What to See in Kuala Lumpur - Top Sights and Attractions

Iconic skyscrapers towering 88 floors. Petronas Towers, also known as Petronas Twin Towers and KLCC Twin Towers is a 88-story, 451.9-meter-tall supertall skyscraper in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is the world's tallest twin skyscraper. According to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat 's official definition and ranking, they were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 when they were surpassed by Taipei 101, also in 2020, they were surpassed by Merdeka 118 as the tallest building in Malaysia. The Petronas Towers remain the tallest twin towers in the world. They are a major landmark of Kuala Lumpur, along with nearby Kuala Lumpur Tower and Merdeka 118, and are visible in many places across the city.^[1]

Free-roaming birds and walk-in aviaries. Kuala Lumpur Bird Park is a 20.9-acre public aviary in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It is located adjacent to the Lake Gardens within a KL green lung in Bukit Aman, close to the National Mosque and Royal Malaysian Police Museum. The Bird Park houses more than 3,000 birds representing more than 200 species in an enclosed aviary. About 90% are local birds and 10% were imported from countries such as Australia, China, Holland, Indonesia, New Guinea, Tanzania and Thailand.

The bird park is part of the 60-hectare (150-acre) Lake Gardens, which were established in 1888. In addition to the 20.9-acre (8.5 ha) bird park, which was created in 1991, the gardens include an artificial lake, the National Monument, the Kuala Lumpur Butterfly Park, the Deer Park, Orchid and Hibiscus gardens, and the former Malaysia Parliament House. It is one of the world's largest covered bird parks.^[2]

Sprawling, open-concept zoological park. The National Zoo is a zoo in Malaysia located on 110 acres of land in Ulu Klang, Gombak District, Selangor, Malaysia. It was officially opened on 14 November, 1963 by the country's first prime minister, Tunku Abdul Rahman. The park is managed by a non-governmental organisation known as the Malaysian Zoological Society. For funding, Zoo Negara relies on gate collections and on support from donors and sponsors.

Zoo Negara is home to 5, 137 animals of 476 different species. Over the years, the zoo has transformed itself to an open concept zoo with over 90% of its animals kept in spacious exhibits with landscape befitting its nature.

Zoo Negara received MS ISO 9001:2008 certification in July, 2007, and is a member of the South East Asian Zoos Association (SEAZA). The president and chairman of the zoo is Y. Bhg. Dato' Ismail Hutson.^[3]

Hindu temple set in limestone caves. Batu Caves is a limestone hill that has a series of caves and cave temples in Gombak, Selangor, Malaysia. It takes its name from the Malay word batu, meaning 'rock'. The hill was originally known as Kapal Tanggang from the legend of Si Tanggang. The town nearby is named after the Batu Caves limestone formation.

The cave is one of the most popular Hindu shrines outside India, and is dedicated to Lord Murugan. It is the focal point of the Tamil festival of Thaipusam in Malaysia.

Batu Caves in short also referred as 10th Caves or Hill for Lord Murugan as there are six important holy shrines in India and four more in Malaysia. The three others in Malaysia are Kallumalai Temple in Ipoh, Tanneermalai Temple in Penang and Sannasimalai Temple in Malacca.^[4]

Landmark tower with panoramic views. The Kuala Lumpur Tower or more commonly known as KL Tower is a communications tower located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Its construction was completed on 1 March 1995. It features an antenna that increases its height to 421 metres and is the 7th tallest freestanding tower in the world. The roof of the pod is at 335 metres. The rest of the tower below has a stairwell and an elevator to reach the upper area, which also contains a revolving restaurant, providing diners with a panoramic view of the city.

Races are held annually, where participants race up the stairs to the top. The tower also acts as the Islamic falak observatory to observe the crescent moon which marks the beginning of Muslim month of Ramadhan, Syawal, and Zulhijjah, to celebrate fasting month of Ramadhan, Hari Raya Aidilfitri and Aidiladha. The tower is the highest viewpoint in Kuala Lumpur that is open to the public.^[6]

National cultural and heritage museum. The National Museum is a museum located on Jalan Damansara in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The museum is situated in close proximity to the Perdana Lake Gardens and it provides an overview of Malaysian history and culture. Its facade comprises elements of traditional Malay and modern features. It was opened on 31 August 1963, and it serves as a repository of Malaysia's rich cultural and historical heritage.

The National Museum is a three-storey structure 109.7 metres long and 15.1 metres wide, which is 37.6 metres high at the central point. The museum houses four main galleries allotted to ethnology and natural history. The displays range from free-standing tableaux showing cultural events like weddings, festivals and costumes; to traditional weapons, musical instruments, arts and crafts, ceramics, and flora and fauna.^[8]

Large 1960s mosque in landscaped gardens. The National Mosque of Malaysia is a mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. It has a capacity for 15,000 people and is situated among 13 acres of gardens. Its key features are a 73-metre-high minaret and a 16-pointed star concrete main roof. The umbrella, synonymous with the tropics, is featured conspicuously – the main roof is reminiscent of an open umbrella, the minaret's cap a folded one. The folded plates of the concrete main roof are a creative solution to achieving the larger spans required in the main gathering hall. Reflecting pools and fountains spread throughout the compound. Completed in 1965, the mosque is a bold and modern approach in reinforced concrete, symbolic of the aspirations of a then newly independent nation.^[9]

Iconic building with domes and clocktower. The Sultan Abdul Samad Building is a late-nineteenth century building located along Jalan Raja in front of the Dataran Merdeka and the Royal Selangor Club in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The building originally housed the offices of the British colonial administration, and was known simply as Government Offices in its early years. In 1974 it was renamed after Sultan Abdul Samad, the reigning sultan of Selangor at the time when construction began.

