This is our second road trip during the December school holidays as we want to gradually increase the distance and days to make the kids slowly get accustomed to life on the road. This time round we spend quite a bit of time driving on the North South Expressway where you see all the nice mountains ranges covered in clouds and the vast plantations. It reminds me of my hiking trips to Gunung Ledang (Mount Ophir) during my younger days where I took a train from Tanjong Pagar to Segamat before taking a bus to the foot of the tallest mountain standing at 1276m in the state of Johor.
We also drove across small towns and rural areas where we see all their villages and cows crossing. The smaller roads are actually quite well-paved and driving was relatively comfortable. As we were driving from one state to another via smaller roads, you will be able to see the state flag change that is hanging at the house which is an indication that you just crossover to their other state. When you arrive at a different town, you could see the distinctive features and characteristic changes on the way they plant their trees, design of buildings and roads and also their changing landscapes.
Day 1 – 15th Dec 2022 (Thursday)
This time round we set off slightly earlier at around 730am from home and reached their first R&R at Gelang Patah before 10am where you could change your currency, top up your Touch and Go card, have your meal or toilet break. We reached Yong Peng just before noon to have our lunch at the famous charcoal roasted char siew at Sunroast. After filling up our stomachs with the sumptuous meal, we set off towards Malacca to visit their Giant B farm where we could learn about bees and apiculture. In addition, you could also try some of their delicious and healthy honey products before deciding whether to purchase it.
In less than 30 mins, we finally arrive at Malacca City, dubbed the Historic City, which has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Malacca is well known for its highly strategic state position for international trade routes which explains why they were once ruled by the Portuguese, Dutch and British from the 16th -18th centuries. We checked into Maple Boutique Hotel and off loaded our belongings before starting our exploration of this historical city. We love the minimalistic design of the hotel, being large enough to accommodate all four of us in one room with 2 queen size beds and conveniently located in between two large shopping malls (Aeon and Lotus). The price is rather attractive at less than SGD 80 per night in a less crowded area but requires us to drive about 10 – 15 mins to City Centre.
We went to the Red Square where the iconic clock tower Stadthuys was built by the Dutch where you see all the red painted brick buildings. We then walked across the bridge towards Jonker street which is their Chinatown bustling with people strolling along their clean and well paved street. We bought quite a lot of nice snacks (like Hock Kee Confectionery @Jonker Walk) and ate the famous Chicken Rice Ball for our dinner. Went for their Melaka River Cruise where the night were brighten up where you could see all the historical buildings with mural street arts.
Day 2 – 16th Dec 2022 (Friday)
We went for a Macdonald breakfast before visiting both Upside Down Museum and Maritime Museum. We had our lunch at Haidilao Hot Pot at Dataran Pahlawan Melaka Megamall before crossing the road to Mahkota Parade mall to buy some clothes and books from Popular. We rested awhile at the hotel before heading out to Aeon for dinner, did some grocery shopping and the kids enjoyed the arcade located within Aeon.
Day 3 – 17th Dec 2022 (Saturday)
We checked out at around 10am to set off back to Johor after refilling the petrol, then we drive through the smaller roads to Muar for Dim Sum lunch at Kow Long Sheng which is the first town you will see when you cross from Malacca back to Johor. Along the way, we saw cows crossing the road, very nice tree canopies before entering the next town and spotted numerous weddings along the road (Since its a Saturday).
We went to Batu Pahat for Ice Cream Waffle at Beans ‘N Cream before arriving back at Johor just before dinner time. We checked in at Ibis Style Johor Iskandar Puteri which is a relatively new hotel where they have the family room (36 m²) with a Queen size bed for the adults and a bunk bed for the kids which is perfect for us. The location might not be the most convenient but having a family room, basement carpark and complimentary breakfast for just SGD 80 a night, its a steal for us who just want a comfortable night stay before heading home on the next day. We went to the nearby Aeon Tebrau for dinner at Secret Recipe before going back to the hotel to watch the World Cup third place playoff between Croatia and Morocco.
Day 4 – 18th Dec 2022 (Sunday)
We had the complimentary breakfast at the hotel before setting off back early to avoid the holiday jam. We did the usual routine of topping up the Touch and Go card and petrol before heading back to Singapore for lunch.
Below is a cost breakdown and itinerary of this road trip:
Note:
There will be a Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) of RM20 / entry into Malaysia. As for the amount of toll you might have to pay, you can visit https://tollguru.com/toll-calculator-malaysia for a toll fee cost estimation.
Even though I drove to Malacca in the past before (without kids), but this trip opened up my eyes when we drove through some of the rural areas instead of the usual North South Highway. This is quite an adventure for the four of us on this road trip where we travelled more than 500km. Our kids also learnt how to navigate using GPS and they realized how small Singapore really are. Having fun conversations when we drive past some interesting infrastructures/nature that we don’t normally see in Singapore and enjoying some of the rolling hill roads where the kids feel like its a roller coaster ride.
Going on this road trip might not seem like a great deal nowadays as kids are more well-travelled but the experience does go a long way in appreciating things we have back here in Singapore. As we slowly go on longer road trips, this will slowly train their mind to see that its possible to drive out of Malaysia and go into other countries like Thailand or even China. Hopefully, this will teach them to be more independent and see the endless possibilities that we will have if we are willing to venture out.
Being a minimalist allows me to appreciate some of the simpler things in life and I do hope that my kids could grow up to be more appreciative of the things they have. Hopefully this will create more fond memories for our kids to remember when they are older and let this be the start of many more road trip adventures!
This is the link for our first road trip experience.