Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur, Melaka, the Cameron Highlands and Penang

1. Day 1: Arrive at KLIA, on to Melaka

   Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) to Melaka

   • Drive about 2 h
   • Welcome dinner
   • Stay in Melaka
   Day 1 details

   Fly into Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA), where a driver meets you in the arrivals hall. Rather than heading north into the city, we drive about an hour and three quarters south to Melaka, because the airport sits between the two and starting here keeps every later drive short. Melaka was a trading port on the strait long before the Portuguese took it in 1511, and the Dutch and the British followed; its old centre has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site, together with George Town, since 2008. If you land early, rest at the hotel or walk the river path, where old warehouses and shophouses back onto the water. In the early evening your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a briefing on the days ahead, then we walk along the Melaka River to a welcome dinner of Nyonya dishes, the Peranakan cooking that blends Chinese and Malay kitchens. On Friday to Sunday evenings the Jonker Walk night market is a few minutes away.

   Included

   • Pick-up at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA)
   • Welcome briefing with your guide
   • Evening walk along the Melaka River
   • Welcome Nyonya dinner

   Free time: Free until the evening briefing

   Activity: Plan to land by about 2 pm to reach Melaka for the briefing; later arrivals are met and join the group the next morning.

   

2. Day 2: Melaka's old town, then Kuala Lumpur

   Melaka heritage walk, then north to Kuala Lumpur

   • Drive about 2 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Kuala Lumpur
   Day 2 details

   We start walking at about 8:30, while the streets are cool and before the day-trip coaches arrive. Dutch Square comes first: the red Stadthuys, the Dutch town hall begun in the 1650s, and Christ Church of 1753. From there we climb St Paul's Hill to the roofless church at the top and walk down to the Porta de Santiago, the one gate left of the Portuguese fortress. Across the river, Heeren Street is lined with the long, narrow townhouses of Peranakan merchant families, and the Baba and Nyonya Heritage Museum shows how one family lived in them. Harmony Street holds the Kampung Kling Mosque, the Cheng Hoon Teng temple and the Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi temple within a few hundred metres of each other. Lunch is Melaka's own chicken rice balls. In the early afternoon we drive about two hours north to Kuala Lumpur, arriving in time to rest, and the evening is free.

   Included

   • Melaka heritage walk with your guide: Dutch Square, the Stadthuys, Christ Church, St Paul's Hill and the Porta de Santiago
   • Heeren Street and the Baba and Nyonya Heritage Museum
   • Harmony Street: the Kampung Kling Mosque, the Cheng Hoon Teng temple and the Sri Poyyatha Vinayagar Moorthi temple
   • Chicken rice ball lunch in Melaka
   • Drive to Kuala Lumpur

   Free time: Evening free in Kuala Lumpur

   Activity: About 3 hours on foot in the morning, including the short climb up St Paul's Hill. Bring a hat and water.

   

3. Day 3: Batu Caves, old Kuala Lumpur and Jalan Alor

   Kuala Lumpur to Batu Caves and back, then the old centre and KLCC

   • Drive about 1 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Kuala Lumpur
   Day 3 details

   We leave at 8 am for Batu Caves, about half an hour north, to climb the 272 painted steps under the golden statue of Lord Murugan before the heat and the tour buses build. At the top, the Temple Cave opens into a limestone hall lit from a hole in the roof. On the way back into the city we stop at the National Monument and the floral clock outside Parliament, then walk the old centre: Merdeka Square, where the flag of independent Malaya was raised in 1957, the Moorish arches of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building, and Masjid Jamek at the meeting of the Klang and Gombak rivers, the spot that gave the city its name. Lunch is in Chinatown, near Petaling Street, and the afternoon is free for the hotel pool or the Islamic Arts Museum. At dusk we meet under the Petronas Towers as they light up, then walk to Jalan Alor, where your guide orders satay, grilled stingray and noodles at the street stalls.

   Included

   • Batu Caves and the Temple Cave in the early morning
   • The National Monument and the Parliament floral clock
   • Old Kuala Lumpur walk: Merdeka Square, the Sultan Abdul Samad Building and Masjid Jamek
   • Lunch in Chinatown
   • The Petronas Towers at dusk
   • Street-food dinner on Jalan Alor with your guide

   Optional experiences

   • Petronas Towers skybridge and observation deck (timed tickets, booked ahead)
   • Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia

   Easier option: Skip the 272 steps and wait at the foot of Batu Caves, where the statue and the smaller temples are at ground level.

   Free time: Afternoon free in Kuala Lumpur

   Activity: Cover shoulders and knees at Batu Caves and Masjid Jamek; sarongs are available at the entrance. The monkeys on the steps grab food and bags.

