SIMPLE GUIDANCE FOR YOUR VISIT TO THE BATU CAVES

With the Batu caves being the highlight of our 24-hour stay in Kuala Lumpur, we wanted to share our experience with you so that it can be the highlight of your trip too!

ABOUT THE BATU CAVES

This Hindu temple and shrine have three main limestone caves (there are five caves in total) which you can enter. The world’s tallest statue of Kartikeya (Lord Murugan— Hindu God of War) stands at the front of the entrance, next to the rainbow stairs – where there are about 270 steps. From the top of the steps, you can see the amazing skyline of the city center (one of our favorite views here!).

HOW TO GET TO BATU CAVES

You have two options:

1.    By Car/Taxi

•    You can install the ‘Grab’ app (the ‘Uber’ of Southeast Asia) and book a ride to Batu caves. This is what we did because it was extremely cheap for our fare to the caves. It took about 35 minutes for us to get to the caves and cost about 30 MYR (around USD 7) from the city.

Download the Grab app here: iPhone | Android

2.    By Public Transport (Train, Bus, Monorail)

•    If you’re wanting to save those extra dollars then this is the route you’ll want to take to get to the caves. The best way is to take the KTM Komuter train from KL Sentral train station. Here you can buy a ticket for about 4 MYR (a little less than USD 1), and the trip will take about 30 minutes.

•    Want to stretch your pennies even more? Consider taking the bus! There is a free shuttle bus that will take you from KL Sentral to Sentul Station. From here you can continue your journey by taking the KTM Komuter train from Sentul to Batu Caves for about 2 MYR (USD 0.50). Do take into consideration though that this will be the longest route, and will take about an hour to get there!

DRESS CODE FOR BATU CAVES

Please keep in mind that this is a temple and that it is a place of worship. There is a requested dress code at the entrance to the main cave that states that women will need to cover their shoulders, bust, and knees and they do request that men don’t wear shorts (although we did see quite a few men wearing shorts inside of the cave).

Do keep in mind that this dress code is only requested if you go inside the cave. You can wear whatever you want outside of the cave (yes the stairs are included!).

*If you forgot to pack adequately, don’t fret! You can rent a scarf or sarong right by the entrance to the staircase. Different stalls had different prices but they started at around 5 MYR (USD 1.23).

THE TEMPLE CAVE

This is the main cave that you can access by walking straight ahead after reaching the top of the stairs. In this cave, you can find jaw-dropping views of high vaulted ceilings, as well as souvenir shops (where you can also find mosquito spray), and the Hindu Temple devoted to Lord Murugan. There is no entry fee for this cave.

While this is the only cave that we had time to visit since we only had a 24-hour stay in KL, there are others that you can access as well!

• Ramayana Cave (Entry fee: 5 MYR)
• Cave Villa – two separate caves (Entry fee: 15 MYR)
• Dark Cave (Entry fee: 35 MYR)

**Our open pro-tip: Get there early! The earlier the better. Why earlier? Here are a few reasons why:

1.    You’ll avoid the crowds. Wondering how we got photos without a ton of people in the background? This is our secret!

2.    The monkeys will still be asleep!

On the subject of monkeys, another tidbit of advice that we have is to bring a zippered bag like a backpack that can store all your belongings. The monkeys can be quite cheeky and have been known to pick things out of people’s bags.

DO NOT feed the monkeys either. You’ll just be asking for trouble if you do!

Interested to see our 24-hour guide to Kuala Lumpur? Click HERE!