Top Places To Visit In Langkawi
How to do sightseeing in Langkawi
Most tourist attractions in Langkawi are located within the main island (i.e. Pulau Langkawi) while there are a few that are located offshore in the islands scattered around the main island.
The easiest and the most convenient way to visit the tourist places would be to
take a taxi. You can get one from the many stands around the island or just flag down one on the street and hop in. While taxis have fixed fares between one place to the other, they also operate on hourly rate for local tours which is quite economical. All you have to do is just tell the driver which places you want to visit. However you will need to hire the taxi for a minimum of 4 hours.
Alternatively, you can rent a car or a bike and get around the island easily. By road it does not take more than 45 minutes to reach one end of the main island from the other. If you plan to
rent a car or a motorbike , you will need a good map of the island. There are two ways to go: Either you refer to this
Langkawi Map, or drive down to the nearest
Tourist Information Center (there is one in Kuah Town and opposite to the Jetty, another one at the airport) and grab a folding map.
Langkawi is sparsely populated and you will hardly see people on the main roads. As you drive along, the swaying coconut & palm trees, the lush greenery of the rain forests, the fresh breeze from the ocean and wonderful view of the coastline will often be your company.
There are many
sightseeing land tours run by the local tour operators that you can also avail to visit the tourist places within the main island. Although they would cost little more than a taxi, one advantage here is they offer proper guide. If you are in a group, they can also organize a mini van or a coach.
For visiting the tourist attractions in the offshore islands, you will need to
take a boat tour or a private boat rental. Some great attractions like the Kilim Geoforest Park with its mangroves and mammoth limestone rocks, eagle feeding, snorkeling or diving at Pulau Payar etc require a boat ride. You can also take an island hopping tour to go around several islands, visit pristine beaches, swim and snorkel.
The must visit places in Langkawi
Following are the top attractions and places to visit in Langkawi. Go through the links for details. In the section that follows after this, you will also find the attractions arranged by category.
Langkawi Cable Car
(Pantai Kok, near Burau Bay)
This is an awesome ride on a cable car that has the steepest gradient in the world and taking you to the summit of Mount Mat Cincang over a distance of about 2.1kms. You get breathtaking views of the Andaman sea below along with the scattered islands of Langkawi and the towering peaks.
Photo: Phalinn Ooi, flickr, cc by 2.0
There are two cable car stations along the way with viewing platforms and walking trails. The ride from the base station up to the middle station is very steep, while the ride between the middle and the top station is on a relatively flat gradient. The cable car ride takes place from
Oriental Village located at Pantai Kok area... an open air shopping complex with many restaurants and eateries.
Langkawi Sky Bridge
(Pantai Kok, near Burau Bay)
The Skybridge is another engineering marvel. It's a curved suspension bridge high up in the sky that links the cable car top station with a nearby mountain. If you have the spirit of adventure, walk down or take the elevator to the bridge, walk over it and appreciate the magical creation as you watch the views all around including the mountains and the rainforest on them. You will feel you are on top of the world.
Visit the Great Beaches
The Cenang beach (i.e. Pantai Cenang) located on the western coast of Langkawi's main island is undoubtedly the most popular beach here and is full of watersport activities like Jet Skiing, Banana Boating, swimming, parasailing etc. Pantai Cenang is fringed with large umber of resorts, restaurants and bars. There are also great shopping options here including many roadside shops, duty free stores and the Cenang Mall.
Another great beach to visit is the Tanjung Rhu beach located on the northern shoreline... it's one of the pristine white sandy beach. Sunset views from both these beaches are magnificent.
Go through
The Great Beaches of Langkawi to know about all the lovely beaches in the island including the facilities they offer, how to reach, and more .
