How to go to 1Utama, KL to Selangor

1Utama is a popular shopping mall in Bandar Utama, Selangor. With 5 million square feet of shopping, it is the largest mall in Malaysia and ranked 6th largest in the world in terms of gross leasable area.

1Utama mall.

But how do you get there from Kuala Lumpur if you wish to go by public transportation?

The first step is you must go from Kuala Lumpur to KL Sentral, which is the main Train Station for the city. Located about 5km away from the city centre, you can get to KL Sentral by using rail transport.

There are currently three forms of rail transportation in the city, the LRT, the Monorail and the KTM Komuter. All three go to KL Sentral from different parts of the city. You can read all about Kuala Lumpur's rail transport system here.

For example, if you are in the Bukit Bintang area, take the monorail from Bukit Bintang monorail station to KL Sentral monorail station.

If you are at the Petronas Twin Towers take the LRT on the Kelana Jaya LRT Line from KLCC LRT station to KL Sentral LRT station.

Once you get to KL Sentral, you will have to find your way to the bus stop to catch the RapidKL Bus no. 800 (Update: As of 1/12/2015, SPAD has changed the bus numbering to 800. Previously this bus was numbered as U82) which goes to 1Utama mall. This means going to the Nu Sentral mall which is in-between the monorail station and the lrt station and attached to both.

The bus stop for RapidKL Bus no. 800 is located in front of the main entrance of the Nu Sentral mall on Jalan (road) Tun Sambanthan, under the pedestrian bridge connecting to the monorail station across the road. The bus now no longer goes into its previous pick-up point in Jalan Stesen Sentral which is the KL Sentral bus hub to the KLIA airport.

The front entrance of Nu Sentral mall at the LG floor facing Tun Sambanthan road.

The pedestrian bridge linking Nu Sentral mall to the KL Sentral monorail station across Tun Sambanthan road. The bus stop is located exactly below the bridge.

The RapidKL bus stop under the pedestrian bridge.

Wait here for the bus. A few different buses ply this route, so wait for the bus that goes to 1Utama, i.e. RapidKL bus no. 800.

RapidKL bus U82 arrives (now known as bus 800).

Let the passengers get off the bus, before boarding. You have a choice of paying cash or using the Touch N'Go card, if you have one.

If you are paying cash, please make sure you carry small notes or have the exact change before boarding. No change will be given, if you do not have the correct amount.

RapidKL's "Utama" bus services charge different rates depending on how many zones you travel through. The current adult rates are:

 RM1.00 (1 zone), RM1.90 (2 zones), RM2.50 (3 zones) and RM3.00 (4 zones or more)

As bus no.800 traverses a maximum of only 3 zones on its journey from KL Sentral to 1Utama, the ticket will cost you RM2.50. You hand over the money to the driver or put the money in the metal box next to the driver. The driver will then hand over a ticket to you.

Bus ticket.

You can also pay by using a Touch N'Go card. Tap your card on the card reader upon entry into the bus. The card reader is usually located beside the side of both the front and rear doors of the bus. 

The Touch N'Go card reader.

There is currently a promotion whereby use of the Touch N'Go card is given a 20% discount. Hence the ride to 1Utama would only cost RM2 if you use the card. Please remember to also tap out at the card reader when you disembark from the bus! 

Inside the bus.

The bus ride to 1Utama will take up to 45 minutes depending on traffic conditions. The bus will pass by the Damansara Town Centre, Tropicana City Mall, Damansara Uptown and the suburb of Taman Tun Dr Ismail along the way.

Eventually you will come to a traffic light intersection under a highway overpass and on the other side you will see the 1Utama mall. Upon crossing the highway, the old wing of 1Utama will be on the left hand side of the road, and the new wing of 1Utama will be on the right hand side. A link connects the two sides of the mall to each other over the road. Press the bell here, if the driver then stops by the roadside, you can get off here rather than go all the way to the end terminal.

Old Wing of 1Utama mall. You can choose to get off here instead of going to the end terminal.

Enjoy the mall and spend some time shopping and eating.

Once you are ready to go back, make your way to the back entrance (facing the park) on the ground floor of the new wing of 1Utama mall.

This is the back entrance of the new wing of the mall.

Go out the back entrance, and you will see that you are at the taxi rank area.

The taxi rank facing the park.

If you are feeling a bit lazy, you could choose to wait by the side of the road here for the bus and hope to flag it down as it passes.

Better still, turn right and walk alongside the road to the bus terminal. Its not far to walk.

