Central Market

Central Market is one of Kuala Lumpur most popular tourist attraction. The former wet market was revamped in 1986 into a handicrafts outlet. It was designed with a combination of art-deco style and local ‘Baroque’ features. This 120 year old building has been classified as a Heritage Site by the National Heritage Department. It is located at Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock.

Inside the building, there are boutiques, handicraft and souvenir stalls selling local merchandise such as authentic batik, songket, wood carvings, souvenirs, accessories and many more. The stalls are divided into parts that represent the multicultural ethnic in Malaysia. There are Lorong Melayu, Straits Chinese and Lorong India. There is also a street which represents the Baba and Nyonya community.

Central Market also hold art and cultural performances at the outdoor stage to attract the visitors from time to time. During the country’s main festivals, the area will be lit up in theme, reflecting the multiracial diversity of Malaysians. The second floor hosts a food court, offering an array of Asian cuisine.

At the back of the main building, There is a section called The Central Market Annexe. It was opened in 2006. It is a home for a variety of art galleries which features artworks by local artists all year long.

Alongside the main building is the newly transformed and pedestrian only walkway known as Kasturi Walk. It was opened in 2011. There are variety of stalls selling tantalizing local snacks and exquisite souvenirs for visitors. It is also a favourite spot for street musicians to perform.

Central market is accessible by public transportation. The nearest stations are Pasar Seni LRT station and Pasar Seni MRT Station.

View official website.

Image by: Marcin Pieluzek

Opening Hours

Daily: 10.00 a.m – 9.30 p.m

Admission

There’s no entrance fee.

Location

Jalan Hang Kasturi, City Centre, 50050 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

View map.

Hear From Others

Central market use to be my playground when I was busy swapping gifts with some overseas penpals, or when I wanted to get a foreign friend a gift..

Miera Nadhirah
LiveLifeLah

When we got there, we tried to look for the dragon dance performance, but we were sidetracked by this store that sells personalized passport holders, wallets, keychains and whatnot. Perfect pasalubong, so we spent around an hour there and completely forgot about the dragon dance!

Mary
HelloMary

Our short trip to Central Market in KL provided a different kind of visual feast. The challenge was to hold on to our wallets prior to impulsive purchase.

Doc Angelo
DocGelo

Nearby Attractions

Jamek Mosque

Located at the confluence of the Klang and Gombak River, Jamek Mosque is one of the oldest mosques built in Kuala Lumpur.

The Klang River Graffiti 

It is a wall of visual and graphic representation that runs on a span of almost 3km on both sides of the river banks of the Klang /Gombak river.

Petaling Street

Petaling Street is depicted as the Kuala Lumpur “Chinatown”. The street is filled with stalls and shops from the Chinese community. It is also a place to find cheap items with a bargain price.