Kuala Lumpur + Kota Kinabalu: the capital and Borneo
Malaysia splits into a peninsula and an island, and the second part is another country entirely: jungle, orangutans, a four-thousand-metre peak and reefs.
Why fly to Borneo
Kuala Lumpur is seen in three or four days, and for most people Malaysia ends there. Yet the most interesting part of the country is on the island: the state of Sabah with Mount Kinabalu above four thousand metres, rainforest where orangutans still live, and coral islands directly opposite the city. The flight from the mainland takes about two and a half hours.
What to do in Sabah
The islands of the Tunku Abdul Rahman marine park are twenty minutes by boat from the promenade — snorkelling and beaches. Kinabalu national park: the trail to the summit takes two days with a night in a mountain hut, places are booked far ahead and the quota is strict; without the climb there are still botanical trails and the Poring hot springs. The Danum valley and Sepilok, where orangutans are rehabilitated, lie further east and need days of their own. The sunsets in Kota Kinabalu are considered among the best in Asia, and that is not an exaggeration. The marine park islands combine easily: a boat makes a circuit with stops at several, so a day gives you snorkelling, a beach and lunch on the water.
How to divide the days
Three nights in Kuala Lumpur and six in Sabah. Fewer than six is not worth taking: distances on the island are long, the roads are mountainous, and the weather moves plans. If the goal is the Kinabalu ascent, budget three of the six for it and book the hut long before the trip.
The capital in three days
The Petronas Towers, Batu Caves with its flight of 272 steps, Chinatown and Little India, the Jamek mosque. In the evening, street courts with three cuisines at once. With a spare day, go to Malacca: two hours by bus, a Portuguese fortress, a Dutch square and the country's best street food.
When to go
March–September is the relatively dry season in Sabah and the best time for the climb and the sea. From November to February the rains are heavier and the sea rougher, with islands closed in storms. On the peninsula the seasons are reversed and less pronounced, so the pair almost always catches at least one good half.
Climbing Kinabalu
The mountain is 4,095 metres, and the ascent is not technically hard but strictly regulated: places in the Laban Rata hut are limited, you may only go with a licensed guide, and booking runs months ahead. The standard scheme: climb to the hut on day one, sleep, set out at two in the morning, meet sunrise at the summit, descend the same day. You need warm clothes, a headtorch and a readiness for altitude — the summit hovers near freezing.
Wildlife of Borneo
Seeing orangutans in the wild is difficult but possible: the rehabilitation centre at Sepilok near Sandakan shows them close up, and a boat along the Kinabatangan river brings encounters with proboscis monkeys, pygmy elephants and hornbills. The Danum valley is primary rainforest with lodges and night walks — the most expensive and the most genuine thing here. All of it lies in the east of the state, several hours by road from Kota Kinabalu or a short flight.
Practical matters
Malaysia is visa-free for a Russian passport, up to 30 days. An important detail: Sabah and Sarawak run their own immigration control, so your passport is checked again on arrival from the mainland even though the flight is domestic. Sockets are British. Against mosquitoes in the jungle bring something strong rather than a pharmacy minimum. Domestic flights to Borneo are cheap, but baggage is paid separately and in advance — at the airport it costs substantially more.
Moscow → Kuala Lumpur → Kota Kinabalu
Route and nights go into the form — adjust the date and passengers.