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The caves in Malaysia show a side of the country where nature, history, and culture meet inside limestone hills. Some hold temples in vast chambers, others are UNESCO sites or record-long passages, and all draw curious travellers. In Sarawak, Gunung Mulu National Park has the world’s largest chambers, while the newly listed Niah Caves tell stories from prehistory. On the peninsula, Batu Caves and Gua Tempurung stand out, each with its own style and story. A few caves are easy for families to walk through, while others push experienced cavers to their limits.
Top 10 Caves In Malaysia
The caves in Malaysia range from sacred temple chambers and archaeological treasures to vast underground rivers and wildlife-rich passages.
1. Batu Caves
Batu Caves is a limestone hill with a series of cavern shrines set within sheer cliffs in Gombak, Selangor. Visitors climb a steep, rainbow staircase to reach the Cathedral Cave, where a high vault opens to the sky and natural light falls on Hindu altars, dripping flowstone, and resident swifts. The approach is busy but well signed, and the walk up rewards with a dramatic chamber alive with incense, chanting, and echoes. Side caverns house exhibits and guided tours that focus on geology, religion, and conservation, giving first-timers a clear sense of why the complex matters to both worshippers and travellers.
Location: Gombak, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia
Major Attractions: Rainbow staircase, Cathedral Cave, Hindu shrines, flowstone formations, resident swifts
2. Deer & Lang Caves
Photo: Bernard DUPONT / Wikimedia Commons
In Gunung Mulu National Park, a UNESCO site, you find Deer and Lang Caves. Many call them the best caves in Malaysia for first-time explorers. Lang Cave is small. But inside are stalactites, stalagmites, and thin sheets of flowstone that show the beauty of karst. Just a short walk away, Deer Cave impresses visitors with its sheer scale, its entrance rising more than 100 meters and leading into one of the world’s largest cave passages. Inside, millions of wrinkle-lipped bats roost, and each evening they create dramatic spirals in the sky as they leave to feed. Both caves are open only through guided tours, which keep people safe and also protect the fragile environment.
Location: Gunung Mulu National Park, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo
Major Attractions: Huge cave passages, millions of bats, stalactites and stalagmites, guided tours, karst formations
3. Gua Tempurung
Photo: Claiton Conto / Unsplash / Image For Representation Only
Gua Tempurung sits in Perak. It is one of the most popular caves in Malaysia. People visit for its long tunnels and the tours that match different levels of interest. Extending for more than three kilometres, this limestone cave holds five vast domes, each marked by its own formations and character. Visitors can pick short, easy walks along lit platforms or take on more demanding routes that include wading through underground streams and squeezing through narrow passages. The cave is also known for its natural ventilation, which keeps the air cool even when it is hot outside. Its size, along with dramatic stalactites and stalagmites, makes it appealing to families, casual sightseers, and adventure seekers.
Location: Perak, Peninsular Malaysia
Major Attractions: Long tunnels, five large domes, stalactites and stalagmites, underground streams, natural ventilation
4. Niah Caves
Photo: Starlightchild / Wikimedia Commons
Niah Caves, set inside Sarawak’s Niah National Park, are among the most important historical caves in Malaysia, with archaeological finds showing human presence from more than 40,000 years ago. The Great Cave is known for its wide halls and soaring ceilings, with rock shelters that gave early people a place to live. Digging at Niah turned up stone tools, some ornaments, and human remains. Because of this, many call it one of the key prehistoric sites in Southeast Asia. Another highlight is the Painted Cave, where red ochre sketches of boats and people can still be seen, thought to connect with old burial customs.
Location: Niah National Park, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo
Major Attractions: Prehistoric human remains, Great Cave, Painted Cave with red ochre sketches, archaeological artifacts
5. Clearwater Cave
Photo: John Mason / Wikimedia Commons
In Sarawak’s Mulu cave system, Clearwater Cave stands out as one of the longest caves in Malaysia, stretching past 200 kilometres of passages. It’s clear that the underground river cuts through tall chambers, giving the cave its name. Most visitors arrive by longboat on the Melinau River, then face a climb of more than 200 steps before cool air meets them at the entrance. The main chamber feels immense, and shafts of light fall through openings, catching flowstones, scalloped walls, and running streams. Guided tours often combine Clearwater with nearby Wind Cave, turning it into a half-day trip for travellers.
