The capital city of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, is exotic and modern because of many reasons. The city is visited by the most because of its classy lifestyle, world-class cuisine, beautiful beaches and endless shopping. KL has some of the best food in Asia. The cuisine you’ll find in the KL is fresh, on budget and is with the taste of the home country of the food. This article is devoted to the Kuala Lumpur attractions, the best places to visit in the city.
1. Petronas Twin Towers
The Petronas Twin Towers are identical skyscrapers in KL. The concept of the twin tower was inspired by Tun Mahathir Mohamad’s vision as he wanted Malaysia to become a global player. According to CTBUH, from 1998 to 2004, the Petronas Twin Towers were the tallest buildings in the world and then were surpassed by Taipei 101. At present, The Petronas Towers are the tallest twin buildings in the world. With the 88 stories (with 5 underground) the towers are 451.9 m (1,483 ft) tall. The observation deck on the 86th floor gives an amazing pyramidal structure of the towers by standing above the clouds. Both towers are built with a system. Tower’s simultaneous coordination with environment control, telecommunications, power supply, fire and smoke control, lighting, and building security makes them intelligent structures.
2. Menara
Menara Kuala Lumpur or KL Tower is a communications tower. The tower is located at Jalan Puncak in Jalan P. Ramlee. KL’s tower height with antenna is 421 feet and it makes the tower the 7th tallest freestanding tower in the world. Kl tower is one of the best iconic architecture in Malaysia and provides the best panoramic view of the capital.
Things to do at KL Tower
- Feel the breeze after getting access to the Sky Deck of the tower.
- For a thrilling experience, be in the Sky Box at the height of 300 meters. Sky Box extends from the sky deck to provide a thrilling experience.
- Get a panoramic view of KL from one of the best observation decks in the world.
- Click pictures and take selfies from a great height at the observation deck.
Slots are available every 30 minutes after the start of the operations hours.
3. Central Market
Central Market is one of the most visited Kuala Lumpur attractions and a popular Malaysian culture landmark. The market was built in 1928 and was a wet market, in the early 1980’s it became a handicrafts outlet. To keep attracting the youth, the central market has gone thru many renovations over the years. It is also classified as a Heritage Site by the National Heritage Department.
The major public transports are strategically linked to the market to make it convenient for the tourists and visitors. On the second floor of the market, several good restaurants and a food court are serving Asian cuisine.
Just like New York’s SoHo flea market, Central Market of KL has cheap merchandise with a variety of traditional goods such as embroidery carvings, sculptures, and souvenirs. Also, many of the vendors bring out their best wares during the colourful and exciting festivals which are hosted by the central market itself.
4. Merdeka Square
Merdeka Square aka Dataran Merdeka is one of the most popular landmarks of Kuala Lumpur located in front of the Sultan Abdul Samad Building. Merdeka Square is also called the Independence Square and it bears historical value to all Malaysians. The square is a grass field with a 100m high flagpole that stands erect. The flagpole was erected when Malaysia got its freedom from Britain on August 31st 1957. Nation’s flag was hoisted in it and it was the tallest flagpole of that time and now it is known as one of the tallest flagpoles in the world.
The best thing in Merdeka Square is to catch the National Day parades which take place every year on the anniversary of Malaysia’s independence. The parades show the beautiful cultures of Malaysia through performances and also colorful float processions. On the other days of the year, Merdeka Square hosts events like air concerts and carnivals.
5. Connaught Market
Cheras Pasar Malam or the Connaught Night market takes place every Wednesday evening in the neighbourhood of Cheras. 700 stalls on a road of 2 kilometers sell clothes, books, accessories, bags handicrafts and other household items. Generally, the market is crowded with the locals and the tourists. The opening time of the market is 17:30 and it stays open until midnight. Markets peak hours are 19:00 to 21:00.
The main thing to enjoy in the market is the local food such as curry noodles, char kuey teow and satay. Desserts include ice cream and other snacks. Korean, Thai, Japanese and Taiwanese food is also available in the market at fair prices.
6. City Gallery
The Kuala Lumpur City Gallery has a collection of paintings and photos of KL’s history, plus miniature mock-ups of famous city landmarks to provide information to the tourists. This free museum is located just beside Dataran Merdeka in a 144 years old colonial-style building. All the historical information is giving in the form of Paintings, pictures and audio. A 40 x 60 feet scaled model of greater KL is placed in the gallery and some videos of some of the important events like the 16th Commonwealth Games is also displayed.
The gallery has a gift store inside to buy souvenirs and locally made handicrafts. A free KL map is given in the gallery which has important landmarks highlighted for a convenient KL city tour.
7. Batu caves
A limestone hill with a series of caves and cave temples in Gombak, Selangor, is named Batu Caves. The name “Batu” is derived from the “Malay”, meaning rock. Batu cave is a joyful homage to Lord Murugan and one of the most important Hindu temples. A massive staircase with bright colours leads to the holly series of caves. Cathedral Cave is the most important and largest cavern in Batu Caves with several Hindu shrines. There are two other caves at the foot of Batu Hill is called Gallery Cave and Museum Cave and both are home to several Hindu paintings and statues.
Thousands of devotees and visitors get together here on the occasion of an annual Hindu festival, Thaipusam. The festival is held usually at the end of January month and starts on the evening before the Thaipusam festival at the Sri Mariamman Temple in the KL city centre.
8. Pavilion
The Pavilion mall is a shopper’s paradise and it is a one-stop-shop for everything you can think of. You’ll get all types of trendy clothes, shoes, handbags, accessories and many more in the mall. The mall is also popular for mecca shopping.
The mall majorly has three sections which are an office block, two residential towers, and a retail mall. It was opened in the year 2007 and covers an area of 1.37 million sq ft and hosts outdoor and indoor shopping. The main entrance of the mall has a national landmark which is the tallest Liuli Crystal fountain.
As one of the Kuala Lumpur attractions, the fountain grabs many of the tourists for the Pavilion mall. Visitors usually toss the coins to make a wish and these coins are donated for charity. The huge shopping mall looks like a grand Gracian temple with milky white marbles and post-modern pillars. The shopping complex is also home to Golden screen theatre with 13 screens. You will also find the most popular and famous brands like Jimmy Choo, Versace MaxMara, Juicy Couture, and Yves Saint Laurent in the mall.