East Coast (Malaysia) Travel Guide
From Wikitravel
The East Coast is a part of Peninsular Malaysia in Malaysia. Largely rural and comparative poor, the East's prime attractions are some of Malaysia's most unspoiled islands, featuring great beaches and excellent scuba diving.
Contents |
Regions
Cities
- Kota Bharu, the capital of Kelantan
- Kuala Terengganu, the capital of Terengganu
- Kuantan, the capital of Pahang
Other destinations
- Perhentian Islands, backpacker paradise
- Redang Island, resort and scuba paradise
- Tioman Island, slightly more commercialized paradise
Understand
The East Coast is the poorest and most culturally conservative part of Malaysia. The economy is largely based on agriculture and you'll rarely see a woman without a headscarf. The component states implement and enforce fairly strict Islamic law (syariah), which to some extent affects non-Muslims as well — beaches and supermarket queues are sex-segregated, the availability of alcohol is limited, and in Kelantan karaoke and billiards were banned until 2005. Even the weekend is Islamcized, as unlike the rest of Malaysia, in the states of Terengganu and Kelantan the weekend runs from Friday to Saturday, with shops and banks closed on Friday but everything open normally on Sunday.
Still, the East Coast is not Saudi Arabia. Non-Muslims are generally exempt from Islamic law and the federal government has blocked attempts to impose full Muslim hudud punishments, complete with stonings and chopped-off hands. On the resort islands off the coast, dress and segregation regulations are ignored by all and sundry and the occasional misguided backpacker sunbathing topless elicits more oglers than angry mullahs.
Talk
Standard Malay is spoken by nearly everybody, but the dialect of Kelantan is infamously difficult for outsiders to understand and a version of Thai is also spoken near the northern border.
Get in
Get around
See
Do
Eat
The East Coast has several distinctive dishes, which usually fall under the moniker of Kelantanese cuisine and are thus covered under Kelantan, although they're widely available in Pahang and Terengganu as well.
Drink
In Kelantan and Terengganu, Malay-owned establishments are by law not allowed to deal in alcohol, and Muslims caught drinking will be caned and fined. These laws do not apply to non-Muslims, so Chinese and Indian shops may legally stock beer and spirits, but their stocks will often not be on public display and prices tend to be high. On the resort islands in particular, you'll be looking at upwards of RM 10 for a can of beer, so stock up before arrival.
Get out
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