Hi,
Going to Kuala Lumpur next week for work…What to buy that's cheaper then Aus (where to but them from). Are electronics cheap there? Also I'll have some days off to tour so where Must i visit before I leave. General advice about places and people and what to avoid would also be appreciated.
Thanks
ahly92
make sure the taxi uses their meter.
Good luck finding a taxi that uses its meter.
Taxi drivers in KL are a law unto themselves.
If not using a meter. Agree with a price with the driver before you get on the Taxi.
And 15 and 50 can sound similar!
Try the 'myteksi' app to book your drivers. Those who are affiliated with the program, goes by the metre in which most cases are much cheaper than those "prepaid" ones (price negotiated before you enter the cab).
Always use the MyTeksi app on iOS or Android. Its a godsend :)
I think you'll find that the 'arranged' price works out better than the meter price. I once insisted on the driver using the meter, so he then long-hauled me until he got the price he wanted anyway. My advice: pay up if it's reasonable. Around town it's going to be under RM15 anyway - ~$AUD5 - worth saving time over.
this is so true. When i was at KL early this year, the route which should be about 10 MYR at max. first taxi wanted 30 MYR and refused to use meter, which i declined.
found a taxi on the main street agreed to use meter, travelled long distance and in the end, costs us 35 MYR.
The best way to find a taxi that will use the meter is to use an android/iphone app called "MyTeksi" trust me you'll thank me for it.
thanks for the advice :)
Not always the case about taxis organized by the hotel.
The concierge at a hotel we stayed organized a taxi for us at a fixed price, the driver put the meter on anyway and it the meter ended up being about 50 ringgit more than the fixed price but we only had to pay the negotiated price.
Laksa's pretty cheap! Tasty too.
the MUST:
DURIAN
and..
DURIAN
^ This is missing a GIF of Admiral Ackbar ^_^
ill have a try..thanks
If you like the taste of pungent raw onion smelling/tasting fruit, you will be in heaven :P
Food is relatively cheap, but thats for the kind you buy and eat there.
Never found much else was cheap. Clothing etc was fairly expensive. Maybe if you get out of the centre and find some of the Tesco stores you might get some bargains
You can also look at their weekly catalog there
Haha, that's like lil'wayne releasing an exclusive line of clothes at kmart…
if you want dodgy pirate stuff then check out china town. it's a bit of a pain with the haggling. if you walk the streets around china town then there are shops that will sell much the same stuff as the street stalls but cheaper. and the prices are usually on display so no hassle with haggling.
KL bird park and butterfly park are in the botantical area and a pretty groovy. also the museum of islamic art is really good if like architecture and want to be surprised by the complexity of islamic and history of islamic art.
check out this recent thread on KL stuff - https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/139828
thanks altomic
Electronics are for the most part more expensive than Australia, at least for genuine products. Cheap rip offs with fake branding are cheap though, as are the pirated copies of games and DVDs (can't remember if they sell pirated Blu-Rays as well).
It depends on what kind of electronics. Things like phones may be cheaper if you get a local to buy it for you from the right places. :)
My husband used to buy his cameras from Keycolour in MidValley megamall. You need to do your homework first to decide what you want and how much you would pay here and bargain accordingly. We find the moneychangers in MidValley give decent rates too.
If there are sales, my husband buys his business shirts from Parkson Grand, Aeon or Metrojaya. These are department stores. Brands like D'urban for business shirts and Forest or casual wear. You can buy cheaper legal DVDs from DVD stores but we found they did not have a proper menu to select captions . As we live in Perth, there is no Daiso, so we always hit up Daiso for things that are not as easy to get here Eg. Muslin cloths for steaming dimsum, a special powder that coagulates used oil for cooking so yo can dispose of it easily and all the various kitchen stuff for making sushi, etc.
Free wifi access is available at quite a few places like Ipoh Old Town White Coffee cafes and MacDonalds.
Be very aware of your surroundings as opportunistic thieves target people travelling alone. I suggest leaving any jewellery at home and not flashing expensive watches or phones, Be especially careful at car parks, watch out for motor cyclists, as they can be potential snatch thieves. My brother forgot he had a gold chain on and it was snatched off him in a car park. He was just relieved that the thief did not use a machete.
