Mga Lakwacherang Doktora: The Ultimate Kuala Lumpur-Singapore Vacation Leave: Getting to know Putrajaya

This is the tenth part of our 6-days-5-nights Ultimate KL-Singapore Vacation Leave.

Putrajaya is the federal administrative center of Malaysia. The seat of government was shifted in 1999 from Kuala Lumpur to Putrajaya due to overcrowding in Kuala Lumpur. The place is enclaved within the Sepang District of the state of Selangor. In Sanskrit, "putra" means "prince" or "male child", and "jaya" means "success" or "victory". Getting to Putrajaya is quite easy, however, it is a bit far from KL Sentral. It is closest to the KL International Airport.

HOW TO GET TO PUTRAJAYA:
BY TRAIN:

From KL Sentral, take the KLIA Transit train (not the KLIA Express) going to the airport, the one with the stop in Putrajaya.
Train runs every 30 minutes, travel time takes 20 minutes.
One-way price is RM14 (158php).

BY TAXI:

Taxis from KL Sentral costs around RM40-50 (450-560php), but expect to pay more at night.

BY BUS:

Bus service is provided from 6:30am until 10:00pm to and from Cyberjaya, Putrajaya, Serdang Commuter Station, Sinar Kota, and Pasar Seni LRT Station.. One-way bus fare is RM3.50 (40php), travel time is 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Rapid KL links KL Sentral to Putrajaya which costs only RM5 (57php) for an unlimited daily pass.

Or if you have a really nice friend who has a car, like us, then it's easy peasy going to Putrajaya haha. Our travel time took about 1 hour to 1 hour and 30 minutes, there was a bit of a traffic, but, still a very smooth ride. Upon arriving, we were blown by how beautiful, how clean, and how peaceful the whole Putrajaya looks like. It's like the BGC of the Philippines, but way way better.

HOW TO GET AROUND PUTRAJAYA:
Putrajaya is a huge place, so walking around is not advisable, however, public transportation within the area sucks!
BY TAXI:

Some blogs stated that they rented a taxi to get them around the place, but it costs around RM30 (340php) per hour, sometimes bigger depending on the taxi you talked to, so that's a bit steep. BY BUS:

There are occasional Nadiputra buses that appears at random times and goes in random directions, which charges a flat fare of 50 cents for adults and 30 cents for child below 12 years old. BY PUBLIC TOURS (THE BEST OF PUTRAJAYA TOUR):

Available only during weekends at 11:30am and 3:00pm and departs from Putrajaya Sentral Station. Fare is RM20 (225php) per person. You can buy the ticket at the counter or in the bus itself. BY PUTRAJAYA SIGHTSEEING TOUR:

The tour lasts for 3 hours with 2 photo stops and 3 visit stops and includes an English speaking driver.

Price includes a return transfer on KLIA Transit train, a round trip on a dedicated tour bus and entrance fees where applicable.

From KL Sentral: RM47.00 (A) | RM21.60 (C)
From Bandar Tasik Selatan: RM35.00 (A) | RM16.20 (C)
From Salak Tinggi: RM28.40 (A) | RM13.20 (C)
From KLIA: RM37.80 (A) | RM17.40 (C)
From KLIA2: RM37.80 (A) | RM17.40 (C)

Putrajaya Sightseeing Tour

Schedule of the Tours

The first spot we went to was the Putra Mosque (Masjid Putra) which is the principal mosque of Putrajaya. It is located next to Perdana Putra which houses the Malaysian Prime Minister's office and the man-made Putrajaya Lake. There are also a lot of flagpoles flying Malaysian states' flags near the area. You would know that it is the Putra Mosque if you see a pink-domed roof and a building constructed with rose-tinted granite. We weren't able to go in, but seeing it from afar is just amazing. The whole building is beautiful, plus the fact that it is a pink mosque, it's just so very unique. Near the mosque is a mini restaurant serving various Malaysian delicacies where you can rest and eat. Outside it is a garden which has the view of the mosque from afar, as well as a view of the huge man-made Putrajaya Lake. From here, you can also see the Seri Wawasan Bridge, which is the longest bridge in Putrajaya. What is unique about it is it's sail ship appearance.

The Beautiful Putra Mosque

Note the huge pink-domed roof

Near the mosque is an area with benches and fountains

Seri Wawasan Bridge

Man-Made Putrajaya Lake

The next area we explored was just a walking distance away from the Putra Mosque which is the Putra Square or the Dataran Putra. It is a huge city square located near the Putra Mosque and the Perdana Putra. The square has been used for festivals. From here, you can see the two amazing buildings from afar. A short distance from here is the Perdana Putra, which is the office complex of the Prime Minister of Malaysia. It actually looks like a mosque as well, with a green-domed roof. It is huge, and you can go inside it every weekdays, from 8:00am to 12:30pm and 2:00pm to 4:00pm, and on Saturdays at 8:00am to 12:30pm. We opted to just take pictures outside and in the surrounding area.

A Portion of the Dataran Putra

Perdana Putra

After exploring the area, we boarded our friend's car, and then went to the opposite side of the area we were just at. It really is a huge place! I don't know the name of this area, but there are a lot of huge buildings with really cool abstract-y designs. We walked around the place until we arrived at the Istana Kehakiman or the Palace of Justice. It houses the Malaysian Court of Appeal and Federal Court. It is said that the design incorporates influences of Classical Islamic culture like Taj Mahal in India, Moorish culture, like the Sultan Abdul Samad Building in Kuala Lumpur and Western Classical influence, like Palladian. Just across the Palace of Justice is the Perbadanan Putrajaya, which is a really cool, futuristic looking building. Also, in between these 2 place is a huge stretch of road where you can walk to and take pictures, and if you gaze at the far end, you can see the Perdana Putra from here.