Anyone for Langkawi and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

[cat man do]

Finally talked the boss into going to Langkawi for a look to see if it is all that it is cracked up to be.

Got on to a deal that will give us 2 night's in Kuala Lumpar, 10 night's in Langkawi and 2 night's in KL for departure with additional nights in KL at $70 Aud/night, so may stretch it a bit for a few more night's..

All in 4 star hotel's and in Langkawi, a flash place on the water , cool.

And for well under $2000 Aud each.

My question is , has anyone been, and what are must do thing's.

Obviously the yacht club's and maintenance facilities are a must, and provisioning places will cop a look as well.

I must stress, this is a scouting mission for the trip on the big boat, living on a reasonably tight budget, so all the good cheap places to see and eat thank's.

Somwhere for a cheap massage daily for the boss would be good, she earn's the dollars, so is very deserving.

This is our first real holiday together in 17 years, so we are very exited and really looking forward to the experience

Dave

[Entlie]

I haven't been to Langkawi since the 80's, sure it has changed a lot since then.

We hired a local boat and went to Tulaga Tujoh, seven waterfalls. The anchor for the boat was a rock lashed to wooden crosspieces. The boat captain said we needed a guide, and we relucantly agreed - a good choice on our part. After a two hour hike through the jungle we came to the falls, had a lovely splash, and then back to the boat. The boat boy had fallen asleep in the boat and it took a while to rouse him before we could get aboard.

We rented motorscooters to tour the island. I pulled off onto a grassy verge which turned out to be the edge of a rice paddy, and fell in. A rinse in a nearby waterfall, and all was well.

We shared a watermelon with the villagers when we returned.

Those days are probably gone, but hope you have a wonderful trip.

We have lost touch with Storm, a Prout Manta that was based in Langkawi and rode out the Tsunami there. If you run into them, please say hello.

If you are a reader, take along a copy of Maugham's Malaysian Stories.

Entlie
Sailing Catamaran Sunspot Baby

[Gallivanters]

We spent several months in the region - all good!

In town you will find the yacht club and an open roadstead for anchoring - however the surge and ferry wakes made it a bit rough for our liking. Our favorite little place was Jimmy's on the waterfront. He'd see us coming and would have a pair of ice cold Tiger Beers in front of us before we could even sit down. There's also a great local food court a block inland.

We kept our boat at the Langasuka Boat Club - a giant anchorage created by the breakwater protecting the international airport. Moorings were cheap there and the clubhouse friendly. This is where you gat the ferry shuttle to go to Rebak Marina located on a resort island nearby. Rebak offers an excellent haulout facility complete with monkeys, eagles and extended happy hour prices in the swimming pool - a very civilized way to do a haulout.

I know much of Langkawi was affected by the tsunami and hope they are back on their feet by now.

I am told that there is a newer marina / mooring area at Teluga, as mentioned above. The seven waterfalls there are refreshing and pure magic. The higher you go up the stream - the fewer the people to share your swimming hole with. The highest point on the island is well worth a visit. I'm told there's a new tram there.

We stopped nearly a dozen times at islands & ports in the Malacca Straits between Singapore and the Thai border and we found Langkawi the most welcoming.

We absolutely LOVED Penang (to the south), the Butang Islands (west) and the Thai island of Teratao (5 nm north).

The 120 mile region between Penang and Phuket is a stunning cruising destination... almost on par with the Virgin Islands... which, in my opinion, is about the finest yachting destination on this planet.

The only thing that the region around Langkawi and Phuket has on the Virgin Islands is the excellent food, scenery, affordable quality medical care and close proximity to Bangkok... but I won't get into that!

Langkawi - we'll be back.

To Life!

Kirk

[maxingout]

When we were in Langkawi, we took a day long taxi tour around the island, and it makes for a very full day. The chairlift to the top of the northern part of the island is stunning - at least as impresssive as the rainforest chair lift just outside of Cairns, OZ. From on top the mountain you can see dozens of islands as well as an awesome view of Langkawi. The chairlift ride is very steep ascending the sheer vertical cliffs on the north part of the Island. From the chairlift, you can see waterfalls where there are natural rock waterslides, and if you feel adventurous, you can slide down them. My son and his wife did the waterfall rock slides, and it cooled them down after a hot hike up the mountain.

