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Travel to Melaka

Upside Down House Gallery

Amusement
upside-down-house

Upside Down House Gallery
Go Admin

Summary:


As the name suggested, the Upside Down House Gallery is a fun place where you all the furniture and decors are placed upside down. The director has more than 10 years’ experience in tourism industry. Due to his love towards Melaka, he decided to set up a new and unique attraction in Melaka. So here comes the birth of Upside Down House Gallery.


Even the wording is upside down!


This is a crazy world that will get you mad! Everything is upside down! You should not think in a normal way. You need to think out of the box so only you can let your creativity go wild!

Just like a normal house, this house is divided into 5 sections; namely, living room, kitchen, children’s room, master bedroom and bathroom.


Feel free to ask for help from the staff to take photos for you. They will suggest some funny ideas!

Not much I can say about the amazing idea of this gallery, it is all about creativity beyond word description! Come and experience it, this is a good place to visit with friends!

Malaysian with Mykad
Adult: RM15
Child (below 12 years old): RM10

Non Malaysian
Adult: RM20
Child (below 12 years old): RM16

Famous Melaka Location

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2 Responses to Upside Down House Gallery

  1. zulkifli says:

    RALAT

    Kami dari sekolah kebangsaan sura, dungun terengganu akan melawat Upside Down House ini pada :
    Tarikh : 19 oktober 2015 (isnin)
    Masa : 3.00 p.m
    Jumlah murid : 80 orang
    Jumlah guru : 8 orang

    Mohon pihak tuan, nyatakan harga pakej bagi lawatan kami ini.

    terima kasih

    • Go Admin says:

      Dewasa 13 tahun ke atas – RM12
      Kanak-kanak bawah 12 tahun – RM8
      Bawah ketinggian 90cm – FREE

      Setiap pelajar FREE 1 guru

      Sila confirm untuk buat reservation. Terima kasih.

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Categories
Travel to Melaka

Getting around Melaka

Overview
getting-around-melaka2

As any other historical city, Malacca is very interesting, original and special. It offers delicious local cuisine, amazing attraction places and many astonishing photo shoot points. No matter how curious or eager you can be, this state will fulfill your whims. If you choose Malacca as your tourist destination you won’t be disappointed. As soon as you reached this city, don’t waste your time, just find a conveyance and explore, learn, eat, drink, have fun and feel Melaka.

Whether you are travelling alone, as a couple or in a group, the best way to get around the prime of Malacca is on foot. First of all visit Baba-Nyonya Heritage Museum and Malacca Sultanate Palace Museum. These 2 places will tell you everything about Malaccan history. It is very important to know its past. The good part about Melaka is almost 70% of the major attractions are within 1km radius. There is no better way to have a good feel about Melaka by walking. It’s also a good free way to burn calorie without too exhausted.

If you are running out of time, rent a bicycle or join a cycling tour group. Some hotels offer bicycle rental for their guests. Each corner in Malacca denotes history, but at the same time, it is a modern city. The drawback of cycling within the city area is there is limited tracks for bicycle so sharing roads with cars and buses may become a bit dangerous. Also, do take note that some attractions in the hill side like St. Paul’s Hill are not reachable in bike.

When you reached Malacca River, try to look for Muara Jetty, which is next to Quayside Heritage Centre. This is the where the river cruise journey starts. In the 45-min sightseeing tour, you’ll cruise past historic buildings, old warehouses(godowns) and graffiti art on the buildings. Melaka River Cruise is one of the best ways to see the city’s beauty. If you haven’t got enough of the river view, pick a restaurant by the river and see how the environment changes color when the sky turns dark.

An unusual transport within Melaka is a trishaw. It is a small vehicle with a pedal and three wheels. You can find them at the Dutch Square. This non-pollute vehicle driver and at the same time guide, will acquaint you with every touristic point in the city.

No doubt a car is the faster way to explore a city. For most visitors who wants to explore Melaka outside the prime city area, hail for a taxi and the driver will take you anywhere you want. If you prefer chartered taxi services, they are available at the end of Jalan Kee Ann. A taxi can carry up to 4 passengers. As most taxi drivers don’t use meter, it is best to negotiate the price before hopping in the taxi. You are being ripped off if a ride less than 5 mins is charged RM15. A personal car is the most convenient vehicle. You have everything you may need at hand, especially when you travel with kids.

Any transport vehicle you choose will help you to explore the beautiful and unique Malacca.


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2 Responses to Getting around Melaka

  1. Anne Liltved says:

    I have tried to find a bus from Malacca to Mersing on July 8, but it seems as if they are all fully booked. Could it still be a chance to find bus transport or do we need to take a taxi (family of five)?

    • Go Admin says:

      You may want to search for the bus availability at Easybook and see if you can secure the seats. If bus transport is not possible, taking a taxi is an option.


