Malaysia

Guide To Malaysia’s Batu Caves – Dress Code, Entrance Fee & Getting There

May 1, 2016 by admin 17 Comments

Kuala Lumpur Batu Caves pictures | Malaysia

If you are visiting Kuala Lumpur then a day trip to Batu Caves is a must. You cannot visit Kuala Lumpur without visiting KLCC, Chinatown or indeed the Batu Caves Murugan temple which feature Batu Caves giant that is Lord Muruga. Among many things to do in Kuala Lumpur.

Below I will take you through a Batu Caves itinerary, covering Batu Caves temple opening hours, the all-important Batu Caves dress code and what to wear when you visit, Batu caves entrance fee and how to get to Batu Caves. As well another question I have been asked a few times when I posted this on my Instagram – How many steps to Batu Caves! And of course with many Batu Caves pictures to help you visualise this beautiful and historical temple in Kuala Lumpur

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Batu Caves Giant – Batu Caves Day Trip From Central Kuala Lumpur

The Batu Caves are an iconic tourist attraction in Selangor, about 13km from Kuala Lumpur’s city center. The Batu Caves are spectacular caves that feature temples and Hindu Shrines in caves that are over 400 million years old. As you approach the site you are greeted by Lord Murugan Statue – the Batu Caves giant, the tallest statue of a Hindu deity in Malaysia. This is not to be missed on any Malaysian itinerary, whether doing a few days, a week, or even a 2 week Malaysian itinerary.

It’s also the second tallest statue of a Hindu deity in the world. This thing is huge, so I would love to see just how big the biggest one is. The tallest of the Hindu deities is the Kailashnath Mahadev Statue in Nepal. This is an easy and unmissable day trip from Kuala Lumpur as is a day trip to the Genting Highlands which are about an hour from Kuala Lumpur.

Inside the Batu Caves Temple - Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

Batu Caves Statue & How Many Steps To Batu Caves

Having gone passed the statue Lord Murugan Statue, you are greated with steep steps to the Batu Cave. At this point in the Malaysian sun, you will be asking yourself just how many steps to the Batu Caves are there? There was no life as far as I could tell. There are 272 steps to get to you up to the limestone outcrop that harbours the 400 million old caves. On the way up you will pass crazy monkeys that will snatch your fruit, sweets, water, ice-cream or anything attractive that you lightly hold without too much care. Look away and it’s gone! Especially look out for your phones.

Once inside the caves, you will be greeted with paintings, scenes of Hindu Gods and at the very top in the last of the caves, it is actually open at the top, which brings in floods of light and at certain times the ray of light into the cave is just beautiful. It’s a great place to visit. If you are visiting the caves, you won’t need too much time here as there isn’t much more to see than the caves and shrines inside. It can also get hot and humid so make sure you bring plenty of water because if the heat doesn’t make you thirsty, the steep stairs will have you huffing and puffing so bring a bottle of water. There are a few shops just outside the Batu Caves, also if you need change.

Kuala Lumpur Batu Caves images | Malaysia

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Kuala Lumpur Batu Caves stairs | Malaysia

Where Are The Batu Caves? – Batu Caves Address

Batu Caves, Sri Subramanian Temple, KL, Malaysia. The temple is 13km north of Kuala Lumpur. Having the address to hand is helpful when trying to get a taxi or Uber from central KL. The drive from Batu Caves to Petronas Towers or the other way around is roughly about 30 minutes if I remember correctly. We stayed at Mandarin Hotel which is at the base of the Petronas Towers just to give you an idea of distance, so you can easily squeeze in a half day or morning Batu Caves day trip from Kuala Lumpur and still get back with plenty of the day to explore the city as we did.

How To Go To Batu Caves – Getting There

Getting to Batu Caves is pretty straight forward. You can easily get to The Batu Caves by Uber or Taxi. We took a taxi from while we were staying at Mandarin Oriental Hotel where we were staying. It’s right next to the malls and the twin towers. I reviewed our stay at Mandarin Oriental here.

The journey from KLCC takes about 30 minutes to get to Batu Caves. You can also take the KTM Komuter train to Batu Caves from KL Sentral as well as the option of taking the monorail from KL Sentral to Titiwangsa station and from there take a bus to Batu Caves. If you are coming from Kuala Lumpur, the train is easy, cheap, very fast and drops you off right at the entrance. We opted for Uber as it was hot and we wanted a little aircon for the journey.

