Visa Requirement for Tourists and Visitors to Malaysia

I previously purchased a prepaid Hotlink Broadband SIM Card a few years ago. At that time, it was a very good deal, especially as a backup broadband SIM card. It costs RM45 for 2GB of data and is valid for a year. Unlike the standard Hotlink prepaid, I don't need to topup in order to keep the line active.

Some time later, without any official announcement, Hotlink changed the plan slightly. While the 2GB for RM45 plan is still available, however this time I needed to keep my line active by topping up regularly or purchasing the Hotlink 365 plan which keeps the line active for a year. I can't remember exactly how much it costs but using today's price, it costs RM33.

Recently, some time in early 2018, I received a notification that my Hotlink Broadband plan will be automatically converted to Hotlink FAST plan, whether I liked it or not. At that time, the standard Hotlink plan that one would get when purchasing a new SIM package is the Hotlink RED plan. Therefore, it was a little bit difficult to get more information about the Hotlink FAST plan since the official Hotlink website only give details about the current Hotlink RED plan.

So I was thinking, what is the difference between the Hotlink FAST and HotlinK RED plans. After doing more research, one can actually find details about the Hotlink FAST plan, but the information is only listed in the T&C page. The following table is the comparison between both plans, as of July 2018.

Probably one of the first things that tourists do nowadays when arriving at a country is to get a SIM card, mainly for their data needs. Most of the time it is much cheaper than to use their roaming feature.

Telecom operators in Malaysia are historically based on the GSM system. 2G frequencies are the 900 and 1800 MHz band. 3G (UMTS) frequencies are 2100 and 900MHz band while the 4G (LTE) frequency is mainly 2600MHz though some also occupy the 850 and 1800MHz band.

The main operators in Malaysia are Maxis, Celcom, Digi, U Mobile and Tune Talk and as a tourist, you probably wouldn’t need to look for other operators. 2G and 3G coverage is very good in populated areas in Peninsular Malaysia. 4G coverage tend to be limited to major towns and cities. Coverage in East Malaysia (Sabah and Sarawak) tend to be very patchy outside of city centres. Celcom tend to have better coverage in rural areas of East Malaysia.

For tourists to Malaysia, the best and cheapest way is to get a prepaid SIM card. Most airports in Malaysia have several counters right at the arrival hall. If you are not arriving through the airport, one can also easily get a SIM card from bus stations, shopping malls or shops in the city centre. There are Traveller SIM card packages that are specifically designed for tourists who will be staying for a short period in Malaysia. These packages typically come with a preloaded credit, certain number of minutes for calls and data that can be used for the entire validity of the SIM card. Additional data can usually be purchased by adding credit to their account. Please present your Passport/ID when purchasing the SIM cards as sellers are required by law to register the user.