   

4. Day 4: Up to the Cameron Highlands

   Kuala Lumpur to Tapah, Lata Iskandar and the Bharat tea estate, then Tanah Rata

   • Drive about 3.5 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Cameron Highlands
   Day 4 details

   We leave Kuala Lumpur at about 8:30 and drive north on the expressway to Tapah, then up the old road into the hills, about 205 km and three and a half hours in all, the longest drive of the trip. The road climbs through forest in tight bends, so we break it at the Lata Iskandar waterfall beside the road and again at the Bharat tea estate, where the bushes are clipped into rows that follow every fold of the hills. We stop for a pot of local tea on the terrace above the slopes. By lunchtime we are in Tanah Rata, the main town, at about 1,440 m. The air is cool here after the lowlands; the hill station was surveyed by William Cameron in 1885 and grew up in the 1920s and 1930s around tea, vegetables and holiday bungalows. After lunch the rest of the day is yours: walk the town, read on a veranda or find a strawberry farm. Bring a warm layer for the evening.

   Included

   • Drive from Kuala Lumpur to the Cameron Highlands with your guide
   • Stop at the Lata Iskandar waterfall
   • Tea on the terrace at the Bharat tea estate
   • Lunch in Tanah Rata

   Free time: Afternoon and evening free in Tanah Rata

   Activity: The last hour of the drive is on a winding mountain road; tell your guide if you get carsick and we will seat you up front.

   

5. Day 5: The Mossy Forest and the tea estates

   Tanah Rata to Gunung Brinchang and the Mossy Forest, then BOH Sungei Palas

   • Drive about 1 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Cameron Highlands
   Day 5 details

   Clouds usually settle on the ridges after midday, so we go up early. At about 8:30 we switch to a 4x4 with a local driver for the narrow, steep road to Gunung Brinchang, at about 2,031 m one of the highest points in Peninsular Malaysia you can reach by road. Just below the top, a boardwalk leads into the Mossy Forest, a cloud forest where moss, ferns and pitcher plants hang from stunted trees and the air is cool and damp. Your guide points out the plants as we walk, about an hour at an easy pace. On the way down we stop at the BOH Sungei Palas tea estate, where you can watch the leaf being withered, rolled and dried, then sit with a pot of tea on the terrace that hangs over the slopes. Lunch is back in Tanah Rata and the afternoon is free. In the evening we gather round a steamboat, a shared pot of broth where you cook vegetables from the highland farms, meat and seafood at the table.

   Included

   • 4x4 up the Gunung Brinchang road with a local driver
   • The Mossy Forest boardwalk with your guide
   • BOH Sungei Palas tea estate: the factory and tea on the terrace
   • Lunch in Tanah Rata
   • Steamboat dinner

   Easier option: Stay on the first stretch of the boardwalk and wait at the viewpoint while the group walks on.

   More active option: In the afternoon, a guided walk on one of the forest trails above Tanah Rata, such as the trail to Gunung Jasar, about 2 to 3 hours with steep, muddy sections.

   Free time: Afternoon free in Tanah Rata

   Activity: The boardwalk has steps and can be wet and slippery; wear shoes with grip and bring a rain jacket. Bumpy 4x4 ride on the upper road.

6. Day 6: Down to Ipoh: cave temples and the old town

   Tanah Rata to Simpang Pulai and Kek Lok Tong, then Ipoh

   • Drive about 2 h
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Ipoh
   Day 6 details

   After breakfast we drive down the western side of the range on the Simpang Pulai road, about 95 km and two hours, watching the vegetable farms give way to forest and then to the limestone hills of the Kinta Valley. Ipoh grew rich on tin in the late 19th century, and the hills around it are riddled with caves. Our first stop is Kek Lok Tong, a cave temple where you walk through a cool cavern of Buddhist statues and out into a garden with a lake ringed by limestone cliffs. Lunch is Ipoh's best-known dish, bean sprout chicken, with silky flat rice noodles. After a rest at the hotel through the heat, we walk the old town at about 4 pm with your guide: the white railway station of 1917, the Town Hall of 1914, Concubine Lane and the wall murals of the old shophouse streets. We finish over a glass of Ipoh white coffee, and the evening is free to eat where you like.

   Included

   • Drive from the Cameron Highlands to Ipoh with your guide
   • Kek Lok Tong cave temple and garden
   • Bean sprout chicken lunch in Ipoh
   • Ipoh old town walk: the railway station, the Town Hall, Concubine Lane and the murals
   • Ipoh white coffee

   Free time: Evening free in Ipoh

   Activity: About 2 hours on foot in the old town, on flat streets.

