White sandy beaches with pristine blue waters, a diverse population, delicious cuisines inspired by the very best, and bustling cities, Malaysia is surely a dream destination for many. But the very fact that it is one of the developed and richest countries in Southeast Asia and one of the top tourist holiday destinations makes people give second thoughts to plan a holiday to Malaysia.
Malaysia gives is a fusion of diverse cultures, a rich heritage, traditions, and people from various religions backgrounds combined to give you a wonderful experience overall. You can explore the beautiful places to visit in Malaysia with an excellent public transportation system which ranges from bus services to metro services. The tourist infrastructure is well connected and established and the country has always welcomed tourists from all over the globe. Malaysia is very much an affordable holiday destination and appeals to all types of travelers irrespective of whether you are a backpacker or a luxury tourist. Using the below mentioned parameters would act as a Malaysia travel guide and give you an insight about how you can plan a Malaysia travel on budget.
Is it feasible to visit Malaysia on a tight budget?
First things first: is traveling to Malaysia pricey? In a nutshell, travel to Malaysia on a budget is possible if you plan well.
It can be quite expensive to stay in central districts like those close to KLCC and Kuala Lumpur Sentral Station. In the Brickfields neighborhood, KL Sentral is surrounded by inexpensive hotels. You may get beds in hostels and guesthouses for as little as $4 per night in Chinatown, Chow Kit, and Bukit Bintang. You should prepare to spend extra if you’re searching for a cheap hotel. In the less touristic areas of the nation, the costs are comparable, if not more.
Top Tips for Budget Travel in Malaysia
1. Take a free walking tour of Kuala Lumpur.
Every week, the local government provides free tours for tourists to see Kuala Lumpur with an experienced English-speaking guide. Tours typically run two and a half hours, and tips are accepted in amounts as small as you can afford. For information on the meeting time and schedule, please visit the website of the Free Dataran Merdeka Heritage Guided Tour if you would like to participate.
2. Use public transportation with tact.
In Kuala Lumpur, take advantage of the light rail transportation and mono rail public transit systems. Use GrabCar and Uber instead of taxis in other major cities in Malaysia that lack public transportation. Take the Airport coach instead of the Express train when you get to KLIA.
3. Regional street cuisine
In Malaysia, street food is available everywhere from nibbles sold by hawkers on the streets to noodles served inside of eateries. A few ringgits will get you a nice supper, and the food is inexpensive. When dining here, you’ll save a lot of money in comparison to tourist-oriented eateries.
4. Taking Alcohol
Anticipate a more elevated cost for alcohol in comparison to the local norms, particularly in the bars and pubs. Locating a nearby convenience shop that isn’t Halal and purchasing reasonably cheap beer from them is a great way to save money.
5. Purchasing in Malaysia
Malaysia attracts a lot of tourists who come to buy. Chinatown and Little India provide great deals on clothing, trinkets, and cuisine.
6. Check out the free locations.
Visits to the Perdana Botanical Garden and Kuala Lumpur’s Merdeka Square are free in almost every city in the nation. Penang’s Buddhist temples are free to enter as well.
7. When traveling great distances, take the bus.
Buses are frequently less expensive than planes. They go to many places from Kuala Lumpur. For example Penang, Johor, Malacca, and Cameron Highlands. This occurs daily. Look out for the occasional ticket special from carriers like Malindo and Malaysian Airlines if you intend to travel to East Malaysia.
8. Benefit from Couchsurfing
Malaysians love Couchsurfing, where you may stay for free with a local host. This allows you to meet and become friends with a local Malaysian in addition to saving money on lodging.
9. Obtain a data plan (internet bundle) SIM card.
Malaysia offers cheap data plans, and SIM cards are readily available at phone shops and airports. Simple data plans start at only $3 for seven days or $10 for thirty. Having your internet allows you to be online anytime you want and reduces the expense of using coffee shops.
What, when, and where to go, as well as the cost
Every year, more travelers from affluent Middle Easterners to Western backpackers travel to Malaysia. Malaysia is more expensive in budget travel compared to Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia, which are considered cheaper destinations despite the high tourism figures. Oftentimes the shopping destinations of travelers to Malaysia are listed as Pavilion, Midvalley Mega Mall, and KLCC.
Additionally, quite a few travelers find that national traveling costs more money than they had thought.
5 Things To Do And See In Malaysia
1. Go to Kuala Lumpur
You can spend a few nights in Kuala Lumpur. Visit many places. For example, the Batu Caves, the Butterfly Garden, Sri Mahamariamman Temple, and the Petronas Twin Towers. It’s such a great food city, too.
2. In the Perhentian Islands, you need to go diving
This popularity is, to a large extent, due to the corals, sharks, turtles, and reef fish people can find in the island’s clear waters. Even though they remain relatively obscure every year, they offer a great alternative to busy islands in Thailand.
