Lonely Planet Kuala Lumpur, Melaka & Penang Read online

  Kuala Lumpur, Melaka & Penang

  Contents

  Plan Your Trip

  Welcome to Kuala Lumpur

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  What's New

  Need to Know

  Top Itineraries

  If You Like...

  Month By Month

  With Kids

  Like a Local

  Eating

  Drinking & Nightlife

  Entertainment

  Shopping

  Explore

  Neighbourhoods at a Glance

  Bukit Bintang & KLCC

  Sights

  Eating

  Drinking & Nightlife

  Entertainment

  Shopping

  Sports & Activities

  Chinatown, Merdeka Square & Bukit Nanas

  Sights

  Eating

  Drinking & Nightlife

  Entertainment

  Shopping

  Masjid India, Kampung Baru & Northern Kuala Lumpur

  Sights

  Eating

  Drinking & Nightlife

  Entertainment

  Shopping

  Sports & Activities

  Lake Gardens, Brickfields & Bangsar

  Sights

  Eating

  Drinking & Nightlife

  Entertainment

  Shopping

  Sports & Activities

  Day Trips from Kuala Lumpur

  Bukit Fraser (Fraser's Hill)

  Klang Valley

  Shah Alam

  Klang

  Shah Alam

  Klang

  Petaling Jaya

  Klang

  Petaling Jaya

  Klang

  Putrajaya

  Sleeping

  Melaka City

  Historic Town Centre

  Chinatown

  North of the City Centre

  Kampung Chetti

  Southeast of the City Centre

  Chinatown & Around

  Jalan Merdeka & Around

  Little India to Bukit China

  Chinatown

  Jalan Merdeka & Around

  Little India to Bukit China

  Penang

  George Town

  Inside the Unesco Protected Zone

  Outside the Unesco Protected Zone

  Inside the Unesco Protected Zone

  Outside the Unesco Protected Zone

  Batu Ferringhi & Teluk Bahang

  The Rest of Penang

  Understand

  Understand Kuala Lumpur

  Kuala Lumpur Today

  History

  Life in Kuala Lumpur

  Multiculturalism, Religion & Culture

  Arts & Architecture

  Environment

  Survive

  Transport

  Arriving in Kuala Lumpur

  Getting Around Kuala Lumpur

  Tours

  Directory AZ

  Customs Regulations

  Electricity

  Emergency

  Gay & Lesbian Travellers

  Health

  Internet Access

  Legal Matters

  Medical Services

  Money

  Opening Hours

  Post

  Public Holidays

  Safe Travel

  Telephone

  Time

  Toilets

  Tourist Information

  Travellers with Disabilities

  Visas

  Women Travellers

  Language

  Kuala Lumpur, Melaka & Penang Maps

  Chinatown & Merdeka Square

  KLCC

  Bukit Bintang

  Masjid India & Chow Kit

  Kampung Baru & Titiwangsa

  Lake Gardens & Brickfields

  Bangsar Baru & Mid Valley

  Table of Contents

  Behind the Scenes

  Our Writers

  Welcome to Kuala Lumpur

  Imagine a city, with a skyline punctuated by minarets, Mogul-style domes and skyscrapers; imagine colourful, food-stall-lined streets shaded by a leafy canopy of banyan trees.

  Multicultural Modernity

  This is Kuala Lumpur (KL), Malaysia’s sultry capital packed with historic monuments, steel-clad skyscrapers, lush parks, megasized shopping malls, bustling street markets and lively nightspots.

  Essential parts of the vibrant mix are the incense-wreathed, colourfully adorned mosques and temples of the country’s Malay, Chinese and Indian communities. A reverence for these ancient cultures is balanced with a drive to be plugged into the contemporary world, a desire that's reflected in an exciting contemporary-art and design scene, an ambitious riverbank-regeneration project and cutting-edge architecture: once completed, the new Merdeka PNB 118 tower will be taller than the iconic Petronas Towers.

  Historical Canvas

  Today's KL-ites are separated by barely a handful of generations from the tenacious Chinese and Malay tin prospectors who founded the city, carving it out of virgin jungle. By the time the British made it the capital of Peninsular Malaysia in the late 19th century, erecting grand colonial buildings, KL had only been in existence for a couple of decades.

  Since then, the city has been the scene of history-defining moments for Malaysia. Stadium Merdeka was where, in 1957, the country’s first prime minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman, punched his fist seven times in the air and declared independence.