If you don't want to risk eating street food, there is the Lot 10 Hutong which is an upmarket food court which is said to house very good hawker stalls.
I can't imagine going to Malaysia and not eating street food! It is one of the best things!
thanks
The sky bar at Traders Hotel is just across the park from the Petronas Towers…a great place for dinner and drinks to watch the sunset. Shopping is insanely good…just remember to do one full lap of any shopping precinct before committing to buy anything - the shops you pass first are usually tempting but also the most expensive. IMBI plaza for Tech, Times Square is a huge place to get lost in for everything else. Taxis are more reliable and less likely to scam you than other asian countries (haven't been scammed yet in KL)…however…if you do go up the Menara Tower (the views are better than the KLCC tour…though the KLCC tour is free…you get what you pay for)…if you catch a taxi back into town from the base of the tower…it is decided more expensive than walking down the road and hailing a cab once you get past the boom gate - and there are plenty of taxis heading up to the tower, it's not hard to get one to turn around and pick you up and saving them having to go through the boom gate.
And I don't think you've ever been to KL until you've bought a fake watch or two from Petaling Street (pronounced PET-ARR-LING). The Chinese Market is also pretty good. Train system is pretty good and monorail too.
I'll second the Traders Bar idea. Last time we were in KL we asked the family we were staying with if they could take us to Petronas. Which they did. It's a shopping centre. Except you can't actually see the Towers if you're IN them
This time, I read about the Trader's Bar and thought I'd try that first… arrived about 30 mins before sunset… it was perfect! A little wait for the best window seat, but in the meantime we had time to chat with a Finnish backpacker, an Australian on business and a couple of americans and had a good old time as I took pics of the sunsetting… and then a cab to the night market for some fake Raybans and a $60 Gucci bag for my ex-wife (my son was with me)
I like Pavilion mall. Lots of good branded stores. Prices vary but bargains can be had when there are sales e.g. Mossimo Dutti
Enjoy K L. Also movies at cineplexes ridiculously cheap e.g. A$2.30 for early session.
Bring umbrella. Works for sun and rain.
Street food is a must. There's also a hawker center in Sungei Wang plaza which is a good place to get hawker food without having to deal with eating in the heat/rain.
We were there over Easter long weekend holiday, stayed at Bukit Bintang which is in front of Berjaya Times Square shopping center (with a theme park/roller coaster inside), 5 minute walk to Plaza Low Yat where there's 7 floors of IT gear (none were cheap but it's decent to just have a walk if you don't mind being asked every 30 sec if you wanna buy a mobile or accessories).
KLCC shopping center on the bottom of Petronas tower is good if you are in to high end shopping otherwise I didn't find anything in there cheaper compared to what you get in AU.
We prefer the view from top of the KL Tower instead of the one from Petronas.
Batu Caves is about 45 minute train ride from KL Sentral Station $2 MYR each way (0.75 AU$). Just be prepared for the 300 step climb up.
Having lived in Kuala Lumpur for 25 years and then migrated to Aus 10 years ago, here is my few recommendations.
Food- street hawkers are good but only if you know which stall/place to look for. Most are just average and you can find good authentic food in shopping malls nowadays. The one I like best is the Underground floor of Pavilion Mall-hygienic, 40-50 food varieties to choose from and all the prices are labelled clearly.
Electronics- Lowyat Plaza in the middle of the city is a heaven for gadget lovers. Go to bigger shops like Thundermatch/Sri computers-prices are cheap and save you the hassle of haggling. Avoid smaller shops behind the alley, they mark up all their prices and they know they will get a big catch when they see foreigners. Also compare the prices in australia before making the purchase, some can be bought cheaper in aus.
General shopping- I will stick to big malls like midvalley megamalls/ pavillion/ sunway pyramids. Nice places and not considered "tourist spots" where the business are waiting for a big kill. Night markets are great, however be wary of places like petaling street where the people can be extremely rude. I have seen things gone bad with disagreement between buyers n sellers and ended up really bad. I strongly recommend the night market in Cheras, spans for more than 1 kilometer with almost a hundred stalls, will keep the ladies occupied.
Transport- taxis are always a worry for me even as a local. Some do not follow the meter and some tweak the meters to jump at a rate faster than you can yell stop. I go with big taxi companies and keep their contact handy just in case I need one. Walking out onto the streets to catch a random one can be quite risky.