The building houses both the offices of the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia and the Ministry of Tourism and Culture of Malaysia (Malay: Kementerian Komunikasi dan Multimedia, Kementerian Pelancongan dan Kebudayaan Malaysia). It once housed the superior courts of the country: the Federal Court of Malaysia, the Court of Appeals and the High Court of Malaya. The Federal Court and the Court of Appeals had shifted to the Palace of Justice in Putrajaya during the early 2000s, while the High Court of Malaya shifted to the Kuala Lumpur Courts Complex in 2007.^[13]

Monument to the freedom fighters of 1945. The National Monument is a sculpture that commemorates those who died in Malaysia's struggle for freedom, principally against the Japanese occupation during World War II and the Malayan Emergency, which lasted from 1948 until 1960. It is located in the Federal capital, Kuala Lumpur. The Malaysian Houses of Parliament is situated near the monument.

It is the world's tallest bronze freestanding sculpture grouping. Until 2010, on 31 July on Warriors' Day, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the Prime Minister, and the heads of the Malaysian Armed Forces and the Royal Malaysia Police pay their respects to the fallen heroes by laying garlands at the monument. Warriors' Day is now commemorated on Merdeka Square, after ultra-conservative religious bureaucrats declared the sculpture to be idolatrous.^[16]

Sculpture in Batu Caves, Malaysia. *This is the tallest statue of Lord Murugan in the world at 146 feet

Bhoomi Puja was held on September 6, 2016 and the work started

It has been announced that the consecration will take place on April 6, 2022

It has been decided to hold a consecration ceremony on April 6 for the newly constructed world tallest statue of Lord Murugan at Salem Attur

Salem to muthumalai murugan temple distance : 2 hr 34 min (137.3 km)

World Tallest Lord Murugan Statue (Tamil: உலகின் மிக உயரமான முருகன் சிலை;,is the tallest statue of a Hindu deity in Malaysia and fourth tallest statue of a Hindu deity in the world, after Garuda Wisnu Kencana Statue in Indonesia, Lord Murugan Statue at Salem (146 ft) in India and Kailashnath Mahadev Statue in Nepal. It is also the tallest statue in Malaysia at 42.7 metres (140 ft) in height.

The statue was built by Tamil Malaysians. It took three years to construct, and was unveiled in January 2006 during Thaipusam festival. The managing authority of the temple rests with the Tamil descendants.

Every year, thousands of devotees from Tamil Nadu & Sri Lanka visit this temple to pay their tributes to the deity at the auspicious day of Thaipusam according to the Tamil Calendar. It is located at the Sri Murugan Perumal Kovil at the foot of Batu Caves.^[21]

Concert hall in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Petronas Philharmonic Hall is Malaysia's first concert hall built specifically for classical music. It is the home of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, and has hosted many of the world's leading orchestras such as New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, BBC Symphony and Vienna Symphony.

The concert hall was designed by Cesar Pelli based on the inspiration from the traditional shoebox shape of the 19th century European classical music halls. It has the capacity to accommodate for 920 seats which includes box seats, corporate suites and a royal suite. The stage floor is designed for flexibility, has an approximate area of 297m2, and can be extended to 369m2. The orchestra pit was designed to accommodate up to 45 musicians but can accommodate more with the existing stage extension.^[30]

Saloma Link is a 69 metres combined pedestrian and bicyclist bridge across the Klang River in Kuala Lumpur.

Directed northwest to southeast it joins the districts of Kampung Baru and Kuala Lumpur City Centre. On the southwestern end a ramp leads up to the bridge, whereas on the northwest there are stairs and an elevator from street level. The bridge’s architecture is inspired by the sireh junjung concept, which is an integral part of a Malay wedding. At night, the bridge cannot be accessed. The name is derived from the Malaysian-Singaporean singer Saloma, who is buried at the nearby Jalan Ampang Muslim Cemetery.

VERITAS Design Group designed the structure, which opened to the public on 5 February 2020. The project cost 31 million Ringgit Malaysia.^[31]

National forest in Malaysia. The Klang Gates Quartz Ridge is a quartz dyke that runs through northeast of Kuala Lumpur and the state of Selangor, Malaysia within Bukit Lagong-Kanching-Klang Gates region. With the dimension of more than 14 km long and 200 m wide, it is the longest quartz formation in the world. The other major quartz vein in Kuala Lumpur is along Kajang-Cheras road, which is about 8 km long, however the Klang Gates Quartz Ridge is one-of-its-kind because it has four types of quartz formation. The area has five endemic plants species among 265 species, found nowhere else in the world. A rare animal, the serow is found here as well.

Despite being one of the most unusual geological formations in Malaysia, the Klang Gates Quartz Ridge has little conservation and currently being threatened by urban development. More recently, the proposed East Klang Valley Expressway became the latest threat towards the Klang Gates Quartz Ridge, as the expressway alignment may pass through the quartz strip.^[33]

Large contemporary Islamic center. The As Syakirin Mosque, also known as KLCC Mosque, is a mosque located in the Kuala Lumpur City Centre, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The mosque is situated near the Suria KLCC shopping centre and the Petronas Twin Towers, the tallest twin towers in the world.

In 2009, the mosque went through a major renovation to increase the capacity from 6000 people to 12,000 people.

Mosque initially registered as a prayer on 12 July 1999 for Petronas staff, and status as a mosque before being administered by the Federal Territory Islamic Religious Council (religious council).

This two-storey mosque area of 21 hectares. It is regarded as the jewel in the park because of its strategic location and facing KLCC Park also provides a hall that can accommodate up to 500 people with audio system complete with meeting rooms and room remains.

Ash-Syakirin name means' the people of the grateful chosen as the official name for this mosque. The mosque is an architectural landmark of Islam in a rapidly developing area in the capital city, Kuala Lumpur.^[34]