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Anywhere else in the world as far as I know, "homestay" means a kind of accommodation where you live with a local family in their home, so maybe a bit like a guesthouse but more personal and intended to give you an insight into the local culture and lifestyle.

But in Malaysia, at least on the east coast, the places with "homestay" signs looked more like what I would call motels or sometimes bungalows. They didn't look like people's homes and often had a parking space outside each room or cabin.

I didn't stay in any and I've now crossed the border. I don't remember seeing any on the west side of Malaysia, but I wasn't looking. Before I travelled on the east coast myself, a fellow traveller I met had told me that while he was on the east coast he enquired at several homestays and was surprised that they were expensive compared to homestays he'd used in other countries, and didn't seem to be the same thing.

I also can't recall seeing any signs saying "motel" so maybe this is the misnamed equivalent. I did stay in two places that called themselves "resorts" but to me felt more like what I would also consider to be motels or bungalows.

So in the Malaysian context, what kind of kinds of accommodation does "homestay" generally refer to? How do they differ from homestays elsewhere, and how do they compare to the concept of motels and bungalows elsewhere and to resorts in Malaysia?

hippietrail
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They are basically holiday rentals. Homes or units that can be rented. The average family size in Malayisia is much greater than 2, which makes hotels an unpopular option for some. Homestays are meant to cater to families (in many cases). They are (mostly) just homes, often with more than one room and multiple beds. Usually they don't offer any hotel-like services. However they, also, do not involve sharing a home with the owner. Usually you meet the owner to check-in and check-out and that is all. There are preferential loan agreements for certain demographics in MY that allow for the easy purchase of a second home. This allows for homestay properties for customers with a larger family or that serve more remote locations that couldn't support a hotel. The closest equivalent would probably be an AirBnB rental.

lowledu
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