And finally beware of snatchers! Never show anything worth snatching. Beware of necklace/chains/ handbags in specific, I have seen snatchers on motorbikes pulling on such, dragging the victim until the necklace broke. Ended with a concussion/ some abrasions, red marks over the neck and a trip to the local hospital.
Haha! I was just waiting for the snatchers on motorcycles comments. This is true and it's not just snatch, in some towns they 'fish' with a machete, standard procedure slash then rob. Usually if they snatch your bag don't fight back. Keep your eyes OPEN when walking on streets. Yes its as terrible as you think so be extra cautious.
I've caught the KLIA express into town from the airport on my last couple of trips - cheaper and quicker than taxi at RM28 one way. My last trip there was in 2010, so this might not be current.
It's cheaper than a taxi if it's just yourself…I usually travel with wife + daughter so it's more expensive, but less stressful and less chance of delays.
A taxi is pretty cheap, I would take it even with one person unless maybe someone can meet you at the other end.
The official taxi costs RM74 to KL city. That's only about AUD$24. The benefit is you can put your bags in the boot and step out at your hotel doorstep.
A train costs RM35 - a saving of AUD$13. You have to wheel your bags to the train, find a place to stow them, then at the other end, wheel them to a taxi stand, hope the taxi queue at the station isn't too long, and hope the taxis there don't charge you a random amount. The taxi at the airport is prepaid so that won't happen.
Of course each traveller has their own preferences (sometimes a train might be quicker), but I personally think $13 isn't much to pay for the convenience.
KLIA express is a class of its own. No traffic, reliable and quiet. It really separates the traveller from the busy traffic, great way to relax your way to and from the airport.
Strange question - but I will be stopping over in KL next month from midnight to 10am.
IS there anything to do??
How about cheap electronics..are there any cheap markets…don't really mind haggling. its in my blood! is it safe to purchase through gumtree in Malaysia?
Appreciate all ur responses! :)
Try a place called 'Low Yat Plaza'
I didn't know there was gumtree in Malaysia.. there's a buying/selling forum on lowyat.net (their equivalent of whirlpool+OCAU) which looks safe. You can meet up in person with people in a public place and check whatever you buy first so it's safe.
if you like buffets go to a place called jagoya in starhill gallery shopping cantre.
promise you've seen nothing like this place.
nice..thanks
I second that… I went a few years ago when it was new and wow … THAT is what a buffet should be like!
Please don't go there if you think Malaysian Seafood is edible there.
I am malaysian myself so am not bias on this.
Took my family there once and that was the last.
The starhill is a luxury (overated) mall where its 90% of the time EMPTY.
Jagoya is big, lot of variety, but thats all there is to it.
It is confusing when you go in you see the sushi/sashimi (raw food) section, you will need to walk in to find a bigger variety.
The seafood is NOT fresh, and we end up having diarrhea and the likes of bad handling of raw foods.
3 groups of colleagues have gone there including me in 3 seperate occasion this year, Sep 2013, Jan 2014, March 2014, and ALL of which gave us food poisoning, so, go at your own risk, but it is NOT worth the price and health.
One word of advise: as HOT as it may be in Malaysia, try to avoid eating ICE. even in shopping mall food court as above mentioned (pavillion underground food court) still got many bad experience there.
Why? Because ICE is made from water, and water in malaysia is not clean like sydney water (aus for that matter) and it is unfiltered, you must be careful.
HOWEVER, malaysia is cheap place to be in, rental is cheap (over hotel at airbnb), lowyat is not bad, but SUNGEIWANG use to be my favourite now it is just overun by a lot of resellers of the same items mostly mobie phone accessories and clothing.
Overall just like singapore (but a lot cheaper in Msia) EAT A LOT OF FOOD!! :)
The starhill is a luxury (overated) mall where its 90% of the time EMPTY.
It's only overrated to people who can't afford to shop there. And as you can tell, that's a lot of people. :)
3 groups of colleagues have gone there including me in 3 seperate occasion this year, Sep 2013, Jan 2014, March 2014, and ALL of which gave us food poisoning, so, go at your own risk, but it is NOT worth the price and health.
I've been there many times in the last few years and never had food poisoning. Did your group get it within a few hours, or a bit longer? Few hours means it was ingested, around a day means it was passed on from someone else.
