Perfect 2 Day Itinerary in Ipoh
Part of the Ipoh travel guide — see every topic in All Ipoh Guides.
Ipoh is a two-night city and the shape of a visit is dictated by its food hours: dim sum and white coffee are finished by eleven, the famous bean sprout chicken shops run at lunch and dinner, and a beancurd shop closes when it sells out. Build the days around eating, put the old town walk in the cool hours either side, and use the middle of the afternoon for the cave temples, which are outside the city and involve a car anyway.
Day 1: the old town
White coffee, kaya toast and half-boiled eggs at Sin Yoon Loong or Nam Heong at seven. Walk the old town while it is cool: the 1917 railway station and Town Hall, the shophouse grid, Concubine Lane, the Zacharevic murals and Mural Art's Lane. Han Chin Pet Soo mid-morning — booked in advance, because walk-ins are not admitted. Bean sprout chicken for lunch at Lou Wong or Onn Kee. Afternoon: the cave temples, Kek Lok Tong and Sam Poh Tong or Perak Tong. Evening back in the old town.
Day 2: eat and go further
Dim sum at seven at Ming Court or Foh San, which is the other Ipoh breakfast and is over by eleven. Then choose: south to Kellie's Castle and Gua Tempurung's caves, which is the best half day near Ipoh; or north to Kuala Kangsar's royal town and Taiping's 1880 lake gardens. Back for a late afternoon coffee in a restored shophouse cafe, Funny Mountain's beancurd if it has not sold out, and kai see hor fun for dinner.
Fitting it into a trip
Ipoh sits exactly halfway between Kuala Lumpur and Penang on the electric train, two hours from each, which makes it almost free to insert into a peninsular itinerary. The natural route is Kuala Lumpur, Cameron Highlands, Ipoh, Penang — or the reverse. Two nights is right. One night works if you accept that you will only get one breakfast, which in Ipoh is a genuine loss.
With a third day
Gopeng for white-water rafting on the Kampar river or the full four-hour wet route through Gua Tempurung. Taiping properly, including Bukit Larut — the least-developed hill station in Malaysia, reached by government Land Rover up a single-track road. Tanjung Tualang for the preserved tin dredge and enormous freshwater prawns raised in the old mining pools. Or simply another two breakfasts, which is a defensible use of a day in this particular city.
Perfect 2 Day Itinerary at a glance
| Day 1 | White coffee, old town walk, Han Chin Pet Soo, cave temples |
|---|---|
| Day 2 | Dim sum at 7am, then Kellie's Castle and Gua Tempurung |
| Book ahead | Han Chin Pet Soo — no walk-ins |
| The constraint | Food hours — dim sum is over by 11 |
| Position | Exactly halfway between KL and Penang, 2 h each |
| Length | Two nights; one night costs you a breakfast |