(Last Update: August 2026). Malaysia surprised us in many ways during our first 3 week round trip a few years ago. Since then we have returned twice – to see different parts (Borneo!) and to revisit our favourites (Penang, Langkawi!). From pristine beaches to sprawling tea plantations, from multifaceted metropolises to untouched rainforests–the country boasts a variety of nature, rich history and culture, that makes it an incredibly diverse destination to discover.
In 3 weeks you can see quite a bit, but you won’t be able to see everything (hence our return trips 😉 ). But in this Malaysia travel guide we want to share possible 3 week itineraries so you can fall in love like we did 🙂 And we’re also sharing some personal tips to make your travel experience even better.
It’s not just the beaches that make Malaysia an interesting destination. But they’re not bad either…
Our 3 week itinerary of Malaysia: From South East to North West
The itinerary from our first visit only covers peninsular Malaysia. We decided to focus on the mainland for our first visit, as we didn’t have enough time to also add Borneo to the itinerary and manage to see everything else we wanted to see 🙂 But if you’re also interested in exploring the island of Borneo read below – we prepared a second possible itinerary that covers both.
Peninsular Malaysia is incredibly diverse, the only thing that’s missing are the orang-utans. There is still plenty of wildlife like dusky leaf monkeys, massive hornbills, flying lemurs, long-tailed macaques alongside a huge variety of birdlife on peninsular Malaysia, so for nature and wildlife enthusiasts there’s also a lot to do on the mainland.
We spent our first Malaysia trip focused on the peninsula and returned to Borneo on a separate trip two years later. Looking back we would probably do it differently next time and skip some parts of Peninsular Malaysia to make room for Borneo instead, but we’ll get to that in the itinerary version below this one. First here’s our initial 3 week itinerary and what we would recommend in terms of timing:
- Outside of Malaysia: 3 days in Singapore
- Beach days: 3 days at the Desaru Coast
- Capitol city exploration: 3-4 days in Kuala Lumpur
- Tea plantations & rainforests: 1-2 days in Cameron Highlands
- Colonial history & culinary capital: 3-4 days days in George Town, Penang
- Island paradise: 4-6 days in Langkawi
3 week itinerary of Malaysia including Borneo
If you want to include Borneo in your Malaysia visit we would recommend this adapted itinerary:
- Capitol city exploration: 3-4 days in Kuala Lumpur
- Colonial history & culinary capital: 3-4 days days in George Town, Penang
- Island paradise: 4-6 days in Langkawi
- Orangutan & river safaris: 6-7 days in Sabah, Borneo
In this case we would recommend you skip Singapore and fly straight into Kuala Lumpur instead. Take a few days to explore the city, which is a wonderful mix of modern and shabby. Then we would recommend to skip the Cameron Highlands and rather fly from Kuala Lumpur to Penang. This saves some time and for us the Cameron Highlands were our least favourite part of the peninsula (think traffic jams, over tourism and very commercialised strawberry farms).
We absolutely love Penang though and would highly recommend to take enough time here to explore the city of George Town on the island. Personally we skipped the beaches on Penang, because we knew we were headed for Langkawi afterwards, but supposedly there’s quite some nice beaches on Penang as well. But the beaches on Langkawi are just in a league of its own – especially the one at the fantastic bay of The Datai Langkawi, where we just returned for the second time and stayed for a full 10 days! It’s an absolute paradise… 🙂
From Langkawi you can fly back directly to Kuala Lumpur and then take another plane straight to Sandakan in the Northeast of Borneo. The Malaysian state of Sabah is the easiest place to see orangutans in the wild and Sandakan is the gateway to the best locations. We’d recommend to stay at least 6-7 days in Sabah for a good chance to see orangutans in the wild (and some fantastic days on boat cruises).
You can find our comprehensive Borneo travel guide here with more tips.
Fly into Singapore or Kuala Lumpur
We kicked off our first Malaysia trip in Singapore and not in Kuala Lumpur–mostly because we hadn’t been to Singapore before. So it was a good excuse to stay a few nights (and fall in love with the city, but that’s another story)! 🙂 Singapore was also the easiest way for us to fly in with direct flights coming from Vienna. To this day there’s unfortunately no direct flights to Kuala Lumpur from Vienna.
Another argument was that we had planned to make our way up from the South to the North of Malaysia and Singapore is located at the very Southern tip bordering Malaysia, which makes this an easy and straightforward route. On this first trip we did most of the traveling by car (and hired drivers), which also meant we had to look for a logical routing through the country.
It’s worth noting that the land border between Singapore and Malaysia is also very easy to cross.
