Unfortunately Kuala Lumpur was the only place I saw in Malaysia. I was really impressed and surprised with this city though. It was way different from what I would have expected it to be like. In the following I will compare the city to some of the other huge cities and capitals, I've seen in Southeast Asia, as well as to some western cities. Furthermore, I will also tell you about my experiences in this magnificent place and give you some recommendations for when you are going on your own.

About Kuala Lumpur

Kuala Lumpur is actually a pretty new city. It was established in 1857 as a city to serve the nearby tin mines. Later it became the founding capital of Federation of Malaysia. In recent years, it underwent rapid development and growth. Nowadays the metropolitan area has a population of about 7,500,000 and is still rapidly growing.

The city is the cultural and economical center of the country. With a HDI of 0.867 and a GDP of close to 32,000$ per capita (as of April 2023), the city has a very high quality of life and a very strong economy in comparison to most other cities in Southeast Asia. The City placed very high in Technology innovation rankings in Southeast Asia. ¹

It is also very popular with tourists. The city was the world's 6th-most visited in 2019.² It is known for being home to the world's highest twin towers - the Petronas Towers - as well as its shopping centers. 3 of the 10 world's biggest shopping centers are located in Kuala Lumpur. ³

My experience in Kuala Lumpur

Arriving in Kuala Lumpur

I took a flight to Kuala Lumpur, which landed at the international airport and was a bit worried, that it might be hard to get to the city, since the airport is about 65km away from the city center. My concerns, however where unjustified, since the airport is connected to the city very well. There are multiple ways to get to the city. The fastest I know of, though is taking the KLIA Ekspres. Its only purpose is to get people to and from the airport in as little time as possible. And it does its really good at its job. From KLIA 2 (terminal 2) to KL Sentral (central station) it only takes about 30 minutes. From the central stations, you have countless options to get to your destination around KL. All in all, the public transport is really good in KL and unlike anything I have seen in any Southeast Asian cities so far.

The city unsurprisingly has a big-city-feeling, but the people I met, where still pretty nice - even if they seemed to be stressed a lot of the time - for example, when I got lost at the train station, because there were so many options of trains to take, a random guy approached me and asked me if I needed any help. He then proceeded to explain to me how the public transport in KL works and how to buy a ticket.

One of the things, that were among the first I noticed, was that the population seems to be pretty diverse in this city. I saw a lot of different ethnicities everywhere and many of the locals actually spoke english with each other, probably because it's the only language all of them speak.

China Town

My first Hostel in KL was in the center of China Town. Unlike in Surabaya (Indonesia), China Town in KL, actually felt and looked like China Town. There were thousands of street markets and great Chinese restaurants. Also the people and many of the houses look Chinese. It is exactly how you would imagine China Town to be like.

Over the whole of China Town towers the incredibly impressive Merdeka 118, which - with the height of 680m - is the second highest building of the world (as of April 2023). It is located at the edge of China Town and because of it's height visible from everywhere in the district. Another place worth visiting in China Town is the River of Life, which is simply the river flowing through this part of the city. But at night the river is illuminated in bright colors, and there is artificially created mist glowing in the same colors. This place is perfect for a nice walk along the river after sunset.

City Center

The second hostel I stayed at was close to the city center. It was actually really cool. It is situated in the 34th floor and has a roof terrace with some incredible views. The name of the Hostel is Penthouse on 34. I can definitely recommend this hostel. It's a bit more pricey, than others, but with about 10€ a night still absolutely fine. What you get for your money, however is really great. You get access to the roof terrace, most likely a room with a great view and free access to an infinity pool on the rooftop as well.

If you are in Kuala Lumpur, you just about have to visit the Petronas Towers. They are like the Eiffel Tower of KL. You can even go into the towers and enjoy the great views (I didn't do it but it might be worth it). The Petronas Towers are also very conveniently situated in the center of the city. There are skyscrapers in every direction. You can explore the KLCC park, which is kind of the Malaysian equivalent to the Central Park in New York, because it's a big and beautiful park between skyscrapers.

