Indoors Shopping? Overrated. Visit Kuala Lumpur’s Night Markets

Kuala Lumpur may be well known for its glitzy shopping malls and five star hotels, but a world away from this are the city’s night markets (pasar malam in Malay). Sprawled out on the street starting from six in the evening, there is nothing you cannot get at these marketplaces. From (fake) Rolexes to gems, to food to antiques, the choices are absolutely endless.

Image: Joejiang

Arguably the most popular and famous among the night markets is on Chinatown’s Petaling Street. Chinese immigrants first arrived in Malaysia during the 15^th century when the princess of the Fuijan Province married the Sultan of Malacca. Consequently a number of Chinese workers from the Fuijan province settled on the straits of Malacca, whose descendants still populate the area today. The second wave of Chinese immigrants came during the 19^th to 20^th centuries. Their arrival in the colonial period meant they were put to work in tin mines across the western coast of Malaysia, of which Kuala Lumpur was a key part.  Today, ethnically Chinese Malays make up more than 40% of the city.

Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown is in some ways a representation of this part of Malaysia, but is mainly

Image: Andrea Peverali

a highly commercial area. Of course, tourists abound in this area, especially in the evenings, but Chinatown has a fair amount of locals who also do their shopping there. The variety of household items as well as fresh produce, at much lower prices than commercial supermarkets, make night markets attractive to Malaysians. There are of course souvenirs and local arts and crafts and antiques to pique the visitor’s interest.

This is also a crowd-lover’s paradise – there is never a time that the markets aren’t busy. Make sure to bring water with you, as it can get quite hot amidst the throngs of people.

When shopping at the Petaling Street night market, the keyword is ‘bargain.’ Shopkeepers not only anticipate this, but also will start haggling at a price that is probably 50-100% more than they are willing to sell the goods for. So go forth and bargain – fearlessly and unabashedly.

On Monday evenings, the biggest night market is opened at Petaling Jaya SS2. This market takes up about four roads, and usually occurs from 6:00pm-10:30pm. A larger-scale version of the Chinatown night market, this market is set about seven miles away from Kuala Lumpur. It is accessible by car or the local subway system, the Light Rail Transit (LRT). Take the train out here and make a wonderful evening of strolling through the shops and eating at the local food stalls.