The 11 Best Resorts in Malaysia

The jungle is so dense here that you can lose sight of the resort from inside the resort, which tells you most of what you need to know about the Datai. This luxury beach resort on Langkawi sits on the Andaman Sea, a short walk uphill from a white-sand beach into untouched rainforest. Rooms in the main building reach above the canopy for sea views; outlying villas go deeper into the trees. Monkeys and lemurs occasionally patrol the poolside. It holds a spot on the World's 50 Best Hotels list.

Ninety villas and pavilions scattered across one of the Andaman Sea's better-looking stretches of beach, many of them open to the sea air on at least one side. This is a Five Star resort in the barefoot-luxury mode, where "barefoot" is doing some heavy lifting, given the hockey-rink pool and the sprawling spa. The restaurant pulls Indian, Italian, and Japanese into the same open-air room, which sounds chaotic and somehow isn't. The Michelin Guide awarded it 2 Keys.

The rooms at this boutique beachside resort play a neat trick: black-and-white minimalism stripped back so completely that the palms and sea outside become the actual decor. Lone Pine sits under old shade trees on Batu Ferringhi's coast, with a pool, spa, and fitness center, plus enough drinking options that you can watch the sunset with a beer or disappear into the whiskey bar when the romance of it all gets to be a bit much.

Thirty landscaped acres meet the soft sands of Batu Ferringgi beach at this Shangri-La resort on Penang's north coast. Rooms open onto either gardens or sea, and the suites come with private verandas and butler service in the Garden Wing. The spa, the largest in Penang, leans into traditional Chinese and Malay treatments. Jungle treks, banana boats, and beachside yoga fill the gaps between pools, of which there are three, in case one was not enough.

Dusky leaf monkeys and monitor lizards wander the tropical gardens here without asking anyone's permission, which sets the tone nicely. This low-rise Anantara resort sits on the South China Sea at Desaru Coast, with rooms and villas looking out over lagoon and ocean. The multi-bedroom Residences come with a private chef, butler, and infinity pool. Eight dining options run from Malaysian cooking to private beach dinners under the stars.

The late Kerry Hill designed this beach resort on Malaysia's Desaru Coast, and his fingerprints are all over it: lush, layered, and at peace with its setting rather than imposing on it. Villas run toward the ultra-luxe end of the spectrum, and the Chenot spa and beach club are built for people who take their restoration seriously. Restaurants range from Mediterranean-Malaysian to an omakase counter, which covers most moods.

Tucked into a narrow bay in Tunku Abdul Rahman Park, this Michelin-selected jungle-and-beach resort sits where dense rainforest meets soft sand, with coral reef just offshore. Villas are set back from the water for privacy and better views, ranging from one-bedroom beachfront retreats to three-bedroom hilltop suites, some with plunge pools. You reach it by ferry from Kota Kinabalu, which does a reasonable job of making you feel you've escaped somewhere.

Cool, misty air and stone fireplaces in the middle of Malaysia: the Cameron Highlands Resort is a colonial-style hill-country hotel sitting nearly a mile above sea level, a few hours north of Kuala Lumpur. Four-poster beds, timber floors, and beamed ceilings set the tone, and daily high tea keeps the mood resolutely British. The Spa Village leans local, with treatments built around tea and strawberries, which is either charming or on-the-nose depending on your tolerance for theming.

A twenty-minute boat ride from Kota Kinabalu drops you at this over-water eco resort of thatch-roofed villas perched on a small cape of Gaya Island in Tunku Abdul Rahman Park. Room service arrives by raft, the spa runs caviar facials, and the on-site marine research center runs coral replanting dives, which neatly captures the whole vibe: barefoot but not cheap, remote but fully attended to. Monkeys and hornbills handle the ambient noise.

Getting here involves a ferry to Tioman Island, then a sea taxi, then the acceptance that you're genuinely off the grid. JapaMala is an eco-resort of open-plan jungle chalets and Seacliff rooms on Malaysia's South China Sea coast, built to sit inside the landscape rather than clear it. Treetop villas skim the canopy, two restaurants perch on stilts or emerge from the trees, and the spa runs to cliffside hot tubs. Wi-fi exists, technically.

The owners dismantled a collection of antique Chinese, Malay, and colonial houses from their original sites and rebuilt them here, beam by beam. The result is a boutique resort that feels more like a small, eccentric neighborhood than a hotel. Heritage Houses range from multi-room splits to a self-contained unit, each mixing period architecture with contemporary interiors. No two are remotely alike, which is rather the point.