Sharon Gourlay

Sharon Gourlay

Founder of Dive Into Malaysia

Expertise Malaysia travel, travel planning, travel booking

Education Bachelor of Arts in Asian Studies from Griffith University, Certificate III in International Travel Sales from AFTA Education and Training, Graduate Diploma of Education from Monash University

linkedin

Highlights:

  • Featured in many publications including USA Today, Qantas, Families Magazine Australia, Daily Mail and more
  • Speaker at numerous travel blogging conferences including Travel Blog Exchange (Tbex), Travel Blogging Summit and Travel Massive and is well known in the travel blogging community
  • Holds a BA in Asian studies including the Malay language, teaching and travel agent qualifications

Experience:

Sharon first fell in love with Malaysia in 2004 when she travelled up the west coast, eating everything available. This was further affirmed in 2015 when Sharon and her family, including two young kids, moved to Penang for a year. She doesn’t think anywhere could be better to live.

Sharon has travelled to 98 countries and spent many years of her life exploring the globe. This has lead to many skills from quickly working out the best way to travel from A to B to finding the best hotel. These days she primarily travels with her 3 children currently aged from 7 – 13 years old so she also has many family travel kid wrangling skills!

Sharon completed an arts degree majoring in Asian Studies at Griffith University. This included studying the Malay language and she loves learning more about the history and culture in this part of the world.

Her favourite part of Malaysia is Penang, closely followed by East Malaysia or Borneo as it’s often called.

When not writing for this site, Sharon is out exploring the world and everything Malaysia.

Education:

Sharon’s educational background enables her to share and teach you how to plan your own trip to Malaysia as easily as possible. Her travel qualification enables her to work as a qualified travel agent and has meant she has learned many tips and tricks for booking travel. Her teaching qualification helps her explain it all to you here.

Her humanities degree has helped her love of everything history, language and culture and grown her appreciation for this part of the world.

You can read more about Sharon and her family here.

Sharon’s Guides To Malaysia

A resort hotel in Cameron Highlands

All Your 5 Star Hotels In Cameron Highlands [2024]

Looking for the best 5 star hotels in Cameron Highlands? Click here for the best luxury hotels in Cameron Highlands…

Gardens By The Bay Singapore

The Ultimate 2 Days In Singapore Itinerary

2 Day in Singapore itinerary:  Read our guide to help plan your Singapore itinerary for 2 days – includes most…

Sunway Resort pool

Best Hotels Near Sunway Lagoon Theme Park Kuala Lumpur For All Budgets [2024]

Looking for the best hotels near Sunway Lagoon? Click here for our list of the best options for a hotel…

Rickshaw in George Town, Penang

EXACTLY How To Get From Melaka To Penang [2024]

Need to know how to get from Melaka to Penang? Taking a flight, bus, train, or car is described here…

best resort in Redang Island

Best Resort In Redang Island: Top 7 Best Options! [2024]

Looking for the best resort in Redang? Find all the best hotels in Redang Island, Malaysia including comparisons and full…

KTM ETS Train, Penang

EXACTLY How To Get From Kuala Lumpur To Penang [2024]

Need to know how to get from Kuala Lumpur to Penang? Taking a flight, train, bus, or car is described…

Penang Hill funicular railway

EXACTLY How To Go From Ipoh To Penang [2024]

Need to know how to go from Ipoh to Penang? Taking a train, bus, car or taxi is described here…

Escape Penang Treetop adventures

Escape Penang Review: Everything You Need To Know [2024]

Full review of visiting Escape Penang. Everything you need to know including where it is, what you can find there…

Kota Bharu bus station

EXACTLY How To Go From Kuala Lumpur To Kota Bharu [2024]

Need to know how to go from Kuala Lumpur to Kota Bharu? Taking a flight, train, bus or car is…

Top 10 Best Homestay Port Dickson [2024]

Top 10 Best Homestay Port Dickson [2024]

Looking for a homestay in Port Dickson? We have the best options with all the best Port Dickson homestays including…

Learning to dive at the Perhentian Islands

How To Get From Singapore To Perhentian Islands, Malaysia [2024]

Want to know how to get from Singapore to Perhentian Islands? It’s easy! Here’s all the ways you can get…

Jonker Street Melaka

21 Best Places To Visit In Melaka

Have the ultimate Melaka trip with this guide of all the best places to visit in Melaka so you can…

Melaka hotels, Melaka river

Best Hotels In Melaka: Where To Stay In Melaka For The Best Trip Ever!

Looking for the best hotels in Melaka, Malaysia? Click here for all the best options for where to stay in…

Couple on a tropical beach

How To Plan A Trip To Malaysia: The Ultimate Malaysia Travel Guide!

Step-by-step details for how to plan a trip to Malaysia from how to get there, what to do once you…

Melaka River Cruise

Kuala Lumpur To Melaka Taxi: Fares, Bookings And Everything You Need To Know

Looking to travel from Kuala Lumpur to Melaka? Fantastic! Melaka is a fun and interesting place to visit and it’s…

Black Friday Sales

Black Friday Travel Sales [2023]

If you are currently booking or planning your trip, now is the time to action! Many travel services and products…

Episode 22: Beautiful Beaches, Local Experiences And More On Pangkor Island

Episode 22: Beautiful Beaches, Local Experiences And More On Pangkor Island

Looking for a beautiful island in Malaysia that will give you a local experience? Located off the west coast of…

BOH Tea Center, Cameron Highlands

19 Best Things To Do In Cameron Highlands, Malaysia

Have the best Cameron Highlands trip with this guide of the fun things to do in Cameron Highlands so you…

Genting SkyWorlds review Ice Age

Genting SkyWorlds Review: Everything You Need To Know

Here’s our full Genting Skyworlds review. Everything you need to know including where it is, what you can find there…

Sunway Resort

Sunway Resort Review: Everything You Need To Know ✔️

Looking for a great hotel in a fabulous location for enjoying Sunway Lagoon? With plenty of eating options and shops…

Qantas business class seat on 787

Qantas 787 Business Class Review + A330✈️: Is It Worth It?

Thinking about spoiling yourself in Qantas business class and want to know whether it’s worth it? Already booked and want…

Qantas lounge in Singapore bar area

Review: Business Qantas Lounge In Singapore – What You Will Find Here

Wondering if the Qantas lounge in Singapore is worth visiting? Want to know what to expect? Keep reading as we…

Episode 21: Port Dickson - Best Beach Area Near Kuala Lumpur

Episode 21: Port Dickson – Best Beach Area Near Kuala Lumpur

Looking for a beach area close to Kuala Lumpur where you can have a great beach break? Or looking for…

TBS (Terminal Bersepadu Selatan) in KL

How To Get From Kuala Lumpur To Port Dickson – All 4 Ways!

Port Dickson is located just an hour and a half’s drive from Kuala Lumpur (KL). However, if you are wondering…