What to Wear
Loose and light summer clothing (preferably natural fabrics) is recommended, especially for outdoor activities like bazaar shopping and sightseeing. Evening wear depends very much on the setting. Jeans, T-shirts and sandals are acceptable in casual eateries and hawker stalls, but discouraged in fine dining establishments. When visiting religious sites it is always best to be conservative side (long pants, long skirt and so on).

General Info
Drinking Water: Kuala Lumpur is relatively clean and you can drink water straight from the tap (except small towns and kampungs where it is better to drink boiled water). That said, we suggest you get in the habit of drinking bottled water especially if you will be visiting rural areas or other countries in the region.

Electricity: Malaysia's voltage is 220 - 240 AC, 50 hertz. The outlets take the large 3 prong connectors (same as most Commonwealth countries) Most large 4 and 5 star hotels can provide transformer to convert it to 110 - 120 AC, 60 hertz (for smaller hotels you'll need your own adapter).

Money Matters
Malaysia's local currency, the Malaysian Ringgit (expressed as RM) (also known as the dollar by the locals), is divided into 100 sen. Bank notes are denominated units of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100. Coins are 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 sen and 1 Ringgit.

Money exchange is easily available as there are plenty of money changers and banks in the city centre. Be advised that banks do charge a commission but not money changers, however their rates will definitely vary from one to another. Do your research on the current rates before using the money changers. At present the US Dollar is fixed at RM 3.80/1 US$ - other currencies fluctuate daily.

All major brands of travelers cheques and cash in major currencies are readily accepted in Kuala Lumpur. Credit cards are also widely accepted by all hotels, banks, most big departmental stores and restaurants. Do note that some retailers add an extra 2-3% surcharge for the privilege of using plastic. You are not going to get anywhere arguing the point with the shopkeeper - just ask that the amount be noted clearly and separately on the bill and then when you get home call your credit card company to dispute the surcharge. Unfortunately credit card fraud is all too common so be cautious when using your credit card.

Tipping
Tipping is not the norm in Kuala Lumpur as most restaurants automatically add 10% service charge to your bill. Usual tipping of bellboys in hotels range from RM 2.00per medium sized bag onwards. Be advised that taxis charge RM 1.00 for each bag placed in the boot. A few taxi drivers will try to force your hand by being slow to hand back your change and round up to the nearest dollar - whether this is acceptable or not is up to you.

Phone Home
All telephone numbers listed herein are local numbers. From the local pay phones in Kuala Lumpur, to dial any numbers out of Kuala Lumpur (STD) put a "0" in front of the area code. For example: if the area code is "3" dial "03" + (local number), however be warned that a good number of pay phones (our guess: 3 of 10) are out of service so it is better and more convenient to just dial from your hotel or your mobile phone.

Cellular service in Kuala Lumpur is GSM. If you bring your own mobile phone you may want to consider purchasing a prepaid calling card from any major telecommunications distributors like Maxis, Telekom (RM 130.00 with RM 50.00 of call time - about an half hour's worth of local calls - included. While the up front fee is steep it's still usually cheaper than using your home country telephone service - and if you plan on being in Kuala Lumpur for awhile, you can buy "top up cards" (additional prepaid call time) for RM 50.00.

If you don't have a hand phone or don't want to buy a prepaid calling card you can use the pay phones scattered about the city. Be advised that you will need a prepaid plastic phone card - so make sure the phone card you buy is compatible with the pay phone To play it safe just buy from the biggest operator - Telkom.

International calling from pay phones can be quite a frustrating experience as only pay phones marked "International" can be used. Finding one is not always easy. If you are lucky and find one, the international access code is 00 (international code) + country code + number.

On the other hand if you want to call to Malaysia, Malaysia's country code is "60" and "3" is the area code for Kuala Lumpur.

Business Hours
Shopping centres and shops are usually open from 10.00am until 9.00pm or 10.00pm seven days a week. Banking hours are from 9.30am to 4.00pm on weekdays and 9.30am to 11.30am on Saturday and closed on Sundays and public holidays.

Government offices are open from 8.00 am to 4.15pm weekdays. Most government offices are closed 12.00 noon to 2.00pm for lunch Monday-Thursday. Fridays, due to the prayers at the mosque, Government offices are closed between 12.15pm to 2.45pm.

Street Wise
Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur are relatively safe however there are always petty criminals lurking in any city. Whilst rare things do disappear from time to time, so do keep an eye on your belongings. Use common sense and take the same precautions that you would when visiting any large international city (Women should carry their purse across the shoulder, don't leave your pocketbook, briefcase or camera unattended while you visit the buffet at a busy restaurant, don't count your money in the open, stay on well lit and trafficked streets at night, always keep your valuables in the in-room safe or hotel safety box and so on).

Drug Abuse
As mentioned in several spots throughout the site, illegal substances such as drugs are dealt with severe penalties from lengthy jail sentences to execution. Malaysian law states that all drug offenders are treated equally, in fact a number of foreigners have been convicted and sentenced to death for possession of drugs, regardless of quantity. Remember, you are a long way from home with far fewer rights than you think - best to behave and be a gracious guest.

Medical Facilities
Malaysia's medical facilities are quickly becoming some of the best in South East Asia. There are any number of well-qualified, English speaking doctors and state of the art equipment. Registered pharmacies are open until 10.00pm and most hotels have their own doctor on 24-hr. call. For a more complete list of hospitals in Kuala Lumpur, click here.

Outward Bound
When planning your departure, on the way out of the hotel, keep a little extra money handy for hotel bellboys and redcaps.

The hotel can arrange a taxi to take you to the airport. Generally speaking the price will be RM 120.00 - RM 140.00 This of course is quite a bit more than the price paid on the way in when you arrived. (The reason most often given is because the driver cannot pick up passengers on the return - which is true). However as an alternative you can arrange your own transport. Many taxi drivers 'moonlight' taking passengers to the airport for a flat fee - usually RM 70.00 - RM 80.00 for the trip in a budget taxi and RM 100.00 or so in a premier taxi.

When you are traveling about the city in different taxis and find one that is clean and the driver polite, ask the driver if he would be willing to take you to the airport and how much he would charge (keep in mind the driver will be paying the tolls along the way). Get his name and contact number and call him a few days before you are plan to leave to give him time to arrange his schedule (and if he is not free you still have time to find another driver).