fellow ozbargainers, my wife and i will be travelling to KL and Kota kinabalu for a week staying 3 nights in each place.
can any frequent travellers to this region recommend some interesting places to visit and things to eat.
we are quite adventurous with our food and have an open mind about all things.
thanks guys…
banana cakes… nice, i will try that definately
jalan alor / petaling st (chinatown) night market.. central market also close by… too many to list depends on what you are after…. food everywhere is good and decent(price-wise) as the dollar conversion is strong but you will need to brave the heat and humidity
when is the trip?
middle of august…
China Town And Little India
You get food exactly like the places they represent .. Cheap and good food ..
If you want to stick to shopping malls, where it is safer, there's some good food in KLCC below the twin towers. Madam Kwan serves up fairly decent local dishes in a mall dining environment. The things to order are the "Sang Har Mee" which you won't typically find here in Oz, it is basically a giant Prawn noodle dish.
There's also a small corner store in the same mall (KLCC) called nyonya colors, next to A&W (American hot dog franchise) I believe on the ground floor on one of the wings. Pretty decent tid bits, try the roti jala or otak-otak. Again not something you find easily on commercialized Malaysian food here in Oz. Oh if you haven't tried Root Beer, which most locals haven't heard before, do try out the Root beer in A&W if you happen to try nyonya colors. Its an American take on sarspirilla, quite different in very subtle ways.
You can hit the hawker foods outside the malls, as per recommended by porkupine888, but be careful, snatch thieves are increasing nowadays and the violence is getting more extreme as well. They just don't snatch and run like the old days, they ram you with bikes or cars, snatch and drive off. A colleague of mine got hit once, or rather her heavily built african-english boyfriend.
The shopping malls are stupendous is Malaysia, and most of Asia, or rather Oz is way behind. If you're into malls, try the KL Pavillion, Mid City mega mall and next to it the Gardens.
If you like DimSim, try the KL Hilton or the Mandarin Hotel next to KLCC. Sheraton KL is not bad either. Again these are more organized joints compared to the hustle and bustle local joints in residential areas.
thanks dude,
giant prawn noodle dish sounds interesting and root beer something i would've probably passed on but will definately try.
and thanks for the heads up on those snatch thieves.
Thanks, i will be travelling middle of august for a week.
we are really into the food, and markets and local culture just want to find places where most locals would go rather what most travel books and websites say is good.
Well I'm a local up to about 6 years ago, and I got to the malls and hotels more often than not. To be honest, the local stuff outside of those establishment are getting worst and less authentic.
The reason is the influx of foreign labor. To keep the cheap prices that the locals sell at given the crazy under-reported inflation, most of them hire foreign cooks and the quality is nothing like before. Instead you end up finding more authentic foods in upscale areas like malls and hotels where they charge a premium. Of course premium in Ringgit is still bugger all for Aussie dollar.
yeah it's sad in a way that it happens, hopefully we'll get some authentic malay food
Archi - re KL if you're not Asian I would suggest you read-up a bit more on the place. Have visited the place a few times myself but my friends who went as a family had a few shocks e.g. females having to dress more conservatively, safety, etc. As mentioned elsewhere - around KLCC and Pavillion aren't too bad and the Hilton is quite nice (I actually prefer the Hilton Double Tree which is a bit more out of the way). You could also stay at Traders and go to the Sky Bar with your wife at night for a good view of Petronas. In terms of eating - whatever the guys above have said - you can't be too far wrong in KL.
yeah traders looks like a nice place to stay. it's on the list of places to visit.
we are quite adventurous with our food and have an open mind about all things.
when you get to KL airport go to the ground floor. exit through the furthest doors on the easterly side of the building. there will be a man in a red cap standing just outside. give him US$500 and tell him you must be back at the airport in 3 days. he will then take control. make sure you all agree on a safe word. enjoy.
altomic, is that man in a red cap related to you?? I dun see why someone would be willing pay a complete stranger shitload of money & hope that their life will be safe in that stranger's hands?
Genting highlands are spectacular and have a terrific theme park if thats your bag. Halfway down the hill is the Chin Sui(S?) temple which is beautiful and a lovely cable car ride.
something different we tried when i was there was see fireflies. Unfortunately its fairly disappointing in many respects, due to the time it takes to travel there, which meant expensive taxi. But at the same time i was happy to see fireflies, which is pretty.
I wouldn't recommend it, due to time and cost, but if u have any affection for seeing them, as i did, i guess its an option for you.
In KL use public transport as much as possible., The monorail is easy to use after the first couple of times. Download maps of it before you go, and get an idea of where you want to go in relation to it. Taxi's are often not nice people (putting it mildly), and worth avoiding if possible. If you buy taxi coupons at various locations, it is worth the little premium because u then will not have to haggle etc. it will then be on the meter. A little trendy but good area for reasonable food & drink prices is Jalan Changkat Bukit Bintang. There are nice places here to eat, or you can eat in the street. I stayed at Hotel Capitol Hotel. In my opinion good value for money at about $65. Good location. From here the Bukit Bintang monorail and short walks will take you within striking distance of Little India, China Town, and many other attractions. Finding the old central railway station was ok if you have the time and like old buildings(most have been knocked down by corrupt developers)
My husband used to work for Tourism Malaysia and you can say he knows the in and outs of Malaysia like a local, pretty much. He agrees with most of the tips the others have shared. Traders AND SKYBAR IS A MUST though!,
One thing you should be aware of, the worst time to holiday in Malaysia is during their school holiday. And to make it more interesting, it's during their Hari Raya season. So be prepared to have the whole country travelling (literally) during 7-13 August!!
