Malacca review TOTALLY WORTH IT FOR HISTORY AND CULTURE BUFFS !
Malacca review
TOTALLY WORTH IT FOR HISTORY AND CULTURE BUFFS !
Place:
Malacca, dubbed "The Historic State", is a state in Malaysia and located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and Johor to the south. The capital is Malacca City, which is 148 kilometres (92 miles) south east of Malaysia's capital city Kuala Lumpur, 235 kilometres (146 miles) north west of Johor's largest city Johor Bahru, and 95 km (59 miles) north west of Johor's second largest city, Batu Pahat. This historical city centre has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 7 July 2008. The city has had a long history of conquests and rulers thereby giving it a rich cultural heritage, one which is well maintained and preserved as tourist attractions.
The place is most certainly suitable for history and culture buffs who'd like to study and know more on Melaka's rich cultural history and heritage, but the romantics wont be dissappointed too as there are some beautiful scenes set along the Malacca coast such as Pulau Malacca (an islet just off Malacca city), quayside , riverside etc.
How to get there (From KL):
BUS BUS BUS !! The best way to get from KL to Malacca Only a 10-15 RM ticket per person, very professional and punctual bus service. Good buses , well maintained coaches. Totally worth it !
Whats more, there is a bus every 15 mins or so, so getting tickets flexible to your time preference shouldnt be a problem.
There are also coaches from Singapore , and Im told its around 3.5 hrs journey. If it happens that its your last stop over in your tour, there are also very decent executive coaches directly to the airport for a reasonable 25 RM . All coaches depart and arrive at Melaka Sentral bus terminus and it takes
a taxi ride of around 10 mins to get there from the city.
Hotels and Accomodation options:
There are a wide variety of accomodation options to suit budget and preference Some of the 4/5 star brands that have their presence at Melaka include Novotel, hilton, Ramada , etc. There are many bed and breakfast inns and motels towards jonker street / china town and quayside/ little india.
Things to do :
- Visit historical places (Refer Next section to know more in detail)
- Pay a visit to Pulau Melaka (To see the Floating Mosque , the only one of its kind in Malaysia). You can hire a taxi for 50 RM and they'd take you there and also wait upto 30 mins while you visit the mosque
- Go down jonker street (Only open Fri thru Sunday). A typical flea market, all hawker items available like tee shirts / hats / keychains and various other trinkets which are very suitably priced and nice as souveniours or give aways. Also, various food stalls by the road side serve freshly prepared local delights , and given the cultural heritage of the place, the food options also vary from Indian to chinese, Malay to Thai and there are also many korean and continental food outlets.
Try fish ball curry , otak otak , buns , taiwanese street snacks, crispy fried chicken. There is so much choice, you'd be confused as to where to begin. Also, many fresh fruit drink stalls available and some upscale cafes where the price may be an extra 5- 10 RM per dish, but you can lay back, perhaps
listen to some live music and enjoy the magical mallaccan atmosphere over a beer.
- Shopping at Mahkota parade and melaka mega mall. Good shopping options for the
brand conscious. Sales during chinese new year and other festive occassions can
be good.
Things to see :
Melaka being very small, the best way to go around is walking. Carry a bottle of water , your cameras, don some comfortable clothes and your set. If you are staying somewhere near the quayside,
the following sights are within walking distance.
Here is a typical order in which you can see points of interest:
Dutch Square / Christ Church and clock tower. There is also a musuem of Melaka history and culture and a governor palace thats now converted to a musuem also (Maritime Musuem)
Walk on to St Pauls Hill - St Francis Church , A Famosa Portuguese fort. Youd catch a view of the coastline from here.
Walk down St Pauls hill towards Mahkota parade. You will get two musuems on to your left , The Melaka Sultanate palace musuem and the Melaka Islam musuem. Try both, its absolutely worth it. It may take upto an hour to see both in detail but it's interesting. Its well preserved and maintained.
Commute Tips:
Trishaws are also an interesting way to commute in case you aren't prepared for the walk. You can either ask them to take you to a particular point or they'd ask a cover price for 2-3 hrs and take you to all points of interest. You can't miss a trishaw for sure ! Extravagantly decorated,
loud music , and an unique sounding horn you can't miss.
Eat / Drink:
Melaka is a fusion of cultures and so its food too.
You can try from old chinese food (Baba-Nyonya) cuisine,to indian, malaysian , thai and everything thats there. There are number of fast food eateries all over the city, with menus displayed outside so you'd know what to expect. Jonker street in particular has a number of quaint and beautiful quay side cafes , some of which offer live music on weekends and a host of traditional , local and continental
delicacies.
Tips:
To really see the whole of Malacca and all that there is to do, budget a couple of days and you won't be dissappointed. There are some well appointed hotels (depending on budget and
preference) and 2 days makes for a good time to really see everything in good detail and attention.
Try the river cruise . For RM 15 per person, its a romantic way to go past the Malacca quay. Try it post dusk, its even better with everything lit up. 3D art musuem. This is located around 10 kms from the city and needs a taxi ride, but well worth the visit and the RM 25 ticket per person. Located in a larger theme park and resort called the Bayou Lagoon.
Jonker street only full fledged on Weekends (Fri - Sun 6 pm onwards)
Carry a bottle of water at all times. The weathers humid and drinking water is most important.
We didnt do the Malacca Zoo , Motorsport circuit , and the portuguese settlement, so I can't comment on that. But other reviews do suggest it's worth a visit too !
