Our NEW guide to cycle touring Malaysia, Southern Thailand and Java (with your kids on board). Why cycling? It’s difficult to describe the inescapable freedom of travelling the world by bicycle: of waking up and packing your gear, throwing a leg over your trusty bike and just cycling away to anywhere you want to go. There’s no haggling over a taxi..... . .
When our budget-conscious trio set out to explore Malaysia’s less-travelled East Coast, we had no idea we could travel Malaysia on AUD$50 a day. Live well and spend so little: here’s how we did it. For us, it turned out to be the best way to get fit, travel slowly and enjoy the company of locals at every coffee stop, lunch break and..... . .
Riding the slow train with our bikes from the Malay-Thai border north to Phattalung to skip the supposedly dangerous part of southern Thailand that our travel insurance won’t cover us for. No one spoke English and we were the centre of attention but it was all very friendly. Off the tourist route? You bet!
It’s couch surfing for touring cyclists and its called Warm Showers (perhaps because a good wash trumps a comfy sit down when you’re a sweaty biker). For foreign cyclists looking to meet locals while travelling and experience just of slice of living as they do, this online hospitality exchange site is a top idea. You get to connect with..... . .
There are plenty of ways to entertain kids at a cost in KL, but for good, free fun, combine these four top spots into one or two adventurous days. Start with a train ride to Batu Caves, then cool off at KLCC’s water park and mega outdoor playground. Head to Little India in search of cheap eats and funky Hindu temples, and cool your heels..... . .
I was more terrified of cycling through Singapore than I was of giving birth. Big call I know, but the mere thought of muscling my way through Singapore’s surging sea of oversized vehicles with my four-year-old balancing on the back of my fully-laden touring bike left me in a cold sweat. We had planned on kickstarting our cycle touring..... . .
Malaysian Borneo might seem like a distant destination, but from Kuching – Sarawak’s Capital of Cats – the wilderness is within easy reach. Watch orangutans feed, laze on limestone beaches eyeballing rare proboscis monkeys, or follow a jungle guide in search of the world’s biggest (and stinkiest) flower. Sarawak’s national parks..... . .
Running away to a tropical island is a dream escape for many travellers, but if you stick to the beaten path in Southeast Asia, you might well find that everyone else is running away with you. The Perhentian Islands off Peninsula Malaysia’s far north-east coast are famed for their excellent snorkelling and diving, and it’s on the smaller island of..... . .