Top 5 Underrated Destinations in Malaysia You Need to Visit Now

In 2026, Penang’s George Town is gridlocked on weekends, Langkawi’s duty-free strip feels like a shopping mall with a sea view, and Cameron Highlands guesthouses are booked solid months in advance. Malaysia has genuinely world-class destinations — but the crowds have caught up. If you are done fighting for a parking spot at Batu Caves or paying RM180 a night for a basic room in Bukit Bintang, these five places offer the same quality of experience with a fraction of the hassle.

Taiping, Perak — Malaysia’s Oldest Town, Still Overlooked

Taiping was the first town in Malaysia to have a railway line, electric streetlights, and a public museum. In 2026, it still has all of those things — plus a colonial-era lake garden that locals use for morning walks while tourists are still sleeping. The rain arrives almost every afternoon here (Taiping holds the record for Malaysia’s highest annual rainfall), and that is exactly why the trees in Taman Tasik Taiping grow so thick and green that the air underneath them feels different. You walk in and the temperature drops noticeably.

The old town eats well above its weight. Taiping wonton noodles are a specific regional style — slightly springy noodles, a light soy-based sauce, and char siu that is sliced thicker than you will find in KL. The morning wet market on Jalan Kota stretches longer than most visitors expect, with vendors selling jungle produce, fresh tofu, and kuih that have not changed recipe in three generations.

Taiping Zoo operates as a night zoo from 8pm to 11pm on weekends. Admission is RM25 for adults. The experience of watching nocturnal animals in near-darkness with a small crowd — no tour buses, no queuing — is genuinely different from any zoo visit you have done before.

Mersing, Johor — The Gateway Nobody Talks About

Most travel articles about Mersing treat it as a footnote — a transit town where you catch a boat to Tioman Island. That is underselling it badly. Mersing itself, sitting where the Mersing River meets the South China Sea, is a working fishing town with a food scene that genuinely reflects what Johor coastal cooking looks like before it gets adapted for tourists.

The fish here is bought directly off boats at the jetty on Jalan Abu Bakar. By 6am, local restaurants are already cooking. The ikan bakar stalls along the waterfront grill whole fish over coconut husk charcoal — the smoke is thick and sweet-smelling — and you eat at plastic tables while watching the wooden fishing boats come and go. A full meal of grilled fish, sambal, rice, and vegetables costs between RM15 and RM25 depending on the fish.

In 2026, the Mersing River walkway development that was stalled for years has been completed, giving a clean riverside path from the old town jetty toward Tanjung Balau. It is not dramatic infrastructure — more like a simple boardwalk — but it makes the town pleasant to explore on foot in the early morning before the heat arrives.

The islands off Mersing are less known than Tioman but worth the shorter boat ride. Pulau Rawa, Pulau Besar, and Pulau Tinggi all sit within 45 minutes by speedboat, and in 2026 visitor numbers remain well below their pre-pandemic peaks.

Beaufort, Sabah — Borneo’s Quiet River Country

Beaufort sits about 90 kilometres south of Kota Kinabalu along the Padas River, and it is one of those towns that appears on almost no itinerary despite being directly on the Sabah State Railway line. The rail journey from Tanjung Aru station takes roughly two hours and runs through paddy fields, kampung settlements, and secondary jungle — the kind of window-seat Borneo that used to fill travel magazines before everyone started going to Sandakan or Kinabatangan instead.

The Padas River white-water rafting here is the best-value rapid experience in Sabah. The Grade III and IV rapids on this stretch see far fewer operators and smaller groups than the more commercialised sections of Kinabatangan, and the surrounding jungle canopy closes over parts of the river completely. Packages from Kota Kinabalu typically run RM200 to RM280 all-inclusive, covering the train ride, equipment, lunch, and return transport.

Beaufort town itself is small and practical. There is a covered wet market, a few Chinese kopitiam serving excellent ngiu chap (beef noodle soup), and a Sunday market that draws indigenous Kadazan-Dusun and Murut communities from surrounding villages. It is not a destination for luxury travel — but if your interest is in how Sabah actually functions outside its national parks, this is one of the most honest places to see it.

Kota Bharu, Kelantan — A Cultural Capital Living in Its Own World

Kota Bharu operates on a different rhythm from the rest of peninsular Malaysia. It is the only state capital where Friday and Saturday are the weekend (not Saturday and Sunday), where traditional crafts like batik printing, silver filigree work, and wayang kulit shadow puppetry are still practiced commercially rather than preserved as museum exhibits, and where the food scene is entirely its own category.

Kelantan food is sweeter and richer than most Malaysian regional cuisines. Nasi kerabu — blue-rice served with herb salad, coconut, fried chicken, and multiple sambal — is eaten for breakfast here, not as a novelty dish. The blue colour comes from butterfly pea flowers and turns the rice a deep indigo that looks almost unreal. The Central Market (Pasar Besar Siti Khadijah) is the best place to try it. The ground floor is produce, the first floor is food stalls, and the building itself — with its Moorish-style painted tiles — is worth an hour of walking on its own.