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Categories
Travel to Melaka

Top 17 Foods to Try in Melaka

Diary
melaka-food-overview

Malacca city is the capital of the state of Malacca, on the west coast of peninsular Malaysia. With a rich historical and cultural background from previous Portuguese, Dutch and British rule, visiting this place gives you a unique experience. The city centre was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in July 2008, along with Georgetown in Penang.

I am an avid traveler and Melaka is one of my favorite places on earth. Besides its popular historical attractions, friendly and hospitable people and cheap and cozy hotels I just adore the local food. I am a picky eater. Food is something saint for me. I can skip my night sleep or an important appointment, but I will never, never skip my meal!

First of all my food must have an accurate and attractive plating; then the taste should be delicious and memorable; so memorable that I would want to return to that place over and over again for another food hunt. So here’s my summarized list of the top 17 food to eat in Melaka. I feel these dishes represent Melaka as a whole as there are a wide variety of Chinese, Malay and Nyonya (a combination of Chinese and Malay culture) styles of cooking. This gives you an overall taste of the best Melaka has to offer.

This is a dish of Chinese origin, and is most commonly associated with Hainanese, Malaysian and Singaporean cuisines. As I wrote earlier I like to eat. And chicken is one of my favorite ingredients. Here in Melaka, you’ll find something that is not commonly available in other parts of Malaysia, the chicken rice ball. The rice is first boiled in chicken soup with other seasonings. When cooked, it is rolled in a ball that gives the unique look and texture. You must try the Chung Wah’s one. Little chicken rice balls are very yummy, and the chicken is very tender!

Some prefer flavorful, well roasted but soft lean pork meat. Others are mad about fatty meat with crispy, sweet flavors. But most people like the delicious sweet and savory gravy that is poured over the char siew slices and hot rice. You can find any type of Char Siew Rice you desire. Melaka is full of various cooking styles. I enjoyed the Char Siew Rice served at Boon Leong Food Court(popularly known as Bunga Raya Food Court). Their Char Siew sauce is thicker and tastes nicer.


This is a fragrant rice dish cooked in coconut milk and “pandan” leaf commonly found in Malaysia. Nasi lemak is not only popular in Melaka, it is also considered as one of the national dishes. This street food is best served with the banana leaf as the aroma enhances the taste.

You can easily find good-tasting nasi lemak in Melaka. The one that I tried at New Wang Food Court had fluffy and fragrant rice and the side dishes were very good. The owner named the stall as “Nasi Lemak” so what do you think the signature dish is:?


The laksa is pungent, rich and well flavored from the spices and chilies. The aroma is super tempting. Once you put it into your mouth, I don’t know how to describe the taste; the food melts and takes you into heaven. For the uninitiated, there is a difference between Nyonya laksa and curry laksa. Nyonya laksa broth is prepared using chicken and prawns, while curry laksa uses chicken stock. The red-orange dotted oil on top of the Nyonya laksa comes from the prawns, which gives the curry a richer and sweeter taste.

Nancy’s Kitchen, Riverine Coffeehouse and Calanthe Art Café serves some of the best nyonya laksa in town.

Tengkera Duck Noodle Restaurant is known for the Malacca-style Duck Noodles and I had a choice of soup or dry noodles. The latter is tossed in thick gravy and topped with shredded duck meat. This comes with small bowl of soup. The soup version is also decent – it really depends on whether you’re a soup or dry noodles person.

Soon Yen, some locals call it ‘under the big tree’ food court, along Jalan Tengkera offers delicious duck noodles too.


The main ingredients of this dish is fish/seafood, ladyfinger, eggplant, long green bean and tomato. This dish is cooked in asam (tamarind) juice with chili and different spices. The cooking process involves soaking the pulp of the tamarind fruit until it is soft and then squeezing out the juice for cooking the fish/seafood. This is the signature dish of the state. A very hot and mild sour fish curry making it very appetizing and is best to go with white rice. I normally eat it during lunch and dinner.

One of my favorite places to try asam pedas is Amy Heritage Nyonya Cuisine. You can also try it in other restaurants such as Asam Pedas Claypot and Cottage Spices Nyonya Restaurant.


Sambal is a condiment that has a chili-based sauce. Typically made from a variety of chili peppers, it is sometimes a substitute for fresh chilies and can be extremely spicy for the uninitiated. Secondary ingredients of sambals often include shrimp paste and/or fish sauce, garlic, ginger, or shallots/green onions, sugar, lime juice, and rice vinegar or other vinegars. Some ready-made sambals are available at exotic food markets or gourmet departments in supermarkets.

Some of the sambal foods that are so irresistible include sambal sotong, sambal ikan bilis, sambal kangkong and sambal chicken. The above-mentioned Nyonya restaurants are 4 of my favorite places whenever I want to get the authentic sambal taste. Yummy!!

This is a dish where an assortment of raw and semi-cooked seafood, meat (including raw meat) and vegetables on skewers are dunked into a hot boiling pot of satay gravy. The best Satay Celup is at Capitol Satay. The long queue may turn you off and some may not like the taste but for me, it is nice and worth to wait. Don’t let the outlook of the restaurant disgust you as it is an old restaurant. Let’s just say they don’t have the need to renovate it as it is already insanely popular.

