What to do in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is not the typical place you would go to Southeast Asia for, and that's why there's not so much to do here.
Apart from walking around the city and visiting interesting places that are definitely worth it, we can mention shopping and the sporting event of the year, Formula F1.
KL is the perfect place for a 3-4 day stopover during a trip around Malaysia or Southeast Asia in general.
Book a hotel for 3 nights in KL
Gastronomy and street-food
If you like to sample local gastronomy and authentic street-food, we would recommend a few places that we have personally tried.
- Central Market - on the first floor you'll find a foodcourt with a dozen "restaurants" offering cuisine across Asia, and on the lower floor are modern souvenir shops
In front of the Central Market building on Kasturi Walk, try the freshly blended fruit juices you'll point out, the delicious coconut green rolls or the roasted corn. However, in recent years Kasturi Walk has lost its authenticity and is a very touristy and expensive place.
- Kampung Baru - we liked it best here and Kampung Baru strikes us as the most authentic neighbourhood with great cheap street-food just a 15 minute walk from the Petronas Towers
- Chow Kit - the area around the huge market is very authentic and although you'll mainly find vegetable and meat stalls, there are also a few eateries and takeaways serving classic Malaysian street food
- Bukit Bintang - the famous street-food street of Jalan Alor is the busiest tourist spot in all of Kuala Lumpur. It's got a great vibrant atmosphere, but if you're craving for really good local street-food, Bukit Bintang has long been the place to go. It's both very touristy and very expensive. We rather recommend the aforementioned Kampung Baru.
- Petaling Street - Chinatown's bustling central thoroughfare is again a very touristy place, but if you want a taste of authentic Chinese food, you won't be disappointed.
Shopping
Not the typical activity you'd expect from Asia. However, Kuala Lumpur is alive with modern life and across the city you'll find huge shopping malls with the world's leading brands.
We personally visited these shopping malls, which we definitely recommend to all lovers of luxury shopping. All of them will keep you entertained for a few hours, even if the weather is bad.
- KLCC Suria (location on the map) - one of the most visited shopping malls directly below the Petronas Twin Towers, where you will find, among others, Aquaria
- Metro: KLCC station, red line 5
- Hotel directly in the mall: Mandarin Oriental KL *****
- Pavilion (location on map) - the most luxurious and largest shopping mall in the city centre
- Monorail: Raja Chulan station, green line 8
- Hotel right in the shopping mall: JW Marriott Kuala Lumpur *****
- LaLaPort (location on map) - one of the most modern shopping malls opposite Berjaya Square ThemePark
- Metro: Hang Tuah station, orange line 3 and brown line 4
- Monorail: Imbi station, green line 8
- Nu Sentral (location on map) - a large shopping mall near KL Sentral main train station
- Metro: KL Sentral station, red line 5
- Suburban trains: all lines
- Monorail: KL Sentral station, green line 8
- Hotel right in the shopping centre: Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral ****
Best sightseeing in Kuala Lumpur
The panorama 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 Southeast Asia, and even Singapore, with its famous Marina Bay Sands hotel, can't compete.
Where to go for the best views and what are the most famous skyscrapers in KL?
- Petronas Twin Towers - unquestionably the most iconic skyscrapers in Malaysia and for a long time the tallest buildings in the world.
- You need a reservation at least 3 days in advance for the view, but more like 7-8 days in advance to be safe!
- Menara Tower - the TV transmitter is another icon of the city and with its huge outdoor terrace, it has probably the best views of the city.
- Here, on the other hand, there's no need to book in advance and there aren't even usually long queues at the ticket office.
- Merdeka 118 - the second tallest building in the world after Dubai's Burj Khalifa - measures 679 metres.
- The 566-metre observatory is not yet operational and will open in late 2025/2026
There are also great views from the roof terraces of some of the city centre hotels.
I can personally recommend the Imperial Lexis KL, whose qualities you can read about in my review.
Parks and gardens
Kuala Lumpur is a bustling big city full of skyscrapers and concrete apartment blocks, but you'll still find beautiful parks with great attractions for adults and children.
We liked the following locations the most:
- KLCC Park - an iconic park right downtown under the Petronas Twin Towers with a luxury jogging track (free), grassy picnic areas and a musical lighted fountain
- Bird Park - one of the largest bird zoos in the world
- Butterfly Park - one of the largest butterfly parks in the world
- Botanical Gardens - a large open-air park, we were most impressed with the orchid garden
Sights and attractions
The capital of Malaysia is a modern metropolis and you won't find many historical monuments here.
Nevertheless, you can visit many very interesting temples and buildings, often dating back several centuries.
- Batu Caves - clearly the most famous attraction of Kuala Lumpur is the complex of Hindu temples in the Batu Caves in the northern suburbs
- Thean Hou Temple - a beautiful large Chinese temple built only in 1989, but the architecture honours the ancient form
- Sri Maha Mariamman - the oldest Hindu temple dating from the late 19th century can be found right in the centre of the city
- Masjid Jamek - the oldest large mosque dates back to the early 20th century.
We were also very impressed by the two largest modern mosques you can visit for free - the National Mosque and the Federal Territory Mosque.
Formula 1 and Grand Prix
Not far from Kuala Lumpur in the city of Sepang, the most famous motorsport competition Formula 1 and the equally famous MotoGP have been held annually since 1999.
The Sepang International Circuit lies adjacent to the KLIA International Airport.
The races are held in late September/early October. If you are in Malaysia during this time, don't miss them. Tickets start at about 200 myr.
For a list of all the races and the official sales channel where you can buy tickets online, visit sepangcircuit.com/ticketing.
Trip to Putrajaya
While Kuala Lumpur is the seat of the Malaysian government and monarch, the man-made city of Putrajaya is the administrative capital of Malaysia with the seats of ministries, offices or courts.
Putrajaya is a bit of a quirky city with wide boulevards, monumental mosques and an artificial lake and is definitely worth a visit.
It is located about 33 km south of downtown Kuala Lumpur and you can easily visit in half a day, as there is a high-speed train and metro line between Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya.
I, for example, visited Putrajaya on my last day in Malaysia because I didn't leave until late in the evening and the town is about halfway between Kuala Lumpur and KLIA International Airport.
A trip to historic Malacca
Malaysia's largest historic city will impress you with its mix of many colonial influences, having been successively settled by the Portuguese, Dutch and British since the 16th century.
Plus, you'll find the most authentic and sprawling Chinatown in all of Malaysia, and the walks along the Melaka River between Chinatown and the Portuguese fort on St. Paul's Hill have their own charm.
Malacca is over 130 km from Kuala Lumpur and is well served by a very frequent bus service.
You can easily visit in one day, however Melaka has a great atmosphere especially after dark so we recommend staying there for at least 1 night.
Book a hotel for 1 night in Malacca
It's great to include a visit to Malacca, for example, when making a land transfer between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. International buses run directly from Malacca to Singapore up to twice an hour, and there is also a regular Scoot airline service from the local airport.
Any questions left?
If you have any questions or comments about the article...
