Tag Archives: Kuala Lumpur

Butterfly Park in Kuala Lumpur

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Black butterfly and blue/purple flowers

The Kuala Lumpur Butterfly Park is located in the Lake Gardens area which includes the KL Bird Park, National Mosque of Malaysia, Islamic Arts Museum, etc..

iridescent blue and orange butterfly

I like butterfly parks so I enjoyed it. It was an impressive butterfly park but it is also pretty much what you expect if you have visited several. If you enjoy them then I think it is well worth a visit. If you don’t know, it is a good one to check out and see if you like them.

White and orange butterfly on orange flowers

A big part of what I enjoy is the photography so if you enjoy photography you may well also enjoy a visit.

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Hiking in the Forest Research Institute Malaysia – in KL

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Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) in Kuala Lumpur offers a nice location for a hike. I took the train to Kepong and then a taxi to the park. There is then a fairly long walk to the trail (from the entrance) but past interesting sites, so I found it worthwhile. You could probably get driven in further but you have to pay at the gate, so I think the taxi was reluctant to enter.

hiking trail

My guess is this isn’t high on tourists list of attractions in KL (more an education and research center and resource for those living in KL). But for people that like hiking (such as me) it is a nice location. And for those living in KL it is a great hike (those I saw hiking seemed like locals to me).

forest stream

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Classic Inn Premium Hotel, Kuala Lumpur

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Classic Inn Premium offers a very good location, in Bukit Bintang KL, with clean and quiet rooms and good wifi. There is a large mall right across the street with plenty of places to eat (along with some places to eat on right next to the hotel).

photo of bed Classic Inn Premium

Rooms are a bit small, but fine. The things they could do to improve the rooms are to put more small tables in to put things on, there is space for them and almost no other space to put things on. The showers are nice (good water pressure, hot water and high – 8+ feet, which is nice when you have some places you have to duck to get your head in). The bathrooms are the normal budget SE Asia toilet/shower combo which might seem odd to some but these are above average.

photo of signs for what you can't do

Signs with character for what is not allowed.

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Kuala Lumpur Aquarium

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The Aquaria is located in the Kuala Lumpur City Center (KLCC), near the Petronas towers. It is pretty small and something that can be skipped without missing much. But if you have a bit of extra time it is a fine way to spend an hour or two.

photo of jellys in the KL Aquarium

These are real (which might not be obvious from the photo) jelly fish floating around in the display.

photo of very large fish at the KL aquarium

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Masjid Jamek, Kuala Lumpur

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Masjid Jamek is a Mosque one block from Merdeka Square in downtown Kuala Lumpur that was built in 1907.

photo of Jamek Mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The Sultan Abdul Samad Building, was designed by the same architect and shares a similar style. That building sits between the mosque and Merdeka Square.

The webcast includes audio of the Adhan (“call to prayers”).

The mosque sits at the confluence of Gombak and Klang rivers.

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Luxury and Budget Option for Kuala Lumpur Hotel Stay

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View from room at The Prince Hotel and Residence

View from room at The Prince Hotel and Residence, KL

Prince Hotel & Residence Kuala Lumpur is a luxury hotel in downtown KL. I don’t stay in such places often but I splurged (and also had a big, well over 50%, discount through Agoda – the links here go to Agoda which provides a big discount and I am given a reward for bookings that come from links on my site) and it was very nice. It is very close to Petronas towers, KLCC park and the convention center.

view out room window at prince hotel and residence kl

The check in is a bit chaotic (they have a very sloppy process, no queing strategy…) but the location and rooms are fantastic. Grand Deluxe rooms are significantly better in my opinion (more room and fantastic huge windows and views); if you want that view it is easily worth $30 more a night.

The other option I have used in KL is The Bodhi Lodge, which is very inexpensive. The rooms are small (maybe 10 feet by 8 feet?) and clean with a mattress on the ground and a small table and chair (wifi is available in the room). The person that checked me in was wonderful and has great ideas for tourists in KL. The common areas are very nice (TV and computers and wifi).

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Batu Caves, Kuala Lumpur

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Batu caves is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India, dedicated to Lord Murugan. It is the focal point of Hindu festival of Thaipusam in Malaysia. To reach the caves you must climb 272 concrete steps up the limestone formation that make up this site.

photo of the stairway to Batu Caves entrance

The stairway to Batu Caves.

The caves are in Kuala Lumpor (technically a bit north of the city) but reachable by commuter train, Komuter train Batu Caves-Port Klang Route. The cost is 2 MYR (less than $UD 1).

photo inside Batu Caves

Inside Batu Caves. The cave is partially covered with several large opening on top.

The video shows a view of the caves. The water is from water seeping down from the ceiling (it hadn’t rained that day). There are also several large openings letting in light from above. The main area with the temples has very high ceilings.

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Putrajaya Architecture

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Putrajaya is the home of the Malaysian government. It sits approximately 25 km south of Kuala Lumpur, next to Cyberjaya. Planning and construction of Putrajaya began in the early 1990s. The seat of government shifted to Putrajaya in 1999, from Kuala Lumpur.

The area does include housing, which is wise, but is dominated by large government building, many with interesting architecture, and wide causeways. 38% of the city is reserved for green spaces (including waterways).

photo of Malaysian Prime Minster's Office Building

Prime Minster’s Office Building, Putrajaya, Malaysia

photo of the pink Mosque, Putrajaya

Putra Mosque, Putrajaya, which is adjacent to the Prime Minister’s Office Building.

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