Shopping in Kuala Lumpur
Shopping in Malaysia ranges from exclusive department stores to street markets. Bargaining
is expected in the markets, unless fixed prices are displayed. Kuala Lumpur is a popular shopping destination, rivaling Singapore and Hong Kong. Suria KLCC, a shopping mall with a spectacular fountain, gardens and a beautiful piazza, houses a great selection of leading couture outlets. It’s a great place to wander and browse, with six floors of shops ranging from Chanel, Cartier, Gucci, Armani, to Marks and Spencers and Top Shop. The Japanese department store Isetan gives KLCC a point of difference.
Times Square is the city’s largest mall, it includes Malaysia’s largest indoor theme park and South-East Asia’s largest cinema plus hundreds of shops.
Sungei Wang Plaza has more than 700 stores spread over five floors. One floor for trendy young things, one floor for street fashion and two floors selling nothing but mobile phones and gadgets. The most interesting being the 1st floor, which features both established and up and coming Malaysian designers, mostly without designer price tags.
Low Yat Plaza sells electronics – heaven for gadget–aholics (and somewhere to send hubby when he tires of clothes shopping)! Low Yat is certainly the place to go if you want a camera or mobile phone, and we have found that computers are very cheap here.
The Pavilion, Kuala Lumpur’s newest shopping centre, (which is just across the road from the Prince Hotel) opened in September 2007. The centre is the latest in a string of shopping centre openings that has transformed Kuala Lumpur into a serious shopping destination for people from all over the world. The Pavilion is bright, spacious, easy to navigate and with a fantastic mix of local stores and big UK and US brands such as Gap, Zara and Topshop. You’ll also find lots of European designers. The Pavilion is also a great place to eat – you’ll find every type of cuisine you can think of in the lower ground food court, but don’t expect what you’re used to – this place knows how to present its food. Surrounding the food court is a large selection of cafes and restaurants.
Enquire at Malaysian Royal Customs and Excise about claiming cash back on duty-free goods.
Shopping hours
Most shops keep their own opening hours, usually within the range of 1000-2200.