Places to visit in

Malaysia

Redang is the largest island in the Terengganu Marine Park and one of Malaysia's best-preserved coral reef systems, protected since 1994. Its shallow lagoons at Pasir Panjang have visibility often exceeding 20 metres, making it a benchmark snorkelling destination in Southeast Asia. Green and hawksbill turtles nest on its quieter beaches, monitored by conservation teams during the nesting season. The island became widely known across Asia after the 2000 film Summer Holiday was shot here, drawing steady tourist traffic ever since.

Bandar Sunway was built on a former tin mining wasteland transformed from the 1980s onwards into an integrated township, a widely cited example of Malaysian urban regeneration. Sunway Pyramid, opened in 1997, is one of the country's largest malls and is instantly recognisable for its Egyptian sphinx facade and pyramid roof. The township connects hotels, a university, a medical centre and entertainment venues by an elevated canopy walkway and BRT line. For Indian families it functions as an easy, self-contained base near Kuala Lumpur with strong Indian food availability.

Gunung Mulu was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000 for its karst geology, cave systems and biodiversity. It contains Sarawak Chamber, one of the largest known cave chambers in the world by area, and Deer Cave, which has one of the largest cave passages. The park's limestone Pinnacles are razor-sharp stone blades rising up to 45 metres on the slopes of Gunung Api. Millions of wrinkle-lipped bats stream out of Deer Cave most evenings in a spiral formation that is the park's signature sight.

Kuching was the capital of the Brooke dynasty of White Rajahs who ruled Sarawak from 1841 to 1946, and its waterfront still carries their colonial buildings. The city is the main gateway to Borneo's indigenous cultures, with Iban, Bidayuh, Orang Ulu, Melanau and Malay communities represented at the Sarawak Cultural Village at Damai. Kuching also serves as the base for visiting Bako National Park and the Semenggoh orangutan centre. Its old bazaar, Chinatown and Indian street reflect a trading history that goes back well over a century.

Port Dickson is the closest beach stretch to Kuala Lumpur and has been a weekend seaside retreat since British colonial times, when it served as a port for tin and a garrison town. Its coastline runs about 18 km along the Straits of Malacca, with Teluk Kemang and Blue Lagoon the best-known beaches. The Cape Rachado lighthouse at Tanjung Tuan, dating from the Portuguese period, sits on a forest reserve that is a major raptor migration watchpoint. The town is a standard add-on in Indian family itineraries between Kuala Lumpur and Melaka.

Penang Hill rises to about 833 metres at Western Hill and was developed by the British from the late 18th century as Malaya's first colonial hill retreat, offering escape from the humid heat of the port below. The funicular railway, opened in 1923 and fully modernised in 2010, remains the main way up and is one of the steepest tunnel tracks in the world. The hill's forest was recognised as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2021 for its dipterocarp cover, hornbills, dusky leaf monkeys and giant black squirrels. At the summit sit colonial bungalows, a Hindu temple, a mosque and viewpoints over the George Town skyline and the Penang Bridge.

Ipoh grew rich on the Kinta Valley tin mines from the 1880s and its Old Town preserves rows of Anglo-Chinese shophouses, the 1917 Ipoh Railway Station and colonial-era clubs built with tin money. The city sits among dramatic limestone hills riddled with caves that hold some of Malaysia's most striking cave temples, including Sam Poh Tong and Perak Tong. Ipoh is also the birthplace of white coffee and a food destination famous for bean sprout chicken, curry mee and Ipoh kopi. Indian travellers find a strong Tamil presence here, with historic temples and vegetarian eateries in the Little India area.

Johor Bahru, founded in 1855 by Temenggong Daing Ibrahim and developed by Sultan Abu Bakar, is Malaysia's southern gateway, linked to Singapore by the Causeway across the Johor Strait. The city holds important royal heritage including the Istana Besar and the Sultan Abu Bakar State Mosque, built between 1892 and 1900 in Victorian-Moorish style. It has become a family holiday base thanks to theme parks, waterfront malls and easy access to Desaru and Kukup. For Indian visitors, the Arulmigu Sri Rajakaliamman Glass Temple is a major draw, its interiors covered in around 300,000 glass pieces.

Tioman is a volcanic island of about 133 square kilometres, ringed by coral reefs and covered in dense rainforest with granite peaks, most famously the twin spires of Bukit Nenek Semukut. The island was a known landmark on ancient trade routes between the Middle East and China, and its fresh water springs supplied passing ships. It became a duty-free island and marine park, protecting reefs that support turtles, reef sharks and hundreds of fish species. Village life is concentrated in small kampungs such as Tekek, Salang, ABC and Genting, keeping the island low-key compared with Langkawi.

Sipadan is an oceanic island rising some 600 metres from the seabed off Sabah's southeast coast and is consistently ranked among the world's top dive destinations. Its walls attract green and hawksbill turtles, schooling barracuda, bumphead parrotfish and grey reef sharks in unusually large numbers. The nearby town of Semporna is the gateway, with the Bajau Laut sea gypsy communities living in stilt villages and boats around Bodgaya and Mabul. Sipadan has been fully protected since diving resorts were removed from the island in 2004, and daily visitor permits are strictly capped.