Perdana Botanical Gardens

The Lake Gardens were laid out in 1888 on marshy ground below the colonial administrative district, making them the oldest public park in Kuala Lumpur, and after a redevelopment they are formally the Perdana Botanical Gardens - about ninety hectares of lawn, mature trees and specialist collections around the two lakes. Inside the boundaries are the orchid garden, the hibiscus garden with the national flower, a fern collection, a herb garden, the deer park and the boardwalk over the water, and adjoining them the Bird Park, Butterfly Park and Planetarium, which charge separately. The trees are the real asset: rain trees and figs of a size that takes a century to make. It is the one place in central Kuala Lumpur where you can walk for an hour under shade, and it is busiest early on weekend mornings.

History

The park was the idea of Alfred Venning, British State Treasurer of Selangor, who in 1888 proposed a botanical garden in the valley of the Sungei Bras Bras; the Resident, Frank Swettenham, gave a small grant, and the Cantonese leader Towkay Chow Ah Yeok gave a hundred chempaka and orange trees for the first planting (Wikipedia, Perdana Botanical Gardens).

Highlights

• A park from 1888 - the oldest in the city, on the old marshy ground.
• Orchid and hibiscus gardens - the specialist collections inside the grounds.
• Very large mature trees - rain trees and figs a century or more old.
• Lakes and boardwalks - the two water bodies the gardens were built around.

When to go

All year; early morning for shade and birds. Half a day.

Good to know

The grounds are hilly and spread out and it is hot outside the early hours. The Bird and Butterfly parks charge separately and are not cheap. Weekend mornings are busy.

Nearby

The National Mosque, Islamic Arts Museum and old railway station are adjacent.

Key facts