By Jeni & Ben | JB Off Again Travel
It took two flights totalling 13 hours to get us from Heathrow to a balmy morning in Kuala Lumpur. Two weeks later we’d covered Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Langkawi, and this is the honest, no-fluff version of how it went. You can see more from the trip on our Malaysia Instagram Highlights.
The Route at a Glance
Kuala Lumpur → Penang (Georgetown) → Langkawi
Two weeks gave us a proper few days in each spot, with a slower final stretch in Langkawi before heading onward to the Thai islands.
Kuala Lumpur: First Impressions & Chinatown
We took a pre-arranged taxi through swarming traffic and arrived at our centrally based hotel, the Howard Johnson by Wyndham.
After a few hours’ sleep in a comfortable room, we crossed perilous lanes of speeding traffic and hit nearby Chinatown. This buzzing area is awash with eateries and bars and has the Petaling Street Market selling everything from watches to clothes, shoes and bags and trinketry.
We grabbed a beer and ate at a street restaurant, where chicken nuggets were nothing like the tasty looking dish shown in a photograph. Sadly we didn’t take a picture. Can’t win ’em all, and more beer took the taste away.
Batu Caves
The next day we looked out of our 13th storey room and saw a cloudy, grey sky.
After breakfast we called a Grab cab for an eight mile trip north to Batu Caves.
Our driver asked us if we really wanted to go, as it was raining there and it is exposed to the elements.
We pressed on, having faith in a couple of cheap ponchos we had in our bag.
The limestone cave complex contains many Hindu temples, the most popular being a shrine dedicated to the deity Murugan with its 141ft tall statue.
This main temple is free, but ladies need to cover their legs and shoulders and there are 272 colourful steps to be climbed.
Thankfully the rain cleared and we joined the mix of the devout and the daytrippers for a look around.
You’ll need your camera for this one, not only to photograph an array of colourful statues but also to snap a mass of monkeys trying to snaffle food.
A vast cave awaits once you have conquered the 272 steps.
You feel like you are in a rock cathedral hewn by mother nature.
And, like all good cathedrals, admission is free.
It was back to Chinatown for our evening meal, where we found a good little eatery run by a grandma and grandpa.
Food here was good and prices not too bad (albeit city prices).
Kuala Lumpur City Sights
On our second day in KL we deployed Google maps and did our own walking tour of the city centre. Surprisingly, things are quite close to each other so it can be walked fairly easily within a couple of hours, longer if you stop off / enter the various places.
Top tip get yourself either a physical sim card or better, an eSim card, we use Airalo (use code JENI0998 for £2.50 off your first purchase). This gives you data without massive roaming charges.
Under a lovely blue sky we took in everything from old Hindu temples to Central Market, old colonial buildings and the central cricket ground.
On a previous trip we went to the top of the communication tower The KL Tower, also known as Menara Kuala Lumpur,for a panoraminc view of the city.
This time we headed to the world famous Petronas Twin Towers hoping to go up the viewing gallery.
Alas, on the day we went the popular attraction was fully booked.
Top Tip if you plan on going to Petronas Towers , check and book your tickets at least a day or 2 in advance. Use either Get Your Guide or Viator
So instead of each paying £20 to go up we splurged out on a McDonald’s Milkshake and fries – not our usual choice but Ben loves a chocoate milkshake.
After a wash and brush up it was back to Chinatown that night for a final time.
Penang
On the next part of our trip we took an electric train the 222 miles from KL up to Butterworth.
The three-and-a-half hour trip cost 16 pounds each and the train was as comfortable as a train in the UK – including the loo.
At Butterworth we hopped on a ferry and took the ten minute crossing over to Penang.
We took a Grab taxi to our hotel, the Mercure Penang Beach at Tanjung Bungah.
Sadly, our second floor room had a road, not sea view but an upgrade was too costly so we stayed put.
We enjoyed an afternoon at the pool on day one, as well as a beach walk up to a fisherman’s bay.
The beach was shell-strewn and scruffy, but there is a beachside cafe facing a pile of smooth rocks where young women instagrammers pose for selfies.
Initially we were a bit unsure of where to eat in the evening.
But to our great delight, ten minutes’ walk down the road brought us to Viva Local Food Haven.
At this thriving food court, the deal is to grab a table and order beers from a helpful attendant.
He brings two bottles back in an ice bucket and you pay him.
