Hereโ€™s a nostalgic reflection on our longest family road trip to our cherished neighbor, Malaysia, during the June school holidays. We spent months planning this family adventure, and it truly felt like a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Our kids loved it so much that we might make road trips a regular occurrence, as they are much easier to plan than flying to other destinations.

Throughout this incredible journey, we traveled over 1500 km and visited some amazing places. Here are a few highlights and fun facts from our trip!

After clearing customs in Johor Bahru in under an hour, we drove just 20 minutes to Setia Tropika, where we enjoyed breakfast at our favorite Tea Garden, indulging in dim sum, toasts, and excellent coffee! We also stocked up on essentials like water and snacks at the nearby Lotus supermarket. With everything ready, we embarked on our long drive along the North-South Highway.

Our first stop was ๐— ๐—ฎ๐—น๐—ฎ๐—ฐ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ, a city we had previously visited (you can read about our earlier Malacca trip here). This time, we made the journey without any breaks, heading directly to Suukee Kuih Buih Restaurant restaurant for their renowned Chicken Rice Balls. (Donโ€™t forget to download the Smart Parking Melaka App for stress free parking!) We also explored the Giant B Gallery, the Worldโ€™s Bee Museum, where we learned about stingless bees, did some honey tasting across a wide variety before picking up some delicious honey.

For our stay, we chose Jonker Boutique Hotel, a charming three-story heritage building on Jonker Street that featured a gated private parking at the back. Its location was ideal, just a short walk from the popular Mamee Jonker House, tasty treats from Hock Kee Confectionery, and refreshing chendol from Peranakan Place. The next morning, we enjoyed breakfast at Ah Ma Ho Liao, conveniently situated right next to our hotel.

Next, we journeyed to the vibrant city of ๐—ž๐˜‚๐—ฎ๐—น๐—ฎ ๐—Ÿ๐˜‚๐—บ๐—ฝ๐˜‚๐—ฟ, the national capital of Malaysia and its largest city, known for having the fourth-highest number of completed skyscrapers globally. We stayed at Imperial Lexis Kuala Lumpur, conveniently located right across from the Petronas Twin Towers. Our apartment offered a bathtub with stunning views of the city skyline, a sight that could rival any major metropolis.

We ascended the Petronas Towers, which soar to a height of 451.9 meters. This 88-storey twin structure is the crown jewel of Kuala Lumpur, majestic by day and dazzling at night. The PETRONAS Twin Towers embody Malaysia’s ambition to be a global player. After our visit, we enjoyed dinner at Dome at KLCC while watching the captivating Lake Symphony light and music show.

The next day was filled with excitement at Kidzania, where the kids had a blast exploring different occupations. We bought the entrance tickets from Klook (fuss free and highly recommended and we just let them scan the QR code in our email. We went to the nearby shopping mall The Curve for loads of dining options.

On our third day, we relaxed by the infinity pool at our accomodation before indulging in lunch at Pavilion, a massive shopping mall nearby. Later, we visited a relative who had recently purchased a new apartment on the outskirts of KL. He graciously gave us a tour of his upscale property, which was much more affordable compared to similar ones in Singapore.

As we traveled further north toward Perak, we were welcomed by stunning hilly landscapes as we approached ๐—œ๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐—ต. We stayed at Sunway Onsen, conveniently located next to the Sunway Lost World Waterpark in Tambun. This park is highly recommended, offering wildlife encounters, exciting slides, and relaxing onsens, so be sure to set aside a full day to explore it.

For food enthusiasts, we dined at a Japanese theme MUZI MATCHA Cafรฉ which also house a small boutique lodging, savored high tea at the charming STG Tea House Cafรฉ, and discovered a variety of sumptuous Cantonese dim sum options in Ipoh. Adventure seekers can find plenty of activities, including hiking, cave exploration, and white-water rafting. We experienced cave exploration at Gua Tempurung in Gopeng, which is one of the longest and largest caves in Peninsular Malaysia, estimated to be around 400 million years old. Ipoh is also famous for its many temples like Kek Lok Tong, especially those nestled within limestone caves on the outskirts.

Leaving Ipoh, we passed through ๐—ง๐—ฒ๐—น๐˜‚๐—ธ ๐—œ๐—ป๐˜๐—ฎ๐—ป, which is home to the second leaning tower in the world, Menara Condong Teluk Intan. Built in 1885 and influenced by Chinese architecture, it was a fascinating sight. As we continued our journey, the landscape opened up to expansive and beautiful paddy fields as we approached ๐—ฆ๐—ฒ๐—ธ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฐ๐—ต๐—ฎ๐—ป. We visited the Paddy Gallery to learn about rice harvesting and spent the night at PADI Sentral @ Sekinchan, which offered stunning views of the picturesque paddy fields.

We spent another night at KL staying at Lucentia to visit Aquaria KLCC as we wanted to reduce the time on the road as we head back south towards Singapore. Our final destination was the quiet town of ๐—ž๐—น๐˜‚๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ด in Johor, where we enjoyed a delightful farm tour at UK Farms. Afterward, we indulged in the renowned Kluang Rail Coffee and sampled local delicacies. We stayed at Hotel Anika, where we saw weekend hikers heading to Gunung Lambak, the highest mountain in the area.

This enriching trip allowed us to delve into Malaysiaโ€™s diverse landscapes, cultures, and heritageโ€”elements I had previously encountered only in snippets, but now fully embraced in a single journey. For the entire trip, we spent approximately $1.2k on 10 nights of accommodations (a mix of hotels, serviced residences, and Airbnb) and about $1.3k on food, attractions, shopping, and car expenses, totaling around $2.5k. This experience set the stage for future family road trips north, with the aim of exploring all states in West Malaysia and possibly venturing into Thailand someday.

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