Genting Highlands

Genting Highlands is in Pahang, Malaysia which is famous for having Malaysia's only legal casinos, as well as theme parks, shopping malls and hotels.

Understand


Genting Highlands &mdash; pronounced ghen-ting with a hard "G" &mdash; is a self-proclaimed "City of Entertainment". The primary draw is that Genting Highlands is home to the only legal casinos in Malaysia. It also features theme parks, shopping malls, hotels and convention centres. The resort offers six hotels with 10,500 rooms, over 50 fun rides, 170 dining and shopping outlets, shows, business convention facilities and entertainment options. As a plus, being up in the highlands means it's cooler than the steamy lowlands. Genting Highlands attracted 28.7 million visitors in 2019.

Those seeking natural beauty should visit the Chin Swee Temple, located slightly below the main attraction Resorts World Genting, a temple located in the middle of tropical forest where one needs to ride the Awana Skyway to reach the place, passing through the cloudy forest, or Resorts World Awana, a resort with an 18-hole golf course, jungle trekking, camping and bird watching.

Unlike many of Malaysia's other hill stations, Genting Highlands was not built by the British during colonial times; it was only built following independence by the late Malaysian-Chinese businessman Lim Goh Tong in 1965.

Orientation
Orienting yourself in Resorts World Genting is simultaneously easy and difficult. There are no "streets" of any kind; instead, all the gigantic buildings are connected with a vast warren of well-signposted walkways, tunnels and escalators. Nevertheless, you can easily spot any staff as you walk around and they will be more than happy to give you direction. Although not applied uniformly everywhere, you can always find naming directions written in combination of English, Malay and/or Chinese.

Climate
Located at an altitude of 1,800 m (5,900 ft), temperatures in Genting Highlands are a good 10&deg;C lower than in Kuala Lumpur, generally staying in the 15-25&deg;C range, and rarely falling below 14&deg;C. The lowest recorded temperature ever was 8.4&deg;C. On a clear day, there are stunning views down into the valley &mdash; but when it's raining in Kuala Lumpur, Genting Highlands is swathed in rolling clouds and visibility drops to zero. Thanks to the walkway system, you almost never need to venture outside (except when visiting the outdoor Genting SkyWorlds Theme Park), but hotel rooms are unheated and can get chilly at night.

By plane
The nearest airport is in Subang, Selangor. From there, take train (28 min) to KL Sentral then connect to the bus from there. The second nearest airport is Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang, Selangor. Express train (to KL Sentral), limousine and taxi services are available from the airport to Genting Highlands.

By train
From northern region of Peninsular Malaysia, take train to Batang Kali Station and transfer to Aerobus Shuttle Service for destination to Genting Highlands. Bus departure times are at 9:30AM, 11:30AM, 2:30PM and 6:30PM. From the southern region, take train to KL Sentral and transfer to the express bus service to the highlands.

By car and taxi
Genting Highlands can be reached by car from Kuala Lumpur in about 1 hr on the Karak Highway. An executive taxi from the centre of Kuala Lumpur to Genting Highlands costs RM150-RM200 whilst a regular taxi from the centre of KL to Genting Highlands costs around RM60-RM70. Ride hailing services will cost you around RM130-140 with the same destination. Limousine services are available to Genting Highlands from Johor (Johor Bahru), Kedah (Alor Setar), Melaka, Penang (Butterworth, George Town), Perak (Ipoh) and Selangor (KLIA/KLIA2).

By bus
There are frequent buses operated by from various points in Kuala Lumpur (first bus at 9:00AM), including KL Sentral train station (two hourly), Gombak (two hourly), Pudu Sentral (two hourly), Jalan Pekeliling (two hourly), Terminal Bersepadu Selatan (two hourly), Klang Sentral and Shah Alam. Booking in advance is advisable as services can sell out, especially on weekends.

All buses take around one hour and cost from RM9.90 one way, with most terminating at the bus terminal below Awana Skyway cable car Awana Station, from where it's an 10-minute ride up to the summit of Genting Highlands (RM10 one-way in a standard gondola; the top cable station is in SkyAvenue). It is slightly cheaper to buy a combined bus and cable car ticket, costing RM20. A direct non-stop bus departs from Genting Highlands to KL, the last bus departing at 8PM (RM 35 one-way; travel time 2 hr, reservation available at bus counter no:3).

You may also consider buying the so-called Go Genting Golden Package (valid for one day only; RM 47, (RM 4 more on national public holidays) from the Genting ticket office on the second level of KL Sentral. This package includes the return bus journey (same day only) between KL (KL Sentral and three other points of departure) and Resorts World Genting Bus Terminal, the return cable car ride (same day only) and buffet lunch at the Coffee Terrace or Outdoor Theme Park day pass. You have to decide on what time you want to return from Genting when you purchase the package.

Other companies running direct buses include Five Star Tours, Grassland and Konsortium.

