Hello, my name is Nash and this is the first blog post on escapein.my. I am a Malaysian, 32 years old and living in Malaysia since then. I grow up, eat, play, got educated, and work here in Malaysia. Most probably, you’ll need some of my tips to make your visit to my country a little smoother.
I don’t want to tell you what and where Malaysia is, there is a very high chance that you already know. Every year, millions of tourist came to visit Malaysia, and their favourite city is Kuala Lumpur, Penang and also Langkawi. Are you coming for these too?
How is ovearll safety in Malaysia?
As a Malaysian myself living in Malaysia, I would personally tell you that it is very safe to travel to Malaysia in 2026. We welcome all tourist from all around the world to visit Malaysia.
As far as I am concern, violent crime involving tourist like you are very rare here. Most of tourist came and left in one piece, hehe. I’m kidding about that word I use, okay? Chill!
Whether you are walking in a shopping mall, visiting attractions, or using public transport, you will generally feel comfortable and safe. Oh ya, we even ranked as the 13th most peaceful country in the world in the Global Peace Index (GPI).
As a comparison, do you feel safe living or travelling to London? That is world’s 30th safest. Do you feel safe going to South Korea? The Seoul? That’s number 41 in the world. So now you can already imagine how safe Malaysia is.
3 Most ‘Unsafe’ Things That Can Happen To You
As a Malaysian myself, generally these three is the most unsafe thing that can happen to you. But there is always a way to avoid them. And they are:
1. Snatch Thief
Like all popular cities around the world, pickpocket are there. If you are a frequent traveller, I am pretty sure that you know this. You will be extra careful to keep your item away from these pick pockets. Right?
But in Malaysia, we have a lot of cases of snatch thief. They go on a motorcycle and snatch your handbag, slingbag, probably you phone or even your jewelleries like gold chain.
2. Scams and Overcharging
Beware of scams. These scammers are everywhere. They do not steal from you, but they trick you into paying a lot more than agreed price, or make you pay for stupid stuff.
Do you need an example? You can go to the Petronas Twin Tower in Kuala Lumpur. There is a favourite spot for a good photo. Here, there is a lot of so-called “professional photographer”. With an iPhone or with a DSLR camera.
They are going to offer you a photoshoot session of about RM 30, and you agreed because it is just about 5.5 £ of your British money, right? And the photoshoot session goes for about 1 to 2 minutes. And the “photographer” charged you about RM 450 (about 85 GBP). And now you’re shocked!
Then you ask ‘Why?’ and the scammer said that the RM 30 is only for 1 photo, not the whole session. And you cannot run away from them, because you already accept their offer and you already have the photos.
What make it worse? They did not even print the photos, they’ll just Airdrop it to you! And what worsen the situation? There’s no security guards, police or authorities here that you can report to. So, keep yourself away from these “professional photographer” in front of the Petronas Twin Tower, okay?