If you are tired of standing and waiting for 1-2 hours just to find a seat, you can get an alternative at McQuek’s Satay Celup.

Tandoori chicken is a popular Indian dish consisting of roasted chicken prepared with yogurt and spices. The name comes from the type of cylindrical clay oven, tandoor, in which the dish is traditionally prepared. Two of the good places to eat the best tandoori is Pak Putra Tandoori Naan and Restaurant D’ Tandoori House. Their tandoori is so tender and I highly recommend it! The naan, a leavened, oven-baked flatbread, boasts a smoky flavor from the tandoori with slightly charred edges. Very tasty, especially when eaten with the tender, flavorful chicken.


Satay or sate is a dish of seasoned, skewered and grilled meat, served with a sauce. Satay may consist of diced or sliced chicken, goat, mutton, beef, pork, fish, other meats, or tofu; the more authentic version uses skewers from the midrib of the coconut palm frond, although bamboo skewers are often used. These are grilled or barbecued over a wood or charcoal fire, then served with various spicy seasonings. Good consistency on the peanut sauce and the taste is just right without being overly sweet.

I like the satay taste at Sun May Hiong Satay House as the sour-sweet-spicy sauce is just the right accompaniment to the meat.

Oh yeah, it’s called “fried oyster omelet” too – due to the big amount of eggs. Oysters are fresh and although not big in size, the generous amount makes up for it. As for myself, I got to say that I enjoyed eating it. The eggs are simply delicious, and I actually care about the oysters – I just loved them. Fried oysters can be found in some Melaka food courts and the one that I like most is at the stall in Bunga Raya Food Court.

Also known as top hats, Pai Tee is a crunchy flour cup filled with julienned vegetables, omelet and fried shallots. These tiny treats went very well with the chili sauce provided. Simply pop it into your mouth and enjoy its crunchiness. The ‘hats’ were quite small – I could have polished all 5 pieces easily. Nancy’s Kitchen is the place that amazed me with these little yummy things.


Nyonya Kuih (kuih is a term for Malay cakes) are bite-sized dessert that are colorful and popularly taken as a snack. Some are steamed, some grilled but most are sweet. My favorite Nyonya Kuih is Ondeh-ondeh (or onde-onde). It is either made from sweet potato or glutinous rice flour. The cute little ondeh-ondeh are infused with pandan (screwpine leaf) juice and filled with Gula Melaka (local sugar) or palm sugar and then rolled in with some fresh grated coconut. The palm sugar that’s in it literally bursts in your mouth when you take a bite. This warm dessert oozes into your mouth. Just ignore the diet and start a day with these sweet and delicious little yummy things.

I just love the authentic taste of Nyonya Kuih at Nancy’s Kitchen. For takeaway, drive over to Baba Charlie Nyonya Cakes located in a residential area which is frequented by locals and widely reported on media.

This is a traditional dessert made from shaved ice, coconut milk, green starched noodles with pandan flavoring and palm sugar. Other ingredients such as red beans, glutinous rice, grass jelly, creamed corn, might also be included. Each spoonful leaves behind a lingering sweetness and a creamy aftertaste from the fresh coconut milk. You should try it at Jonker 88!

Mille crêpe is a French cake made of many crêpe layers. The word mille means “a thousand”, implying the many layers of crêpe. Go into Nadeje, but don’t expect to see a 1000-layer cake. You won’t find any. Here’s what to expect — about twenty lacy crêpes layered with fresh cream and custard.

The top crepe is usually sprinkled with sugar and flambéed until the surface caramelises. The cream was delicate yet firm enough, and the cake didn’t collapse at the plunge of a fork. The crepes were thin and crisp at the sides, and digging into the cake was like shovelling through snow. Light and luscious, each bite yielded a smoky sugar coat with refined layers of crepe and cream. Sounds yummy to you – go and try it!

This is a Fujian/Chaozhou-style fresh spring roll. The popiah is one of the better ones in Melaka, where the egg wrap is generously filled with ingredients, sweet sauce and piquant chili sauce. Good stuff! The egg-skin wrap was of just the right thickness and held the popiah together nicely. Moist, generously filled and full of oomph from the chili sauce – what’s not to like? Baba Low and Nancy’s Kitchen is the right place for this authentic delicates.

One of my readers suggest to review and include the coconut milkshake at Klebang in the list of best Melaka food. I personally went to the place and ordered one with ice cream. The recipe looks simple. It is a concoction of coconut water, flesh, ice cube and vanilla ice cream blended together in a mixer.

The resulting taste turned out to be exceptionally good! The natural sweet and creamy aftertaste with smoothie-like texture are soooo refreshing that one serving is not enough for me. I heard people love to drink this even on the rainy days. So imagine what would happen during the sweltering days…a very long queue!