Kilim Geo Park and Mangroves
(Kilim River, North East end of Langkawi)
You will need to take a boat tour to experience Kilim Geo Park which is a nature reserve full of geological formations and spanning across some 100 square km area. It offers stunning sights of gigantic limestone rocks, millions of years old fossils, mangrove swamps, lovely sights of the islands, beaches & lagoons and lot more. As part of this tour, you will also see floating fish farms where you can yourself feed stingrays, and experience other spectacular activities like eagle feeding, monkey feeding etc.
Go through
Kilim Geo Park and Mangroves Tour to get complete details of the boat tour including the places you visit, what you get to experience, tour price and the best tour operators.
Do Island Hopping
Island hopping is one of the most popular boat tours in Langkawi where tourists are taken to two different islands on a boat (Pulau Dayang Bunting and Pulau Beras Basah) and also to a calm water area where eagle feeding is shown spending a total time of about three & half hours.
Photo: Emran Kassim, flickr, cc by 2.0
During the tour you get to see stunning nature and scenery. You will be able to swim or paddle boat at a natural lake surrounded by forested mountains which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites of Geoforest Parks. You will also visit some picture perfect island beaches where you can swim and snorkel or simply lounge and relax. The tour boats leave from Teluk Baru jetty in Pantai Tengah and is this group tour on per person rate is offered by most tour operators and even hotels.
Go through
Island Hopping to get complete details of the tours, the islands you visit, what you can see and do there, tour prices and the best ways to take the tour.
Underwater World
(Pantai Cenang)
The 60,000 sq. ft. building houses over 4000 fish and marine creatures and have separate sections for wide range of birds and animals as well. The sections are themed on Tropical Rainforest, Temperate, Sub-Antarctic, Ponds, Corals and so on. There is a 15-meter long tunnel that showcases an array of fish and underwater life in numerous large and small glass tanks that are mostly engraved on the walls. Inside, there are souvenir shops and cafe as well.
Lionfish. Photo: amrufm, flickr, cc by 2.0
Visit Pulau Payar Marine Park
If you are keen to snorkel or scuba dive, then this is the best option for you... Pulau Payar is an island which is located offshore and 30kms south of the main island. A marine park has been developed in the surrounding water area that also includes few other islands. There are scheduled boat tours that leave from Kuah.
There are several beaches here where you can do beachside swimming and snorkeling. You can also hand feed the baby sharks, or just relax and sunbathe. You can also do offshore snorkeling that offers much better experience and you can see colorful coral reefs and a vast range of marine life. The marine park is also a haven for the scuba divers... there are several great reef dive sites here.
Photo: andresmh, flickr, cc by-sa 2.0
There are ample facilities at the park including changing rooms and showers as well as picnic tables and shades. The tours include boat transfers, all gears, lunch etc.
Eagle Square - Dataran Lang
(Kuah Town, South East Langkawi)
There is a 12-meter high sculpture of a reddish brown eagle at the square and looking into the open bay. The eagle symbolizes origin of Langawi's name and hence such a statue created at Kuah Town close to the jetty (ferry dock). The view of the waters with backdrop of mountains and ferries plying by is really spectacular.
Eagle Square Langkawi
There are fountains, colorful lights that are lit after dark, gardens, pond, exhibition area etc in Eagle Square. You can also find several stalls around selling snacks and souvenirs.
Lake of the Pregnant Maiden
(Located at Pulau Dayang Bunting)
There is a wonderful fresh water lake located at the Dayang Bunting Island which is steeped with legend and surrounded by hills and rainforest in a picturesque setting.
Pulau Dayang Bunting & the lake. Photo: cktravels, shutterstock
The lake is great for swimming and the forests excellent for bird watchers. The island is located offshore in the south of main Langkawi island and can be easily reached by a boat. There are plenty of boat tours operating out of Pantai Tengah that can drop you to this lovely spot.
Seven Wells Waterfall
Locally known as Telega Tujuh, this is undoubtedly the best waterfall in Langkawi. The name of the waterfall is derived from the seven different natural pools that have been formed along the course of the waterfall at various levels. While you can see the waterfall from a lower level, but the real fun is at the top and for that you need to climb 638 steps through the rainforest of Mount Mat Cincang to get there.