3. Go to George Town
With Chinese temples adjacent to mosques and colonial British Raj architecture mixed in with contemporary skyscrapers, George Town is Malaysia’s most charming city. George Town’s winding alleyways are full of lively cafés, old buildings, and retail establishments.
4. Take a hike at National Park Mount Kinabalu
Mount Kinabalu, the highest point in Malaysia is an attraction for hikers and the trekers do this by passing through a thick forest to reach the summit. The price of the ticket for the concert is 15MYR, the climbing permit cost is 200MYR and insurance is a must.
Plan since there is a daily limit on the number of permits that may be obtained and you have to follow directions!
5. Take a look around the tea plantations
Tea plantations swarm the Cameron Highlands. Join a factory tour to discover how products come into existence or just chill out by indulging in a cup of tea and a much-craved cake or scone. Hike on the trails in the area and stay a couple of days here to cool off from the heat of the rest of the country.
Insight about plan a Malaysia travel on budget
1. Accommodation in Malaysia
You can get dorms which would cost around 25-50 MYR per night. You can get a private room in budget hotels for around 75 MYR per night with modern amenities such as free Wi-Fi, breakfast, and linen. Even hostels offering accommodation facilities offer free breakfast. A high rated hotel would cost you around 200 MYR per night. Look out for shared accommodations through sites such as Airbnb for as low as 50 MYR per night or rent a home or an apartment for around 250 MYR per night. You can also look out for accommodation during your camping activities in nature parks and on public land. Malaysia accommodation may not be tough to find but do book in advance to avoid any last-minute rush especially during the festive season.
[Also Read : Hotels & Resorts in Malaysia]
2. Traveling locally in Malaysia:
Malaysia has an excellent bus service all over the country. Bus schedules are strictly followed and they are reliable and maintain a high quality throughout the entire journey. There is bus service connecting all parts and corner of the country. Bus tickets are priced between 5-15 MYR per hour. Many taxis in Malaysia do not use the meter. So, do fix your cost before setting off. It is difficult to share taxis in Malaysia as people prefer not using this mode of transport. Metro is also a convenient and reliable mode of transport you can use to support your budget. You can get cheap flights for as low as 100 MYR and 300 MYR from Penang and Bangkok respectively. Train tickets would be around 175 MYR for a train between Kuala Lumpur to Bangkok.
3. Food and Drinks varieties
Malaysian food is greatly influenced by Chinese and Indian cuisines. There are plenty of restaurants in Malaysia offering Chinese and Indian cuisines. George Town in Penang island offers one of the best options for savoring your taste buds. Many restaurants offer great diversity in their cuisines. Some of the popular dishes in the Malay cuisine are Nasi lemak, Rendang, and Satay. Avoid fine dining options as restaurants would affect your budget greatly. Explore the sit-down restaurants rather than fine dining options. Street food is another popular option in Malaysia and will not cost you more than 15 MYR a meal. Western meals and fast-food chains like McDonald would cost you around 20 MYR a meal. If you stick your budget to local food items and avoid western specialties like cheese, wine would greatly hamper your budget. If you are willing to cook on your own, groceries would cost between 90-150 MYR a week.
4. Explore these budget activities
There are plenty of budget activities in Malaysia which you can indulge in. You can get adventurous trekking and hiking activities for as low as 35-75 MYR per day. Activities such as diving is a touch expensive and would cost you around 245-300 MYR over two days or 830-1325 MYR for an entire PADI course. You can opt for white-water rafting for around 200 MYR. You can also try camping in areas such as Taman Negara, the accommodation is around 5 MYR per day, a great boost to your savings on accommodation. Apart from this, you can stroll and explore the green national parks of Malaysia, most of them have an entry fee of less than 20 MYR.
Indulge in a free walking tour: Explore the streets of Kuala Lumpur with Airotour. Get deep insight into the rich history, heritage, and culture of Malaysia.
Best low-cost routes
The cheapest places to go depend on where you know to look. Most of the tourists travel to Penang and Kuala Lumpur which are more cost-effective than Tanah Rata, Malacca, Sabah, and Sarawak. There are fewer hotels in places far from the usual routes taken by tourists, and this raises the price.
1. Rata Tanah
For RM 35 to RM 40 ($8.40 to $9.60) one way, you may take a coach from Kuala Lumpur to Tanah Rata in the Cameron Highlands. Three and a half to four hours is usually the duration of travel, depending on season and traffic. In Cameron Highlands, the movement is easy unless you rent a car or take part in a tour. Although taxis are accessible, using them constantly might get costly. Tanah Rata offers affordable lodging due to the high volume of domestic visitors who visit the region.
2. Johor and Malacca
By bus, Johor and the ancient city of Malacca are located south of Kuala Lumpur. For a two-hour ride to Malacca, budget between RM 10 and RM 15 ($2.50 to $3.60), and up to RM 40 ($9.60) for a five-hour ride to Johor. Always confirm whether there will be a public holiday shortly because tickets go fast and get more expensive. Malacca was once a harbor under Portuguese colonial rule, and many of its ancient structures still stand. Johor is an excellent starting point for an inexpensive travel to Singapore.