   

7. Day 7: Over the bridge to George Town

   Ipoh to Penang by the Penang Bridge, then George Town

   • Drive about 2.5 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in George Town
   Day 7 details

   Ipoh is known for its morning dim sum, so breakfast is early and local before we drive north, about 165 km and two and a quarter hours, on the expressway past Taiping and over the 13.5 km Penang Bridge onto the island. We are in George Town for lunch. The old town was founded by the British East India Company in 1786 and shares its World Heritage listing with Melaka; its shophouse streets were built by Chinese, Indian, Malay, Armenian and European merchants side by side. After a free afternoon out of the heat, we meet at about 5 pm for an orientation walk: Fort Cornwallis and the Esplanade, then the Street of Harmony, where the Kapitan Keling Mosque, the Sri Mahamariamman temple, the Goddess of Mercy temple and St George's Church stand within a few blocks. As it gets dark we move on to the hawker stalls, and your guide orders the island's classics for the table: char kway teow, assam laksa, nasi kandar and cendol.

   Included

   • Drive from Ipoh to Penang over the Penang Bridge with your guide
   • Lunch in George Town
   • Orientation walk: Fort Cornwallis, the Esplanade and the Street of Harmony
   • Hawker walk and dinner with your guide

   Free time: Afternoon free in George Town

   Activity: Hawker stalls are open-air and busy; tell your guide about allergies or a vegetarian diet when you book, so we choose the stalls to suit.

8. Day 8: Clan houses, jetties and Penang Hill

   George Town heritage walk, then Air Itam, Kek Lok Si and Penang Hill

   • Drive about 1 h
   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in George Town
   Day 8 details

   We are at the gates of Khoo Kongsi when it opens, to see the carved and gilded clan temple, rebuilt in 1906, before the tour groups. From there the walk runs down to the clan jetties on the waterfront, where families of the same clan still live in wooden houses on stilts over the water; we keep our voices down, as these are homes. Then up Armenian Street and its wall murals to the Pinang Peranakan Mansion, a green merchant's house filled with carved screens, porcelain and the jewellery of a Straits Chinese family. Lunch is a sit-down Nyonya meal. The early afternoon is free. At about 4 pm we drive to Air Itam for Kek Lok Si, the hillside temple complex with its seven-storey pagoda, then ride the funicular up Penang Hill, about 830 m, to watch the sun go down over the island and the strait. We come down after dark for a farewell dinner together.

   Included

   • Khoo Kongsi at opening
   • The clan jetties
   • Armenian Street and the George Town murals
   • The Pinang Peranakan Mansion
   • Nyonya lunch
   • Kek Lok Si temple
   • The Penang Hill funicular up and down, with sunset from the top
   • Farewell dinner

   Optional experiences

   • Cheong Fatt Tze, the Blue Mansion (guided tours at set times)
   • Trishaw ride through the old town

   Easier option: Skip Kek Lok Si's stairs and wait at the funicular, or stay in George Town for the afternoon and join us for the farewell dinner.

   More active option: Instead of riding up, walk the Heritage Trail up Penang Hill from the Botanic Gardens, about 5 km and steep, and meet the group at the top for sunset.

   Free time: Early afternoon free in George Town

   Activity: About 3 hours on foot in the morning; Kek Lok Si has many stairs. The top of Penang Hill is cooler than the town.

9. Day 9: George Town and home

   George Town to Penang International Airport

   • Drive about 30 min
   • Breakfast
   Day 9 details

   The last morning is yours. Have a slow breakfast, or go out early with your guide's list for a last plate of roti canai and a pulled tea at a kopitiam, one of the old coffee shops that open at dawn. The Chowrasta market on Penang Road is busy in the morning with fruit, spices, dried fish and nutmeg sweets, and the shops of Little India sell spices and sweets to take home. If you have more time, the Penang Museum, Cheong Fatt Tze and the beaches at Batu Ferringhi are all short rides away. A driver takes you to Penang International Airport, about 17 km and half an hour south of the old town, at the time that suits your flight. There are direct flights from Penang to Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and other regional hubs through the day; if you want more of Malaysia, ask us about extra nights in Penang or a flight to Kota Kinabalu for our Borneo trip.

   Included

   • Drop-off at Penang International Airport (PEN)

   Free time: Free until your airport transfer

   Activity: Any flight time works; the airport is about 30 minutes from George Town.

Wildlife and weather: The lowlands are hot and humid all year, with short, heavy afternoon showers; the west coast is usually drier from December to February and June to August and wettest around April and from September to November. The Cameron Highlands are cooler, about 15 to 25 °C, and often misty after midday, so we go up the mountain in the morning.

• Melaka1 night
• Kuala Lumpur2 nights
• Cameron Highlands2 nights
• Ipoh1 night
• George Town2 nights