These are my top 17 foods in Melaka. Some will make you laugh, some will make you cry, but all will make you hungry for more innovative meal hunts.

Read the dish name and try to remember if you ate it, with whom, where and when. I am sure you will have plenty of memories. Some may be sad, other happy, but all as a part of your life. In case you didn’t had a chance to try some of my favorite Melaka cuisines, just go for it.

Do you have any recommended places to try out these Melaka cuisines? Tell us by leaving your comment below and we’ll send our foodies to try them out and get the possibility to be featured on this page.

On the other hand, your tastes differ from mine. If you think I miss out some of the food that deserves to be included in this list, please leave a comment below and tell me which food and why that you will definitely try whenever you visit Melaka.

Your Melaka trip is not complete without exploring the best attractions.

Find out how I plan my Melaka travel in one day walking!


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19 Responses to Top 17 Foods to Try in Melaka

  1. Amizan says:

    Cencaluk is a Malay food that I’ll try every time I visit Melaka. I always buy at a stall along the roads near Klebang Beach. It is made of fermented small shrimps and is usually served as a condiment together with chillis, shallots and lime juice. I simply love the sour and salty taste!

  2. Wei Ru says:

    I think you miss the insanely famous coconut shake at Klebang. Blend together with coconut flesh, coconut water and ice, it is a perfect refreshing juice in the hot sunny day. What’s more. I love it that it comes with the ice cream on top!

  3. munchong says:

    For me, I think there are two more
    1) teo soon long chan teochew restaurant
    2) restaurante san pedro portuguese restaurant

    • Go Admin says:

      Can you recommend the signature dishes for the two restaurants? I’ll do the research and ask the locals if they are worth to include them in the list. Thanks.

  4. sebastian says:

    Try the Kangkung fried with belacan and Asam Curry Fish @ San Pedro
    Delicious.

  5. yumi says:

    is there a different between melaka laksa and nyonya laksa?

    • Go Admin says:

      There are not much difference between the two in terms of the ingredients used. But Melaka Laksa tends to be less spicier and less milky.

  6. Sing says:

    May I know how far is the coocnut milk shake at Klebang from Jonker Street. Any public transport to reach there?

    Thank you..

    • Go Admin says:

      Klebang Coconut Milk Shake is about 6km from Jonker Street. You can get there by taxi of which the fare is less than RM20.

  7. bajarom Ahmad says:

    Dear admin,

    May i know what is the procedure for my restaurant to be listed in your website. I own the 1st halal satay celup restaurant in Melaka.It is located opposite of Aen Bandaraya Melaka. You may find us at fb CelopCelop. This is an opportunity for muslin to try the best Chinese Satay Celup Recipe…

    • Go Admin says:

      Hi, we will include your restaurant in our website base on the info found on your Facebook page soon. If you would like to be featured as one of top Melaka restaurants, we will need to send someone and review your food and service. Thanks.

  8. richard says:

    must try nyonya koh cendol at bukit rambai. the problem 1 week 1 time sunday only. i hear only limit 200 bowl only but not sure. Very fast finnish few hour only. i think this is the best cendol at melaka no another at melaka can beat this cendol. because this cendol no popular because 1 week 1 time only but the ppl wait before open and can try the taibak water same like cendol use sugar not use santan . i thing we cant find taibak water at melaka only this antie do.

  9. Kei says:

    You have missed some of important dishes of Melaka, like Ayam capitan from the nonya people also there is Ayam capitan from the Melaka Portuguese people.

    You have missed the Melaka Portuguese cuisine dishes like curry debal, sotong permenta, caldu pescador, portugis Ikan bakar, you need to try go to Portuguese settlement and look for restorant Lisbon and ask for Julie and Noel Felix they can prepare a off the menu meal that will blow your mind

    • Go Admin says:

      Thanks for sharing other Melaka cuisine. The reason that we don’t include De Lisbon restaurant is because of the inconsistency of the food taste and the opening hours.

  10. Steven Pang says:

    Do consider Putu Piring Melaka @ Tengkera.

  11. Zuliyana Zakaria says:

    Every time I visit Melaka I never miss food at Majeedia Haj Briyani Ujong Pasir (facing Angsana Hotel). this one up to my standard cause I cannot stand one norm mamaks place. They have murtabak too but the signature is the Nasi Briyani

  12. Wan says:

    Hi, these all looks yummy and I’ve taken notes on those suggestions in review too.
    Could you please tell me are all these foods Halal?
    Thanks for the info. Much appreciated.

    • Go Admin says:

      Most of the food listed here has halal version depending on which restaurants you dine in. Even though many of the restaurants listed on this page do not have halal certificate, some of them do offer dishes with no pork and no lard.

  13. Devion says:

    This is the best curated list I’ve ever seen, thanks for posting!

