Malaysia Travel Answers

Welcome to Malaysia. Fraser Hill is a good place for bird watching, I would like to recommend another bird sanctuary : Kuala Gula Bird Sanctuary Resort, located 90 minutes south of Penang. You may google this place, there are plenty of information and tour operators available. I have been to both before I joint VT, by self driving. Public transport is available to Fraser Hill but not many trips. To Kuala Gula, you would better take a taxi from Taiping or Butterworth Bus Terminal. I hope this help you.

Hi I think I may have replied to you in regard to East Timor. We have just returned from Malaysia and Timor. Fraser hill is great. A nice quiet spot with plenty of history and many lovely plants and gardens. As you are probably aware there is a bird station (forget what they called it) there. We stayed at the Punkak Inn which was quite fine. There are quite a few resort style places there that are falling into disrepair, so make sure you read plenty of hotel reviews. There are many jungle tracks that start from there so should be a good spot to look for birds. There are many eating stall just up the road. We hired a taxi from Port Dickson and went via Fraser,m Cameron Highlands and ended up in Penang. This worked out slightly dearer than hiring a car but without the stress. Melaka is great and Penang we found a bit over rated but still ok. Let me know if you want any further information

You can check my KL and Melaka pages for some useful tips. We had the intention to go up Frasers Hill during our visit to KL, unfortunately road conditions were so bad that at a certain point the road was blocked and we had to return. It's a challenge even if you have your own car just like us, but maybe you will be lucky during your visit.

I have some good tips on my KL and Melaka pages if you want to have a look. Plus I have a good tip on a local driver if you want to send him a message.

Malacca: Wonderful mixture of old Malaysia: Dutch/Portugese + Nonya Baba culture with 20C life. Most of what I know and like about Malacca is located within walking distance of each other, and all near the center of town : The Dutch Center...Chinatown....St PAuls Church...Jonkers market on Friday-Saturday nights in Chinatown. I've been to A'Famosa resort, a 15 min. car from center of town..an OK place to spend 3-4 hours. There are 2 pretty big malls in the center of town as well.

The Smokehouse (http://www.thesmokehouse.my/), housed in a black-and-white cottage, is a popular place in Frasier Hill but it does not come cheap. It usually gets filled up fast so, if interested, you may want to book in advance. For transportation I would suggest you call your hotel and ask for advise. They might help you with booking a taxi or a private car. Penang to me is all about the historical center of Georgetown (UNESCO World Heritage site), which is indeed a charming place to visit, more extensive and with a more genuine feeling than Melaka, with which Georgetown has many commonalities in term of history and architecture. My favorite sites in Georgetown are the Pinang Peranakan Mansion (pinangperanakanmansion.com.m...) and the Khoo Kongsi clanhouse (http://www.khookongsi.com.my/) but it is the overall setting and architecture and atmosphere of downtown Georgetown which makes the highlight of the trip. An excursion to Penang Hill is worth for the cablecar ride more than for the destination itself, I am not a fan but you may also check Batu Ferringhi for a break from the city into the beach. Enjoy your trip to Malaysia! Giuseppe