Photo: FilipTravelWorld, Shutterstock
There are two natural pools at the top level where many tourists take a dip or sit on one of the many rocks and enjoy the views. The view all around is awesome. The area is fringed with green foliage.
Mahsuri's Tomb & Cultural Center
(Padang Matsirat, Jalan Makam Mahsuri)
This place has a mausoleum and the tomb of Mahsuri, the legendary folk lady from Langkawi who was falsely accused of adultery by the wife of village chief and was finally sentenced to death. It was her dazzling beauty that led to the jealousy and the false charge.
Before her death, Mahsuri cursed the island for seven generations of ill luck which apparently struck the island soon after her death. But fortunately the bad time has now passed. This place, also known as Makam Mahsuri, has evolved as a cultural complex which also has a music theater where folk instruments are played, a large gallery with paintings & models depicting Mahsuri's life story, an audio-video room, a typical Malay house the way it used to be centuries back, souvenir shop, food stalls and more.
Telaga Harbour Park
This is a lovely harbor park in Pantai Kok area that has a full service marina, a boardwalk along the harbor, and there are many shops and restaurants with bars along the harbor where you can sit on the porch, eat and drink and enjoy the lovely views of the harbor. There are many large and small yachts that you can see anchored at the harbor creating a picturesque setting that's ideal for photo shoots.
You can get stunning views of sunset from here. The shopping complex with many restaurants here is known as
Perdana Quay which has restaurants both along the harbor as well inside the complex.
Langkawi Wildlife Park
(North East, near Kilim Village)
Spread across some 5.5 acres of area, this wildlife park (earlier known as the Bird Paradise) is fully covered with roofed pathways. So in sun or rains, you can equally enjoy the park which has over 150 species of animal and bird life. The collection comes from various parts of the world including South Asia, Russia, South America and Malaysia. However, don't expect the large exotic species here. You can interact with the animals during feeding sessions. Go through
Langkawi Wildlife Park for details.
Photo: Langkawi Wildlife Park
Splash Out Waterpark
(In Kuah District)
Spread out across nearly 5 hectares of land area, this new amusement park is full of thrilling rides and activities. One of the most popular rides here is a towering water slide with a height of almost 6 storied building, another one is the Ragin’ Racers” that includes a downward scramble at the speed of around 50km per hour all the way to ground level. There are several softer rides as well.
And there are a number of choices for eateries and snack venues inside the park that serve different kinds of cuisine including Indian, Arabic, burgers, tea/coffee etc and varieties of other fast food.
Lagenda Park
(Kuah Town, South East Langkawi)
This beautiful recreational parkland spans across 20 hectares of land and is located close to Eagle Square in Kuah Town. There are many manicured gardens inside full of fruit trees and other plantations. You can simply take a walk along the paved pathway and enjoy the vegetation around and also learn about the many legends of Langkawi from the pre-historic days to the modern times. It's a great place for families & kids.
You will also find many scultures scatted around in the park each of which depict a unique legend of the island. There are also several ponds and lakes in the park.
Go through
Lagenda Park for full details on what to expect in Lagenda Park, how to reach and more.
Galeria Perdana
(North East, near Kilim Village, Mukim Air Hangat)
This is a plush museum that showcases collections of gifts and awards received by the 4th Prime Minister of Malaysia Tun Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad and his wife. The Prime Minister believed that all his gifts were public properties. The large building with oriental architecture houses many precious items including jewelry, souvenirs, weapons, copper & metallic items, furniture, and even cars and cycles that have been gifted to the Prime Minister during his tenure of service by foreign delegates, statesmen, well-wishers, friends and guests.
Galeria Perdana, Langkawi
Langkawi Craft Complex
(North Langkawi, Teluk Yu, Mukim Bohor)
Located at the northern part of Langkawi near Shark Bay Beach, this craft complex showcases wide range of art & handicraft craft items reflecting the rich culture and heritage of Malaysia and Langkawi. There are museum sections with exhibits depicting several themes like Heritage, History & Legends etc.