Batu Caves Steps Kuala Lumpur | Malaysia

Batu Caves Statue From The Back

Batu Caves Opening Hours & Closing Time

The Batu Caves opening hours are from 6 am to 9 pm.

Batu Cave Entrance Fee

Entrance to the Batu Caves is free although there is a fee to vist the Art Gallery Cave and the Dark Cave nearby.

Batu Caves Dress Code | What To Wear When Visiting Batu Caves

Batu Cave dress code is somewhat strict and they have people right at the entrance to check in much the same way Grand Palace in Bangkok will not let you in if your clothes are too short or too revealing. This is a religious site and one that you are expected to wear suitable clothing for. Turning up in barely-there shorts will mean that you will be called out to either rent a sarong type of material to cover up. So to avoid embarrassment, wear something that at least comes to the knees or pack a spare maxi skirt or trousers.

Malaysia can be hot but note that it is somewhat religious so respect the culture when visiting places such as religious sites. I was actually surprised at the number of tourist in shorts that had their butt cheeks out in the open as if they were at the beach when they are actually visiting a temple. I wouldn’t dare go into a church like that in London much less turn up like that in another religious site when traveling. Bear in mind that this is not just a tourist site, it still very much a place of worship and attracts thousands of worshipers to the cave temples, even more so during annual Hindu festivals such as Thaipusam.

Batu Caves Tours

There are plenty of Batu Caves Tours from Kuala Lumpur. Most of them will collect you from the airport to tour the Batu Caves which will include Batu Caves climbing of 272 steps to get to the temps at the top. I didn’t notice any lifts to for anyone with issues climbing steps check with your tour guide if there is a left. Once you climb the initial 272 Batu Cave stairs that are still another couple of stairs to get to the second temple inside the caves. If you are up for a little adventure you can also do rock climbing at the Batu Caves.

The Batu Caves consist of three big caves, the majority of tours will allow you to explore that in addition to taking the time to take in the world’s tallest Lord Murugan Statue with the height of 42.7m. If you do the tour in January and February you will also get to experience the annual festivals which bring thousands of Indians to pay homage to Lord Muruga. Depending on the tour you take, some of these will include a stop at the Betek Gallery((Malaysian Fabric and Handy Crafts) or restaurants but you also have stand-alone tours of the Batu Caves which is perfect if you only have a short time in the city. Click here to compare tour prices.

batu caves steps in Kuala Lumpur | How many steps Batu Caves

Batu Caves Temple - Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

Batu Cave Tours From KL

Where to Stay In Kuala Lumpur

There are plenty of places to stay in Kuala Lumpur catering to various budgets:

For budget hotels in Kuala Lumpur: Explorer’s Guesthouse will only cost you £26 for 3 nights. Travel Hub Highstreet is only about £23 for 3 nights in Kuala Lumpur and Zen Home Tarragon Residence is about £70 for 3 nights, and for nicely priced apartments with great views look into Kuala Lumpur Experience 3. For more Click here to compare prices on budget hotels.

Mid-range hotels in Kuala Lumpur: Hotel Twenty 8B will only set you back about £80 for 3 days, Melange Boutique Hotel is only £53 for 3 nights, Avenue J Hotel, Central Market is around £60 for 3 nights and Prescott Hotel Kuala Lumpur Medan Tuanku comes in at £70 for 2 nights. For more Click here to compare prices on mid-range hotels.

Luxury Hotels in Kuala Lumpur: For Luxury stay in KL check out Titiwangsa Suite Residence II, Hotel Stripes Autograph Collection, Troika KLCC Luxurious Hotel Suite, Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur and Shangri-La Hotel Kuala Lumpur which all offer amazing views, services and relaxing stays in Kuala Lumpur.You can also read out our stay at Mandarin Hotel linked above. For more Click here to compare prices on luxury hotels.

Hotels and apartments with amazing Views in Kuala Lumpur: Check out Saba Suites at Platinum KLCC, Pine Luxury Residence, Greystone Haus at D’ Majestic Place, and Platinum Suites KL City. For more Click here to compare prices on apartment hotels.

Batu Caves Temple Statue Giant Kuala Lumpur Malaysia

Mandarin Oriental Hotel KLCC | Where To Stay In Kuala Lumpur

April 27, 2016 by admin 7 Comments

Petronas Twin Towers are Kuala Lumpur’s most famous landmarks in Malaysia, if not the whole of Southeast Asia. When I was planning our visit to Kuala Lumpur I was also on the hunt for hotels in Kuala Lumpur city center as almost everything that I planned was close if not within the main part of the city center.