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Categories
Travel to Melaka

Best of Melaka Travel in 1-day walking

Diary
best-melaka-travel1

Melaka touches me with its mixture of culture where you can find traces of countries from the east (China and Japan) and west (Portugal, Spain and England). When I had a chance to travel to Melaka for a period of 3 days and 2 nights, I realized if I want to experience this place to the fullest, I had to make a good travel plan.

Ok, the first thing I need to do is to get an hotel at the center of Melaka City. I decided to choose the only 4-star heritage RC Hotel for its prime location along Melaka river. The room comfort, vintage decor, stunning river view and customized service is what makes it one of the best luxurious hotels in the heritage area.




The room rate during low seasons starts from RM268++. You may check the actual pricing and make the booking at Agoda’s RC Hotel page.

Since my plan is to make good use of my time on the second day, I decided to explore Melaka by foot for one whole day, but not just going chaotically from one place to another. So I made a detailed itinerary that guided me through the best of Melaka! The result is I visited them one by one and managed to cover all in just one day, from 9.10am to 10pm! It was a crazy day that filled my head with unforgettable and important details and information, but it was worth it!

Included in my list is 12 attractions and 3 eating places to be covered. Base on my research about Melaka, I made a travel plan consisting of the most important destinations.

The following is the summary of what I had visited and the actual timeline. It was a long fruitful day for me. I hope you’ll get some inspirations from reading my experience when you plan your next Melaka holiday.

Cheng Ho Cultural Museum

Menara Taming Sari

Flora de la Mar Maritime Museum

St. Paul’s Hill

Stadthuys

Christ Church

Red Square

Queen Victoria’s Fountain

Chung Wah Chicken Rice Balls

No. 8 Heeren Street Heritage Centre

Straits Chinese Jewellery Museum

Jonker 88

San Shu Gong

The Baboon House

Jonker Street (Closed for vehicle traffic)

I had a wonderful sleep. Took my breakfast and started my expedition with my precious camera. My first destination is an award-winning museum called Cheng Ho Cultural Museum. It is about 100m from where I stayed.Without Cheng Ho (or Zheng He 郑和), Melaka would not be what it is like today so the understanding of this great man is a good way to start my first attraction of the day.Ticket, movie, a guide and 45 minutes were everything I needed to enjoy and understand the development of diplomatic relations between China and Melaka. The museum showcase Cheng Ho’s intelligence and incredible grasp of international relations. This very well put-together museum in an original and very large house made me understand why many of his soldiers and bodyguards married to locals. They eventually formed the Straits Chinese (Baba Nonya) community. Once again, this place is not to be missed, especially if you are a fan of history.

Learn about the man, Cheng Ho who visited Melaka 5 times during his 7 voyages.


My next destination, Menara Taming Sari is 700m away from Cheng Ho museum and took me 7 mins walk to reach. I bought a ticket, rented binoculars and couldn’t wait to have a bird’s eye view of Melaka. In the waiting area my excitement continue to rise. The sun shone brightly on the east side of the buildings; the weather was exceptionally clear and fine that I could even see the Sumatera Island when the revolving gyro reached the top. Many other major attractions around the city are all so near to each other. I really enjoy the spectacular panoramic view of Melaka City!

Most of the famous attractions are situated around Jonker Street. So I took a slow scroll to get there. On the way, I visited my third destination – Flora de la Mar Maritime Museum. This is a replica of a Portuguese ship that sank off the coast of Melaka. This impressive museum is a restored Portuguese ship. I bought a ticket of RM5 and started to count stairs. Quite a bit of stairs to negotiate so be prepared for that. I felt as though I was on the set of Pirates of the Caribbean. This is the museum that will tell you everything about the trading history of Melaka. It made for an educational visit. I could easily spent 1-2 hours there, but I had other attactions to discover.


Next in my must-go list was St. Paul’s Hill or Bukit St. Paul. About 500m from the maritime museum, there are quite a number of other museums along Jalan Kota. I picked a few and took pictures from the outside, just to have more authentic architectural photos.

Stamp Museum

UMNO Museum

Islamic Museum

Built in 1521, St. Paul Church was once a fort defense structure. St. Paul’s Hill was an important place on my plan because both the Portuguese and Dutch left their mark there. Stairs are a challenge and entrance is free. St. Paul’s Church is located on top of the hills that is partly preserved due to the war destruction. The Portugese tombstone inscription gives an insight to the history but it would be good if there is a guide to tell the story. There are great views of the city from the top and some interesting history billboard found on the way up and near the base of the hill. All in all I am happy because I managed to visit the highest travel point in Melaka.


It was 12 noon and I decided to go further to my next four destinations: Stadthuys, Christ Church, Red Square and Queen Victoria’s Fountain. All these attractions are located next to each other and are free of charge. I managed to explore them between 12:15am and 1:10pm.Stadthuys is also known as the Museum of History and Ethnography. It is the oldest Dutch colonial building in Southeast Asia. Strategically located at the center of Melaka, you you won’t skip this place if you travel to Melaka. It was a pity that there were restoration nettings covering the building. It must be quite charming when it is clean and not under construction. Besides its Dutch red exterior old style buildings there are traditional costumes, handicraft and souvenir shops around that you can do some shopping here.