There are exclusive collections of forest based products, silk batik, ceramics, brass & silverware and lot more which you can buy from the sales gallery.
Glass Blowing Studio
Located behind the Craft Complex, this fantastic glass blowing studio known as Faizy Crystal not only exhibits and sales exquisite glass-made items including flowers & vases, crystals, pen stands, figurines and lot more, all these items are handcrafted by local artisans at the factory that is part of the studio.
You can simply walk in and see the glass blowing technique used by the craftsmen to produce such wonderful glass items or simply go around the showroom and take a look... there are no charges or admission fee. If you like any items, you can of course buy them as well.
Attractions by Category
There are several other attractions and places that come pretty close to our list of top favorites. Honestly it's very difficult to rank them all. So below I have categorized them under different heads and described them all in detail under those sections.
Know about the great parks, nature reserves, sanctuaries, lakes & lagoons etc.
An insight into the rich heritage, culture and historical background of the island.
The top waterfalls of Langkawi
The top craft centers and art galleries in Langkawi that showcase exquisite items including wide range of handicraft and paintings from exceptionally talented local artists. A new introduction is Malaysia's largest 3-dimensional art museum.
The great natural caves in Langkawi for the cave lovers. Some of them can be accessed on foot, and some by taking a boat ride. Many of them have amazing stalactite and stalagmite formations, and some are home to large number of bats & other creatures.
These are village like complexes developed with their unique and holistic offerings. Some of them like the Oriental Village offers a comprehensive complex with shopping, food, and many attractions & activities all packed in one place to make it a one-stop village.
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Visitors' Reviews/Comments
Karen (February 2019)
Hello, Your website is a wealth of SOLID information, Thank You! Planning a one day visit while in port on a cruise (I know, too short) and wondering if it is worth the time to stop at both the Craft Complex and the Batik Village. Some reviews of the Craft Complex make it seem very touristy. I'd like to go if the good there are authentic and not shipped in from somewhere else. We're doing a Geopark boat tour in the morning and planning to hire a taxi to take us to some stops before back to the ship in Kuah. Thoughts?
Raj (langkawi-insight.com) February 2019
Hi, Complex Craft has a vast range of art & craft on display. It's a huge complex. Their main earning is through tourism and exports, so you will likely find it to be touristy. But you can certainly find many unique items too. Batik Village on the other hand is much smaller, self contained and most prints are handmade in their own in-house factory. You can also try your hands in batik printing (there are lessons and demos given).
Norfazilah (December 2014)
Hi Raj, It was really an insight reading & browsing your website. Very useful & helpful indeed. Bravo!!
I'll be in Langkawi from 25/12/14 - 30/12/14. That'll be me + hubby & our 2 girls age 14 & 10. We'll be staying at Resorts World Langkawi from 25/12/14-28/12/14 and will be in Bay View Langkawi on 28/12/14 - 30/12/14. The last time we've been in Langkawi was in 2001, for an office retreat so we didn't get to venture much. We will leave Langkawi on 30/12/14 at 9.20pm flight. We'll reach a little late on 25/12/14, probably around 8pm, so it'll just be reach Langkawi Airport - head to hotel - late dinner and rest. In all, we'll have full 5 days in Langkawi.
Just wondering if you could comment and tweak my proposed plan. I am quite concerned on the weather during that period. Will it rain a lot and disrupt our Island hopping & geopark tour? Would you recommend we rent a car or we hail a cab and rent by the hour? Just for your info, we have always done free and easy for our holidays as we prefer to have our own timing.
Please, if you could help, we've always tried to cover as much as possible all the attractions whether touristy or not for our trip. If there are places where you think we should skip or anything that we missed out, please give us your advise. It'll be very much appreciated.