We checked into Mandarin Oriental in Kuala Lumpur, which not only sits pretty with views of Malaysia’s business district but comes with a bonus of being right next to Petronas Towers and the ridiculously HUGE Suria KLCC shopping mall. The location makes it some much easier to get started on the list of things to do in Kuala Lumpur as KLCC and Petronas Tower Bridge Tour Experience are right at your door!

The luxury hotel boasts 10 restaurants serving up Japanese, Chinese, Italian, Spanish and other international cuisines. Gastronomy to the max! Kuala Lumpur is already a multi-cultural city but I love that the hotel is already offering you a piece of the world in all its international flavours without even having to leave the premises.

With all the city’s tourist sights we had on the cards, first on the list was a bit of R&R on the rooftop’s infinity pool. Considering we had just spent a few days temple running through Cambodia’s Angkorian Temples, it was time to relax by the pool with a cocktail before exploring began. A few days ago I also shared some pictures from our culinary tour through Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown.

She's A Fan! - Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur

Budget – Wise

Obviously, Mandarin Oriental is in the luxury category so expect to pay a premium for that, but it was well worth every penny or dollar that we paid. We had a room that was looking out to Petronas Towers, again those rooms charge a bit more. Others not facing the towers are slightly less. I will be posting more on the hotel. It was a birthday treat so totally justified, I guess. For a list of hotels in Kuala Lumpur head over to this list of hotels in KL.

Location Location Location

Location of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Kuala Lumpur doesn’t get any better! You are bang in the middle of it all. If you are after a hotel near KLCC then this is the place for you! Firstly you have the 10 restaurants inside the hotel, then the major Suria Mall within Petronas Towers next door. You have stores from luxury to sensibly priced stores. So from your Gucci, Fendi, Chanel to H&M and all the gadgets shops like the Microsoft, Samsung and Apple stores. I couldn’t resist, I managed to come back to London with a gold and shiny Samsung A8. Exclusive to Asia, so I feel pretty chuffed that only a few people in the UK might have it. The hotel is perfectly located with plenty of sights are your finger tips. Also, perfect for anyone short on time but wanting to get the most out of your stay. You won’t have to go very far to see the sights.

Things to see and do in Kuala Lumpur

I posted a couple of things to see and do in Kuala Lumpur to inspire your itinerary in Kuala Lumpur. Also, make sure you check out the Batu Caves and definitely don’t miss out on the nightlife in China town and grab drinks at the city’s helipad pad.

Yes, the helipad turns into a bar at night and you and in full 360-degree views of Kuala Lumpur and the beautiful Petronas Towers that are right next to Mandarin Hotel. For tours check out Get Your Guide on additional things to see and do in Kuala Lumpur and beyond.

Swimsuit is by Figleaves(blow), Hat and yellow cover-up(now sold out) by ASOS

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Kuala Lumpur | A Culinary Tour Through Chinatown

April 25, 2016 by admin Leave a Comment

Exploring a new city is not just about the tourist sites. Food is very much as the heart of cultural explorations. When it comes to Kuala Lumpur, its got it all! Kuala Lumpur is a city that never sleeps and at the heart of it, you have the lively and bustling neighbourhoods of KLCC, Bukit Bintang and Chinatown.

Having heard great things about China town it wasn’t long before we were hunting down Petaling Street, where Chinatown is based. Day or night this part of town is bustling with food stalls, shops calling out customers for nail and massage services. We were too famished for grooming sessions, so we skipped the nail and hair salons and got right down to business; the food!

Famous for its street food and the beauty of it is that majority of it is cooked right in front of you. It’s a paradise if you are a lover of seafood or exotic food in addition to the usual Chinese delicates that includes scorpions and other weird and wonderful creatures. As far as entertainment goes, there are folks that pass through and play music next to the dinners outside, there sellers walking around the tables selling selfie sticks, laser pens, and other nicknacks.

It’s well-known as a bargain hunter’s paradise where you can find everything from souvenirs, clothes, electronics to imitation goods. Make sure you up your haggling game as you will find brands like Adidas, Louis Vuitton, Calvin Klein, Nike, the list goes on!

Even if you are short on time in the city be sure you make time for Chinatown. The best part is that whatever time or day you come it’s always lively. For tips on first timers guide on Chinatown check out Melissa’s post.

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