Completed in 1753. the bricks used to build the church were specially shipped in from Holland. I was pretty impressed with the church itself. Unfortunately, the surrounding building was under construction so I couldn’t get a clear shot of the church. Despite the fact that Christ Church must be the most photographed item in Melaka it is forbidden to take photos inside. I wanted to make a few photos, but the cool and peaceful atmosphere stopped me. I am not a religious guy, but as soon as I entered this building I felt very good. It was the same emotion like when I held my son in my arms for the first time! It is an amazing and free place to visit! I gave nothing and received a lot!


On the way to Queen Victoria’s Fountain I took a lot of photos at the Red Square, also known as Dutch Square. It dated from the 17th century and reflects the history of Melaka from Dutch colonization till today. This place amazed me with its tourist density! The name says it all – yes, it’s red and always full of market stalls to check out and an amazing place to find out history of Melaka. Of course you can take photos ad-infinitum like I did – there are spectacular sights, colors, buildings, people, market stalls and those colorful trishaws. This place is really a throwback to the glory days of the Dutch empire.


You can’t miss the Queen Victoria’s fountain as it’s situated in the middle of Dutch Square. Built in 1904 by the Melaka people in memory of Queen Victoria Regina, it has been very well preserved and provides a good photo opportunity. The Britain commemorative tribute is also impressive. I have a childish tradition: every time I see a fountain I must make a wish and drop a coin in the water. This time wasn’t an exception. I made a wish and hope it will come true!


Time is ticking away and it was already 1:15pm. My stomach sent me a message, it was hungry! I made a short walk to the other side of the river and queued up for lunch at Chung Wah Chicken Rice Balls. This place is always busy and you’ll have to wait a bit until you get a table. The queue was long, about 30-40 pax and I waited around 30 minutes.I asked for a half steamed Hainanese-style chicken with rice balls and was amazed with the extraordinary taste of rice balls in which the rice was cooked with chicken broth. Of course I had to mixed the chicken with chili sauce. The taste is simply marvelous! The chicken is the tougher kampong chicken unlike the ones with softer texture I had a week ago in Singapore. It was the best chicken rice I’ve ever had so far comparing with the ones I did in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and also Penang. Tender and juicy chicken goes perfectly with flavorful rice balls. Yummy!Chung Wah Chicken Rice Ball’s business hours are between 7.30am and 3.00pm.

Talking about food, Melaka has some of the best in Malaysia. The editor of this website has done a good job introducing the top food you must try in Melaka. My 1-day holiday could only touch on a few but I am sure I’ll be back again just for the food!!

Leaving with a full stomach, my next destination is No. 8 Heeren Street Heritage Centre which is about 500m away. I took a nice walk along Jalan Tun Tan Cheng Lock, until I found number 8 at around 2:45pm. From the outside it is easy to miss this place. Nothing much to see in the house but the interesting stories told is what worth the visit. The house is opened between 10am and 4pm, Tuesdays to Saturdays.There is no entrance fee but the staff is extremely friendly and welcoming to share their story. One of them, Mr. Goh, sat with me in the courtyard and he told me stories about the history of Melaka and the style of building they’re trying to preserve. It’s definitely worth a stop and there’s a donation jar in front to help these sweet people with their passion.

My watch showed 3.35pm and I followed the same route back until I reached Straits Chinese Jewellery Museum.Prepare to spend an hour at this place – you certainly can’t rush through your visit of this fascinating museum. I brought a RM20 adult ticket and was waiting a little bit before the guide started the tour. The guided tour normally takes about 30-45 mins to complete. But since I am very keen on the Baba-Nyonya culture, I ask a lot of questions and it is good that the tour guide is happy to share his knowledge.The tour was very insightful and informative. This is a living museum which pays tribute to the “Straits Chinese”, or Baba Nonya and the luxurious lifestyle they used to be leading through the jewelries and furniture display. It gave me a peek into peranakan living in the early days. The house is fascinating just to look at and the stories told make it much more interesting. It is such an enriching experience that it is worth the money.

Unlike Baba Nyonya Heritage Museum located at the front end of the road, photo shooting is permitted inside the Straits Chinese Jewelry Museum.


My head was spinning after I was bombarded with so much information so I decided to take a break in Jonker 88 for the famous cendol dessert.Again a very long queue was between me and my dessert! This was quite an experience for me! I stayed in line and waited for my turn to order Cendol. Then I carried the plastic tray with my dessert and walked through the crowded coffee shop trying to find an empty table. Oh, that was a delicious Cendol! Not too sweet, but rich and tasty with fine shaved ice, coconut milk and Gula Malacca.The decor of this restaurant is attractive with a lot to view on walls and surroundings. The indoor seats were fully occupied by people having their meals, so some guys ordered and sat at the park beside to enjoy it. After that they just went back to return the bowls. It shows how good the food is!

