The best shopping markets and shopping streets in Kuala Lumpur

Petaling Street

Petaling Street is a very popular marketplace located in Kuala Lumpur. The pedestrian only street is in the center of Chinatown and is a must go destination for all tourists. Shopping in this market is a great experience because you will enjoy the sounds, the smells, the energy, the sights and its traditional Chinese atmosphere. It is always full of buyers and sellers getting in and out day and night. The street gets even busier in the evening when the atmosphere is at its best. And safety is always assured for all shoppers as security is always prioritized.

Clothes, shoes, watches, electronic items and souvenirs are among the many products sold in Petaling Street. There are also stalls that sell imitation products from famous (designer) brands. Everything goes at a pocket friendly price. Shopping along the street is open for bargaining and this makes it even more interesting. This also makes Petaling Street market a good place for you to buy gifts for your loved ones.

Petaling Street is an all-weather shopping area as it is covered with green awnings that protect people from rain and sun. Because of this green roof, this street is sometimes referred to as the green dragon. The breathtaking market also has restaurants all along where you can get delicious meals at a cheap price. There are also several places where you can grab an ice cold beer.

The best way to get to Petaling Street via public transport is to take the LRT to Pasar Seni station or Plaza Rakyat station.

Jalan Alor

Jalan Alor is a must-visit for food lovers as it is a unique food street. In the evening Jalan Alor becomes the place to be where you can find a variety of foods and drinks that will expose you to the wonderful world of Asian cuisine. Besides the outdoor restaurants the street will also be filled with Chinese, Thai, Malay and Indian stalls and eateries that have presented their food, drinks and snacks in such an attractive way that it will be hard to choose where you want to eat. It all looks great and smells so delicious.

Ordering from the menu is convenient as most of them contain pictures of the meals, or are translated into English. Another option is to let the vendors and waiters advise you on which snacks or meals you should try and just bring your appetite! Another plus that you will notice is that it is relatively cheap.

The delicious food is the main reason for a visit to Jalan Alor. But it is also very entertaining to experience the atmosphere in this street with its Chinese lanterns and plastic tables and chairs. Jalan Alor is crowded in an charming and enjoyable fashion and you get a taste of the friendly local culture as it is also a popular street among the locals.

Jalan Alor is easy to reach as it is near monorail station Air Asia – Bukit Bintang.

Central Market

Central Market, or Pasar Seni in Malay, was established in 1888 as a wet market, where products like meat, fish and vegetables were sold. In the decades thereafter the building expanded several times and got its current size in 1933. Nowadays the air conditioned market is classified as a Malaysian heritage site and is still traditionally arranged in a stall concept. This is one of the reasons why Central Market is a popular tourist attraction.

In this art-deco style building are more than 300 shops, which mainly consist of local handicrafts, textiles and souvenir shops. Popular traditional goods that are offered are batik, songket, kebaya and embroidery carvings. On the second floor are a food court with Asian eateries and restaurants. At the back of the main building is the Annexe Central Market and houses craft shops, portraitists, art galleries and performance spaces for music and theatre. The people there are friendly and welcoming, making it possible to find assistance quite quickly and an atmosphere that will leave fond memories.

Central Market is daily open from 10:00 am to 9:30 pm and because of its convenient location between LRT/Monorail stations Pasar Seni and Masjid Jamek is it very easy to reach.

Kasturi Walk

Kasturi Walk is a tourist-friendly flea market next to Central Market (Pasar Seni). At the entrance of this covered pedestrian walkway is a large sign of a Malaysian kite, which looks like a butterfly. Although Kasturi Walk has not as many stalls and shops as Petaling Street this street still has a lot to offer. Vendors are selling products like clothing, shoes, watches, Asian snacks, fruits, souvenirs and local handicrafts at very affordable prices.

Another difference with Petaling Street is that Kasturi Walk has a Malay ambiance, while Petaling Street has a Chinese ambiance. In the past Central Market was a wet market and was Jalan Hang Kasturi the place where dried fish and fruits and vegetables were sold. Since the concept of Kasturi Walk was established in 2011 it still looks pretty new and clean, but fortunately there are still some interesting pre-war neoclassical buildings with symmetrical shapes, tall columns, triangular pediments right on top and long vertical windows.

As Kasturi Walk is located at Jalan Hang Kasturi next to Central Market it is advised to take the LRT Kelana Jaya Line to the Pasar Seni station.

Chow Kit Market

Chow Kit Market is one of the busiest and liveliest markets of Kuala Lumpur. This market is a perfect blend of the modern life and the age old traditions. Whenever you visit here, you can expect a huge crowd. However, the crowd is mainly composed of local people from the middle- and lower class who do their daily shopping. So if you want to avoid tourists and want to experience a traditional Asian market with all its charms and oddities this is the place for you.

