Petronas Twin Towers

Introduction

Petronas Twin Towers

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In 1990, the Malaysian government decided to redevelop a large area of land situated in the city centre of Kuala Lumpur. On the land was a race track owned by the Selangor Turf Club which organised weekly horse races. Architects from around the world submitted their proposals and Cesar Pelli's twin towers proposal was chosen. After months of redesigning and planning, works started in 1992 and it took six years to complete the first phase of the redevelopment, which was the twin towers.

The entire redevelopment plan for the area, consisting of the twin towers, a convention and exhibition centre, office towers, hotels, residential suite towers, mosque and a park surrounded by all the buildings, is known as the Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC).

When the Petronas Twin Towers were completed in 1998, they were declared as the tallest buildings in the world at the height of 451.9 metres, surpassing the 442-metre-tall Willis Tower (formerly known as Sears Tower) in Chicago, USA. In 2004, Taipei 101 in Taiwan at 509.2 metres took over the world's tallest building title, but was surpassed by a wide margin by Burj Khalifa (828 metres) in Dubai, UAE in 2008.

The towers have a unique 58-metre-long double-deck skybridge that connects both towers at levels 41 and 42, which are the sky lobby. Apart from allowing tenants moving from one tower to the other without having to go to ground level, the skybridge also functions as an emergency exit route in case anything happens to one of the towers. In the year 2000, the management of the towers decided to open the bottom deck of the skybridge at level 41 to the public.

Tower One is fully occupied by the Malaysian state oil company, Petronas, and its subsidiaries and associate companies. Tenants in Tower Two are mostly multinational companies, which includes Accenture, Al-Jazeera, Barclays Capital, Bloomberg, Boeing, IBM, McKinsey & Co., Microsoft and Reuters.

At the bottom of the towers are the Suria KLCC shopping complex and a philharmonic hall.

Behind the towers is the KLCC Park which features a jogging track, walking paths, a water fountain and a wading pool for children.

Opening Hours

To Tower 1 of the Petronas Twin Towers

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Skybridge

• Every Tuesday to Sunday, from 09:00 to 17:00
• Closed on Mondays
• Free admission
• Ticket counter opens at 08:30

Tickets are free-of-charge. There are limited tickets available and are issued on a first-come, first-served basis. Ticket counter opens at 08:30, so be there early (preferably before 08:00 to to secure yourself a ticket), especially when you are visiting during the peak seasons, school holidays or public holidays. Tickets are usually issued in sequence of the visiting sessions (every 15 minutes), but you may request for a later session if you couldn't make it to session they are issuing. The ticket counter and entrance for visitors to the skybridge is located one level below the lobby area, accessible by escalators from both towers.

Suria KLCC

• Daily, from 10:00 to 22:00
• Outdoor cafés, bars and pubs facing the park may stay open until midnight.

Cost

Admission to the skybridge is FREE.

Getting There

By Foot

The buildings are easily spotted when you're walking in the city centre. Simply walk towards the general direction of the towers. There are also pedestrian signs indicating the direction and distance to the towers.

By Train

Take the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Kelana Jaya Line to the KLCC station.

By Car

If you are driving, follow the KLCC road sign when you are in the city centre.

By Bus

RapidKL bus routes - B105, B114, U21, U22, U26, U28, U29, U30

Eat

Within the Suria KLCC shopping centre are a wide ranging of cuisines catering those on a budget to those looking for fine dining.

Ground: Outdoor cafés (facing the park and water fountain at the back)
Level 2: Signature (food court)
Level 4: Restaurants, Rasa Food Arena (food court)

Drink

Most indoor restaurants and outdoor cafés serve alcoholic beverages. However, as in most places in Asia, do expect to pay a higher price for drinking at an iconic place like this one.