First Time in KL: KLIA Ekspres, EQ Hotel & Petronas Towers

First time in Kuala Lumpur. We flew in from Kota Bharu, and the city arrived at a good moment: rested from the earlier leg, ready to move.

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Getting to the City: KLIA Ekspres vs. Grab

When we landed at KLIA, the decision was Grab or train. We took the KLIA Ekspres and strongly recommend it.

The comparison:

• Grab: slightly cheaper (around $15 USD), but KL traffic during the 4:30 PM rush hour means roughly 90 minutes in the car
• KLIA Ekspres: $22 USD for two tickets (we bought through Klook), 25 minutes to KL Sentral

The train is fast, clean, and has proper luggage space. During rush hour, the time difference alone makes it the obvious choice. We bought tickets in advance through Klook.

Before the flight, we had grabbed thick Kaya Toast and hot coffee at the Kota Bharu airport, which was a good call since the flight was short.

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Check-In: EQ Hotel

We checked into the EQ Hotel and found a large bouquet of fresh red roses waiting in the suite. Vincent had noted the honeymoon and anniversary context in the reservation, and the staff delivered on it.

The Studio Suite is beautiful with strong city views. For the full room and amenities breakdown, see the EQ Hotel Kuala Lumpur Review.

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First Dinner: Nasi Kandar Pelita

For our first meal in KL, we met up with Vincent's friends at Nasi Kandar Pelita, a well-known open-air local spot near the hotel. Cafeteria-style, massive variety, and completely packed with locals.

We ordered broadly and tried as much as we could.

The standout: Roti Canai. Incredibly thin and crispy, and eaten dipped in condensed milk. This was my introduction to the dish and it immediately made sense why it is everywhere in Malaysia. Order it.

We also had local chicken, beef dishes, and fish. The whole table was good. Nasi Kandar Pelita is exactly the kind of place you want for a first dinner in a new city: no decisions needed, just point at things and eat.

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KLCC and the Petronas Twin Towers at Night

After dinner, we walked over to the Petronas Twin Towers. Photos do not prepare you for the actual scale. Lit up at night, standing underneath them, they are genuinely one of the more impressive things I have seen in person.

We went into Suria KLCC, the mall directly below the towers, and walked around.

ZUS Coffee: A popular local coffee chain we had been curious about. We ordered the "Thunder" Honey Lemon Espresso, which arrived with a rice straw for sustainability. The flavor is a combination of sweet, sour, and caffeinated that works better than it sounds. A good energy reset after a long travel day.

Childhood snack reconnaissance: We found a local supermarket inside the mall and Vincent walked me through his childhood favorites: Double Decker potato chips, Apollo chocolate wafers, and a few other things I had never seen before. This became a recurring stop pattern for the rest of the Malaysia trip.

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End of the Day

We made it back to the hotel after a full travel and explore day. Vincent somehow had energy for a 10 PM pull-up test in the hotel gym. I did not.