Obviously you can also fly directly to Kuala Lumpur and then take things from there, which is what we did last time as well. Instead of driving through Malaysia we then booked internal flights to get from A to B. The flights with airlines like Malaysia Airlines and Air Asia are quite affordable and reliable, which makes this an easy way to travel around. Also at this stage we already knew which places we loved the most and could skip the in-between parts 🙂
We didn’t fly into Malaysia directly, but started our trip in Singapore and then crossed the land border into Malaysia.
3 days at Desaru Coast
After 3 days in Singapore we first crossed the border to Malaysia and went to the Desaru Coast at the South China Sea–which is at the East Coast of Malaysia. This part of the beach in the very Southeast was previously relatively undeveloped from a tourism perspective, but is becoming a newly developed destination with a couple of beach resorts since a few years. We stayed at the former One&Only Desaru Coast, which is now the Mandarin Oriental, Desaru Coast. While we cannot say anything about the newly assumed management, we can rate the architecture and location – which remains the same. This is a 5-star property at a stretch of beautiful coast for people who like contemporary architecture. Personally we prefer architecture that incorporates the spirit of a place more, as this feels a bit more “international” and less rooted in Malaysia, but it is nevertheless stunning.
Since our trip had kicked off with a few intense days in the city of Singapore it was perfect to then head to the beach to relax a few days before continuing the journey. Also the Desaru Coast is only a 2 hours drive away from Singapore, so it’s easy to reach by car. We think this might be more of a destination for people looking for a quick beach escape from Singapore and less as a necessary stop on a Malaysia round trip. Another thing to factor in is seasonality, as the East and West of Malaysia are affected by different monsoon climates and don’t necessarily share the same seasonality. We were at the Desaru Coast in March and it was quite windy and also overcast a few days.
Head to the Desaru Coast if you’re up for beach relaxation, spa treatments and if your visit falls into the right season for the East Coast of Malaysia (April to October).
3-4 days in Kuala Lumpur
We then continued our path to the North directly to Kuala Lumpur (and only passed by Malacca–which is worth a stopover if you have some extra days). KL is about a 4 hours drive from the Desaru Coast on tarred roads, that are in great condition (passing by the countless palm oil plantations, which sadly Malaysia is so famous for).
Kuala Lumpur is a city of great diversity and many cultural influences. We’ve been here three times by now and are not getting tired of the city. Kuala Lumpur is definitely less polished and futuristic than Singapore. It’s a bit more rough around the edges which we personally love about it. It feels vibrant and alive, while there’s also pockets that are crumbling and in dire need of some TLC.
We stayed in Chinatown twice at the wonderful Else Retreat (our hotel tip if you want to be based in this part of Kuala Lumpur). Spending time in Chinatown allows for a peak into the history of the city, the influences of the Straits Chinese, the traditional shophouses and temples. There’s also a good variety of restaurants and markets and you can walk around (which is otherwise not really that easy in Kuala Lumpur). During our last stay we opted for The RuMa hotel in KLCC (Kuala Lumpur City Centre), which is ideal if you want to experience the contemporary side of KL, with huge shopping malls and the famous Petronas Towers. Some of the suites in the hotel even offer direct views of the landmark!
Stay in Kuala Lumpur for an eclectic mix of culture, history and modernity, interesting architecture and of course the markets and street food. If you prefer upscale cuisine you’ll also have plenty of choice from Michelin star decorated restaurants.
1-2 days in Cameron Highlands
Next on our agenda during our first visit was an escape from the city heat up in the mountainous Cameron Highlands region. Located at 1,500 meters above sea level temperatures drop significantly and you’ll finally get to cool down a bit after sweaty days in Kuala Lumpur. The region became famous in the 1930s when British expats started discovering the highlands and built Tudor style cottages at the mountain ridges within the lush rainforest.
But today it’s not (only) the rainforest that attracts visitors, but the sprawling tea plantations and the countless (rather disgusting) strawberry farms. To be honest, we had mixed feelings about our visit of Cameron Highlands. The traffic was horrible and the strawberry farms aren’t just an eyesore, but also often illegally tap water from the rainforest. Yet, its location right in the middle between Kuala Lumpur and Penang made it an ideal stopover for us. We stayed 3 nights, which was definitely on the longer side, so we would recommend only 1 or max. 2 nights here (if you want to come here at all). Yes, the sunrise in the tea plantation was stunning, but we shared this lookout spot with dozens of others, so its wasn’t the tranquil experience we were hoping for.