  Shoppers' Paradise

  To fully connect with locals, join them in two of their favourite pastimes: shopping and eating. Malaysian consumer culture achieves its zenith in KL, where you could spend all day browsing glitzy air-conditioned malls such as Pavilion Kuala Lumpur, Suria KLCC and Mid Valley Megamall in search of designer fashion and bargains. Bangsar and Publika are the places to go for lesser-known labels and the work of offbeat independent designers. Alternatively, explore Central Market for locally made souvenirs and handicrafts; and hunt out the few remaining artisans and antiques dealers still keeping shop in and around Chinatown.

  Street Feast

  It won't take you long to realise that, despite the heat, this is a city best explored on foot. Walk and you can catch all the action and save yourself the frustration of becoming entangled in one of KL's all-too-frequent traffic jams. What's more, you'll be sure to come across some of the city's best dining spots: the hawker stalls and traditional neighborhood kopitiam (coffee shops) that beckon you over with the aroma of freshly cooked food. Despite the city's relentless march towards modernity, parts of KL retain the laid-back ambience and jungle lushness of the kampung (village) it once was.

  Petronas Towers and the KLCC | MARTIN PUDDY/GETTY IMAGES ©

  Why I Love Kuala Lumpur

  By Isabel Albiston, Writer

  For such a frenetic city, KL has an uncanny way of charming its visitors. Of course, the food helps: the sheer variety of delicious dining options that reflect the very best of Malaysian cuisine. But it's more than that. It's the way the city has embraced modernity with its towering skyscrapers and technological connectivity, all while retaining a deeply entrenched adherence to the traditional customs and religions of its residents. Beyond the traffic and malls there is a complex cultural patchwork formed of distinct, coexisting communities, united by the warm welcome extended to guests.

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Street Food

  1White tablecloths? Snooty waiters? A roof? No need to bother with all that! In KL some of your best dining experiences will happen on the street. Delicious, freshly cooked meals served from mobile carts, stalls and humble shophouse kopitiam (coffee shops) are the way to go.
Jalan Alor is the city's most famous eats street, jammed with alfresco tables. The atmosphere and food are good here, but prices will be higher than at more locally patronised hawker gourmet destinations such as Lucky Gardens, Glutton Street or the stalls scattered around Brickfields.

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  JALAN ALOR | MIGEL/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Petronas Towers

  2It’s impossible to resist the magnetic allure of the Petronas Towers: the 452m-high structure is beautiful to look at, as well as being the embodiment of Malaysia’s transformation into a developed nation. Designed by architect César Pelli, this glistening, steel-wrapped structure is the focal point of the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC), a 40-hectare development that also includes an imaginatively designed tropical park, a fun aquarium, an excellent kids’ museum, a world-class concert hall and one of KL’s best shopping malls.

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  YUDY/500PX ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Islamic Arts Museum

  3The dazzling collection of objects housed in this fine museum proves that religious devotion can be married with exquisite craftsmanship. The building itself – with its Iranian-tiled facade and decorated domes – is a stunner, its galleries filled with natural light and amazing works gathered from around the Islamic world. Don't miss the architecture gallery, with models of some of the great Islamic buildings. The museum's gift shop is also one of the best places in KL to buy beautifully designed and expertly made items from across the Islamic world.

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  THE CEILING OF THE ISLAMIC ARTS MUSEUM | DAICHI IIZUKA/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Chinatown

  4Plumes of smoke curl upwards from smouldering coils of incense, flower garlands hang like pearls from the necks of Hindu statues; and the call to prayer punctuates the honk of traffic. The temples and mosques of the city’s Hindus, Muslims and Chinese Buddhists are crammed shoulder to shoulder in this atmospheric neighbourhood along the Klang river – where KL was born. Don’t miss eating at the daytime Madras Lane hawker stalls or savouring the bustle and fun of the night market along Jln Petaling.

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  INCENSE COILS IN CHINATOWN | TRAVELER1116/GETTY IMAGES ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Batu Caves

  5It’s always a very busy and colourful scene at this sacred Hindu shrine but, if you can, time your visit for a holy day, the biggest of which is Thaipusam. Guarding the 272 steps that lead up to the main Temple Cave is a 43m gilded statue of Lord Murugan, assisted by a platoon of lively macaques who show little fear in launching raids on tourists’ belongings. A new cable car at the foot of the giant limestone outcrop takes the sweat out of reaching Temple Cave.

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  STATUE OF LORD MURUGAN | PRASIT RODPHAN/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Tun Abdul Razak Heritage Park

  6What was once known as the Lake Gardens is now KL's major recreation area, named after the country's second prime minister. The botanical garden laid out during the British days remains at the park's heart and is flanked by one of the city's top attractions, the KL Bird Park. There are lots of other things to see and do here, including visiting the National Planetarium, KL Butterfly Park and the striking National Monument, commemorating those who lost their lives fighting communists during the Emergency.