Get around


All hotels and attractions in Genting Highlands (except Awana Resort, Gohtong Jaya and Genting View Resort) are connected by sheltered walkways, lifts and escalators, so you never actually need to go outside. The entire complex is wheelchair accessible. You can take the two available gondola lifts to explore the lower part of the highlands.

Alternatively, taxi stands are available outside the lobby of First World Hotel and Genting Grand Hotel to bring you around and down the highlands (e.g. to Awana Resort) or even down to Kuala Lumpur. Similarly, ride hailing services are available at almost every spot in the whole highlands.

Casinos
The main thing to do in Genting Highlands is gambling. All casinos are open 24 hr, although you must be over 21 and, if Malaysian, not Muslim to enter. A notional dress code applies, prohibiting sandals and smoking. Alcohol is not available in the casinos.

Table games are baccarat, blackjack, French boule, Genting stud poker, mini dice, pontoon, progressive Texas hold 'em poker, roulette, tai sai, three-card poker, three pictures and zodiac wheel. There are also countless slot machines, but they all require signing up with Genting Rewards card system if you want to withdraw any winnings.



No bags are allowed inside, but lockers are available at Level 2 SkyAvenue. Photography inside the casinos is strictly prohibited.

Buy
Aside from casinos and theme parks, explore the complete shopping malls in the highlands offering various products with various price ranges suited for all travelers.

Eat
There are countless options for dining in Genting Highlands, from choices of local food, fast food to fine dining experience of cuisine from all over the world. Being in a tourist resort, prices are generally higher than elsewhere in Malaysia, but there are always cheaper options available around.

Budget
There are fast food chains like McDonald's, Burger King, and KFC. All these restaurants charge about 50% more than what they charge elsewhere in Malaysia. There are several food courts also at the resort whose prices are generally cheaper.

Mid-range
Both of Genting SkyWorlds Theme Park and Skytropolis Indoor Theme Park feature various food outlets.



Drink
Nightlife in Resorts World Genting is concentrated along the High Line at the rooftop level and Zouk Atrium of SkyAvenue. There are many pubs and live music along the lane. There is also a big nightclub Zouk at the basement level of SkyAvenue and some bars at Genting Club and the basement level of Genting Grand Hotel.

There are several cafes around such as Starbucks Coffee etc in the First World Hotel.

Sleep
With 10,500 rooms to choose from, there are usually plenty of beds at Genting Highlands. On weekdays in the off-season, rooms can be relatively cheap indeed, but demand is highly seasonal and the hotels fill up fast during festive holiday seasons, thus early reservation is highly recommended. All rooms are unheated and can thus get chilly at night!

All hotels are run by Resorts World Genting and share the same reservations centre, reachable online or by calling.



Outside Resorts World Genting
During peak holiday season, often most of the hotel rooms at Resorts World Genting will be fully booked. To have a high-star accommodation near the hill top of Genting Highlands, one can opt for the following options. Usually these accommodations will provide free shuttle transport to and from Resorts World Genting.

There are also cheaper accommodations available a couple of kilometres down the slope from the cable car base station, such as:



Connect
Nowadays, all of hotel rooms at Resorts World Genting are connected to Wi-Fi connections. First World Plaza and Genting Grand Complex have computer gaming centres which can also function as Internet Café called the Cyber World. SkyAvenue has several mobile phone shops selling temporary SIM cards for international visitors. There is also a post office on the lower level of Genting Grand Hotel.

Stay safe
Casinos are generally very safe. Casinos take security very seriously and have cameras recording almost every square inch of their property, as well as uniformed security personnel patrolling at all times. There are two police stations in the highland, one at the hill top next to Genting SkyWorlds Hotel and one at the bottom hill in Gohtong Jaya.

Weather
Temperature can go relatively low at night and in early morning, so visitors are expected to have warm clothes with them. When thick cloud passes by the highland, expect some drizzle for a prolonged time, thus having raincoat or umbrella can be beneficial. Be extra careful for the slippery slope floors at Genting SkyWorlds Theme Park during raining time.

Cope
Every place in Resorts World Genting is accessible-friendly. It is equipped with wheelchair ramps and lifts to access almost all floors available. Wheelchairs and baby strollers can be rented for free (with RM100 refundable deposit) at Customer Service Counter, Level 1 SkyAvenue.

Go next
Located at the border between Selangor and Pahang state, Genting Highlands stands in a strategic position for travelers to further their travel towards other hill resorts or inland towns in Pahang, yet maintain a relatively short distance to the capital Kuala Lumpur at all time.
 * Kuala Lumpur - the capital of Malaysia, 45 minutes away
 * Fraser's Hill - a nearby hill resort on the same mountain range as Genting
 * Bukit Tinggi - another nearby hill resort with European architecture design
 * Kuala Gandah - home to a famous elephant sanctuary
 * Kuantan - seat of the state of Pahang, about three hours away