The market is divided into two sections, which are a dry market and a wet market. Meat is the specialty of the wet market and the prices are also very much affordable. However, meat is butchered here live, which may be uncomfortable for some people. Apart from meat, you will also find a wide variety of fishes, fruits, vegetables and spices. The dry market is more appealing to the tourists and has a wide range of shoes and clothes. You will also find several electronic gadgets here. You can also try to bargain and reduce the price as much as possible.

Chow Kit Market is open from 9 am until 5 pm. Be aware that some backstreets of this neighborhood become a sort of shady red light district in the evening. The market is located at the north of the shopping street Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman. Reaching here is also quite easy as monorail station Chow Kit is nearby.

Jalan Bukit Bintang – Bintang Walk

Bintang Walk is the stylized name of Jalan Bukit Bintang and some of its side streets. It is a long and very popular street in the Golden Triangle of Kuala Lumpur with many upscale restaurants, bars, shops and large shopping malls. Bintang Walk starts at the eastern part where the streets Jalan Bukit Bintang and Jalan Raja Chulan come together. This is also the most luxurious and trendy part of Bintang Walk where you will find the shops of the famous designer brands.

The busiest part of this shopping street is at the intersection of Jalan Bukit Bintang and Jalan Sultan Ismail. Here you will find the large shopping chains like Zara and H&M. Near this busy part is also Little Arabia, with its Arabic shops and restaurants. At the western part of Jalan Bukit Bintang, near Jalan Pudu, are many foot- and body massage salons. After a day of shopping a nice foot massage can be very relaxing.

Getting to Bintang Walk is very convenient as the monorail station Air Asia – Bukit Bintang is at the intersection of Jalan Bukit Bintang and Jalan Sultan Ismail.

Brickfields

Brickfields is a medium-sized residential area with several shopping streets and is commonly referred to as Little India. It is a beautiful and super colorful place that’s derived from the Indian culture due to its large population of Indian residents.

When it comes to shopping, Brickfields lives up to its nickname Little India. Splurge on authentic Indian attire, spices, and collector’s pieces that you will find in the many quaint shops. Or you can buy affordable flower garlands, saris, Indian spices and indulge in wonderful Bollywood music. Besides the shopping you should try the Indian food, specifically the thosai (rice flour pancake) and banana leaf rice. Banana leaf rice is a delectable Indian dish that rounds up your experience of this incredible place with its chutney, pickles, and rice.

Brickfields is home to the several religious structures, like the Sri Kandaswamy Kovil, and is tagged as a divine location because of this. These structures are designed using Tamil architecture which is in itself a tourist attraction in Kuala Lumpur. And if you’re looking to explore the full potential of your body through ancient yoga integrated with modern day technology, Brickfields is the place to be. It is home to several excellent yoga academies.

Brickfields is the perfect place for a traveller who is looking to have a colourful, cultural, food-filled, shopping intense and exciting Indian experience while in Kuala Lumpur.

Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman (formerly Batu Road)

Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, or abbreviated Jalan TAR, is one of the oldest roads in Kuala Lumpur. It is a long street and it was the main shopping district of Kuala Lumpur before the glitzy shopping malls came to the city. But Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman is still a very popular place for buying a wide range of products like textiles, fabrics, leather goods, carpets, crystal, silver, clothing, luggage and bags at bargain prices. It has all kinds of stalls, shops, and departments stores, so that you can shop till you drop. The street starts near Masjid India and Masjid Jamek, then goes all the way up north until monorail station Chow Kit.

In the southern part is a side street called Lorong Tuanku Abdul Rahman which has a night market (pasar malam) at Saturday between 5pm and 10pm. The area near the middle of the street, where it crosses Jalan Sultan Ismail, has also become a popular nightspot and is also known as Heritage Row. And the northern part of Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman is known for its food and bargain shopping. As this old street still has many pre-war buildings with unique features and distinctive facades you will not only get a great shopping experience but also a cultural one.

When you want to start at the southern part of Jalan TAR it is advised to take the LRT line to the Masjid Jamek station, but when you want to start at the northern part of this street it is more practical to take the monorail to Chow Kit station.

Taman Connaught Night Market

Taman Connaught Night Market is also known as Cheras pasar malam. It is one of the most popular and largest night market (pasar malam) in Kuala Lumpur with about 700 stalls. The market will be mainly visited by locals as it isn’t near the city center.

Spread across a large area of about 2 km (1.2 mi), you will find lots of food stalls serving all kinds of Asian delicacies, like Indian, Japanese, Malay, Thai and Chinese. However, you should try out some of the local favorites, like Malaysian pancakes or asam laksa soup. If you want to try out something unique, then you should definitely have the Cola Chicken. It is a different kind of snack, with cola at the bottom of the cup, and then fried chicken is added at the top. Apart from food stalls, you will find shops selling clothes almost everywhere. However, most of the shops only sell female clothes. Taman Connaught is also well known for the availability of a wide range of pet stuff, like pet food, pet clothes and other accessories.

Because Taman Connaught Night Market is only open on Wednesdays from 5:00 pm to 01:00 am, you can expect a huge crowd. This area also lacks a LRT station which makes parking your car near the market very difficult if you’re not early.