I remembered travelling to KL around the HARI RAYA a few years ago…..traffic was horrendous, flights was fully booked( be wary not to be late to check in OR your seat will get bumped to the next person on waiting list), hotels are pricy and prefered room/ view/late check out etc was impossible. And places that attract holiday makers like Genting, parks, petronas twin towers, AVOID them like the plague! Do you and your wife a favour!
I am originally from KK so its similar situation in KK but not as bad, I feel. I would advise you to do the low profile outings…like island hopping at manukan island. Across the island jetty at KK mainland is Hyatt hotel…oxtail Assam pedas is Awesome! Dinner head own to Ocean Seafood Restaurant,,,the variety dishes of seafood is too die for…locals drive for miles to eat there! Come sundown, KK is a happening place to PARTY…..
If you need more ideas what you can do, PM and I can give you more details.:)
Once you travel to Malaysia, it will be a frequent holiday stopover for you for sure! Change your money at malls ( not at airport) to get the best deal… And remember its ok to bargain for pretty much anything as long as its reasonable offer.
I just realised my mistake on the school dates…it's from 7th to 18th August 2013.
thanks. I just checked and the school holidays finish the weekend I arrive and Ramadan will also be over,
Beach Club. (Joking)
Satay chicken and Nasi Lemak are a must. street food is the go, not Hotel food
Street food all the way. If youre feeling a bit cautious Pavillion (shopping centre)"Food Republic" (food court basement) has nice street food in a relatively clean setting. Breakfast was the most interesting meal of each day for me. Indian-Malaysian roti one day, Nonya-Malay nasi lemaks then chinese brekky dishes the next (congee, soybean drink, HKstyle French Toast, youtiao (oilsticks), theres a lot of chinese food if you want to pause the spices). Its pretty much impossible to get street food (especially street breakfasts) in Australia. Someone also told me that KFC is very good in Malaysia and to try the chilli flaked original chicken.
To me, KL shopping didn't live up to the expectations, other Asian cities (HK in particular) have better prices on superbrands such as Uniqlo. I guess this would probably be the same in other brands. But if you aren't able to travel to asia often, heres the time to pick up some bargains. KL is more fashion centric IMO, I didn't really see much tech stuff.
I do suggest taking public transport because taxi's are in general not very nice agreeing with a comment above. Monorail is quite good and the trains are OK though I suggest you only travel trains in full daylight.
If you do decide to stay in virtually the hub of KL, Bukit Bintang, don't make the same mistake as I did. I took the monorail to the PETRONAS towers. Theres actually a sky bridge that takes you straight to the towers that starts in Pavillion Shopping Centre. If you are keen to go up the tower I suggest going there VERY EARLY. The lines are astounding mainly because [from what ive heard] hotels have someone go up and purchase tickets for tours or just to help their customers. Queues just stack for 30mins plus and this is before they open the counters, but don't worry they let you queue in the building. No need to sweat in sun.
Theres lots to see and do in KL, and its really interesting to see such a cultural mix.
Don't forget your tropical fruits! Jackfruit, longans, lychees, rambutans, mangosteens and the king of all fruits the durian.
since you said, you are adventurous with food, goto jalan alor and try the "frog" porridge. (a definitely must try ) :)
https://foursquare.com/v/best-famous-frog-porridge--jalan-al…
i visit them every time i go home :)
thanks I like the clay pot frog prridge I had once in Singapore a few years ago. cant wait to eat again.
KL is a hole. I avoid it whenever possible.
I've been to KL twice and my favourite place is the Batu caves which you can get to easily via the train.
I'm so glad I came across this page. I will be travelling to Malaysia from 6-Sep to 21-Sep this year, with my partner. Staying in Penang for 5 days and then we have a few days to travel, ending up in KL for 6 days.
We are looking forward to all the street food, markets, jenting highlands, snorkelling… but we haven't decided where to go between Penang and KL. I don't know if it's within our budget/schedule but I would love to fit in some skydiving or bungee jumping :)
Please do keep the suggestions coming… thank you!
See below
Don't go day trip with the tourism office from KL or culture dinner.
They are extremely crap.
I took a day trip which including lunch with them to malaka and they drove us to a crappy museum without guide and took us to a lunch with 2 dollars meal and dirty.
It's hot and meaningless ….
It's a waste of time and money. I would rather spend time in the airconditioned hotel or department store in KL
Oh another thing with taxi in KL
Always ask price before you jump on. They are so tricky, a 5 mins walking distance could end up 40 mins in the taxi.
I think I would rather go Singapore or east malaysia ….
thanks for all the ideas for KL fellow ozbargainers.
Archi, have you got enough ideas for KK?
yeah thanks…i did some research as well and there is a japanese buffet restuarant called jogoya in KL.
looks pretty interesting not that cheap but better than what you can get here in australia.
but thanks to everyone here i'll definately try a a few of things mentioned,
Mate, why even bother with sushi in Malaysia? There's no fresh salmon in Malaysia, they're all frozen and flown in. Same with Tuna and King fish, etc. You get better sushi here in Oz.
Local seafood is definitely something you want to sample. There are ways to cook a crab in Malaysia that you've never heard of. This place used to be good years go: http://food.malaysiamostwanted.com/venues/de-foodland-crabs-…
But last I heard from friends, its not as good anymore, but worth a try. Back then they have 20+ ways to cook a crab.
There are really good local fishes like "Soon Hock" or "Ikan Hantu", aka Marble Goby, that you should try. Its a premium fresh water fish that has a very nice texture to it. They also flame grill ray fins over there in curry/chili wrapped in banana leaf, which is very nice. Fish head curry is also pretty popular.
If you really have to try frozen imported fish, try the Cod fish which you can't easily find here in Oz. Snow white meat, absolutely delicious even if you just simply pan fry it.
Try the banana pancakes from street vendor carts.
Visit water fountains at night, bottom of Petronas Towers