When planning our trip to Singapore, my friends and I all agreed we might as well go to Kuala Lumpur as well due to their closeness. There are three ways you can get to Malaysia from Singapore: car, bus, or plane. We were not wanting to maneuver the busy, motorcycle-heavy streets of the two countries ourselves, so a car was out of the question. If you did want to rent a car and drive from one city to the other, you’re looking at a 4-hour drive.
While we do love taking the bus in Korea, we figured the 5-hour bus from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur would eat away at our day too much. If you wanted to save money, this would be your best option. So, we settled on taking the 50-minute flight.
We had planned to have a day and a half to explore Kuala Lumpur, but airport lines, unfortunately, dwindled down our time to one full day. Our taxi driver (a friendly and chatty guy) refused to believe we could see anything more than one landmark in one day. So, we made it our mission to accomplish as much as we could in the time we had. And I must say, we saw a lot! So, if by the off chance you only have a single day to spend in Kuala Lumpur, I have created what I believe to be a grade-a itinerary to help guide you!
One of the many amazing things about KL is how affordable it is. I recommend it to any travelers on a budget. We arrived at night and took a taxi from the airport to the hotel. This hour-long taxi ride only cost the 4 of us a total of $15 (converted from ringgits).
We arrived at Arte by Thomas Chan, our home for 2 nights. You will be able to spot this hotel from miles away due to its height and the bright lights that emit from it.
The lobby is all the way up on the 66th floor and as soon as you walk inside, you will be amazed by the design. While many modern hotels take the minimalist, clean interior design, Arte goes all out on maximalism. From the ceiling to the floor, everything is decorated with lux. The bar was my favorite room in the hotel but even the lobby bathroom was picture worthy.
Our room was magnificent and large with a common room, kitchenette, and two bedrooms to comfortably fit all four of us. We ordered some pizza to our room before getting a good night’s sleep for the full day ahead of us.
The next morning we went up to the lobby for our complimentary breakfast. We got an amazing table with a stunning view of the city. Each guest can choose two of the breakfast items which was more than enough food to be full for a while. The views from the hotel were amazing and looked over KLCC, the downtown of KL but it also meant we needed to take a taxi to get to most places quickly.
TIP: If you are traveling in Southeast Asia, download Grab! It is a must if you want to take taxis. It is the equivalent of Uber and super easy to use. This ensures you are getting to your destination safely and you will have a set price instead of relying on the meter.
The first thing we took a taxi to was the Batu Caves. You won’t find a Kuala Lumpur itinerary without this on it. Situated just outside the city, the Batu Caves are millions year old caves that are home to multiple Hindu shrines and temples. It is also where the second tallest statue of Lord Murugan in the world resides. Staring at its sheer height in real life made me wonder how there could be a taller one somewhere.
As the caves are a place of worship, you must abide by two simple rules before climbing up the 272 steps to the caves, have your knees and shoulders covered. I knew this in advance and packed a dress that would be light and breezy but still cover what needed to be. Something to remember is that Malaysia is very hot and humid so try to wear something with light fabric. If you didn’t pack something like this, you can get a wrap to cover up at the entrance. Don’t try to sneak past because 1. It is disrespectful to the culture and 2. You will get yelled at.
Another thing to note if you want to visit the caves is the monkeys. I had heard of the monkeys that live by the caves, but I was not shocked at how many there actually were. As you scale the steps, there are hundreds on either side. And yes, they can be mischievous. So, keep a safe distance, have all your belongings in a zipped-up purse or bag, and don’t feed them even if you see others feeding them. They are very cute, but they are wild animals so make sure to be safe!
The climb to the top was not as strenuous as I thought it would be but pack water just in case. We went in the morning before the sun was past the caves so the shade really helped. There are also fewer people in the mornings so I highly recommend getting there early.
Once inside the caves, we walked around for a while and took in the magnificent limestone that stretched high up. After some pictures of the caves and some of the monkeys, we walked back down. My friend did have a monkey jump on her back but after some slight panic, we reached the bottom and headed to our next destination.
In about 20 minutes by taxi, you can go from the Batu Caves to the city center, KLCC. When we got out of the taxi, we strained our necks to look up at the famous Petronas Twin Towers. Standing at 88 floors they are the tallest twin towers in the world and the 20th tallest building in the world.
Obviously, with that many floors, there are many things to do inside but my friends and I walked around the mall in search of food and to window shop, of course. After a meal and some souvenirs, we signed up for a tour of the towers.
It was a pretty standard tour, and you get to see the stunning views from the top. I recommend it to anyone who wants the full experience of the towers. It only took about 50 minutes so it won’t eat up too much of your time and you get to learn about the history of this architectural beauty!
However, we were pretty hungry and tired after the tour so we walked from the towers to Jalan Alor, another highly recommended spot to see in KL. It is a street that is lined with food stalls and restaurants with cuisines from all around Asia. But even if you aren’t hungry, it is a great spot to simply walk around and take in all the different cultures. Without knowing it, we visited Singapore and Malaysia right around the time of the Ghost Festival. The Ghost Festival is a festival held for followers of Taoism and Buddhism. It follows the Chinese calendar in which on the 15th night of the seventh month, the deceased from the lower realms will visit their living relatives. Much like Dia de los Muertos or All Hallows Eve! At Jalan Alor, we got to see a lot of the preparation for the upcoming festival which was so cool!
At this point in the trip, we had tried just about every Southeast Asian cuisine but we still hadn’t had Vietnamese so we found a Vietnamese restaurant and sat down for some much-needed food and beer.
Since the last activity we had planned was on the fancier side, we headed back to the hotel to freshen up and change from the hot and strenuous day. From there, we headed to our last stop, Heli Lounge.
This rooftop bar in the center of KLCC is a helicopter pad during the day but transforms into a classy bar with a DJ and all at night. If you head up to the top floor, you can pay the entrance fee which was about $22. The entrance fee also included 2 cocktails of your choosing. However, I would’ve paid the entrance fee solely for the view.
There were so many moments throughout my trip where I was amazed and grateful for this experience; but sitting on that roof with a breathtaking view of the city and the calm warm wind blowing, I was truly in awe. The atmosphere was so peaceful, I didn’t want to leave although I was tired. I heard the sunset views there are wonderful so if I go back to Malaysia one day, I will definitely return to Heli Lounge.
We all fell asleep fast upon arrival back at our hotel, exhausted but happy from our packed day. We had to leave the next morning from our hotel to fly back to Singapore and I felt sad that I didn’t get to spend more time in KL. Malaysian people were all so kind and welcoming and so many were shocked when we said we only had one day. Most insisted we needed more time to explore, and I would agree. I think our one day checked off the essentials in KL but I know there are so many more things for me to find in Malaysia. While I am completely satisfied with my visit to the capital city of Malaysia, I don’t want it to be the only time I go there. Malaysia, you haven’t seen the last of me!
Stay tuned for my Singapore blog post coming soon!
Carly in Korea 