Malaysia

There are numerous good reasons to pay a visit to Malaysia. Malaysia has friendly people, unique wildlife, excellent beaches and - in Mount Kinabalu in Sabah - the highest mountain in Southeast Asia.

Malaysia's capital city, and home to Malaysia's main airport, is Kuala Lumpur. Kuala Lumpur these days is a modern city of high-rise office blocks. Kuala Lumpur is a good representation of Malaysia in that it's such a unique blend of old and new. Its modern buildings are mixed in with old colonial buildings from Malaysia's past. Malaysia's capital is slightly more low-key compared with the other big Asian cities such as Bangkok or Hong Kong. This means that there is less pollution and less of a tourism industry but it is still easy to get around and there is much to see and do.

Away from the big city, Malaysia has some truly stunning beaches and tropical islands. The most popular beach destination in Malaysia is the island of Langkawi, off Malaysia's west coast. Langkawi is perhaps the most commercial of Malaysia's islands, with some expensive beach resorts mixed in with the more familiar backpacker-style beach huts. If you're after more authentic experience of Malaysia then you might be better off heading to one of Malaysia's east coast islands, such as the Perhentians or Tioman Island. If you are passionate about marine conservation then our Turtle and Dive Volunteer Malaysia is perfect. As a volunteer on this programme you will work to conserve the endangered green turtles of Malaysia.

Inland Malaysia boasts some similarly impressive scenery. If the Malaysian heat is getting a little too much for you then a good area to visit is the Cameron Highlands. There are plenty of scenic walks to do and the hills around Malaysia's Cameron Highlands are also dotted with tea plantations.

If you visit Malaysian Borneo there are couple of undoubted highlights. In Sabah there is Mount Kinabalu, which offers some of the most spectacular views in Malaysia. From the 4000-metre summit you can see the north coast of Malaysia, Indonesian Kalimantan to the south and some of the islands of the Philippines to the east.

If you want to work with the unique wildlife of Malaysia then consider volunteering on our Orang-utan Interaction Volunteer Malaysia, This volunteer programme offers a unique opportunity to interact with the only great ape found outside of Africa, the orang-utan and to take part in volunteer work in Borneo. Due to the rapid deforestation of the rain forest in both Malaysian and Indonesian Borneo these beautiful apes are, sadly, gravely endangered. Rescued orang-utans are brought to the Malaysia Centre in order to be rehabilitated back to forest life.

Malaysia gap year - Gap year programmes in Malaysia


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