Walk this way.

Follow the covered walkway.

The Bus Terminal.

Eventually you will reach the bus terminal. Catch the 800 bus back to KL Sentral from here. Make sure you board the right bus!

Bus Route.

* All information here correct as of 1 Dec 2015. Please check with the official website or RapidKL for latest information on bus 800 or subsequent changes.

Deerland, Pahang

Deerland, despite its name, is actually a small family owned petting zoo located near Kuala Gandah in Pahang. Yes, Kuala Gandah as in the place where the Elephant Sanctuary is located. You can read about the Elephant Sanctuary by clicking on this link.

As a small zoo, Deerland is probably not a destination as of itself, but combined with a visit with the Elephant Sanctuary, can be a useful complement to the sanctuary, especially if you arrive early in Kuala Gandah before the activities start there at around 1:30pm onwards.

To get there is basically the same as described in the Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary write-up, only when you reach the fork in the road with the green signboard, take the road to the right which heads towards Bukit Rengit.

About a couple of minutes after the junction you will arrive at Deerland. Park along the side of the road under the shade of the trees. No parking fees involved.

Deerland. Park by the roadside.

After parking, go to the ticket office and buy your tickets at the ticketing booth. Deerland opens at 10:30am but is closed on Fridays.

The park opens at 10:30am but is closed on Friday.

Ticket counter.

Ticket prices are a mystery as it did not appear to be displayed anywhere and there are probably double-pricing strategies in play i.e. different prices for locals and foreigners. Anyway, as locals we were told to pay RM6 per person and given a ticket showing RM5 crossed out. Probably RM10 for non-Malaysians?

RM5 or RM6?

After paying you will be given a sticker to stick on your shirt, and a coupon to exchange for deer food. Then open the gate and enter.

Enter the turnstile into Deerland.

Deerland is essentially in a rainforest, and narrow uneven footpaths lead into the park.

After passing a cage with birds, you will come to a man at a makeshift stand. In exchange for your coupons he will give you a small basket of potatoes cut into strips to feed the deer.

You will then come to a large fenced-up enclosure where the deer freely roam under the trees. There is no grass or undergrowth within the enclosure, probably eaten by the deer to leave just bare earth.

The deer know you are coming with food.

Food...

Where's the food?

Food?

Food!

Feed the deer with the potatoes. Some of the deer are friendly and some are more aggresive. Pet the friendlier ones!

Me... hungry.

What... finished?

The deer have a pretty big area to run around and generally seem well treated. Unlike other zoos, you can get to feed and pet them which makes it more memorable. On one of our earlier visits, one of the staff even allowed us to go into the enclosure and spend time with the deer.

Next to the deer enclosure is an ostrich. This guy is a bit fierce.

Beware of the ostrich.

After the deer enclosure, there are a few other cages containing various types of birds and one containing cats, apparently they are "bengal cats".

Among the bird enclosures, there are indian peafowls. One of the peacocks opened his tail for us to admire.

Indian Peafowl.

A rather unusual peacock also resides here, being of totally white plumage, probably an albino?

Albino peacock.

Further on is a small enclosure, where the friendly staff allows you to hold and play with the hedgehog.

Hedgehog.

Next to the hedgehog enclosure are three cages containing pythons. If you are not squeemish, the staff will take the snake out of the enclosure and drape it around your neck for that photo opportunity.

Hmm... are you my next lunch?

Albino python.

Apparently, the snakes only eat once a month. Or so we were told by the staff.

Further along the trail, we came across a couple of super cute prairie dogs. We could have probably spent all day looking at the antics of these 2 rodents. Standing on their hind legs, looking at you, these comical creatures stood watching us while chewing on kuaci (sunflower seeds) as if we were their daily entertainment.

Prairie Dog.

You looking at me?

Deerland is not a big zoo, you could probably breeze through it in half-an-hour. Also, with the advent of political correctness, you may find zoos in general something you wish to avoid.

It is true that some of the cages in Deerland, especially for the birds seem a little small and some of the animals like the raccoons look distressed, but the vast majority of the other animals, especially the deer seem to be content and well looked after.

Kids, especially will get a kick out of feeding and petting the animals. A nice enough stopover on the way to the Elephant Sanctuary.

Deerland Park

Address: Bukit Rengit road, Lanchang, Pahang.
Tel: 013-967 6242
Business Hours: 10.30am - 5.30pm; (Friday off)
Admission Fee: RM6 (MYKAD holder, adult); RM4 (child).