Road tripping in Malaysia: Legoland and Desaru

Who would think that a short getaway to Malaysia would turn out to be one of the most rewarding road trips of my life? This calls for a post because many people I spoke to after the trip did not even know that such places exist. Perhaps, thanks to the fact that the places are not popular and not easily accessible, they are retained in the most natural and in original condition (without tourists spoiling them).

The road-tripping gang

My sister was visiting us from India with her daughter and they wanted to see Legoland. We had visited the theme park about 5 years ago when it was initially opened and were not quite impressed by it (many rides had not opened then). So trying to maximise the journey, we decided to visit the theme park and also head down to Desaru for an extended getaway. We booked a 4 days trip and split it as follows:

Day 1: Sg-Legoland 

Day 2: Legoland

Day 3: Desaru

Day 4: Desaru - Sg

Distance between SG to Legoland is an hour by road and Tuas Checkpoint. Distance between Legoland and Desaru is approx 1.5 - 2hrs.

We started our journey on a Thursday afternoon from SG. Thursday because the roads are not jammed and we wanted to avoid the checkpoint traffic. We had booked a cozy apartment (via AirBnB) for our short stay. The accommodation was just 3mins away from Legoland and was accessible to many amenities. Grab food delivered our meals and our stay was pleasant. Day 1 we decided to just chill at the apartment during the day. During evening, we visited the Johor Premium Outlets (45mins drive). There are many shops and the outlets look just the same as the ones in USA. However, there is a huge difference in pricing. Even though the products are cheaper than SG retail, they are not exactly cheap. It is a good destination to shop if you cant really go to the USA.

Cozy Air BnB (Kids' Room)

Day 2 we spent the entire day in Legoland theme park. The park was not really crowded giving us time to walk around leisurely without rushing for the rides. Legoland had a Halloween theme on and there were Halloween markets, performances as well as trick or treating for the young kids. My children freaked out wanting to do everything and collect every single candy possible from the park. Rides were fun and queuing time was not bad. To add on, the weather was good and it wasn't the typically humid that day. Overall, a pleasant day at Legoland and kids were delighted with the Halloween bonus.

The group that slayed Legoland

Monster Party @ Legoland

Day 3 was an early checkout day from our Air BnB and we headed towards Desaru. Many people from Singapore choose to go and stay at the Desaru Coast which is home to luxurious properties such as Hard Rock Hotel, Westin and Anantara. They have their private beach and a waterpark in the vicinity for the guests to enjoy. The hotel prices are quite expensive and tourists normally spend their day at the resort to maximise the value. Having been to Desaru multiple times, we decided to make the itinerary more child friendly to accommodate the moods of the 3 musketeers travelling with us. We booked Four Points at Sheraton which is located at the start of Desaru town and is surrounded by shops, restaurants, cafes, and what not...The public beach is 5mins away but this was the least preferred place to see on our agenda. 

We drove to Desaru via the scenic route and proceeded straight to the Ostrich Farm. It is at the southern most point of Desaru and is the largest in Malaysia. Home to over 50+ ostriches, the farm is home to birds that are 1 day old to the ones almost nearing their lifetime. There are incubation rooms and ostrich eggs for you to test your weight against the big eggs - you can stand on them and they will not break. You can feed the birds and the young kids can ride the birds too. Not a very well kept farm but well, farms are like that anyways.

Ostrich Ride

Newborn Ostrich

After enjoying the close proximity with the birds, we decided to visit the Alpaca Farm. The kids were already excited with the ostriches and the idea of meeting alpacas meant a delayed lunch (which surprisingly they were okay with). We visited the farm (10mins drive from ostrich farm) and were surprised to see that it is much more than just an alpaca farm. The name is misleading. There were many animals whom you can pet and carry and feed. You can even do horse riding. Animal variety included: skunk, meer cat, emu, casuary, hamster, rabbit, slider, goat, capi bara, etc..the children refused to leave the place. About the farm, small place but well kept. There are reptiles such as snake, etc for you to touch/carry (if you dare to). 

Having spent hours in animal encounter, we decided to head to the hotel and have some food. The streets at which Four Points is located is vibrant with many cafes. We found a nice local cafe that serves a wide variety of dishes. Food in Malaysia is always delicious and now you get vegetarian and vegan options too. 

Nasi Goreng Ayam Penyet

Post lunch, the children spent time in the swimming pool and the adults rested. We headed towards Kota Tinggi town during evening (sunset was beautiful) for the firefly cruise. The cruise is definitely under-rated. We saw 1000s and 1000s of fireflies lit up on the trees - did look like blinking Xmas trees from the cruise. The ride duration was 1 hour and the guides even showed us monitor lizards sleeping on the trees. Quite an adventure for a day I must say. 

Sunset en route to Kota Tinggi

As if it was not enough, we took the children to "Cook your own noodles" cafe. You can choose your own instant noodle packet, toppings to go with it and cook it like a Masterchef. The kids enjoyed the experience of cooking and they had to eat what they cooked. While they relished on noodles, we went to explore the streets of Desaru to enjoy street food. What a variety of food and pricing is unbeatable. This summed up our 1st day at Desaru and we felt we had accomplished a lot.

Children busy cooking

Variety of food

Day 4 and last day in Malaysia: There was lot of anticipation and unwarranted sadness about ending a holiday. But we chose to maximise it. Right after a sumptous buffet breakfast, we visited the Desaru Fruit Farm and booked a tour. The tour guide showed us a variety of plants, trees and fruits and it was a good learning experience about different fruits that grow in Malaysia and nearby places. There was an option to feed the fish in the pond and the hens roaming around the farm. We ended the tour at the petting farm where there were camels, goats, buffaloes, etc. There was an option to buy food and feed them and the farm was well kept. 

Desaru Fruit Farm

Petting Zoo at the Fruit Farm

Lotus Pond & Viewing Gallery (Fruit Farm)

We checked out of the hotel and proceeded to the Public beach. Did not want to leave Desaru without paying a visit to the beach. The beach had a nice little shack selling food and drinks with plenty of area to sit around. There were also many beach shops selling clothes, footware, beach toys, etc. Post the beach activity, we visited the Hard Rock Hotel for lunch. It felt as if we did not want to end the holiday and kept on hopping from one place to another. 

Desaru Public Beach

The only beach cafe @ the public beach

But alas, the holidays always come to an end. Post lunch, we drove back to Singapore via the causeway link. Thankfully, the traffic was not horrendous and wait time was less both sides of the immigration.

Given one more day at Desaru, we would have covered the Mini Zoo, the Crocodile park and the waterpark. But most importantly, everyone enjoyed the holiday and is definitely 1 of the most memorable due to the rare animal encounters we had.