Hi all,

I'm a long time lurker & am currently planning my first rtw trip and have run into a problem. Apparently to get into malaysia i need proof of onward travel but I want to catch the train from kuala lumpur to butterworth, and from butterworth to hat yai. KTMB (malaysian train site) is telling me:

"Tickets for short distance purchase, between BUTTERWORTH - HATYAI and HATYAI - BUTTERWORTH , can only be purchased within 24 hours prior to train departure time at the counter direct."

If I can only purchase my train ticket out of butterworth to hat yai 24 hours before i decide to do so, how the hell do I get into malaysia?! I hope my question makes sense! If anyone has any answers/suggestions it'd be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Shouldn't be a big deal. There are tons of people going overland through Malaysia all the time. Tell them you will be in taking the train to Thailand and that should be good enough especially if you have a backpack with you. Are you flying into KL? I flew into Singapore then bused to Malaysia before going to Thailand. I don't remember them even asking how I was leaving. At most they asked how long I thought I'd be in Malaysia.

Getting into Thailand on the train is super easy. You make a stop ,everyone gets off goes through the lines and comes back out the same door. Turn your watch ahead or back an hour I forget which direction, then get right back on the same train and off you go. My only advice would be to buy your train ticket as close to 24 hours ahead of time as you can. I was traveling during the Chinese New Year and the trains were full so I kept having to bus north and check for train availability at each stop.

Great, Thankyou!

you can get both a malaysia and thailand visa at the border.

Yep, as the others say, it's unlikely to be a problem. However, IF the immigration officers think that you look like pure trouble, they CAN deny you a visa.

I only know about a couple of times this has happened. In both cases the person who was denied entry/visa on the spot was a male with long rastafari hair and, well, generally alternative in their way of dressing (hard struck by the India syndrome). If this sounds like you, you may want to arrange your visas in advance with the embassies of Malaysia and Thailand in the country where you live.

Happy trails,

Bjørn
http://bjornfree.com/

I cant inagine it would be a problem - ive just come back from being in thailand and malaysia and travelled from hat yai to penang and wasnt asked anything at all at the border they just stamped my passport and sent me on my way no questions asked whatsoever. It was the same when i landed in Bangkok. Getting into the USA was much more difficult on my british passport by like 100%!!!

Mich