I have actually grouped the attractions according to the areas, as I thought it might be easier to move about and not having to miss any of them.
Island Hopping & Langkawi Mangrove Forest and Eagle Watching. Depending on the weather, we would want to cover these 2 tours asap, in case it rains later in the week. Can you propose any reliable tour agency for this? we don't mind sharing boat with others. How long does this tour take, I would prefer if it doesn't stretch the whole day
For the Waterfalls, which would you suggest the easiest for us to get to see
KUAH
Dataran Lang
Al-Hana Mosque - Heard this is one of the popular ones. Any others
that we should go to?
Taman Lagenda Langkawi
PANTAI KOK
Oriental Village
Langkawi Cable Car - is the bridge still close for maintenance?
Telaga Harbour - Anything interesting to see that we should not miss?
Telaga Tujuh
Bird Paradise
Craft Complex
Anna & The King - is this still available anyway? Didn't see much of it on the net
PANTAI CENANG
Underwater World Langkawi - we may or may not go as we've gone to
several aquarium based attractions recently
Laman Padi
Go Karting
PADANG MATSIRAT
Makam Mahsuri
Air Hangat Village
Atma Alam Batik
Beras Terbakar
Mardi Agrotechnology
OTHERS (I would consider if I have excess time)
Herbwalk - must I pre-book this with Dr Ghani? Do you know how much does it cost and how long does the tour take?
Langkawi Orchid Farm - is this worth visiting?
Nusantara Gamat Factory
Pasar Malam - Any good pasar malam to recommend
Night tour - we've heard of night jungle tour is this worth going?
Kampung tour
Other agro farms - any other agro farms other than mardi?
Langkawi Wildlife
Galleria Perdana
Book Village
Raj (langkawi-insight.com) December 2014
Hi, I don't think weather should be a concern as December is not a monsoon time. Short spurts of shower, if at all won't matter much. If you are comfortable, you can rent a car... but remember unless you are familiar with the island and have a good map, you may end up wasting time finding some of the attractions.
Not sure why you haven't included visits to any beaches which is the main reason why one chooses this island destination. You should visit Pantai Cenang beach and Pantai Tengah, and let your children swim and do some watersports like jet ski or kayaks. They will love them.
Island Hopping and Geopark/Mangroves are two separate boat tours. Island hopping takes 3-4 hours, and a proper Geopark/ Mangrove tour takes almost a full day (9:30am to 4pm). One of the best operators for Geopark is Malibest Resort's travel desk (they take outsider guests as well). Their tour covers one hour visit to the beautiful Tanjung Rhu beach as well. If you want a shorter tour, then go down to Kilim jetty and hire a private boat.
While seven wells waterfalls is the best, but you need to budget some 3 hours for that if you want to climb to the top and enjoy the water pool and the falls. It's quite tiring also to climb the long flights of stairs. You can however see a part of the fall from a lower level also and that doesn't take much time (about 15 minutes from the base). Another alternative is to visit the Durian Perangin waterfall located north of Kilim. The forested landscape while approaching the waterfall is excellent.
Sky bridge is still closed for restoration and will likely re-open in February 2015.
In Mosques, other than Al Hana, you can also visit the Masjid of Padang Matsirat on Jalan Padang Matsirat.
Nothing exists of Ana & The King film set, only the ruins and almost non-accessible. It's near Perdana Quay.
At Telaga Harbor you can stroll on the boardwalk and watch the beautiful marina full of yachts, see sunset, take some snacks or dine at a restaurant by the waterside, or visit some of the boutique shops at Perdana Quay (shopping arcade).
Herbwalk - only by appointment with Dr. Ghani. I don't think he is conducting the original herbwalk yet to explore the medicinal plants and herbs in Langkawi and explaining ways of healthy life. He is in the process of restructuring the program. However I understand you can still meet him for a garden walk and to discuss specific health related topic. This too is to be done with prior appointment. Cost is rm750 (total) for a group size of up to 25. Duration is 2 hours.