Location: Gunung Mulu National Park, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo
Major Attractions: Over 200 km of passages, underground river, flowstones, guided tours combined with Wind Cave
6. Gomantong Caves
Photo: Josefito123 / Wikimedia Commons
The Gomantong Caves in Sabah are among the most famous caves in Malaysia, noted for their large bat colonies and the long practice of collecting edible bird’s nests. Found within the Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, the cave system has two main sections: Simud Hitam (Black Cave), which visitors can reach by wooden boardwalk, and Simud Putih (White Cave), which needs a permit and is visited less often. In Simud Hitam, thousands of swiftlets nest in the high ceiling while bats stream out at dusk, and guides explain how local collectors climb bamboo poles to gather the valuable nests. The setting is raw and unpolished, with guano on the floors and strong natural smells that remind you of its wild character.
Location: Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary, Sabah, Malaysian Borneo
Major Attractions: Large bat colonies, edible bird’s nest harvesting, wooden boardwalks, swiftlets nesting, raw cave environment
7. Gua Kelam
Photo: Marufish / Wikimedia Commons
Gua Kelam, near the small town of Kaki Bukit in Perlis, is one of the most distinctive Malaysia caves, valued for both its history and its easy access. Once a passage used by tin miners, the cave today welcomes visitors who walk a suspended wooden bridge that stretches through its 370-meter limestone tunnel. The path is dimly lit, giving the walk an atmosphere where travellers can study rock shapes close up while listening to the sound of water running below. Unlike the grander caves of the country, Gua Kelam’s appeal comes from its smaller scale and its mix of natural beauty with cultural memory.
Location: Near Kaki Bukit, Perlis, Peninsular Malaysia
Major Attractions: Suspended wooden bridge, limestone tunnel, easy walking path, natural beauty with cultural history
8. Gua Charas
Photo: DINIZAR DANIAL / Shutterstock
Gua Charas sits about 25 kilometres from Kuantan and is often ranked among the top caves in Malaysia because it combines natural beauty with spiritual life. The cave opens from Panching Hill, a huge block of limestone reached by climbing a long staircase into a broad chamber. A reclining Buddha rests against the rock inside, surrounded by smaller shrines linked to both Hindu and Buddhist traditions. That mix of faiths gives the place character. The cavern holds tall stalactites, and the air stays cool, a relief from the heat outside. Sunlight comes through cracks in the limestone, casting soft light across the chamber, especially later in the day.
Location: Near Kuantan, Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia
Major Attractions: Reclining Buddha statue, Hindu and Buddhist shrines, tall stalactites, limestone chamber, natural cool air
9. Ramayana Cave
Photo: Leonid Andronov / Shutterstock
Ramayana Cave sits inside the Batu Caves complex in Selangor. It is one of the most colourful caves in Malaysia, filled with artwork and stories. Smaller than Cathedral Cave, it feels quieter, and many visitors come here for that reason. The chamber guides you into the Ramayana, the Hindu epic. Along the paths are statues and dioramas. They show Rama, Sita, Hanuman, and Ravana in different scenes. Walls and ceilings are painted bright, and the lights give life to the figures. The effect is half spiritual, half artistic. Families often stop here. So do culture lovers and photographers. The entrance is reached by a short walkway from the main staircase of Batu Caves.
Location: Batu Caves complex, Gombak, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia
Major Attractions: Rock-cut sculptures, colorful Hindu epic dioramas, statues of Rama, Sita, Hanuman, quiet spiritual atmosphere
10. Sarawak Chamber
Photo: Cerevisae / Wikimedia Commons / Image For Representation Only
Hidden deep inside Gunung Mulu National Park, the Sarawak Chamber within Gua Nasib Bagus is often called the crown jewel of caves in Malaysia and also of the world. It is known as the largest cave chamber by surface area, so vast that several jumbo jets or even St. Peter’s Basilica could fit inside it. Reaching the Sarawak Chamber is very different from visiting a show cave. You need a guide, a booking, and the stamina to get in. The way in takes you through dense rainforest, over underground rivers, and into camps set along the route before the chamber itself. Once inside, the scale feels almost unreal, the walls lost in shadow and the headlamp showing only a slice of it.
Location: Gunung Mulu National Park, Sarawak, Malaysian Borneo
Major Attractions: Largest cave chamber by surface area, vast underground cavern, remote guided access, dense rainforest approach
Malaysia’s caves showcase nature, history, and culture. Batu and Ramayana Caves have sacred shrines, Niah reveals ancient life, and the Sarawak Chamber is world-renowned. Families enjoy easy walks in Gua Kelam, while adventurers explore Mulu’s vast system. These caves hold wildlife, traditions, and stories that have shaped local communities for centuries. Discover Malaysia from a unique perspective—start your cave adventure with TripXL today.
Cover Photo: Juhku / Shutterstock