Air connectivity improved significantly in 2025 and 2026. AirAsia now operates more frequent direct flights from Kuala Lumpur Subang (Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport) to Sultan Ismail Petra Airport in Kota Bharu, cutting what used to be a six-hour drive into a 55-minute flight for under RM100 one-way if booked in advance.

Bau, Sarawak — Cave Country Near Kuching Without the Crowds

Bau is 37 kilometres from Kuching and almost no international tourist goes there. The surrounding limestone hills are riddled with caves — Fairy Cave and Wind Cave being the most accessible — and the landscape around the town has a dramatic karst quality that feels disproportionate to how quietly it sits on most travel maps.

Fairy Cave requires a short climb up metal stairs into a cavern large enough to contain several football fields. Inside, a small Chinese shrine sits in partial darkness while natural light filters down through a gap in the rock ceiling above it, hitting the floor of the cave in a shaft that moves across the ground as the day progresses. It is the kind of thing that you do not expect from a free-entry cave 40 minutes from a state capital.

Wind Cave, a few kilometres away, involves a raised walkway through a riverside cave system. The temperature inside drops sharply — it genuinely feels cold by Sarawak standards — and the sound of the underground river running alongside the walkway fills the space entirely. You smell the limestone before you see it: mineral and damp with a faint organic undertone from the cave ecosystem above you.

Bau also has a small but interesting gold-mining history. The Bidayuh community has lived in this area for centuries, and the town’s local museum documents both the Chinese gold mining operations of the 1800s and the Brooke-era conflicts that followed them. Entry is free.

2026 Budget Reality — What These Destinations Actually Cost

One reason these destinations remain underrated is that they have not yet experienced the accommodation price inflation that hit Penang, Langkawi, and KL between 2023 and 2025. Here is what realistic spending looks like in 2026:

• Budget (RM80–130/night): Guesthouses and budget hotels in Taiping, Mersing, and Bau all sit comfortably in this range. Beaufort has basic lodging from RM70 per night. Food costs RM15–35 per person per day if you eat where locals eat.
• Mid-range (RM150–250/night): Kota Bharu has the most developed mid-range hotel scene of the five towns, with business hotels that include breakfast. Mersing has a few small resorts and newer boutique guesthouses in this bracket.
• Comfortable (RM280–400/night): You will not find five-star options in most of these towns, but Kota Bharu and Taiping both have renovated heritage properties and newer hotels with pools that sit in this range without the premium pricing of major tourist centres.

Getting to these destinations remains genuinely affordable. The KTM Intercity train from KL Sentral to Taiping is RM25–35 depending on class. The Sabah State Railway ticket from Tanjung Aru to Beaufort costs under RM8. Bus services from Kuching to Bau run every hour or so and cost RM4–6. These are not hidden costs waiting to surprise you.

Day Trip or Overnight?

This depends entirely on what you want from each destination:

• Taiping: Overnight strongly recommended. The lake garden, night zoo, and old town morning market each deserve unhurried time. A day trip from Ipoh (40 km) works but only covers the surface.
• Mersing: Day trip possible from Johor Bahru (165 km, about 2.5 hours). But if you are coming from KL (250 km), staying one night means you catch the early morning jetty market and waterfront atmosphere that disappear by 9am.
• Beaufort: Works as a day trip from Kota Kinabalu if you take the morning train and return by afternoon. An overnight stay adds the Sunday market and evening kampung atmosphere.
• Kota Bharu: Minimum two nights. There is enough here — markets, craft workshops, food stalls, the cultural museum — to fill three days without repetition.
• Bau: Day trip from Kuching is genuinely sufficient. Both caves plus the town itself can be covered in four to five hours. Rent a car or use Grab from Kuching.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are these destinations safe for solo travellers?

Yes, all five are among the safest types of destinations in Malaysia — small towns and regional centres with low tourist crime. Kota Bharu is a conservative Muslim city, so modest dress in public is appropriate and respectful. Beaufort and Bau have limited street lighting at night, so plan to be back at your accommodation by dark if you are unfamiliar with the area.

Do I need a car to visit these places?

Not always. Taiping, Kota Bharu, and Mersing are walkable enough for most sights. Beaufort is best accessed by the Sabah State Railway from Kota Kinabalu. Bau is the one destination where having a car or booking a Grab from Kuching makes the most difference, since the caves sit a few kilometres apart from each other and from town.

What is the best time of year to visit Mersing?

Avoid November through January when the South China Sea monsoon makes seas rough and boat services to the islands are frequently cancelled. March to October gives the best conditions. April and May tend to have clear weather and lower visitor numbers before the school holiday surge in June.

Has anything changed in Kota Bharu for visitors in 2026?

The Cultural Museum on Jalan Sultan completed a renovation in late 2025, adding a dedicated Kelantanese textile gallery. The city remains under PAS state governance, so alcohol is not sold publicly and entertainment norms are conservative compared to KL or Penang.

Are the caves in Bau suitable for people with limited mobility?

Wind Cave has a flat raised walkway and is generally accessible. Fairy Cave involves a steep staircase climb to reach the main chamber — approximately 180 steps — and is not suitable for people who have difficulty with stairs or heights. Both caves are free to enter and require no advance booking in 2026.

📷 Featured image by Joshua Kettle on Unsplash.