Every Malaysian remembers that significant day, the day that we Malaysians were finally let out of our house arrest and given the opportunity to see the world and see our country and see our families after months and months of staying home, eating, working, sleeping and Netflixing. 

We remember it like it was only yesterday. When our Prime Minister finally announced that we can #RentasNegeri. A huge wave of emotions crashed onto us like a tsunami of happiness, relief, love and of course excitement. Finally, WE WERE FREE! 

The highways were full of cars again, families were reunited and the thirst for travel was finally quenched. 

But who can get enough of travelling? No one! We want to see more of what the world and our country has to offer. 

So, since we still have to work to save money to travel, here are some road trip routes for a short weekend escape with your loved ones: 

1. KL – Seremban – Port Dickson – Melaka

Instead of driving straight to Melaka, how about stopping in Negeri Sembilan for some delicious local food and then, ditching the highway and making a quick stop at Port Dickson for some beach action. 

This trip is perfect for the weekend because you can spend your Saturday driving from KL to Seremban to Port Dickson. 

You can choose to stay in Port Dickson for the night then driving to Melaka for a day of experiencing Malaysia’s history or after the watching the sunset at Port Dickson, you can drive straight to Melaka, stay the night, and there and then wake up early for some delicious breakfast and a day out in Melaka. 

2. KL – Kuala Selangor – Sekinchan

Sekinchan is trending on TikTok and we want all of you to have a taste of it. If you’re from KL, then you need to take this awesome and truly back to nature kind of road trip. 

So, starting at KL you can travel all the way to Kuala Selangor, a place filled with tons of activities to do. It’s best to start your trip in the late afternoon to reach Kuala Selangor at around 3 or 4 PM, then you can choose to go and experience the Sky Mirror, or maybe go on an Eagle Feeding tour. You could also visit the historical Bukit Melawati to feed some silver-leaf monkeys and see Fort Altingsburd.

A definite MUST SEE at Kuala Selangor is the fireflies! After having dinner at one of the many seafood restaurants overlooking the lake, you can go on the Kuala Selangor Fireflies Tour. A motorized boat will take you on the river and you will see the fireflies lighting up the darkness. So beautiful, trust me! 

After that calming and out of this world experience you can drive up to Sekinchan and stay there for the night, maybe at Sekinchan’s container hotel, Padi Box.

The next day, after a good breakfast you can visit some of Sekinchan’s many paddy fields for some #OOTDs, visit Sekinchan’s fishing village, go to the Pantai Redang Beach, make a wish at the Sekinchan Wishing Tree and of course eat a lot of good food before making your way back to KL. 

3. Penang – Taiping – Kuala Kangsar – Ipoh

In case you didn’t know, Perak is not your basic state, there’s a lot to see and a lot to do! Start your road trip with the 1-hour drive to the historical town of Taiping. It’s the perfect place to go to stop moving in fast forward and start slowing down and truly experiencing life. 

You can visit the famous Taiping Zoo, the museum and even have a picnic at the iconic Taiping Lake Gardens. If you have some extra time, you could also go to Kuala Sepetang and visit the Charcoal Factory or the Matang Mangrove Forest.

After Taiping, you can continue your road trip to Kuala Kangsar, the royal town of Perak for another historical experience. You can go to the Ubudiah Mosque, the historical Victoria Bridge, and the Istana Kenangan which was built without any iron nails.

You can choose to spend the night at Kuala Kangsar or just go straight to Ipoh. At Ipoh, you can visit the one or two of the many cave temples, visit Kellie’s Castle, walk along the Ipoh Heritage Trail or just spending the day café hopping, because Ipoh certainly has many! 

4. Penang – Alor Setar – Perlis 

People don’t talk much about how beautiful Kedah and Perlis truly are, so it’s time you see for yourselves! Start you journey in Penang and head up the map to Alor Setar, the Rice Bowl of Malaysia. 

The best part about this road trip is probably driving past the hundreds of paddy fields with hill in the background, just like we used to draw for our Pendidikan Seni exams. 

You can visit the Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah Gallery for some history, learn all about every Malaysian’s favourite carb at the Paddy Museum and end your visit with a bowl of Laksa Utara. 

Then, you can stay in Kedah or head on to the mysterious Perlis and stay the night there. If you’re a nature addict, then Perlis is the place for you! You can go cave exploring, go on a nature walk through Perlis State Park and go to the sunflower field next to Perlis’ Snake and Reptile Park.