Our highlight was the hotel we stayed at and the experiences on offer here. Cameron Highlands Resort is one of the traditional British colonial mansions (including a Jim Thompson Tea Room serving a lovely afternoon tea), and albeit crumbling at times it’s a stunning detour into the history of Malaysia. Was it worth staying in heavy traffic jams for hours to get in and out of the resort any time we wanted to go on an exploration of the area? Not sure. Did we love the rainforest jungle tour with the naturalist? Absolutely. But we believe there’s much better places in Malaysia to explore the rainforest!
Come to the Cameron Highlands to cool off, explore tea plantations and enjoy high tea in colonial fashion, but don’t make it a detour if you’re pressed on time.
3-4 days in George Town, Penang
Following the cool-down period in the highlands we continued our journey to finally touch down at the West Coast of Malaysia at the Andaman Sea portion of the Indian Ocean. But before heading to our final beach retreat we had one last stop: The famous former Straits Settlement George Town on the island of Penang.
If you’re now imagining a classic South-East asian island holiday destination, stop and rethink and rather change your mindset to Miami Beach meets Bangkok. The greater metropolis region of Penang is the second populous area in all of Malaysia–so Penang is a bustling city on an island, all accompanied by high rises, hip cafés, concept stores and a young, diverse population. Yet, the historic centre of George Town has kept much of its traditional charm with small Chinese sundry shops and colonial mansions, some brought to new glam, others more rustic and decaying. We fell head over heels in love with Penang and just returned from a second visit.
Make a stop in Penang for a hip city break combined with Peranakan traditions and the famed culinary variety of the city. The street food is a tourist magnet alongside the various coffee shops, bakeries and concept stores.
4-6 days in Langkawi
Our final stop of our first 3 week Malaysia round trip brought us to the island of Langkawi, which is located in the very North West of Malaysia. The island is directly facing Thailand (you sometimes feel like you could swim over) and offers one of the best beaches we have ever been to. Now we have to admit, we didn’t explore a lot of Langkawi, because we stayed at the most iconic hotel here–”The Datai Langkawi”.
The resort is located at the most incredible bay and seamlessly blends into the lush rainforest, that covers the mountainous island. Here we spent 3 days completely unwinding from the round trip and just enjoyed everything the hotel has to offer–from upcycling workshops to forest bathing, Malaysian cooking classes and a course in bee-keeping. This was the perfect way to end the trip for us, but we went longing for more! And so we returned again to Langkawi and this time we stayed for a full 10 days at The Datai. We can’t even begin to describe this place, but it’s the perfect mix of a rainforest retreat and a beach escape. You can see wildlife directly at your doorstep, go on boat cruises, take tours with the naturalists, learn about their conservation efforts and so much more.
We highly recommend staying at The Datai if you visit Langkawi as we believe it has one of the best (if not THE best) location on the whole island. The bay is calm and crystal clear. The 10 million year old rainforest engulfs the resort and The Datai makes sure to protect it fiercely. Their regenerative efforts are commendable and you’ll know they are truly custodians of the land.
Visit Langkawi for an island paradise with pristine beaches and tropical rainforests, bird watching, sailing, kayaking, snorkelling and much more.
Extra time in Malaysia?
If you have a few extra days of holiday you can add a stopover in Malacca for its colonial history, Peranakan traditions and cuisine and the famous red city centre. Alternatively you can plan a few days in Ipoh, which is said to be a more down-to-earth version of Penang with some iconic temples to visit alongside the marble quarries and caves. If you’re up for more islands and water activities the Perhentian Islands in the South China Sea could also be an option–also depending on the season you’re planning your visit (the West and East Coast of Malaysia have different climates and monsoon seasons – so bear that in mind when planning your trip).
We visited Malaysia in March, which is when things tend to be dry on the West Coast, but can still be affected by late monsoon rains in the East (which we also experienced at the Desaru Coast and in Singapore with a few really rainy days).
Our take-away from the time in Malaysia
We were rather surprised by the variety that Malaysia has to offer, also due to our lack of preconceptions. While Thailand and Vietnam are famous on any tourist’s radar, Malaysia is somehow standing in the shadow of its South East Asian competition. Yet, the cultural diversity with influences from the trade routes between the Arab world, China and British colonial times together with Malay culture and traditions makes for an appealing mix, as well as the natural splendour and the welcoming and lovely people. And don’t get us started on the food (although vegetarian options are still not always easy to come by), but there’s so many incredible restaurants and food stalls to choose from, that you’ll definitely gain a few pounds!
What makes travelling Malaysia easy (especially when compared to other Asian destinations) is the wide spread use of English as well as the favourable prices for Western tourists. In Malaysia you’ll get a lot for your bucks, also when it comes to the very high standards in hospitality (except for the Cameron Highlands maybe).
Our bottom line is: Don’t make the same mistake as we did and overlook Malaysia for too long, it’s worth a trip in South East Asia!
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