This restaurant also sells good nyonya food but it is the cendol that steals the limelight.


How can a trip be complete without shopping for local food stuff? Instead of shopping for souvenir, I chose to take a 5-minute walk to San Shu Gong shopping centre, located right at the mouth of Jonker Street. The shop sells a wide range of local delicacies such as dodol, durian cendol, cream puffs and much much more.Shopping for food stuff was one of the most memorable moment of my day! Staff was polite and friendly. There are over a hundred local delicacies and they offered many free samples for tasting and I just cannot walk away without buying anything. My friend visited this place and he filled up two baskets within minutes – prawn, crab, seaweed sesame crackers, cuttlefish crackers, dried and sweet cuttlefish, dried mangoes, wolf herring crackers, pickled cuttlefish, Gula Malacca, satay fish and white coffee. All these were fantastic gifts to bring home for friends.


The sky began to turn dark and after all the walking and shopping, I need to replenish my energy with a big meal. I walked a few minutes and reached my dinner destination: The Baboon House. I wasn’t in a hurry. Stayed there between 6:10pm and 7:30pm.This restaurant is a real gem! Its decor is like a polished garden. Some part of it looks like forest. the building structure is unmodified and remains the same Baba-Nonya old building, the environment is so relaxing with soft music. They (pretty much) only serve burgers, but these are among the best I’ve ever had on this planet! I had the pork and beef burger, it was so juicy and delicious! Food is homemade and reasonably priced. The staff is very friendly and attentive and the whole atmosphere is just wonderfully relaxing. Don’t miss the full-of-green lush back courtyard. Dubbed the best burger available in Melaka, they are well deserved it.The only drawback was that I was told not to take photos even if I was a customer.

Overall, it is a good place to spend your afternoon to chill out with friends or stay alone reading book. I swear I could have spent my whole day here if I had the luxury to travel for more days.

When I stepped out of the restaurant, I can feel the crowd building up at the other side of the street. I had done my research so I know what’s happening. The whole 500-meter Jonker Street was closed for traffic and stalls appeared selling fingerfood, local delicacies and interesting souvenirs. Although it caters to tourists, it retains its old charm in the midst of Melaka. You need to bargain, but most sellers are polite and will give you a good price.It is so vibrant at night and people are rushing in for many reasons. For me, it had been a long walk so I just picked a bar, sit down, relax and experience the hustle bustle of this street.I believe Jonker Street is easily the most popular place in the city of Melaka. All the best attractions and restaurants I visited today are within walking distant from the street. Find Jonker Street on the map and you’ll see the strategic location and it should be at the top of your “to-be-visited” list.

Lots of energy and excitement when Jonker Street was closed for traffic on certain hours from Friday to Sunday. This is my highlight of the day!


If you are a traveller and have only one day in a place, you got to pick the best to explore. The fruitful day I had in Melaka was my first such experience and it inspired me to go further! Right now I am working on my next city to explore in only one day, and truly to say I am very excited!

Melaka impressed me with everything! I managed to discover its past, its culture, its provenience and origins. I had a chance to speak with locals when I queued up for lunch, I had the pleasure to discuss with guides and asked them everything I didn’t know, I had the honor to debate with other tourists and, finally, I had the opportunity to travel to Melaka! Don’t hesitate and visit this wonderful city, it is worth your every second and penny!

How do you spend your day in Melaka? Feel free to share your travel experience by leaving your comment below.


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27 Responses to Best of Melaka Travel in 1-day walking

  1. Jyinx Wong says:

    thanks for sharing your 1 day trip in Melaka =) is a very good refer for us to have a tour around Melaka. Although I am Malaysian, I don’t even know are these places is walking distance?? but I went there before. I am planning to go with my best friend but we both can’t drive around yet due to no lincense and still learning. Anyway, thanks for sharing =D

  2. penny pang says:

    How do I go to Melaka?By Bus Or By train?

    • Go Admin says:

      There is no train transport to Melaka. The only public transport is via bus at the moment.

  3. Corrina says:

    Great! Just need it bringing my family for a day trip. Thanks

  4. Kyvernny says:

    Do you know where to park the car if I’m driving over to Malacca? Fyi, one day trip and walking distance to all the places. 😉 thank you.

    • Go Admin says:

      There are parking spaces by the roadside of some of the main roads but you need to purchase coupon. You may also park inside the shopping center and the nearest ones to the heritage area are the Mahkota and Dataran Pahlawan Shopping Mall, which are about 400 meters away from Menara Taming Sari.

  5. Lem says:

    Dude, thanks for sharing this. I just wish the Malacca Zoo (among other things) was within range. Still, since St Paul’s Church is my main agenda, this is good. Thanks a lot, man.

  6. Wendy says:

    Thanks for sharing. Very details with nice picture.

  7. Carla says:

    Looks like a very rewarding trip! Can’t wait to see Malacca.

