Kuala Lumpur Railway Station is the former central station of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The building is one of the most beautiful railway stations* in Southeast Asia**, and it often ranks among the most beautiful railway stations in the world.
The station was built between 1910 and 1917, and the building is notable for its unique mix of Eastern and Western designs.
Kuala Lumpur Sentral Station (KL Sentral) opened in 2001, replacing Kuala Lumpur Railway Station as the central station of the city. Kuala Lumpur Railway Station is still used for the commuter railway and some intercity services. Kuala Lumpur Station is also referred to as the Old Kuala Lumpur Railway Station, or the Old KL Station.
Kuala Lumpur Railway Station map
[Map of Kuala Lumpur Railway Station.]
Kuala Lumpur Railway Station lines
KTM Komuter
1 Batu Caves-Pulau Sebang Line: Batu Caves – Pulau Sebang/Tampin
2 Tanjung Malim-Port Klang Line: Tanjung Malim – Port Klang
KTM Electric Train Service (ETS)
Intercity trains to Gemas (southbound), and Ipoh, Butterworth, and Padang Besar (northbound) stop at Kuala Lumpur Station.
[Kuala Lumpur Station intercity destinations.]
Connecting stations to Kuala Lumpur Railway Station
The Old KL Station is opposite Pasar Seni rapid transit station on the other side of the Klang River. An integrated bridge was built across the river in 2019, connecting Pasar Seni to Kuala Lumpur Station. There are two lines at Pasar Seni:
Line 5 Kelana Jaya (LRT)
Line 9 Kajang (MRT)
[Pasar Seni-Kuala Lumpur walkway.]
This isn’t a ticketless walkway where you can transfer from the MRT’LRT services to the KTM services, but it has made it a useful transfer station. The bridge has also made the old KL station easily accessible to the Chinatown area around Pasar Seni. If you are staying in Chinatown (which is one of the best areas to stay in KL) then you can use Kuala Lumpur Station for intercity services (such as if you are getting the train to Penang).
[Directions in Pasar Seni-Kuala Lumpur walkway.]
Kuala Lumpur Railway Station services and amenities
There is a KTM ticket office here, so this is a more convenient ticket office if you are staying in the Old City/Chinatown area.
[Kuala Lumpur Station KTM ticket office.]
Heritage One Station Restaurant is near the front driveway entrance.
Sprezo Coffee & Co is the front driveway area.
Kuala Lumpur Railway Station photos
The official entrance is on Jalan Sultan Hishamuddin. The entrance is cluttered with roads and parking.
There is a better view from the exit on Jalan Sultan Hishamuddin.
There is a covered driveway and walkway at the front of the station.
[Kuala Lumpur Station front walkway.]
The entrance at the back of the building has a covered walkway to the bridge to Pasar Seni.
[Covered walkway on east side of Kuala Lumpur Station.]
The carpark at the back of the building diminishes the view of the building. On a positive note, at least they haven’t built on the carpark and blocked the view.
[Carpark behind Kuala Lumpur Station.]
[Kuala Lumpur Station carpark entrance.]
With the station being demoted from its central station status, there is not much going on inside the building. There are a few shops inside, but they never seem to be open when I visit.
[Inside Kuala Lumpur Station.]
Platform 1 for Intercity services.
Commuter train at Kuala Lumpur Station.
Around Kuala Lumpur Railway Station
There are some classic railway-related buildings around the station that are worth a look.
[Hotel Majestic, KTMB Headquarters, and Kuala Lumpur Station.]
Opposite the Kuala Lumpur Railway Station is the KTMB head office (the national railways).
[Kuala Lumpur Station and KTMB head office.]
[KTMB Building viewed from Kuala Lumpur Station.]
[KTM head office and Kuala Lumpur Station.]
Next to the railways headquarters is the historic Hotel Majestic, now rebranded as The Majestic Hotel Kuala Lumpur, Autograph Collection (a brand of Marriott).
[Hotel Majestic opposite Kuala Lumpur Station.]
Kuala Lumpur Station viewed from the Jalan Sultan Sulaiman Bridge.
Unfortunately it’s not an easy area to walk for pedestrians. KL is a car-centric city, so even walking near train stations is a challenge. The bridge from Pasar Seni has at least made it easy to get here from the Old City and Chinatown area.
Read more about train travel in Malaysia and trains in Southeast Asia.
This is part of the Nomadic Notes train travel series.
* In my humble opinion
** I would include Ipoh (Malaysia), Hua Hin and Hua Lamphong (Thailand), and Hai Phong (Vietnam) in a list of top five most beautiful stations in Southeast Asia.
My very first visit to Malaysia, I stayed in the hotel that was operating in the station at the time (before Sentral opened). I went back a few years later and stayed for a week – a big, gloomy, sparsely occupied space, one which I loved to bits. I’m sad it is no more.
That would have been great to see. There was a gloomy railway hotel at Ipoh as well. It was being renovated and it was meant to have reopened by now.