The downside of living in Kuala Lumpur is that the coastline is not particularly accessible. You have to fight through considerable traffic across miles of suburbia, before you’d get anywhere near a plausible beach. This is very sad for someone who loves the coastline.
However, if you do manage to motivate yourself to get out the door to face said traffic, the best and nearest option is probably Morib beach.
How to get to Morib Beach
Pantai Morib (or Morib beach) is one of the beaches within day trip distance of KL. It is a public beach located next to the Morib Gold Coast resort area.
You need a car to get to Pantai Morib. You’re aiming to leave the city, heading south towards Bangi and then Banting. Morib lies beyond Banting town; basically, aim for the coastline when you reach this area.
What kind of beach is Morib?
Morib public beach is a fairly popular beach. Most of the people who come to this beach are locals. Hence, do expect that they would be enjoying the beach in the way that locals would. In other words, this isn’t the sort of beach for stripping down and sunbathing on (next door in the private Morib Gold Coast would be the one for that). Locals generally swim in ‘normal’ clothing, i.e. T-shirt and pants.
The sand is white and fine above the waterline, ending at a line of casuarina trees and the occasional coconut palm. But much of the beach is actually the finer sand flats that get exposed during low tide. This is when visitors would wander across the flats and get their feet wet.
The tidal heights around Malaysia is not very large. So it is not as dangerous to range far out on the flats at low tide as might be the case in countries like the UK, where you can get caught by the returning tide if you’re too far away from shore.
Is Morib a kite flying beach?
A key feature of the beach that I discovered from having gone twice, is the breeze. This means: kite-flying beach!
The first time was in April; the winds then were stronger and more consistent than my second visit in December.
There are many kites on sale to choose from, and they’re reasonably priced. An Angry Bird one would set you back RM10 if I recall right. But this was a few years ago.
On my first visit, the high casuarina branches were also adorned with tiny kites, their constant fluttering tails demonstrating the biddable wind. They weren’t there on my second visit.
At first I was disappointed. But in retrospect it was probably best – I don’t think they get systematically removed each time. Given that many of the kites are plastic, that’s a lot of plastic that could come loose and become litter all over the beach.
There’s just another thing I should mention – it can be blistering hot here. The sun is blinding in midday, and you’d feel it even with the steady wind.
What kind of amenities can I expect at Pantai Morib?
Aside from the kite sellers, Morib beach is actually pretty well laid out.
There is ample parking next to the recreational grounds. There are rows of little restaurants (mainly serving local /simple local-fusion /street food cuisine), bathroom facilities, and Muslim prayer rooms.
It’s not fancy, but everything that you need is there so you can enjoy a beachside promenade sort of afternoon.
Looking for a chill beach escape from KL? Check out Morib! Looking to go a bit further afield? Check out a sample weekend at Port Dickson!
This beach looks so pretty! I love watching kites fly, although I’m not very good at it myself haha
I’m not either! Which is why the constant breeze is so great! Even I could keep a kite up at Morib lol
OMG it was so hot the few days we were in KL I wish we had gone to a breezy, delightful beach like this! I don’t typically fly kites (like maybe not ever in my whole life), but I would love to have done this.
Yes, the near-constant breeze is the only thing that made the beach pleasant, heat-wise. When the breeze dips down you can totally feel the heat.