We recently had the opportunity to visit Kuala Lumpur twice in the same month (using it as a stopover on the way over and back from Thailand) and so I needed to do a little research on getting from the airport into the city. I didn’t find too much useful information online, apart from one detailed post that referred to the airport prior to its renovation. So, being a kind hearted chap, I decided to put together this post on your options from getting to and from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).
The first thing to note is that there are two international airports servicing KL, KLIA and KLIA2. This guide refers to KLIA2 which is the airport used by Air Asia (our preferred budget airline in Asia).
Train or Taxi?
Your first choice is whether to take the air train into the city or a taxi. Unless you are a solo traveller, a taxi is the cheapest option. A single adult ticket from either KLIA or KLIA2 into the central railway station is RM55 (RM100 for a return) as of June 2017. So for 2 people you are looking at RM110 one way – and then you will likely need a taxi from the central railway station to your hotel. I don’t understand why they haven’t made the train ticket at least as cheap as a taxi ride for 2 people.
If you choose to take a taxi, again you have options. You can book a metered taxi ride or a fixed fare. We chose fixed fare because I like to know what the final cost will be, you never know what the traffic will be like, and a metered ride could end up costing you more. Also the driver may be tempted to take a longer route if the meter is running.
Budget or Premium Taxi
If you are 3 people or less you can take the budget taxis (usually red and white sedan cars), but if your group is 4 or more you will need to book the premium cabs (usually a blue SUV).
The budget fare from the airport to just about anywhere in the city centre is RM84, and the premium cabs around RM150. Strangely, when booking the reverse trip from a hotel (this happened twice at different hotels) the fixed fare is RM90 for budget and RM150 for premium taxis. The hotel will assume you want a premium cab and order this unless you specifically tell them you want an economy taxi. We have taken both and there is very little difference in comfort, so unless you are more than 3 people, I would recommend a budget taxi. All tolls encountered along the route are included in the fare.
Booking a taxi at KLIA2
It’s not immediately obvious where to go for the taxis when you first arrive, so follow the steps below and you won’t go wrong.
- Upon leaving customs, head in a straight line for approximately 200 meters.
- Look for the escalators to take you down to level one
- Opposite the end of the escalator you will see a number of booths, when we were there 5 and 6 were for the fixed fare taxis
- Purchase your ticket here by telling the clerk the name of your hotel or destination address
- Take your ticket over to Gate 5 and give to the waiting drivers.
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