KidZania is an interactive, family-friendly attraction where the usual rules don’t apply. In this mini-city, it’s the kids who go to work whilst the parents relax. Already popular across the world, with branches in 17 countries, the Kuala Lumpur version is a fun, exciting and educational place to bring the kids to let them role-play and experience a world which isn’t (always) fun and games.
We reckon KidZania is one of the best things to do in Kuala Lumpur with kids, so don’t miss it out!
Arriving to KidZania Kuala Lumpur
The entrance area is sponsored by AirAsia and the information counters are designed to look like the airline’s check-in counters. There are a couple of staff on duty but they don’t actually sell tickets here, you are supposed to buy in advance of your visit, something we forgot to do. Ideally do this beforehand on their website, otherwise you can quickly do it on your phone in the foyer if you have mobile data (there’s no free Wifi).
As part of the ticket buying process, you need to upload a selfie which is then used to gain entry. This seemed slightly over-engineered to us; we only used it once during the entire visit but it’s possible the selfie is usually used for other purposes once inside, e.g. booking activities.
Tickets are priced as follows:
- Adults: RM66
- Child aged 4-17: RM118
- Toddler aged 2-3: RM55
- Under 2’s are free
Getting a job at KidZania
Once you’ve bought tickets and registered, kids are given some of the KidZania currency, known as KidZos. The 50 KidZos they receive are their first lesson about money and its value within the KidZania city. Once inside, each of the jobs or activities have an information board which tells them either how much it costs to participate, or how much they can earn by working there.
Kids can also become KidZania citizens (extra charge) which gives them a KidZania passport, bonus pay on selected jobs, and discounts in the gift shop.
Each job is sponsored by a real company (e.g. Petronas, Subway, Cuckoo, or medical companies) so there is a small amount of corporate consumerism in place, but it’s quite subtle. We’d suggest taking a couple of laps of each floor (there’s two levels) and see what’s on offer and which job the kids fancy doing.
It’s fascinating to see how the kids approach the concept, some of them will embrace earning money and others might instead want to head for the ‘fun’ stuff and spend all their money in one go. Either way, there’s some good life-lessons to be learnt.
Our kids slightly surprised us by really focusing on earning money, we couldn’t stop them from operating the toll booths or delivering parcels around the city using little trolleys. As in real life, some of the jobs are more manual (e.g. petrol-pump attendant) and others more academic (surgeon or electrical engineer) but they enjoyed trying everything out. There’s even a careers service on Level One if they need some inspiration.
There’s over fifty jobs and activities to choose from, check out the website for the full list.
Booking activities at KidZania Kuala Lumpur
The majority of the activities don’t need to be booked in advance, you can just turn up and queue. Some of them (notably the fire-service and ambulance crews) do need booking as they are taken around the city in a small vehicle).
You’ll know which ones need booking as they have a list of time slots outside with someone taking bookings.
At the busiest times, there may be longer queues at some activities, so try to plan ahead if there’s something your kids are especially keen on, and head there first.
Eating at KidZania KL
There’s a couple of fast-food outlets including Subway and a noodle bar, plus a few snack places selling cookies and crisps.
The kids can even work at Subway and make lunch for you, although keep in mind they have to work from a limited menu.
Before or after your visit, there’s a McDonalds right next to the entrance, plus plenty of other choices in the Curve Mall.
What’s the recommended age range for KidZania Kuala Lumpur?
The perfect age range for KidZania is probably 6-10 but this does depend slightly on your child. The activities would probably be too advanced for kids under 4, so we’d not really recommend KidZania for that age range.
Anyone older than 11 might still find some of the activities interesting, but there’s less for them to do and the general vibe is aimed at younger kids.
Our kids were aged 8 and 10 at the time of visit and they adored the whole experience. There was enough to challenge and interest them, with enough fun stuff to break up the work (although they loved working too). Towards the end of the day, they spent some of their money on the climbing wall which they both found challenging.
How long should you spend at KidZania?
We weren’t expecting to stay for so long, but we ended up being here from 11am, all the way through to closing time at 6pm. It was quiet during our visit which gave the mini-city a relaxing air and this no doubt helped us stay longer. A frantic and loud day would have tested our patience and the kids would have become bored of the endless queueing.
The day is naturally broken up with the rhythm of work and play so the boys never seemed to grow tired. Each activity takes between 5 and 25 minutes so you’re never rushing around too much.
What is there for parents to do?
To be honest, not a lot as it’s very much kid-focused. Some of the attractions are welcoming of parents but that’s more applicable if you’re here with younger kids. On the whole, we wandered around with them and then waited outside.
There’s a decent amount of seating scattered around the city, usually within sight of the kids. Otherwise you can seek out the parents-only lounge with comfy chairs and peace and quiet. We spotted someone doing a conference call on a laptop and we wished we’d brought a book to read.
Is KidZania Kuala Lumpur worthwhile?
Yes, it absolutely is. The boys had an incredible time and really didn’t want to leave at 6pm. It surprised us how much they threw themselves into the employment side of the visit and how quickly they grasped the concept of money in the city.
It gave us great pleasure to inform them that, if they wanted another go on the climbing wall, they needed to get back to work. As hard as we try to instil these values into them, an attraction like this really helps to drive home this important message.
The staff are friendly and (mostly) enthusiastic and it all feels very new and well-looked after, plus it’s a real oasis from the heat and busyness of the actual city outside.
Spending their KidZania KidZos
Depending how many hours of employment they’ve put in, the kids might be left with some money at the end. This was one area we felt was slightly poorly thought-out as the only place to spend the money was a tiny shop at the end with a couple of cheap plastic toys.
Even after saving up quite a lot of money, the boys could only afford a tiny plastic ruler, so they decided to keep their KidZos as a souvenir. If they had wanted to buy one of the larger plastic toys, we calculated that they’d need to visit about twenty times!
We felt this slightly blurred the lesson we were aiming for, namely that you get a reward for working. KidZania could have probably improved the options in the shop and made them more ‘affordable’, especially as the entry fee is quite high by Malaysian standards.
How to get to KidZania Kuala Lumpur
KidZania is located at the The Curve retail centre in Petaling Jaya, about thirty minutes drive west of KL city centre in a Grab, otherwise take the MRT to Mutiara Damansara and exit via Door D.
Final thoughts on visiting KidZania Kuala Lumpur
We always try to combine fun and education on our travelling adventures and this is one place which is perfectly in tune with that approach. From first arriving at the ‘airport’, you’re transported into an alternative world where kids are exposed to different jobs and a different parent/child dynamic; if you want to play, you need to work first!
At no point do the jobs feel like a chore though, even cleaning the windows of the supermarket was apparently enjoyable, and there’s enough ‘traditional’ activities like flight-simulators, climbing walls and cookie-making for the kids to feel like they’re still having a treat.
There’s not lots to do for the parents, but that’s fine. We’re still a long way from retirement but it’s perhaps a glimpse of the future, when the kids earn the money and we take a well-deserved break!
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Things to do in Kuala Lumpur with kids
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