MALAYSIA
Getting there: Malaysia Airlines operates two flights a day from Heathrow to Kuala Lumpur. From tomorrow, it starts two flights a week from Manchester to Kuala Lumpar. This will rise to three weekly by July. Other carriers serving Kuala Lumpur include Singapore Airlines, Royal Brunei, British Airways, Lauda Air and Thai Airways.
Flight time: nonstop service from London to Kuala Lumpur takes around 13 hours. From there, it’s about a two-hour flight to Kuching in Sarawak, and 2hrs 30mins to Kota Kinabalu in Sabah.
Visas: British citizens and residents of the Republic of Ireland do not need a visa to enter Malaysia.
Currency: the Malaysian unit of currency is the ringgit, which divides into 100 sen. Locals often refer to it as the Malaysian dollar, which explains why you’ll often see it written as $M as well as RM. However the currency hasbeen suspended by the government and is not available outside Malaysia. Travellers to the country must buy their currency locally on arrival.
Climate: Malaysia is warm and humid all year round, except in the Highland regions. The annual monsoon rains come in two waves. From November to February, they affect Sabah, Sarawak and the east coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The west coast of the peninsula gets most of its rain between April-October.
Time: GMT plus 8hrs.
Language: national language is Bahasa Malaysia, though the country’s ethnic diversity means that you’ll often hear various other dialects spoken such as Chinese and Indian. In practice, you’ll get by using English in all but the remotest regions.
Inoculations: not complusory, although protection is advised against polio, typhoid, tetanus and hepatitis A. Depending on which areas are visited, anti-malarial tablets might also be needed.
Main operators: Abercrombie and Kent, Bales Worldwide, Magic of the Orient, Hayes and Jarvis, Exodus, Explore Worldwide, Dream Journeys, The Malaysia Experience and Tradewinds Holidays.
Factfile