You are then free to roam a plethora of stalls offering everything from noodles and rice to claypot chicken, oyster omelettes, Vietnamese dishes and duck and rice.
All you do is choose your dish, give them your table number and shortly after they bring piping hot, tasty delight to you and you pay them a tiny price. (1.80 pounds for an amazing claypot)
The place is buzzing with locals and tourists and it is simply fantastic !!!
Penang Hill
During our stay we took a trip up Penang Hill via the funicular railway.
After a steep climb lasting some four minutes you arrive at platforms offering spectacular views of the city and its bridges.
We also visited an ornate hindu temple and a mosque, and strolled along a road where houses perched on the hillside have what must be some of the best views in the world.
There are several walking trails on the hill.
After a cooling drink in the Monkey Cup cafe, a quiet forest cafe at the end of the hill, we took a cheap golf-style buggy back to the railway and returned down to the heaving metropolis.
Georgetown city sights
The next day we took a Grab taxi to Fort Cornwallis, a coastal bastion established by the British East India Company in 1786.
The fort, named after the then Lieutenant-General The 2nd Earl Cornwallis, is the largest standing fort in Malaysia.
It never engaged in combat during its history, and what remains are the bare stone bones of the structure.
Tucked in the walls are an array of cannons, some captured from pirates, and there is a lighthouse perched on steel latticework.
We dodged light rain before walking on through Little India, a bustling shopping area selling everything from colourful offerings to curry.
Nearby we explored some Penang street art, tucked away in various streets and lanes. Pieces include a painting of two children sat on a real bicycle and a young man sat on a real, dilapidated motorcycle.
Spotting the art made the urban expedition even more interesting, it has to be said.
All too soon our time in pleasant Penang was up.
Langkawi
We next took a short flight up to our next destination, Langkawi where we took the opportunity just to relax for a couple of nights.
We had been to Langkawi before and had been on the Cable Car ride. There was no need to do it again but if we had had more time we would have done.
Our hotel was right on the beach and just outside our room we could see the fire dancers performing in the evenings. A couple of quiet, easy days by the water, exactly what we needed after two weeks on the move.
From here, the adventure carried on into Thailand. You can read the next leg, the ferry crossing from Langkawi to Koh Lipe and onward through Koh Lanta, Railay and Ao Nang, in our Langkawi to Railay island-hopping post.
Best Time to Go
November to April is the dry season across Malaysia, giving the best conditions for Batu Caves, Penang Hill, and the beach days in Langkawi. We travelled in this window and had good weather throughout Kuala Lumpur and Penang, with only the one rain scare at Batu Caves.
What We’d Do Differently
If we were planning this Malaysia route again:
- Book Petronas Towers tickets a day or two in advance rather than turning up and hoping — we missed out entirely by leaving it too late
- Ask for a sea view room upfront in Penang, or book further ahead to get one at a reasonable price
- Build in more time in Langkawi — a couple of nights felt like just enough to unwind, but not enough to properly explore beyond the hotel and the cable car we’d already done before
- Take a photo of every meal, even the disappointing ones — we still think about those chicken nuggets
FAQ
How many days do you need for Malaysia? Two weeks gave us a comfortable pace across Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Langkawi. You could do a shorter version focusing on just two of the three in around 10 days.
Is Batu Caves worth the trip from Kuala Lumpur? Yes, even in the rain. The main temple is free, the 272 steps are a proper climb, and the cave itself feels like a natural cathedral. Just bring a poncho if the forecast looks unsettled.
How do you get from Kuala Lumpur to Penang? We took the electric train from KL to Butterworth, around three and a half hours and genuinely comfortable, then a short ferry across to Penang island.
Is Langkawi worth visiting? Yes, particularly as a slower, relaxing final stop after busier cities. If you’ve already done the Cable Car on a previous trip, a couple of nights purely to unwind works well before moving on elsewhere.
Final Thoughts
This was a trip of real contrasts — the chaos and temples of Kuala Lumpur, the food and street art of Georgetown, and the slow wind-down of Langkawi’s beaches. Malaysia doesn’t always get talked about as much as its neighbours, but it more than held its own.
Anyone can Google flights — but it takes strategy, experience, and connections to design a trip that flows. If you’re planning a trip to Malaysia or anywhere in South East Asia, drop me a message and I’ll put together the right route for you.
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