If you are looking to go shopping in Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur, then Bukit Bintang is your best bet, with plenty of shops and malls to choose from. And like elsewhere in Asia, shopping goes really well with eating out – you’ll have lots of choices for meals or drinks when you need to rest your feet! Read my tips on what to find where in my shopping guide for Kuala Lumpur!
The biggest, fanciest mall in Bukit Bintang is Pavillion. It welcomes you with stunning architecture to its hundreds of stores and restaurants. You’ll find many global brands here, from mainstream brands like adidas to luxury brands like Yves Saint Laurent. You’ll find the luxury brands on the ground floor, the mainstream brands on the upper floors and home stores at the top.
You’ll also get a great food court in the basement as well as some sit-down restaurants, including my favorite – Madam Kwan’s with great local food! If you’d like to do some people watching with your meal, I recommend the restaurant row outside – it’s a narrow walkway with restaurants on each side and lots of people coming by all day!
If you are looking for less expensive brands, like Uniqlo or H&M, Fahrenheit and Lot10 across the street might be more interesting. These (older) malls are not quite as fancy and lack the impressive architecture, but have lots of stores on their own. You’ll also find decidedly local shops here, so it’s worth to wander around to have a look.
And if you want to shop for less, head to Sungei Wang Plaza. It was hip & trendy twenty years ago and shows its age a little. It feels more like a traditional market, brought inside, with open stalls and shops, narrow hallways and low ceilings. If you need some $3 jeans, t-shirts from brands you’ve never heard about or backpacks – ahem – inspired by global brands you have heard about, this is the place to go. And even if you don’t, it’s worth wandering around for finds like the most natural wigs on the planet!
Oh, you are wondering who shops here? Take a seat at the coffee shop at the entrance for some great people watching!
Now, the best place for geeks and their friends is nearby Low Yat Plaza – the largest IT mall in Malaysia. You’ll find 6 floors with everything you can plug in. From the latest smartphone (or not so smart phone) to tablets and laptops and all the accessories you’d ever/never need. But don’t stop there, you’ll also find the latest action cameras or drones and games and printers and… and if you can’t find the latest gadget in the US, go here – I’m sure you’ll find it at one of the stores.
If you are neither a geek nor looking for gadgets, it’s still worth going to buy a local SIM card to save money on your cell phone bill or have that iphone you dropped repaired here! Trust me, they are professionals! Compared to the other malls, you’ll find the most aggressive sales people: While in other malls they are busy updating their facebook and couldn’t be bothered with – what do you call them – customers? – here, every. Single. One. of. Them will call you trying to help and sell you something, anything! So, you’ve been warned!
And if all that shopping has taken all day and you are hungry, you should head to the Alor Street Food Night Market – it’s lots of local food choices, all outdoors and lots of people enjoying it. Bukit Bintang wouldn’t be the same without it!
Sounds like the place you want to be – than check out the best places to stay in Kuala Lumpur!