Home » Hostels in Malaysia

There are quite a few hostels in Malaysia although the name “hostel” isn’t used too often. Some are called backpackers and others are lodges, inns, or guesthouses, but the important thing is there are plenty of Malaysia hostels no matter what they call themselves. Hotel prices in the country tend to be very reasonable and many of the more affordable hotels are listed on these pages among the more traditional Malaysia hostels.

Of course, Kuala Lumpur is the capital and also the capital of the Malaysia hostels scene. There are dozens of them in the capital and all of them offer private rooms in addition to the cheaper dorm beds. You’ll notice as you scan these listings that the private rooms are often only a bit more expensive than the dorm beds. You have to book and pay for all the beds in the private rooms for them to truly be private, but especially if you are traveling in a group of two or three this should never be a problem. Some of the Malaysia hostels have private rooms for singles as well. Often they are actually double rooms that are almost the full price of two people staying in the room, but in some places the single rooms are only a bit higher than the price per night for a double or twin.

One interesting thing about Malaysia is the country has an abundance of first class hotels and resorts. The prices for these 4 and 5-star places are some of the lowest in the world and that also works its way down into the budget places as well. In other words you might find a hostel in Malaysia with dorm beds on offer for under US$4 per night, but private rooms at a much fancier place for only around US$10 or US$12 per night.

When traveling on a tight budget it’s important to save money, but it’s also important to figure out the places where a mini-splurge are going to pay off the most. Considering it probably cost at least a few hundred dollars to get to Malaysia in the first place, is it worth saving US$6 per night to sleep in a dorm room with strangers when for the price of a couple of cups of Starbucks coffee you could instead be staying in a fairly luxurious private room?

There are other positive things about staying at a hostel in Malaysia as opposed to a hotel, not the least of which is the relative ease of meeting other travelers. Hostels are great for mingling with people who have just come from the direction you are going. You can get up to the minute advice on which places in your next destination to check out, as well as important advice on things to avoid or be cautious of as well.

Even the Malaysia hostels on these pages that have mostly private rooms will usually have common lounge areas and often private bars or even nightclubs. You can easily meet other travelers in these places even if you choose to stay in a private room. And do yourself a favor and stay at a place with good air conditioning. This country can get sweltering most of the year and the modern places will usually offer more comfort than the older and cheaper places.

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