bakedbean

Kicking this off for ozzieeagle....... Mmmm is there anywhere cool to live in Malaysia? Not sure there is, though there are a few slightly cooler places to escape too.

Someone mentioned Cameron Highlands. I've never been there. But would you wish to live there?

Penang has Penang Hill which is quite elevated and cooler....ok for a day trip.

Mount Kinabalu ?

teejaydee

The two places that are always mentioned when this topic crops up in other threads are Cameron Highlands and Ipoh. I have been to both and really, Ipoh may be marginally cooler due to the proximity of the limestone hills, but it is not what I would call cool. I think also, the hills tend to lead to higher rainfall. I liked Ipoh though, and could live there, but not because of any cooler climate.

When I went to Cameron Highlands it was noticeably cooler than at lower elevations, but I would not wish to live there. It's nice perhaps for a day trip or a weekend, but not as a full-time residence.

The only place in Malaysia that I have been to where it was cool enough to require a coat is Genting Highlands in Pehang. This is a mainly a resort, with hotels, casinos and a fun fair. There are properties for sale and rent, but I have not seen them. It is quite an isolated area, and so I would not like to live there. It might be nice as a weekend retreat for those from KL etc.

I have not been to Eastern Malaysia, so I don't know about anywhere there that may be cooler. You mention Mount Kinabalu, and in theory there should be areas in its foothills where the climate is cooler.

bakedbean

Well Malaysia is a tropical country so I guess that "cool" is just relative. You do get used to high temperatures after a while. I now feel decidedly chilly if the temperature goes down to 24 or 25 C some winter mornings. 24 or 25 C used to feel baking hot when I was in the UK Just relative.

teejaydee

That's true. Nobody thinking of living in Malaysia should expect there to be any truly cool areas. I am happy with the high temperatures, but I wish the humidity was lower. This for me is what makes the climate uncomfortable.

ozzieeagle

Cheers BB At least I know there is probably one main city to look at for the cooler areas now. Just have to work out whether CoL and Lifestyle overcomes my personal discomfort with hotter weather. You never know until you try it. My wife will love it, so that one half of the equation satisfied, with the climate at least.

bakedbean

As TeeJayDee says, it's probably the humidity more than anything that wears you down sometimes. But....no country is perfect eh. If it were, we'd all be living in our home countries I guess.

montakute

I have a work colleague who currently lives in KL but she grew up in Ipoh and she warned me against Ipoh because she says it's very hot, i.e., hotter than KL or Penang in her opinion.

I've read some people claim Kuching is a little cooler.

You might like this weather site, you can track weather metrics such as %humidity, temperature, rainfall hour by hour. Beautiful Weather Graphs and Maps - WeatherSpark
If you use it to track weather throughout the day on past days, you get a good idea of what the weather is like in a place. Maybe track a couple of places and compare.

kingoflostfools

The only time I noticed anywhere appreciably cooler in Malaysia was on a cloudy day at the top of Penang Hill.

It was maybe mid-20's Celsius rather than the usual 30's. Presumably due to a reasonable amount of shade and a cooling breeze.

I haven't been as far as the Cameron Highlands, but I've been through Ipoh. Ipoh was marginally cooler than Penang - maybe high 20's Celsius as you travel in between the limestone cliffs outside of downtown Ipoh.

These sort of differences are so marginal as to make no difference. Better to find a shady apartment in Miami Green which is high enough up to catch the sea breeze - as per my friends place there which is always pretty pleasant.