You can visit the Hole in the Wall on the North East corner of Langkawi and observe the feeding of the eagles. Tour operators throw bits of chicken remnants in the water in that location and rev the outboards on their boats and dozens of eagles rise up out of the trees - maybe even hundreds of eagles - and the eagles swoop down a few feet in front of you picking up the bits of chicken floating in the water. It is an awesome display of eagles in action. You can hear the wind whistling over their wings as they swoop down to pick up the chicken. Memorable.

There are several marinas worth checking out as well. We found that the marinas were reasonably priced, but most of the time we anchored out as the holding is good and the water is relatively shallow. Most anchorages are very secure.

A boat ride to some of the outlying islands would let you see the sheer limestone rock faces rising up out of the water similar to the appearance of many islands in Thailand.

Langkawi also has an unusual museum that has thousands of unusual articles given by different nations of the world to the government of Malaysia. There is some amazing stuff in that museum from all around the world. If you are a museum person, you would probably enjoy it.

In Malaysia we also rode the train with sleeper cars for a week for $35 per person, going from Singapore to the Thailand border with stops in Kuala Lampur. Very cheap way to see the countryside.

Malaysia and Langkawi were one of our most favorite destinations on our trip around the world. I would happily spend a full year in Langkawi, and I would be anchored out the majority of the time.

Cheers,

[GordMay]

Thanks for the excellent first-hand reports Kirk & Dave.

[cat man do]

Thank's for that guy's,

Just organized an additional 4 day stop over in Penang as well, so get to scout that as well.

Should be fun.

Dave

[maxingout]

Here are a couple of shots taken of Monitor? Lizards and Eagles in the Hole in the Wall in Langkawi. There is a several mile long river ride to get to the Hole in the Wall where the feeding is done. I have a short article about feeding the Eagles and Lizards at the Hole in the Wall at the following URL:
SNIFFING THE AIR

You will have an awesome time in Malaysia. Great value for money and a lot to see and do.

Cheers,

[maxingout]

Here is one more photo of the Hole in the Wall. This picture is looking to the north. If you would head out the hole in the wall and go straight north for about twenty miles, you will be in Thailand waters. Inside the hole in the wall, there are massive limestone cliffs surrounding you all around, except for the exit to the north. The eagle feeding location is about five minutes from here by dinghy or tour boat.

Cheers,

[mikereed100]

I was there a couple years ago, 3 weeks after the tsunami. Also a prior trip as a backpacker in '91. I spent almost all my time at the RLYC marina and Kuah as I was working on my boat but had a great time. The people and food are great and it's easy to pick up some of the language. Lots of eagles, monkeys and otters roaming around the marina and environs. The hotels are cheap, though not as cheap as the mainland, with the added bonus that there is invariably a little arrow on the ceiling pointing the way to Mecca.

From the boating point of view, when I was there the marina at Telaga had been badly damaged but maybe someone else has a more recent update? It cost $220 US/month to berth my 46' cat at the RLYC, taking up 2 slips. In contrast I pay $650 in Phuket. Haulout and yard fees are correspondingly cheaper as well. Although it's harder to find skilled labor in Langkawi, I'm told this is changing.

Don't miss the butterfly farm in Penang. All in all I have to agree with Dave. Phuket to Penang is some of Earth's best and Langkawi is right in the middle. Have a great trip!

Mike

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by maxingout

In Malaysia we also rode the train with sleeper cars for a week for $35 per person, going from Singapore to the Thailand border with stops in Kuala Lampur. Very cheap way to see the countryside.

Not been to Langkwai, but done the sleeper train from Bangkok down to Malaysia (Butterworth / Penang) and once all the way down to Singapore. IMO the most civilised way to travel in that region, not at all 3rd world and far far above any train experiances I have had in England. On a par with the French TGV service (albeit probably not the max speeds!).

Notwithstanding the above not "done" Malaysia much, more travelling through it. But my impression was that the people were very freindly, spoke a lot of English (yeah I know, go abroad and want the locals to speak English ) and the food was usually pretty good, including the western style food. Overall my feeling was less 3rd World than say India / Thailand and more 2nd World.........like England.

I also believe that they are quite Visa freindly to Foreigners who want to spend extended time their / spend money their over time. and not quite so paranoid in this respect as their Northern Neighbours

[mikereed100]

I also believe that they are quite Visa freindly to Foreigners who want to spend extended time their / spend money their over time. and not quite so paranoid in this respect as their Northern Neighbours

I was told that one could check one's boat in and out of Malaysia with a cereal box-top and found that, in reality, it was just about that easy. Not so with Thailand. Also, Langkawi is a duty-free port.