Kuala Lumpur Top Activities

Summary: Check out a few activities, but you absolutely must see the Malaysian capital. Even if you don’t have much time, you can enjoy the atmosphere of the city.

Kuala Lumpur–KL as the locals call it—is for us a highlight of Malaysia. Though we usually don’t seek out big cities and prefer quiet places, Kuala Lumpur, like Bangkok or New York, has it’s own peculiar vibrant energy and is definitely a place where one should spend at least a week.

The Petrona towers in Kuala Lumpur

Shopping

Who said that KL was a Mecca for shoppers? Well this is partly true if you consider the huge diversity of products and the scale of the prices. I have to say that things I couldn’t find in Europe (for example, old-fashioned clothes) are still available in Asia, and in KL in particular. That is what makes Asia a big open market—you can easily find whatever you imagine. For instance, you have something in your mind that you’re looking for but can’t find it anywhere—well you’ll find it here.

KLCC Shopping mall before chinese new year

Shopping malls are everywhere in Kuala Lumpur (and in Malaysia in general), starting with the KLCC shopping mall (where you can also cross the bridge between the famous Petronas Towers), and all around.

Cultural Show

This is a summary of the huge cultural diversity of Malaysia that you can encounter while traveling around the country. This show will give you a glimpse of the different Malaysian communities’ folklore and dances, such as the Chinese, Indian, Malay, and numerous different ethnicities of western and eastern Malaysia like Bidayuh, Oran Ulu, and so on. This show is free and is really worth seeing. You can have food and drinks at the same place (not for free, but at normal prices). The show is at the Ma Tic (Malaysia Tourism Center) at Dang Wangi subway station, then walk to 109 Jalan Ampang. They run the show several days a week—we went at 8pm on a Saturday.

The beautiful cultural show at Jalan Ampang

Batu Caves

This is probably what we liked most, maybe because we had the chance to be there during the impressive Thaipusam Hindu festival, which occurs only once a year in Kuala Lumpur. So we attended the day before the festival (which had already started) and came back the day after to see the place during the day time.

The impressive Thaipusam festival

How to Go to the Batu Caves?

It is very easy to go to the Batu Caves by public transportation—just take the Komuter KTM at KL Sentral Station. It is direct and doesn’t take more than half an hour. The caves are just at the exit of the train.

The Batu Caves

Note from 2 Digital Nomads

After collecting information on the Internet about the place, I was worried about two things people kept warning about: the difficult stairs to climb and the bad monkeys that are just waiting to steal your food, your camera, and everything they can grab from you.

The Batu Caves from inside

After our visit, I can say that the climbing is not difficult at all—just take your time. Secondly, the monkeys are ok. Of course, don’t go there and eat an ice cream in front of them, or carry food. Keep your bags well closed and don’t pet the monkeys.