Nestled midway between Kuala Lumpur and the Thai border, the various roadways, municipal buildings, stations and mansions of Ipoh still shimmer in the same white veneer that dressed the town throughout its mining boom in the 1800s. In many ways, the city is one of the most authentic relics of British colonialism in the country, yet also defiantly Southeast Asian in its offering of steaming Ipoh sar hor fun noodles, wild backcountry and curious Buddhist cave temples.
Before heading out to explore the hinterlands of northern Malaysia, be sure to ask your Ipoh tour guide about a route through the old town that encompasses the Birch Memorial Clock tower, the curious street art and the old railway station, culminating at bubbling Kong Heng Square, where English tea houses rub shoulders with local trinket stalls.
And once you’re done with the urban side of things, why not get a little more intrepid, heading out to see the Kek Lok Tong cave complexes and the temples of Sam Poh, to ride the winding slides of the nearby Lost World of Tambun, to hike the hills surrounding the Kinta Valley, or break into the verdant wilds of the Cameron Highlands.