Kuala Lumpur isn’t the sort of place you’d typically travel to in South-East Asia, which is partly why there isn’t all that much to do there.

As well as walking around the city and visiting interesting places that are definitely worth a visit, we can mention shopping and the sporting event of the year: the Formula 1 Grand Prix.

KL is the ideal place for a 3–4-day stopover whilst travelling around Malaysia or South-East Asia in general.

Book a hotel for 3 nights in KL

Cuisine and street food

If you enjoy sampling local cuisine and authentic street food, we’d recommend a few places that we’ve tried ourselves.

• Central Market – on the first floor you’ll find a food court with a dozen ‘restaurants’ offering cuisine from across Asia, whilst the ground floor features modern souvenir shops

Outside the Central Market building on Kasturi Walk, try freshly blended fruit juices (just point to the fruit you want), delicious green coconut rolls or roasted sweetcorn. In recent years, however, Kasturi Walk has lost some of its authenticity and has become a very touristy and expensive place.

• Kampung Baru– this is where we liked it best, and Kampung Baru strikes us as the most authentic neighbourhood, with brilliant, cheap street food just a 15-minute walk from the Petronas Towers

• Chow Kit– the neighbourhood around the huge market is very authentic, and although you’ll mainly find stalls selling vegetables and meat here, there are also a few bistros and snack bars serving classic Malay street food

• Bukit Bintang– the famous street-food street, Jalan Alor, is the busiest tourist spot in the whole of Kuala Lumpur. It has a great, lively atmosphere, but if you’re craving really good local street food, Bukit Bintang is no longer the right place to go. It’s very touristy and very expensive. We’d recommend the aforementioned Kampung Baru instead.

• Petaling Street– the bustling main thoroughfare of Chinatown is, once again, a very touristy spot, but if you want to sample authentic Chinese food, you certainly won’t be disappointed.

Shopping

Not exactly the kind of activity you’d expect in Asia. However, Kuala Lumpur is a modern city, and across the city you’ll find huge shopping centres featuring leading world-famous brands.

We’ve personally visited these shopping centres, which we’d definitely recommend to all lovers of luxury shopping. You can easily spend several hours enjoying yourself in any of them, even when the weather’s not so good.

• KLCC Suria (location on the map) – one of the most popular shopping centres, situated directly beneath the Petronas Twin Towers, where you’ll find, amongst other things, Aquaria
  • Metro: KLCC station, red line 5
  • Hotel located within the shopping centre: Mandarin Oriental KL *****
• Pavilion(location on the map) – the most luxurious and largest shopping centre in the city centre
  • Monorail: Raja Chulan station, green line 8
  • Hotel located within the shopping centre: JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur *****
• LaLaPort(location on the map) – one of the most modern shopping centres, opposite the Berjaya Square Theme Park
  • Metro: Hang Tuah station, Orange Line 3 and Brown Line 4
  • Monorail: Imbi station, green line 8
• Nu Sentral(location on the map) – a large shopping centre next to the main railway station, KL Sentral
  • Metro: KL Sentral station, red line 5
  • Commuter trains: all lines
  • Monorail: KL Sentral station, green line 8
  • Hotel located within the shopping centre: Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral ****

The best views in Kuala Lumpur

The skyline of skyscrapers, some of which are global icons, attracts tourists from all over the world.

In this respect, Kuala Lumpur is probably the most photogenic city in South-East Asia, and not even Singapore, with its famous Marina Bay Sands hotel, can compete.

Where should you go for the best views, and what are the most famous skyscrapers in KL?

• The Petronas Twin Towers – undoubtedly the most iconic skyscrapers in Malaysia and, for a long time, the tallest buildings in the world.
  • You’ll need to book your visit to the observation deck at least 3 days in advance, but to be on the safe side, aim for 7–8 days in advance!
• Menara Tower– this TV transmission tower is another of the city’s landmarks, and thanks to its huge outdoor terrace, it offers perhaps the best views of the city.
  • Here, on the other hand, no advance booking is required, and there aren’t usually even long queues at the ticket offices.
• Merdeka 118– the second-tallest structure in the world after Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, standing at 679 metres.
  • The observation deck at a height of 566 metres is not yet open and is due to open at the turn of 2025/2026.

