After planning a trip for several months, it is funny how the time flies away while we are living it. He and I usually argue about picking a place for our travel but when we discussed Malaysia, it was not very difficult for both of us to agree at once.

Malaysia, a cosmopolitan country, is a combination of two of my favourites – beaches and architecture with great history.

As soon as we entered Kuala Lumpur, I was left awestruck by the city’s sky scrappers spread across. While this one (the husband) had visited Hong Kong earlier, the huge striking buildings did not astonish him as much as they did to me. Due to our tight schedule, we had planned just a day’s trip to Kuala Lumpur.

It’s obvious that we didn’t cover everything in a day, but I was delighted that we managed to see almost all the historic landmark-structures in the city.

So, Kuala Lumpur is divided into several districts and the main hub is called the Golden Triangle which comprises of Bukit Bintang, KLCC and Chinatown. Except for the Chinatown, we visited the rest of the two.

Bikut Bintang Street

In fact, we were put up in a hotel in Jalan (road in Malay) Bukit Bintang and I must tell you, that was the best decision we made in our one-day trip in KL. The Bukit Bintang street was extremely happening and I’ll tell you guys more about our experience there in another article.

Getting back to the historical structures, you just have to head to KLCC and as the name suggests, it is the heart of the city that houses almost all the popular landmarks apart from offering some amazing nightlife and shopping options.

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Petronas Twin Towers

I will never forget the moment when we reached KLCC and saw the towers with our naked eyes. Trust me, you have to experience that in person to understand what I mean here. There are no words to describe how majestic and spectacular those towers are and why not? They are the joint 16th tallest buildings in the world and remain the tallest Twin Towers.

If you ever plan to visit this Wonder of the World, make sure you have this in your evening itinerary. There is usually enough breeze because of the well-maintained greenery around and you cannot miss how beautiful the towers when illuminated at night. And, of course, you’ll get better pictures at night. (winks)

Be prepared to handle tons of people around and you will have to fight your way out to get your perfect picture in front of those towers. That could be a task, BTW.

If you want to climb up and enjoy the skylines, here are the required details:

Ticket price: 80 Malaysian Ringgit (RM) per person, a child below 12 years – 33 RM
Closed – Monday and on Fridays between 1-2.30 PM
Location: Beside Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC)

KLCC Park. PC: Wikimedia Commons

KLCC itself is an amazing structure that you must not miss. You anyway won’t, if you visit the Petronas Towers as the two are adjacent to each other.

Merdeka Square

If your base is in Bukit Bintang, then you must head to Merdeka Square first because that’s closer and then to the Petronas Towers.

Merdeka Square

I would suggest you visit this place before the sunset because, in the dark, you could miss out on the beauty that surrounds it. Merdeka in Malay literally means ‘independence’ and as it suggests, Merdeka Square reflects the colonial past of the country and the place where the Malaysian flag was raised for the first time.

Royal Selangor Club. PC: Wikimedia Commons

Around Merdeka Square, you can check out the Royal Selangor Club. It is among the examples of colonial architecture that surround the square. This club in those days was a meeting-place for prominent British military officers, where they could socialise and hold cricket tournaments.

Just bang opposite the square stands the magnificent Sultan Abdul Samad Building, which was completed in 1897. Apparently, the architect’s time spent in India inspired him for this government building of red and white brick facade. There is a marvel at the 41-metre clock tower as you walk past.

We were in front of the clock tower at exactly 8 PM and witnessed this: (couldn’t capture all the eight strikes though.)

On the side of the road that has the Horse Fountain, you’ll spot the KL Gallery, which is also well worth a visit for its wealth of historical photos and artefacts.

Situation beside the Sultan Abdul Samad Building is another significant heritage landmark of Kuala Lumpur, National Textile Museum. It houses elegant collections of traditional attires, accessories, and textiles in Malaysia in a beautiful Mughal-Islamic style heritage building.

National Textile Museum

KL Tower

Along with the Petronas Towers, Menara KL Tower is Malaysia’s most noticeable landmark. This glittering tower’s spindle-like apex is visible from almost anywhere in Kuala Lumpur. It is true. It is seen quite clearly when you are standing in the middle of Bikut Bintang Street and it is even visible clearly at Merdeka Square. Since we were short of time, we only enjoyed the view from here.

KL Tower gleaming in the air

If you wish to explore the sky and observation deck, here are the required details:

Ticket price – Observation Deck: 49 RM (per adult), 29 RM (per child)
Sky Deck + Observation Deck: 99 RM (per adult), 52 RM (per child)
It is open all days of the week.

Batu Caves

The limestone hill comprising of three caves and several smaller caves is one of the frequented tourist attractions in Kuala Lumpur. The older the temple is, the tougher it is to get to the top. One has to go through 272 steps to get to the top of the Batu Caves and it’s not just climbing, your task is to climb and at the same time be wary of the naughty monkeys jumping around. You may get excited to click pictures but you will have to be careful otherwise your phone or camera might end up in the hands of one of those creatures.

It’s just a suggestion that you must start your KL expedition with Batu Caves. You can always take a break, rest somewhere before resuming your journey in the amazing city.

These historical and significant structures are a must visit in KLCC. However, there is the Prime Minister’s office building which is a great sight. However, that’s quite far from the heart of the city. If you have enough time in hand, you must surely visit it.

Perdana Putra

The six-storey natural stone clad office complex overlooks Putrajaya Lake, Putra Mosque and Dataran Putra. It comprises the Prime Minister’s Office, the offices of the Deputy Prime Minister and Chief Secretary to the Government.

Perdana Putra. PC: Wikimedia Commons

Honestly speaking, after you are done posing in front of the beautiful structure, there is nothing much that you can do. Even then if you choose to visit it, here is the easiest way to get to Putrajaya: Take a KLIA transit train from KL Sentral to Putrajaya and from here, you can take a taxi or bus.

To find out more about our Malaysia trip, click here