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  FLAMINGOS, KL BIRD PARK | ZHUKOVA VALENTYNA/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Shopping Malls

  7Come for the air conditioning, stay for the designer bargains! The roll call of brands in malls Pavilion KL, Suria KLCC and Publika will impress even the most sophisticated of shoppers. Refreshments are never far away, with masses of restaurants and excellent food courts always part of the retail mix, along with everything from luxury spas to vast multiplex cinemas and karaoke rooms. It’s the unexpected finds – the feng shui stores, art galleries and Hindu temples – that really set these malls apart.

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  SURIA KLCC | WITHGOD/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Merdeka Square

  8Stand beside the Victorian fountain next to the empty expanse of lawn and take in the impressive scene. When it was called the Padang (field), members of the Royal Selangor Club would politely clap as another wicket fell in a colonial cricket match. At midnight on 31 August 1957, the flag of the independent nation of Malaya was hoisted on the 95m flagpole. The eastern flank is dominated by the handsome Sultan Abdul Samad Building, decorated with copper-clad domes and barley-sugar-twist columns.

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  TOM BONAVENTURE/GETTY IMAGES ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  FRIM

  9The Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) offers a leafy escape from KL’s urban grind. Feel your soul start to calm as soon as you enter this 600-hectare reserve, where hard concrete and traffic pollution give way to soft foliage, fresh air and forest trails. Get the blood pumping on the steep hike up to the thrilling 150m-long Canopy Walkway that hangs a vertigo-inducing 30m above the forest floor and provides panoramic views back to the city.

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  HANAFI LATIF/SHUTTERSTOCK ©

  Kuala Lumpur's Top 10

  Thean Hou Temple

  10KL has plenty of Buddhist temples but none are as visually striking as this. Rising out of the leafy surrounds of Robson Heights in four terraced levels, this architecture is the stuff of pure Chinese fantasy, with dazzling mosaic dragons and phoenixes flying off the eaves and snaking around columns. It was built to house effigies of the heavenly mother Thean Hou as well as Kuan Yin, the goddess of mercy, and Shuiwei Shengniang, goddess of the waterfront. Visit on festival days and weekends to see the temple at its liveliest.

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  WEKWEK/GETTY IMAGES ©

  What's New

  Street Art

  New murals in KL including boy in a canoe and goldsmith, red metal sculptures by Kuen Stephanie and the caricatures of cartoonist Lat brighten the streets in and around Chinatown.

  Dewakan

  It's worth making the trip out to Shah Alam to sample the innovative cooking of the exciting young chefs at this restaurant making a bid for Michelin stars.

  TREC

  This new KL entertainment complex is home to superclub Zouk as well as a whole street of bars, restaurants and music and comedy venues, such as COMO and Live House.

  Jln Petaling Hangouts

  The southern end of KL's Chinatown has become a magnet for the hip, with the new speakeasy-style cocktail bar PS150 and supercool cafes Merchant's Lane and Chocha Foodstore.

  Visit KL

  The new home of KL's official tourist information office is in a fully restored 1903 mansion once owned by tin-mining magnate Loke Chow Kit.

  Menara KL Open Deck

  Now you can step outside onto the 300m-high open deck at Menara KL and take a photo in the new sky box, which puts nothing but glass between you and the ground below.

  Old Malaya

  A row of 100-year-old crumbling buildings in central KL has been beautifully renovated and transformed into this cluster of bars and restaurants that includes Antara.

  The Habitat

  At this excellent new nature reserve atop Penang Hill treetop walkways and bridges, giant swings and zip lines put you at eye level with the rainforest canopy.

  Entopia by Penang Butterfly Farm

  Be mesmerised by around 120 species of tropical butterfly, plus multiple other insects and reptiles, at this upgraded tourist attraction on Penang Island.

  Art & Garden by Fuan Wong

  Mother nature and human creativity combine at this beautiful concept garden on Penang Island, packed with bromeliads, glass sculptures and so much more.

  Cheah Kongsi

  A major restoration has left Penang's oldest Straits Chinese clan association looking fabulous. Also learn about Chinese immigrant life and secret societies in the early days of the colony.

  The T
op at KOMTAR

  A major revamp of part of George Town's iconic KOMTAR tower has resulted in the addition of the Rainbow Skywalk on the 68th floor rooftop and theme park attractions on lower levels.

  Need to Know

  Currency

  Malaysian ringgit (RM)