3. Sabah
There are direct flights from various areas in Peninsular Malaysia, such as Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Johor, to both Sabah and Sarawak. Sabah’s capital city, Kota Kinabalu, is situated on the coast. Apart from Kota Kinabalu, there are many other must-see places in Sabah that you must visit. Tourists may visit the neighboring islands—Manukan Island being the most well-liked—by taking a quick ferry journey. It takes 2.5 hours to go to Kundasang Ranau’s Mount Kinabalu from the city. Sabah’s cuisine is incredibly cheap, even by Western standards. A dish should set you back at least 6 RM ($1.40). The Sabah pricing is fair and similar to that in Kuala Lumpur.
The Signal Hill Observation Deck provides a truly remarkable view of Kota Kinabalu and is one of Sabah’s best free attractions. Travelers also like strolling down Gaya Street, which has a Sunday open market. It’s nice to wander along the waterfront and snap pictures of the ocean there.
4. Sarawak
In terms of the two most frequently visited places, they are Miri, the second city, and Kuching, the capital of Sarawak. Sarawak is highly acclaimed for its famous caves and parks. Sabah and Kuala Lumpur are more expensive than here when it comes to food; a dish of local noodles only costs RM 4 to RM 5 ($1). Wandering around Indian Street and visiting Kuching’s waterfront are free activities. In the city center, you may also look for and take pictures of the cat statues. One of the most reasonably priced cities, Sarawak is frequently featured in the best budget travel plans in Malaysia.
5. Malaysia Kuala Lumpur Penang
If you are among those staying in these cities for most of the time, you might want to consider visiting the below free sights at least once. Kuala Lumpur`s top tourist attractions are Central Market, Merdeka Square, Perdana Botanical Gardens, and KLCC Park. Although all of Malaysia’s beaches, temples, and street art are free, they are well worth exploring..
If you’re considering a vacation to Malaysia, consider these less-obvious travel suggestions to help you save costs even more.
Money-Saving Tips
A bit in Malaysia becomes a lot, but if you splash out on fine dining and trips, your budget can easily get blown. In Malaysia, you may save money in the following ways:
- Negotiate a price with your taxi driver: It is necessary in bigger cities like Kuala Lumpur, as taxi services are not usually measured by a meter here. That’s why you should make sure the price is before getting into a taxi. To make sure that you stay away from scams, ask the people at your hotel or hostel what the charged rate is.
- Camp: If you want to cut costs on lodging, you may camp in areas like Taman Negara and the Cameron Highlands. An inexpensive plot should cost you between 10 and 35 MYR each night.
- Eat the street food: For mouthwatering hawker cuisine and inexpensive dinners, head to the street booths. The greatest and least expensive cuisine in the nation is found on the streets!
- Avoid drinking: Although it is discouraged in Malaysia, as it is a Muslim nation, drinking does occur. But to control it, the government has made alcohol extremely costly, so avoid it.
- Take a free walking tour: It is most suitable if you’re on a tight budget, to visit Kuala Lumpur. Touring the attractions is not only what you will see. But also have the chance to meet a local guide who will guide and enlighten you.
- Visit during the monsoon season : (late November till mid-February) to gain the maximum value from flight and accommodation discounts. Everything is less expensive since there are a lot fewer visitors. Everything is less expensive since there are a lot fewer visitors. If you want to avoid the worst of the rain then avoid the East Coast.
- Use Grab: Just like Uber, Grab is usually cheap compared to tuk-tuks and taxis. Especially when one is traveling from the airport in Kuala Lumpur.. Download the app, then get going!
- Get away from the city : A lot of Kuala Lumpur’s well-known locations are pricey tourist attractions. Go to a smaller adjacent city like Petaling Jaya, which has all the benefits of KL without any of the drawbacks, instead of the crowded areas.
The benefits and drawbacks of visiting Malaysia on your own
The advantages
- You can create and follow a budget.
- It’s simple to travel across the nation, offering visitors greater freedom.
- This option is evident if you know where to eat; you will get plenty of tasty food at only lower prices.
- Crime rates are low in Malaysia, making it easy to travel in the country. Still, it important to practice mindfulness travel in Malaysia.
The drawbacks
- Numerous major holidays, including Chinese New Year and Eid, are observed in Malaysia over extended weekends.
- Bus tickets are in high demand, and traffic congestion is common.
- In Malaysia, entrance fees are frequently charged twice. Foreigners are always going to pay extra. The attractions list pricing for both MyKad users and non-holders. Every Malaysian has a MyKad.
- Tourist tax is implemented in hotels. Previously, foreign tourists were exempt from such charges and now they have to pay RM 10 ($2.40) per person per night.