Among U.S. travelers, many countries in Southeast Asia have reputations for difficult travel, customs and wildly foreign food—how do half-gestated chicken embryos appeal? This island is an exception. This multi-ethnic, multicultural country, split into west and east regions by the South China Sea, boasts excellent roads, a brand new airport and country-crossing trains. It offers three-star hotels with $40 rooms, and visas are not required for most passport holders.

Oddly, no one goes to Malaysia hotels

Well, some do. Tourists from the Middle East have caused a boomlet in Malaysian travel. They're attracted by relaxed visa requirements, easy access to halal food and the appeal of tropical tourism. And the equatorial heat isn't a shock if you're from the Middle East. But for most travelers, Malaysia is just an obscure country south of Thailand. 

Indeed, Malaysia's north is nowhere near as well known as the Thai coast resorts of Phuket and Koh Samui, right next door. In Malaysia, you get the same Andaman Sea environment—blue water, endless sand, excellent diving—but without the crowds. A British colony until 1966, Malaysia is also the only place in Southeast Asia other than Singapore where you'll find English spoken natively. The country has the cultural diversity of London, the food of India and China, the Borneo rainforest and the world's tallest skyscraper in its cosmopolitan capital, Kuala Lumpur.

For people who are intrigued by Southeast Asia, but find the idea of traveling there daunting, go to Malaysia hotels. For solo travelers with a backpack who want to avoid the crowds of rowdy teenagers in Thailand, go to Malaysia. 

That said, two warnings about traveling in this country are necessary. First, arrivals to the country who have an Israeli stamp on their passports may be given additional scrutiny and even denied entry, in keeping with Malaysian government rules. The policy isn't always enforced, but it's practiced often enough that anyone with such a stamp should arrange a visa in advance through the Malaysian consulate in his or her home nation. 

Second, Malaysians are not kidding about the ban on illegal imported narcotics. As a precaution, travelers carrying legal medical prescriptions should keep copies or originals of their prescriptions on hand, and present them to custom's officials upon request. And don't even think about bringing in drugs for recreational use. Neighboring Singapore may have a more famous reputation for zero-tolerance, but Malaysia's drug policies are just as tough. 

Overall, though, the country feels much more liberal than the stern warnings might imply. Miniskirts and headscarves are equally common on weekend evenings, and along the beaches the usual tropical enthusiasm for sun and late nights prevails. Of course, different situations call for different dress and behavior—men should wear below-the-knee-shorts and women shouldn't wear tank tops in religious buildings, better restaurants and at formal events. But in Malaysia, there are plenty of occasions that call for bathing suits and umbrella drinks. 

Malaysia hotels and it's capital, Kuala Lumpur, is halfway between Singapore and Bangkok—both geographically and socially. With its glass towers, air-conditioned monorail and streets teeming with young professionals, it's less gritty than Bangkok, the Thai capital. But Kuala Lumpur also avoids the bland orderliness of Singapore, the city-state just south. Kuala Lumpur's neighborhoods have both the mayhem and the modernity of many large Asian capitals. Two neighborhoods that capture this juxtaposition of the new with the more tattered are the Bukit Bintang area, for shopping and nightlife, and the Petaling Street corridor