Did you report it to anyone?
One word of advise: as HOT as it may be in Malaysia, try to avoid eating ICE. even in shopping mall food court as above mentioned (pavillion underground food court) still got many bad experience there.
I must say, neither me nor any of my friends have ever had problems with ice in restaurants and food courts. We definitely avoid ice from stalls though.
eat!!
One web address
Fattycrabs.com
You will be hooked
Cheap, quick and tasty, and delivered to your door for free
I was in KL for 2.5 yrs, never faced issues with Taxi not running on meter!
1) If you enjoy Seafood, I would recommend South Pacific Restaurant.
http://winniekepala.com/2012/01/restaurant-review-south-paci…
2) For electronics you can visit a "Low Yat Plaza". It is an exclusive electronics only store.
Official website is - http://plazalowyat.com/
3) For pubs/nightlife - Bangsar
http://www.kuala-lumpur.ws/nightlife/bangsar.htm
4) Buying clothes (also electronics) - Mid Valley Mega Mall. It's big.
http://www.midvalley.com.my/
If you get time over the weekend, you can also visit Genting Highlands - for theme park and Casino.
I find the comment about never facing issues with taxi not running on meter very hard to believe. Every time I've gone back to KL(I was born there), more than one taxi driver has pulled the "no meter" routine. Even locals who've lived their whole lives there get the same treatment, and its just understood thats the way it works, especially if its around peak time/raining.
Indeed I did not face issues. It was way back in 2004-2005 though. At times during rains some drivers asked for a couple of ringgits extra on top of meter, but that's all.
But I travelled long distance (usually 15km+) maybe taxis do not want to run on meter for short distances.
LOL, I too have spent a fair bit of time in KL and I would say the opposite, I cant say I remember a taxi wanting to use a meter.
There are budget taxis and premium taxis (Blue taxis). The Blue taxis are not that expensive, may about 15% more and they always use the meter.
You can get an idea of taxi fare from here:
http://www.taxiautofare.com/my/taxi-fare-card/Kuala%20Lumpur…
Read this thread from TripAdvisor:
http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTopic-g298310-i9595-k43490…
+1 for Low Yat plaza. Great for computer parts and electronics.
Checkout Sungei Wang plaza, Lot 10 and Berjaya Times Square. They are few metres away from each other.
Wana discover the local food and culture, take the Eat Pray Love tour
http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowUserReviews-g298570-d24606…
Thought I should add my tips on things to do as we were just got back from a Malaysia and Singapore holiday.
In KL these are the things we did and what I thought of them:
We stayed at the Fraser Place which I highly recommend.
1) Aquaria KLCC - Pretty good, big aquarium with lots in there.
2) Petronas Towers - Worth the money to get a great view of the city, hope you go on a low smog day however (costs 160MYR to go up)
3) Plaza Low Yat - Great for a massive selection of tech, think 8 levels of electronics.
4) Suria KLCC mall - Not for those on a tight budget
5) Midvalley Mall - Good for a bit of everything
6) The bird park - Go. Just go. It is amazing, best part for me was the free flight parrot area. Worst part was the walk up the hill to get there in 40degree heat as we couldn't find it and couldn't find a taxi to get us there.
7) Batu Caves - Another recommend but I hope you like steps! Do the dark cave tour as well, that was pretty good. Very cheap and easy to get there on the train, something like $1AU to get the train there.
Also with the taxis, the better looking the taxi the more you pay for it.
So if you get a taxi ordered by your hotel you play a little roulette with the level you may receive. The Mercedes that turn up will cost 3 times that of the old beat-up red protons.
*** Edit ***
Thought I should also add that alcohol is taxed heavily there so it is not that cheap to buy.
If you go into the malls have a look for the food court rather than the shops in the centre, you can get better food at a much cheaper price to boot.
I can vouch for Genting - its a must I'd say and specially staying overnight for the parties and casino. The food there a bit costly comparatively, but nothing much to worry about.
While going there, dont forget to go through cable car rides. Just ask the bus operator (if by public transport) or the cabbie to drop off.
If staying overnight, the cheapest hotel I found was first-world hotel (I paid 45RM for a standard non-ac double room) which was of very good value. It gets a bit cold at night though.
