2 hours by coach south of Kuala Lumpur, you will come across the most colourful town in Malaysia – I’d describe it as colourful and charming chaos. It’s not got the street art vibe of Penang, rather rainbow frills and spills. This is a family friendly town grappling for attention from the bigger cities from the north – and with it comes a wealth of history, bright colours, chilled vibes and plenty to explore by different methods of transport. Melaka with kids will be enjoyed by all.
We travelled here directly from K-L airport after flying back to the capital from Borneo, and were looking forward to our 4 nights in Melaka, some of our last in Malaysia. Melaka is a beautiful town (a World Heritage City in fact) with pirate, Dutch, Portuguese, British and now Malay history.
It sits on the coast but you won’t enjoy much in the way of sandy beaches here, it’s all about the port city that has on the whole kept its charm. On our first day we found our feet with a river cruise, the maritime museum (which is on an old pirate ship) and the night market. Also don’t miss the Orangutan House for some cool t-shirts where the funds go towards conservation.
Jonkers Street Night Market opens Friday, Saturday and Sunday and is situated in the heart of China Town. This place gets busy – be warned! But it is a must visit and not just for foodies. There are shops and stalls selling everything you could imagine, and food carts with cuisine from all over Asia. The wafting smell of Durian fruit is ever-present and there’s even street entertainers – but do hold on tight to small children as it is absolutely heaving!
The other warning I must provide is the musical, flashing rickshaws that are waiting at the entrance to Jonkers Street to take you around Melaka – the minute our 4 year old stepped into the rickshaw belting our Frozen’s Let It Go, there was zero negotiating ability! But they are good fun and we wouldn’t have skipped a ride at all.
One of my favourite days of our entire 3 month trip was hiring bikes and enjoying the flat, smooth, traffic free roads and riverside paths around the town. This was a cracking way to explore and take in the sites and the kids seemed very comfortable riding upfront in the basket-esque child seats! there are lots of shops offering bike rental so you wont have any issue and rental is around 310 a bike per day.
Located just outside of Melaka is the Huskitory, supposedly the no.1 trip advisor tourist attraction – but I must admit we had a great 3 hours there. After the husky tsunami as they ran in, we enjoyed feeding and playing with them before learning more about their history and breed. They certainly enjoyed the attention and cuddles and the whole centre was very well looked after and ran. Booking in advance is advisable and the centre isn’t open every day.
Whilst in Melaka we stayed in a super place – the Rucksack Caratel – genuinely brilliant and it even had a pool, a foosball table, swings and a big central area with lots of space for small children to feel at home and comfortable. There are ‘normal’ rooms but we opted for the Buddy Caravan which had 2 bunks, a small bathroom and was located next to the communal area. The location was also superb – very central and easy access everywhere.
Melaka is a great getaway for a few days, when you just want to chill, explore the streets and see what you stumble across. It will also absolutely put a smile on your face with the rainbow and art everywhere.