TOTALLY WORTH IT FOR HISTORY AND CULTURE BUFFS !
Place:
Malacca, dubbed "The Historic State", is a state in Malaysia and located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and Johor to the south. The capital is Malacca City, which is 148 kilometres (92 miles) south east of Malaysia's capital city Kuala Lumpur, 235 kilometres (146 miles) north west of Johor's largest city Johor Bahru, and 95 km (59 miles) north west of Johor's second largest city, Batu Pahat. This historical city centre has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 7 July 2008. The city has had a long history of conquests and rulers thereby giving it a rich cultural heritage, one which is well maintained and preserved as tourist attractions.
The place is most certainly suitable for history and culture buffs who'd like to study and know more on Melaka's rich cultural history and heritage, but the romantics wont be dissappointed too as there are some beautiful scenes set along the Malacca coast such as Pulau Malacca (an islet just off Malacca city), quayside , riverside etc.
How to get there (From KL):
BUS BUS BUS !! The best way to get from KL to Malacca Only a 10-15 RM ticket per person, very professional and punctual bus service. Good buses , well maintained coaches. Totally worth it !
Whats more, there is a bus every 15 mins or so, so getting tickets flexible to your time preference shouldnt be a problem.
There are also coaches from Singapore , and Im told its around 3.5 hrs journey. If it happens that its your last stop over in your tour, there are also very decent executive coaches directly to the airport for a reasonable 25 RM . All coaches depart and arrive at Melaka Sentral bus terminus and it takes
a taxi ride of around 10 mins to get there from the city.
Hotels and Accomodation options:
There are a wide variety of accomodation options to suit budget and preference Some of the 4/5 star brands that have their presence at Melaka include Novotel, hilton, Ramada , etc. There are many bed and breakfast inns and motels towards jonker street / china town and quayside/ little india.
Things to do :
- Visit historical places (Refer Next section to know more in detail)
- Pay a visit to Pulau Melaka (To see the Floating Mosque , the only one of its kind in Malaysia). You can hire a taxi for 50 RM and they'd take you there and also wait upto 30 mins while you visit the mosque
- Go down jonker street (Only open Fri thru Sunday). A typical flea market, all hawker items available like tee shirts / hats / keychains and various other trinkets which are very suitably priced and nice as souveniours or give aways. Also, various food stalls by the road side serve freshly prepared local delights , and given the cultural heritage of the place, the food options also vary from Indian to chinese, Malay to Thai and there are also many korean and continental food outlets.
Try fish ball curry , otak otak , buns , taiwanese street snacks, crispy fried chicken. There is so much choice, you'd be confused as to where to begin. Also, many fresh fruit drink stalls available and some upscale cafes where the price may be an extra 5- 10 RM per dish, but you can lay back, perhaps
listen to some live music and enjoy the magical mallaccan atmosphere over a beer.
- Shopping at Mahkota parade and melaka mega mall. Good shopping options for the
brand conscious. Sales during chinese new year and other festive occassions can
be good.
Things to see :
Melaka being very small, the best way to go around is walking. Carry a bottle of water , your cameras, don some comfortable clothes and your set. If you are staying somewhere near the quayside,
the following sights are within walking distance.
Here is a typical order in which you can see points of interest:
Dutch Square / Christ Church and clock tower. There is also a musuem of Melaka history and culture and a governor palace thats now converted to a musuem also (Maritime Musuem)
Walk on to St Pauls Hill - St Francis Church , A Famosa Portuguese fort. Youd catch a view of the coastline from here.
Walk down St Pauls hill towards Mahkota parade. You will get two musuems on to your left , The Melaka Sultanate palace musuem and the Melaka Islam musuem. Try both, its absolutely worth it. It may take upto an hour to see both in detail but it's interesting. Its well preserved and maintained.
Commute Tips:
Trishaws are also an interesting way to commute in case you aren't prepared for the walk. You can either ask them to take you to a particular point or they'd ask a cover price for 2-3 hrs and take you to all points of interest. You can't miss a trishaw for sure ! Extravagantly decorated,
loud music , and an unique sounding horn you can't miss.
Eat / Drink:
Melaka is a fusion of cultures and so its food too.
You can try from old chinese food (Baba-Nyonya) cuisine,to indian, malaysian , thai and everything thats there. There are number of fast food eateries all over the city, with menus displayed outside so you'd know what to expect. Jonker street in particular has a number of quaint and beautiful quay side cafes , some of which offer live music on weekends and a host of traditional , local and continental
delicacies.
Tips:
To really see the whole of Malacca and all that there is to do, budget a couple of days and you won't be dissappointed. There are some well appointed hotels (depending on budget and
preference) and 2 days makes for a good time to really see everything in good detail and attention.
Try the river cruise . For RM 15 per person, its a romantic way to go past the Malacca quay. Try it post dusk, its even better with everything lit up. 3D art musuem. This is located around 10 kms from the city and needs a taxi ride, but well worth the visit and the RM 25 ticket per person. Located in a larger theme park and resort called the Bayou Lagoon.
Jonker street only full fledged on Weekends (Fri - Sun 6 pm onwards)
Carry a bottle of water at all times. The weathers humid and drinking water is most important.
We didnt do the Malacca Zoo , Motorsport circuit , and the portuguese settlement, so I can't comment on that. But other reviews do suggest it's worth a visit too !
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