bay, better than the frapuccino itself, and of course much cheaper.
• The temple of Kek Lok Si, in Penang, one of the most beautiful of the trip.
• Having coincided with 3 traveling couples: Loida (not LLoida) and Cristian, Silvia and Carles, Xavi and Txell.
• The teh tarik: tea with condensed milk, delicious and cheap!
• Return to Kuala Lumpur, the city that welcomed us to our adventure.
• Having ridden in the jungle train (I put this for the Rober).
• The giant lizards of the Perhentian, although I don't know if it's good or bad.
• Public transport in Kuala Lumpur, very accessible and easy.

Worst

• Crossing Malaysia to reach the Taman Negara and not being able to do the excursion we had planned for too expensive and not finding anyone with whom to share expenses.
• The mess we got in: in 36 hours crossing all of Malaysia, from Perhentian to Singapore through the Taman Negara and having to change a mogollon of buses, trains, minivan ... we arrived in Singapore at 5 am dead!
• Being only 3 nights in the Perhentian, I would have stayed a minimum week!
• The conditioned air that they put in butt in every building, means of transport, closed thing… in the bus towards Singapore we seemed to be in the Antarctic!
• See how even in the oldest jungle on the planet the deforestation process does not stop.

Is Malaysia worth it?

Undoubtedly, Malaysia is one of the countries that backpackers often overlook in their planning for Southeast Asia, but in our view It is a super complete country, authentic and with many attractions: from its modern capital, to cities with European influences such as Melaka, the oldest rainforest on the planet, a delicious gastronomy with many contrasts, culture from different parts of the world, islands and beaches and not so exploited beaches like those of Thailand, and a very hospitable people ... We cannot not recommend this wonderful country.

OUR ITEMS

These are the posts we have written:

• 6 RESTAURANTS WHERE TO EAT IN KUALA LUMPUR
• LANGKAWI: WHAT TO SEE AND DO, WHERE TO SLEEP AND HOW TO MOVE
• WHAT TO SEE AND DO IN MELAKA IN ONE DAY (TRAVELED ON FOOT)
• 10 THINGS TO SEE AND DO IN MALAYSIA
• VISAS FOR SOUTHEAST ASIA (FOR SPANISH CITIZENS)
• 10 DISHES YOU SHOULD EAT IN MALAYSIA
• ROTI: THE PANCAKE OF MALAYSIA
• CAPRI BY FRAISER KUALA LUMPUR
• 35 THINGS TO DO IN KUALA LUMPUR
• SLEEPING FOR… KUALA LUMPUR (ARENAA STAR HOTEL)
• REDANG ISLAND: FROM PARADISE TO PARADISE
• HOW TO GET TO REDANG ISLAND?
• SLEEPING FOR… REDANG
• A FEW DAYS IN TIOMAN ISLAND. AGAIN.
• HOW TO GET TO TIOMAN ISLAND?
• SLEEPING FOR ... TIOMAN ISLAND (TUNAMAYA RESORT)
• SLEEPING FOR… TIOMAN ISLAND (ANJUNA RESORT)
• 10 REASONS TO GO TO TIOMAN ISLAND
• SLEEPING FOR… MELAKA
• TRAVEL ONLY: THE WORST
• SLEEPING FOR… KUALA LUMPUR II
• SLEEPING FOR… KUALA LUMPUR I
• OF CULTURAL SHOCK: THIS RESTAURANT IS A SHIT
• MALAYSIA TRAVEL GUIDE FOR BACKPACKERS
• THE JUNGLE RAILWAY AND A LOOK AT THE TAMAN NEGARA
• ISLANDS PERHENTIAN: WE FINALLY FIND THE PARADISE
• THE 10 REASONS WHY WE LOVE KUALA LUMPUR
• CAMERON HIGHLANDS, IN VERDOLANDIA WITH FUROR
• PENANG, THE ISLAND THAT IS NOT ISLAND
• A SUNDAY TO REMEMBER. F1 SEPANG 2012
• MELAKA, A TRACK OF EUROPE IN MALAYSIA
• KUALA LUMPUR, THE CITY OF THE CROWS

OUR PICTURES

Here you have our Malaysia photo album

And remember that at the end of each post there is useful information about each place!

We hope our travel guide to Malaysia for backpackers be useful to you For any doubt, question or curiosity do not hesitate to write to us and we will be happy to help you.

Video: Backpacking MALAYSIA. Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Langkawi (April 2024).