Is villa rental possible in Malaysia?

We are planning a trip to Malaysia and are staying in Kuala Lumpur for 5 days, then visiting Singapore for 2 days. We would like to visit a beach resort with clear seas ideal for snorkelling. Which part of Malaysia would you reccomend? We a family with teenage children.

We would like to stay in a villa, but I have not been able to locate any villas in either Langkawi, Penang, or Sabah. Plenty can be found in Bali and Thailand but I cannot find anything in Malaysia! Is the option only to stay in a hotel?

Thank you for your help.

Is villa rental possible in Malaysia?

Hi sophia,

In Malaysia, you can actually find villa or chalets which are beach front that are cheaper than Bali (I think only 5 stars hotels like Ritz and Four Season have villas in Bali beaches). Many Thai and Balinese villas are not on the beaches if I am not mistaken,

In Langkawi, Berjaya Resort has many types of chalets, of course for luxury type, it is Four Season and Datai.

In Tioman, it is Japa Mala and in Pangkor, it is Pangkor Laut. In Sabah the water bungalows are built in the diving paradise of Mabul islands on the east coast.

Is villa rental possible in Malaysia?

Sophia,

With villa, do you mean... like a normal family house, fully furnished with all mod cons, 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, kitchen, living room, dining room etc (swimming pool as optional extra)... that kind of thing?

If so, then I gave up looking for such holiday rental villas in Malaysia years ago. I%26#39;m not saying they don%26#39;t exist, just that I have actively looked for them, both from here and while I have been in Malaysia and have never found anything that remotely fitted the bill.

Had no trouble finding that kind of villa for holiday rental in Phuket, and have heard there%26#39;s plenty of them in Bali too.

I have family who live in Penang and they鈥檝e had no luck finding them for me either, not in Penang, and no where else either, the nearest they came was a 3 month lease!

Alex%26#39;s options would be about as close as you can get...but at the end of the day they are still basically just chalets in a hotel/resort surrounding. There is nothing self-contained or private about them.

The only other option I can think of is holiday apartment rental. At least then, you have cooking facilities and separate living / sleeping areas. But they still have the feel of a hotel room with a kitchen added on.

Hi thistlegirl,

You are right about the family / house style villa. There are plenty in Bali and probably Phuket as there is a market for long term lease.

When I visited my Russian friend in his villa around Ubud, it was like a fully furnished villa with no pool that only cost USD 500 per month. It is set in the village. Would be nice to stay there for a month but it is 15 to 20 mins taxi from town.

The poster wants something for a few days, I think Japa Mala villa is good enough plus snorkelling is possible on site.

Pangkor Laut has similar villa but price is higher and snorkelling can be done in Emerald Bay. Coral Bay in Redang island has chalet and snorkelling is also good.