There are also superb views from the rooftop terraces of some hotels in the city centre.

I can personally recommend the Imperial Lexis KL hotel; you can read about its qualities in my review.

Parks and gardens

Kuala Lumpur is a bustling metropolis full of skyscrapers and concrete blocks of flats, yet you’ll still come across beautiful parks offering great attractions for both children and adults.

We particularly enjoyed these places:

• KLCC Park – an iconic park right in the city centre beneaththe Petronas Twin Towers, featuring a luxury running track (free of charge), grassy areas for picnics and a musical illuminated fountain
• Bird Park– one of the largest bird parks in the world
• Butterfly Park – one of the largest butterfly parks in the world
• Botanical Gardens– a vast, freely accessible park; we were particularly impressed by the orchid garden

Sights and attractions

Malaysia’s capital is a modern metropolis, and you won’t find many historical monuments here.

Nevertheless, you can visit many fascinating temples and buildings, the history of which often stretches back several centuries.

• Batu Caves– undoubtedly Kuala Lumpur’s most famous attraction is the complex of Hindu temples in the Batu Caves massif on the northern outskirts
• Thean Hou Temple – this magnificent, large Chinese temple was only built in 1989, but its architecture pays homage to the ancient style
• Sri Maha Mariamman – the oldest Hindu temple, dating from the late 19th century, is situated right in the city centre
• Masjid Jamek – the oldest large mosque dates from the early 20th century.

We were also very impressed by the two largest modern mosques, which you can visit free of charge – the National Mosque and the Federal Territory Mosque.

Formula 1 and the Grand Prix

Since 1999, the world-famous Formula 1 motor racing championship and the equally famous MotoGP have been held annually in Sepang, not far from Kuala Lumpur.

The Sepang International Circuit is situated right next to KLIA International Airport.

The races take place at the end of September and beginning of October. If you’re in Malaysia at this time of year, don’t miss them. Tickets start at around 200 myr.

A list of all races and the official sales channel, where you can buy tickets online, can be found on the websitesepangcircuit.com/ticketing.

A trip to Putrajaya

Whilst Kuala Lumpur is the seat of the Malaysian government and the monarch, the man-made city of Putrajaya is the administrative capital of Malaysia, housing ministries, government departments and courts.

Putrajaya is a somewhat bizarre city with wide boulevards, monumental mosques and an artificial lake, and is definitely worth a visit.

It is situated about 33 km south of the centre of Kuala Lumpur, and you can easily manage a visit in half a day, as there is a high-speed train and a metro line running between Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.

For example, I visited Putrajaya on the last day of my stay in Malaysia, as my flight wasn’t until late in the evening and the city lies roughly halfway between Kuala Lumpur and KLIA International Airport.

• What to see in Putrajaya
• How to get there
• How to get around the city

A trip to historic Malacca

Malaysia’s largest historic city exudes a blend of many colonial influences, having been successively settled by the Portuguese, the Dutch and the British from the 16th century onwards.

What’s more, you’ll find the most authentic and largest Chinatown in the whole of Malaysia here, and there’s a special charm to strolling along the Melaka River between Chinatown and the Portuguese fort on St Paul’s Hill.

Malacca lies over 130 km from Kuala Lumpur and is easily accessible via a very frequent bus service.

You can easily manage a visit in a single day, though Melaka has a wonderful atmosphere, particularly after dark, so we recommend staying there for at least one night.

Book a hotel for one night in Malacca

A visit to Malacca is a great addition to your itinerary, for example, when travelling overland between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. International buses run directly from Malacca to Singapore up to twice an hour, and there’s also a regular Scoot flight from the local airport.

• 12 places to see in Malacca
• How to get there
• Hotel tips in Malacca