Geography of Malaysia

Map of peninsular Malaysia and East Malaysia (Malaysian Borneo).

Beach scenery of Pulau Tioman.

Malaysia is the 43rd most populated country and the 66th largest country by total land area in the world, with a population of about 27 million and a land area of over 320,000 km² respectively. It is comparable in population to Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, and is roughly similar in size to Norway and Vietnam, along with the U.S. state of New Mexico.
The two distinct parts of Malaysia, separated from each other by the South China Sea, share a largely similar landscape in that both West and East Malaysia feature coastal plains rising to often densely forested hills and mountains, the highest of which is Mount Kinabalu at 4,095.2 metres (13,435.7 ft) on the island of Borneo. The local climate is equatorial and characterised by the annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons.

Kota Kinabalu, capital of East Malaysian state of Sabah is located 1600 km (1000 miles) east across the South China Sea from Kuala Lumpur.

Tanjung Piai, located in the southern state of Johor, is the southernmost tip of continental Asia.
The Strait of Malacca, lying between Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia, is arguably the most important shipping lane in the world.
Kuala Lumpur is the official capital and largest city of Malaysia. Putrajaya on the other hand, is considered the administrative capital for the federal government of Malaysia. Although many executive and judicial branches of the federal government have moved there (to ease growing congestion within Kuala Lumpur), Kuala Lumpur is still recognised as the legislative capital of Malaysia since it houses the seat of the Parliament of Malaysia. It is also the main commercial and financial centre of the country.
Other major cities include George Town, Ipoh, Johor Bahru, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Miri, Alor Star, Malacca Town, and Petaling Jaya.