azotw

We'll be flying into Singapore and visiting there, but since we are in the area, my wife and I want to visit Malaysia too. Rather than flying, we want to go by train or bus. Where should we go in Malaysia that is just a few hours train or bus ride from Singapore? We are not opposed to staying over a few nights in Malaysia, but we don't want to stray too far as our flight out is also from Singapore.

adam

LondonElite

Go to Malacca. Interesting history, walkable city, good food. There are regular air conditioned coaches going every hour or so. I did this years ago and stayed in the very un-Majestic Hotel which has now been completely fixed up. I woke up to find a cobra in my bathtub. Interesting story.

mikew99

I don't think that trains are very popular within the Malaysian peninsula, but I have taken buses within Malaysia and have had a less-than-pleasant experience. May I ask why you want to go via bus or train?

That said, Malaysia is one of my favorite places to visit; I go at least once a year. You'll find that hotel costs are considerably lower than in Singapore, making it very reasonable to spend a few nights.

Melaka is an excellent suggestion. If you are open to a flight, I also recommend Penang. On my last visit, several LCCs had flights between Singapore and Penang for under US$20 (before seat and baggage fees), although I opted to pay more for SilkAir.

WilcoRoger

+1 for Melaka. The Casa del Rio is a very good riverfront hotel, short walking distance from anywhere. The bus from/to Singapore stops in front of the hotel.

Our only issue was on returning - our bus didn't wait for us to clear Singapore immigration and left us at TUAS checkpoint, so we had to make our way from TUAS back to our hotel in Singapore. Not a biggie (shuttle bus + MTR) but it was annoying.

azotw

Going by bus or train let’s us take in more sightseeing.

tentseller

Bus to Melaka or KL is the choice for a short trip to visit. But like mention by others the immigration checkpoint can be quite a PITA

Flying between SIN and KUL one needs to plan for the extra time needed to get between the airports and the city centre. But most of the time immigration at SIN is very fast, KUIL it depends on the time of day that you arrive.

MSPeconomist

Traffic between KUL and the city can also be bad, but one way to reduce the risk is to take the rail link to the train station.

YVR Cockroach

Not that it may be that much closer to city centre KL but one can fly from Seletar airport (XSP) to Subang (SZB - the old KUL). Immigration lines likely to be much shorter than at KUL.

IAN-UK

Forget the train. Since Malaysia allowed Singapore to strangle the service, it's become increasingly dysfunctional. If you know what you're doing it can work well to get across the causeway to Johor. But that's about it.

Johor is Malaysia. I like it, and so do the hordes of Singaporeans who go there at the weekend: but it's Malaysia at it's honky-tonk best for tourists, so something of an acquired taste...

Malacca is a bus trip. But whether its via the Causeway or TUAS the checkpoint malarkey must be a fraught experience for first-timers.

Anywhere further up the peninsula you might consider flying.


I really don't rate Malacca, especially if Penang is in the competition. I wouldn't bother with KL for a quick visit: save it for when you have more time.

And if you do plump for Penang, then it's certainly a flight. Use Air Asia: it's cheap (if you buy well in advance) but comfortingly professional. It's a good idea to fork out a couple of $ to grab seats in the forward section.

lokijuh

The bus trip from Singapore to Kuala Lumpurs is quite scenic ....... if you enjoy the sight of oil palm plantations and nothing else . The bus trip to Melaka is slightly better but wouldn’t rate the scenery as terribly interesting. I’d rate highly flights to either Penang, Langkawi or Kuching as all good options.

YVR Cockroach

Used to be mostly rubber tree plantations and some native vegetation but the former is almost non-existent now and the latter is not noticeable in the south. Cheap, decent food (for now anyway) is the only/primary reason to visit.

txflyer77

You're not going to see much of anything taking a bus up to Malacca. Hop on a flight to Penang, it will be much faster and more convenient than the land crossing and it's a more interesting destination than Malacca anyways (IMO).

gilbertaue

If you insist on travelling on ground, and Malacca is ok, the other option is to book a transfer service. They mostly operate between Johor (Senai) airport and Singapore or Singapore (Changi) to Johor - BUT they also do transfer to/from Malacca.
Price would be SGD540 two way for one service I googled. - Certainly much more expensive than a bus, but it's a private transfer and they will pick up and drop off wherever you want to. (Malacca is about 2.5-3 hours by car from Singapore if the border crossing is clear).

tentseller

It doesn't make sense to book a SG car service to drive you around MY at the SG rate.
MY only services a is so much cheaper.
Book SG service to take you to JB (100SGD each way) and back. Book a separate service at the MY rate (500MYR) for MY only.

RustyC

I liked the 24-seat VIP bus services between Singapore and KL, but maybe the immigration has gotten to be more of a bear. With KL there's much that's accessible by mass transit or just walking if you stay around Bukit Bintang. Without planning for it I once stayed during Thaipusam (I asked why the hotel was charging a bit more than last time). Checked that out at the Batu Caves and it was really a sight to behold.

If it were me, though, I'd probably look out for a cheap RT from either SIN or JHB to Kuching. Very charming city with a lot (like Baku National Park) in daytrip range. Borneo IMO is a different level of exciting.