    If I’ll be coming from KL and going back the same day, do you think there is enough time to do the activities you’ve mentioned. Also, would you know bus schedule from KL to Malacca and then back to KL.

    Thanks!

    • Go Admin says:

      You may go to http://www.easybook.com/ to find out the bus schedule from KL to Melaka. The earliest bus to Melaka is 8am while the last bus is 11pm. The drive takes about 2+ hours so you should be able to arrive Melaka bus station before 10:30am if you take the 8am bus. It is definitely possible for you to cover all the attractions and restaurants covered in this article but you have to keep your eye on the closing time of some of the attractions. I suggest you to take the Menara Taming Sari ride at night if you leave Melaka after 10pm.

      • Carla says:

        Thanks!

  8. bzmama says:

    thank you very much for such a valuable info. I am planning for a day trip to Melaka this 1 jan 2015. and I only have half a day, since I will only be arriving Melaka around 11am. but I have till midnight

    this has been very helpful.

    Thank you again

  9. Deus says:

    Malacca Sultanate Palace is another attraction that you shouldn’t miss! It’s just another 2 mins walking from St Paul, and the fees is only RM 2, quite a lot to discover in there.

  10. priekum says:

    can’t wait to see Melaka…. I’ll be there on July….

  11. Karissa says:

    Hi!! it was great stumbling upon your page! I’ll be in Melaka mid-year (I know Its too early for research but I love DIYs!) and your Melaka Day trip Itinerary really helps A LOT! Thanks!! :-)

  12. Lan Chi says:

    Thank you very much for sharing your experience. We will travel to Melaka at the end of this month and we are so excited about the trip now. We also stay at Wayfarer guest house :). Do you know by chance where should we book the bus ticket from Melaka to Kualar Lumpur airport? As i research there are total 11 schedules per day travelling from Melaka to KLIA/KLIA2, with 7 schedules departing from Melaka Sentral and 4 remaining schedules departing from Mahkota Medical Centre. Should we better start from Melaka Sentral or Mahkota Medical Centre? Many thanks for the advice.

    • Go Admin says:

      Whether to depart from Melaka Sentral or Mahkota Medical Centre depends on your schedule and where you stay. Since you stay at the heritage site, it is best to depart from Mahkota Medical Centre as Wayfarer is within 1km away compared to a few kilometers from Melaka Sentral.

  13. Juni says:

    Hi ….

    Thanks a lot for sharing your experience. It really helps and so many places to see in a day … I’m planning to visit Melaka on July and thinking to take bus from Terminal bersepadu selatan (KL) to Terminal Melaka Sentral . But how do I go to the heritage site from there ? is there any bus can take me to the heritage site or should I rent a car ? Many thanks for the advice in advance …

    • Go Admin says:

      At Melaka Sentral, you may get a taxi to the heritage site that costs about RM20. Alternatively, you can get a bus named Panorama and pay a small fee of RM2.

      There isn’t a need to rent a car if you are exploring just the heritage site.

  14. akhila says:

    hi,,
    Im coming from singapore on a cruise and i only have few hours in malacca. Can you please tell me what is the closest attraction of your collection from where the ship docks? I coudnt find cruise center in malacca map.

    • Go Admin says:

      Normally, the cruise ship docks in the middle of the sea near Malacca town. From there, small boats take passengers to Parameswara Jetty which is within walking distance from major Melaka attractions, with the nearest being Menara Taming Sari (about 200 meters away).

  15. Frank Lucas says:

    I will be driving from KL with my car to Malacca for the first time. I want to do a walking tour through Malacca to learn about its heritage and culture.

    We ( my wife and I ) look for a guide to show us Malacca as a walking guided tour.

    Please let me know where I can get such a tour

    Frank Lucas
    Kuala Lumpur

    • Go Admin says:

      We offer walking tour that last for 4 hours within Melaka heritage area. The price is USD150 for a group of up to 4 persons.

      Please email us at getawayasia @ gmail.com to get more info. Thanks.

  16. khoon says:

    i’m planning a 2d1n family trip to melaka in dec 2015, i will choose weekday to avoid big crowd. I am driving from penang, I wish to know where can i park my car , i think i am mostly visiting jonker area, red square area take a nite river cruise.

    • Go Admin says:

      There are a lot of parking space within and around the heritage area. It is much easier to get a car park during weekdays. Most likely you’ll be parking in the public area where you need to place the car coupon. The fee is RM0.6 per hour. If you will be parking for more than 5 hours, it is advisable to buy a day coupon that costs RM5.

  17. Aisha says:

    I love your itinerary! Thanks so much for making the time to prepare this. I have a question though, if I want to take the earliest bus from KLIA2 do you think I should book the Transnasional bus ticket in advance or do you think it won’t sold out and I can just get it at the same day? Thanks in advance.

    • Go Admin says:

      The quick way to check the bus availability is via Easybook. You can also make online booking directly from that platform.

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