Sunway Lagoon is within an hour or so, you get a good shopping mall, ice skating and water-world activities specially for kids. There are some big hotels which host international/national events and meetings.
Visiting Putrajaya is another in must-see list. go to central putra, you can book a taxi for approx 45rm/h as I can remember. book for two hours, cheaper and no rush rush.
There is a small mall called SOGO (like our myer) where you get quality products at cheaper price. They also have a gold store (forgot the name) which is very reliable and affordable for the ornaments if you are into.
try local foods. Chicken satay, nasi ayam ABC around the Golden Triangle areas are hugely popular.
For taxis, best to look for asian guys as usually they are less prone to con you compared to the dark colored ones (no offense, from own experience and others' recommendations). Premium taxis are usually rip-off, too.
If you're into the backpacker scene, there's a decent hostel called Reggae Mansion in KL Chinatown that I've visited a few times. has a rooftop bar and good company.
I mostly eat street food on the times I've visited, so no real recommendations there.
Definitely check out the Batu Caves when you visit.
Could anyone recommend the mobile phone SIMs suitable for tourists in KL?
I usually get a Maxis Hotlink sim. You can buy them at the airport. All three major networks (Maxis, Celcom, Digi) have booths just before the passport counter.
You can tell them what plan you want and they'll activate it for you. That can take a short while, so be prepared to wait 10-20 minutes. They'll need to see your passport too.
At the moment 1GB is RM30 (~$10) and 3GB is RM68 (~$22). Not sure what the cost of the SIM is at the moment though.
http://new.hotlink.com.my/en/internet/mobile-internet-plans.…
I couldn't find their call rates. Is this a data only service?
Oh it's actually a normal prepaid voice service, you add on the data packs. Their website is terribly confusing if you're trying to find out about call rates… I've never actually bothered as I whatsapp and sms 99% of the time.
Closest I can find is this:
https://new.hotlink.com.my/content/hotlink/en/plans/free-int…
•6sen/30sec, 1sen/SMS with ACTIV10
•12sen/30sec, 7sen/SMS to all local networks
6sen/30sec, 1sen/SMS with ACTIV10
This looks like for 10 nominated numbers. I spent about an hour on their web site trying to see the whole set of rates, but no luck. I know some prepaid SIMs have a higher "SIM fee" and no included value.
Yes, the second line (12sen/30sec) would be for "normal" numbers.
Did you have to pay any other fees? SIM fee, joining fee, activation fee etc?
Last post in the thread below says that he had to pay RM35 for a SIM and then pay plan fees
http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/626800-trip-to-kuala-lum…
Yup, I had to buy the SIM. A SIM starter pack is RM8.80 and comes with RM5 credit. No other fees.
There was one time when the booth ran out of cheap starter packs. If I remember right I ended up buying a more expensive starter pack which came with more credit. I think it was RM20 or thereabouts.
I got TuneTalk when we landed in KL but I wished that I got a DiGi sim after that. TuneTalk didn't work in a lot of areas but it was only like 10MYR for 1GB worth of data and a small amount of phone credit which was all I needed.
In Singapore I got a singtel sim, very good service!
If you want to catch a Taxi that always turn on their meters, get the Blue Taxi. They do charge a higher rate but always turn on the meters.
The Red taxis generally do not turn on meters. However, just mention it before getting inside the Taxi if the driver refuse then walk away.
When arriving at the KL Sentral, you can catch a prepaid Taxi. The rate is determine based on the zones of your destination. Just pay for a fixed rate at the counter and give the receipt to the driver.
To sum up, KL can be a challenging place to visit but if you do research in advance and use common sense before taking action it should be ok.
Some medications can be cheaper. That might be worth looking into if you need them on a regular basis.
As a girl I use Ponstan, it's about $1 in Malaysia vs $10 here for a pkt. MUCH cheaper. It's the same brand too. As since there are no generics available it saved me $150 to stock up.
F&N Blackcurrant and Aloe drink!
Also get some desserts in the little India market street
Don't take taxi's that are arranged by the hotel, walk down the street and hail one, most hotels take a cut if they organise it for you, to the airport for example they add an extra 20-40 MYR
If you are going to do the Petronas Towers tour in KL, book ASAP as the good times (around sunset), are usually sold out quite quickly.