Malaysia islands

West coast

Visiting the Malaysia islands on the west coast is best done on your way or coming from Thailand. Malaysia has two seasons, a dry and a wet season. The rainy season in West Malaysia is from November to February but funny enough, for Pangkor this is the main Malaysia holiday season. It is not raining the whole day in this time of the year. In fact, most of the time it's dry but you can expect showers.

Travel around in Malaysia (or international and do it cheap, it's possible, check some details here.

Pangkor suffers less from the rainy season for reasons unknown to me. But I was in February in Kuala Kangsar and Taiping where in the evenings the rain came down like having a good shower in the hotel. Pangkor, at the same days was dry.

The islands to be visited on the west coast are: Pangkor, Langkawi and Penang. Since our website handles virtually everything on Pangkor, we focus ourselves here on the remaining two Penang and Langkawi. This page is not meant to be an in dept piece of information of Penang or Langkawi. It's just an introduction into both of the islands.

Penang

Many travelers going south from Thailand give Penang a visit before they come to Pangkor. The question is why! It's for sure not because of the cities Georgetown and Butterworth. But for sure is the fact that outside Georgetown it is still quite nice. It's not a small Malaysia island, but also not too big to get lost.

Coming from Thailand by train you arrive in Butterworth. On arrival you may think why you came here. Indeed Butterworth has not much to offer except shopping centers and transport.

Butterworth is the transport hub to Penang. These days there's a big bridge for cars to enter the island. However, motorbikes, pedestrians, bicycles and also cars still use the ferry. It goes almost every 15 minutes.

You may from Thailand by train or bus. Railway station and bus station are in walking distance from the ferry which takes 15-20 minutes to the other side. "The other side" is Georgetown. And Georgetown has quite something to offer to the traveler.

If you come from Thailand, here's your change for some shopping in modern shopping centers, get a Starbucks coffee or (if you're a cyclist) get new material for your bicycle.

Georgetown has quite some Chinese temples and mosques worth a visit. And, of course, modern hotels as cheapies. Penang became famous for its beaches. The beaches are still there and they're nice although we, from pulau-pangkor.com, prefer the beaches at Pangkor or Langkawi.

Penang is still a pleasant stop on the way south or north. It's easy to travel from Penang further into Malaysia. Georgetown has some busses available but it's far more easy to take the ferry to Butterworth and hop on a bus to almost any destination in Malaysia.

But where to stay in Penang? Well, one of the nicest and atmospheric hotels in Penang, most notably on the famous Batu Ferringhi beach, is the Lone Pine Hotel, the oldest hotel at the beach where a colonial atmosphere is still preserved. The Lone Pine is for sure my favorite on Pulau Penang. Read more here about the Lone Pine Hotel

For transport to and from Penang, please check the transport details on our Getting there page.

Other pages about Penang:

• The Snake Temple in Bayan Lepas
• Mooncake in Penang
• Cheng Kon Sze Penang
• Nine Emperor Gods temple, Tow Boo Kong Temple in Butterworth
• The Burmese Temple
• Teluk Bahang

My Island Penang.com is written by a true local Penangian lady who has Chinese and Nyonya roots. If you want to go "inside" Penang, this is the place to look for! Highly recommended.

Langkawi

Langkawi is another possible way to cross the Thai-Malaysian border. Langkawi is of all Malaysian islands one of the more popular and it is famous for its beaches plus it is a duty free paradise. Does it mean Langkawi is cheap? Not really but the beaches are beautiful. The water is crystal blue and it's a great place to spend some time.

Coming from Bangkok, you have to take the train to Hat Yai and then take the bus to Satun. There's hotels in Satun but most people prefer to take the immediate ferry to Langkawi.

Transport to the rest of Malaysia is usually going through Penang. Check the transport from Penang to other parts of Malaysia, particularly Pangkor on our Getting there page.

Langkawi is by many people seen as a holiday and beach paradise. It's much nicer then Penang but a bit more expensive too. It's worth a visit on your way to Pangkor and definitely a beautiful Malaysian island.

Compared to Pulau Pangkor, Langkawi and Penang are quite big. One of the things Pangkor lacks is big buildings, shopping centers and Starbucks. And that is at the same time one of the pleasures of Pangkor, to me the best of all Malaysian islands on the west coast.

The most spectacular dive site of West Malaysia is found in reach of Langkawi. Pulau Payar is a marine park and worth a visit. Check out for yourself

East coast

Malaysia islands on the east coast, there are many and you will find on the east coast here. There are plenty and they have a lot to offer to tourists. There are literally thousands of Malaysian islands but it is beyond the scope of this site to describe them all. We have therefore to make a choice. On the east coast there are a few well known islands which we will describe here briefly.

Perhentian

Pulau Perhentian is a fine destination for snorkeling, scuba-diving, sailing and deep-sea fishing. It becomes more and more known to tourists. Perhentian has beautiful white sandy beaches and blue waters, another true tropical paradise island in Malaysia.

Malaysia island: Perhentian beaches

It can reached from Kota Bharu and Kuala Terengganu in North East Malaysia. Take the bus to Kampong Kuala Besut and the boat. It takes about 1 1/2 hours.

There is a lot to tell about Perhentian, read more here

Redang

Redang is one of the many Malaysia islands near Kuala Terengganu. There's fishing villages on stilts over the sea. The surrounding waters have a beautiful marine life and makes it therefore ideal for swimming, snorkeling and scuba diving.

Take a boat from Kuala Terengganu, about 45 minutes.

Tioman

The section Malaysia Islands would not be complete without mentioning Tioman. As one of the best diving holiday destinations for many years Tioman has the name of one of the most beautiful spots in Malaysia.

Tioman is a surprisingly mountainous island (the highest top is over 1000 m) with beautiful beaches and clear water. It can reached from Mersing or Padang Endau. For many years Tioman has a magical name for many travelers. It's because of the villages and the mentioned bright beaches and clear waters. Tioman Islands are therefore well equipped for travelers.

More detailed information about Tioman, see Yamin's Pahang-delights.com website.

If Pangkor, Penang or Langkawi is not enough to satisfy your hunger for tropical islands, this is the place to go.

Have you seen enough of the Malaysia islands, or are you on a longer trip? Then also consider the rest of Malaysia and it's surrounding countries in Southeast Asia. Visit this website to learn about the Adventure Travel Tales and Tips for this part of the world, often considered to be Backpackers Paradise.

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