The Melaka Sultanate
The gallery that shows how Islam reached the region with traders.
Five ringgit, one of the cheapest things you will pay for in Kuala Lumpur, buys two hours that explain the country you are visiting. The museum opened in 1963 in a building modelled on traditional Malay palaces, with a tall sweeping roof and big mosaic murals across the front telling the story of the peninsula. Inside, four galleries run in order: prehistory, then the Malay kingdoms and the Melaka Sultanate that made Islam the faith of the region in the fifteenth century, then the Portuguese, Dutch and British colonial eras, and finally independence and modern Malaysia. The Melaka and Islam section is the most interesting for an Arab visitor, because it shows how Islam arrived here with traders rather than conquest. Be realistic, though: the displays are old-fashioned, heavy on panels and text rather than interaction, and children can tire of the interior quickly. The grounds outside are better for them, with vintage steam locomotives, cars and carriages on open-air display and a traditional wooden Malay house you can walk into. It opens every day except the first two days of Eid al-Fitr and the first day of Eid al-Adha, and tickets are sold only at the counter. It is a short walk from KL Sentral along a pedestrian link, and pairs well with the Perdana Botanical Gardens and the Islamic Arts Museum.
The gallery that shows how Islam reached the region with traders.
A palace-style roof and large mosaic murals across the front.
Steam locomotives, vintage cars and a wooden Malay house; children's favourite.
Jalan Damansara, Kuala Lumpur
Royal Malaysian Police MuseumA small free museum telling the history of policing in Malaysia, from the guards5 minutes walk4.6
Islamic Arts Museum MalaysiaThe largest museum of Islamic art in Southeast Asia, and arguably the finest thi7 minutes walk4.6
KL Bird ParkYou do not look at the birds through cages here; you walk among them. The park s8 minutes walk4.3
Perdana Botanical GardensKuala Lumpur's oldest public park, laid out by the British in the 1880s around a8 minutes walk4.4
National Mosque of MalaysiaInstead of the usual dome, this mosque is crowned by a roof shaped like a folded9 minutes walk4.7Briefly. The indoor galleries are mostly text and panels, but the trains and wooden house outside hold children's attention. The ticket is cheap, so nothing is lost if you leave after an hour.