When we were booking our flights for our world travel, we had a few key places we wanted to visit and then just chose the cheapest and best routes to get there. It was cheapest for us to have a layover in Kuala Lumpur on one of our legs so we decided to stay for a week. I didn’t think this busy city stop would be anything special. But boy was I wrong! This is how Kuala Lumpur surprised me and why you should visit this cool place!
Shopping
Kuala Lumpur has the largest mall in Malaysia. And it is pretty darn big! Within just walking distance from each other you can find mall after mall. There is shopping everywhere you turn in KL! And top-notch shopping. Shopping from big malls and high-end retail to Chinatown knock offs. You name it, they have it! We spent a lot of our time just browsing stores and shops.
We even came across a mall totally dedicated to Muslim fashion. It was so cool to see their devotion to their morals and values. It was unlike any mall I had ever been in.
My kids loved shopping in Chinatown! They learned how to haggle and were so great at it! We all walked away with great souvenirs and knockoffs. Because it is Chinese New Year, the streets were all decked out with lights, lanterns, and décor. It was so magical!
Culture
KL is full of a melting pot of culture. It has a strong Muslim influence, along with Buddhism and Hinduism. There are people from all Asian countries. We absolutely loved talking with all of our Uber drivers. It was fascinating getting to know them and their background and their family life.
We loved visiting temples and seeing the different religions practice their beliefs. There were small temples everywhere and you could hear people chanting their prayers.
In every country we visit, we try to do service as a family. While we were in Kuala Lumpur we were able to go to a Myanmar refugee school to volunteer. We loved teaching and playing with the cute kids and getting to know them! It was the highlight of our entire time there! It was interesting talking to their teacher and hearing her story and seeing her dedication and love for her students.
Cost
Food, transportation, and entertainment in KL is so cheap! We could eat out so reasonably. Our Uber and train rides were so cheap and affordable to get from one place to another. We stayed in a cool hotel/apartment high rise. It was a small space, but we loved it! It had great storage, a perfect location for walking, and an awesome night view.
There are lots of things that you can do for free in KL or pretty cheap. We just loved walking the clean streets, visiting the Petronas Towers, shopping, and enjoying the city.
I didn’t have high expectations for staying in a busy city for a week. But Kuala Lumpur totally surprised me! We were planning on a week of staying inside and catching up on work, but we were going going going all week trying to see and do all the things! Our time there just wasn’t enough. We loved it!