In my opinion, one of the coolest things to do in KL is to just walk between the huge skyscrapers. From there the Menara Kuala Lumpur is easily accessible. It's a huge tower with a view platform at the top. It's also build on a hill, which makes it look even taller. For about 10€ you can get a ticket to the top. Unfortunately for me, the weather was quite bad when I was there and most of the cool things were therefore not operating. I did not go up, but I think with some nice weather, it might really be worth it because the view from up there must be really good.

I would plan in at least 1 day just to explore the skyscrapers and skyline of KL.

The next day, I explored the other parts of Kuala Lumpur's inner city. I checked out the National Art Gallery. After that I walked through the massive Taman Tasik Titiwangsa Park. That day, I didn't really have a plan where to walk. I just started walking and explored the things I saw along the way. I feel like, that is a pretty good strategy to get to know Kuala Lumpur. The city just has so much to offer, that you are not going to see everything anyways and by just walking without having a special destination in mind, you see a lot of authentic cool things all around the city, which sometimes might even be better than some of the more popular tourist attractions.

How does KL compare to other cities?

To me, Kuala Lumpur seemed a lot like I would expect a big western city like New York to be. Everything is and looks very modern. Public transport is efficient and works flawlessly. The skyline is beyond impressive and everything is pretty clean. The cars on the streets, are more often by an asian car manufacturer, than you might expect in a western city, but the value of them is about the same as you would expect from any western city. The amount of motorcycles and scooters is probably a bit higher though, even if there really aren't that many.

On a closer look though, there are a lot of differences to find between KL and some the big cities in Europe and North America. First of all, you can definitely tell a huge difference in the culture. You fill find countless mosques and buddhist and hindu temples. You will have to look a bit harder to find a church though. Also, while nightlife does definitely exist and the city is not boring in that regard, you probably won't see anyone wearing an outfit, that exposes a lot of skin. Also alcohol isn't really a thing in public. As is loud music coming from the bars.

Comparing KL to some other big cities and capitals in Southeast Asia is also very interesting. When comparing the city with any city on Java, the differences are immediately noticeable. Java's cities are way less wester than KL. The traffic is way worse and most of it consists of motorcycles. Things like nightlife do not exist at all and Everything is a lot less diverse than in KL. On the other hand, I feel like there is more culture to experience in Java's big cities than in Kuala Lumpur.

When comparing KL to Bangkok however, the differences are very small. Bangkok's nightlife has some aspects, that would be tabu in Kuala Lumpur. People expose a lot of skin and sexuality is openly displayed. So is alcohol and of course weed.

What to do in Kuala Lumpur?

Visiting Kuala Lumpur is a real struggle. If you don't have a lot time to spend, you won't only not be able to visit everything in KL, you will not be able to visit everything important in Kuala Lumpur. There is just way to much to see in KL. I would say that is a really nice problem to have though. I obviously can't give a good overview over the best things to do here after my rather short stay in the city, but here is my attempt:

• Visiting the Petronas Towers
• Strolling through KLCC park
• Exploring China Town
• Walking along the River of Life
• Standing at the foot of Merdeka 118
• Trying out every means of public transport
• Taking a walk through Taman Tasik Titiwangsa Park

Conclusion

Kuala Lumpur is one of the most popular cities in the world for tourists for a reason. There is just so much to here. It is really easy to travel. There are tons of flights to the city. Public transport works flawlessly and pretty much everyone speaks english.

The city is one of the most diverse I have ever seen and there are so many things to explore, that I am certain that you can spend multiple weeks here without getting bored. I really enjoyed my stay here, but I'm not too sad, that I only stayed 5 days here. There is a lot to see, but after all it's still just a big city and there is so much more to see in Southeast Asia, that spending a lot of time here is in my opinion not the best way to get most out of your trip. Kuala Lumpur is a destination, that I suggest you should not skip, but I don't recommend spending too much time here.

Footnotes

1. See https://www.kpmg.us/content/dam/global/pdfs/2021/tech-innovation-hubs-2021.pdf
2. See https://web.archive.org/web/20190906144341/https://newsroom.mastercard.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/GDCI-Global-Report-FINAL-1.pdf
3. See https://web.archive.org/web/20170812101441/http://www.cnn.com/travel/article/worlds-best-shopping-cities/index.html