Langkawi Orchid Farm is quite nice and has some 200 varieties of orchid collection... from very small (thumbnail size) to up to 2.5 meters tall tree (called Tiger orchids). Try to get hold of Daniel (the owner) for a guided tour... you can then learn a lot about how orchids are cultured.
Pasar Malam - I have discussed all of them here ... ones at Kuah and Padang Matsirat are the best. But watch out for day of the week on which they are held at specific places.
Night tour is good if you are keen to see some of the nocturnal animals of Langkawi like the flying fox and flying squirrels. But there is no guarantee that you will see them.
Book Village is closed, but you can still visit the place and go around the nice landscape and see the buildings.
Good luck!
Rainie Tan (July 2014)
Hi, I am travelling with my brother. We planned to go by early August. As per plan, we might arrive at Langkawi, Kuah town by around 12 pm. We plan to rent a car or a bike, not sure yet. Then we will visit underwater world, then cable car and telaga tujuh waterfalls. I have read the post previously. Actually , I want to ask that, can we play water at telaga tujuh waterfalls? is it from the middle station or we need to travel by road to reach there? For the next day, we plan to go kilim geoforest and mangroves tour. Actually how long it will take if we don't want islands hopping. And for eagle viewing, is there any alternatives if I dont want to have it by boat tour? besides, may I know, how to get to telaga air hangat? can I slot it into my plan?
Raj (langkawi-insight.com) July 2014
There is a trekking trail from the middle station of cable car to reach Telaga Tujuh. The trail goes through the forest and may not be an easy trek for all. Alternatively you can reach the waterfall by road and climb the stairs to the top. You can play in the waters at the top. However fitting in all three (Underwater World, Cable Car and Telaga Tujuh) in the second half of a day may be difficult. You can take a short Geopark/Mangroves boat tour from Kilim Jetty (2-hours). Island Hopping is a separate boat tour. Viewing eagle feeding can be done from both these boat tours.
Iza Nurhana (July 2014)
Hi good afternoon. I have 2 questions
1) if I go for mangrove tour private boat (2 hours tour) in the morning and then after that proceed with pulau payar marine tour, is that a good idea? if it is, should i go for pulau payar first or geopark first?
2) for cable car ride do u suggest to go in the morning? (for a better view / climate). if it is ok to go maybe a bit late, is it suitable if i go for mangrove tour 2hr in the morning then later continue with cable car in the afternoon/ evening?
Thank u very much. my family (8 adult and 1 small kid 1 yr old) will be travel to Langkawi in mid of august. Thank you in advance.
Raj (langkawi-insight.com) July 2014
Hi, Pulau payar takes almost a full day and it's wise not to combine mangrove tour with that. You can rather go for the 2-hour mangrove tour next morning and followed by cable car. Views from cable car depends on the cloud cover at the peak on Mt. Mat Cincang. You need a bit of luck.
Vipul Nahar (September 2013)
Hi, Please suggest the suitable and convenient mode of transportation to cover all must see places.
Raj (langkawi-insight.com) September 2013
Hi, Hire a local taxi by the hour. Will cost you RM25 per hour and minimum 4 hours booking is required.
Vipul Nahar (September 2013)
Thanks for the info. What do you recommend, shall we book taxi services in advance for whole trip or locally we can book after landing?
Raj (langkawi-insight.com) September 2013
No need to book a taxi in advance. There are plenty of taxis available in the island. Just ensure that the driver speaks or at least understands English (unless of course you are familiar with local language). It won't be easy to find an English speaking driver. Your best chance is to go to a taxi stand and then choose one rather than flagging down one on the road. Some 'Must see places' like the Kilim Geopark, Dayang Bunting lake or Pulau Payar Marine Park etc can't be covered by taxis. Some of them are offshore locations. You will need to book a tour. You can book them while on the island. I have discussed the tour options under the description of each of such attractions and also under 'Langkawi Tours' menu options.
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