Ipoh (/ˈiːpoʊ/) is the capital city of the Malaysian state of Perak. Located by the Kinta River, it is nearly 180 km (110 mi) north of Kuala Lumpur and 123 km (76 mi) southeast of George Town in neighbouring Penang. As of 2010, Ipoh contained a population of 657,892, making it the third largest city in Malaysia by population.
Originally a village, Ipoh began to grow rapidly in the 1880s after huge deposits of tin were discovered within its vicinity. By 1895, it was the second largest town within the Federated Malay States, which also consisted of Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Pahang. Ipoh was declared a city in 1988. However, following the depletion of its tin deposits and the collapse of tin prices in the 1970s, the city suffered decades of decline and neglect.
In recent years, Ipoh’s popularity as a tourist destination has been significantly boosted by efforts to conserve its British colonial-era architecture. The city is also well known for its cuisine and natural attractions, such as its limestone hills and caves within which Buddhist temples were built. In addition, Ipoh has managed to maintain its reputation as one of the cleanest cities in Malaysia.
Ipoh’s location between Kuala Lumpur and George Town has made it a major land transportation hub within West Malaysia, with both the Malayan Railway’s West Coast Line and the North-South Expressway cutting through the city. Aside from the land transportation links, Ipoh is also served by the Sultan Azlan Shah Airport.
Ipoh is known as the Hipster Capital of Malaysia by various tourism rating and official agencies .
Limestone outcrops rise on the outskirts of Ipoh. There are many caves in these outcrops; cave temples are built in some. Sam Poh Tong is a notable one along with Kek Lok Tong (Chinese: 極樂洞; Cavern of Utmost Happiness), which lies on the other side of the same outcrop. It is accessible through the Gunung Rapat housing area. It has a clean, quiet and cool environment. Other cave temples in Ipoh include Ling Sen Tong, Nan Tian Tong, Kwan Yin Tong and Perak Tong.
Gua Tempurung, near Gopeng south of Ipoh, is a show cave open to the public and popular among spelunkers. More than 3 km (1.9 mi) long, it is one of the longest caves in Peninsular Malaysia. Part of it has been developed with electric lighting and walkways, and there are tours of different lengths and difficulty. A river passage runs about 1.6 km (0.99 mi) through the hill. There are five very large chambers and some stalactites and stalagmites.
Ipoh Town Hall, an Edwardian Baroque municipal building located across the road from the Railway Station.
Padang Ipoh or Ipoh Field is on Jalan S.P. Seenivasagam. The field is surrounded by historic buildings that feature classic colonial architecture, including the mock-Tudor style Ipoh Club, FMS Bar, HSBC Building and the St Michael’s Institution secondary school.
The Anglo-Chinese School, Ipoh, officially named SMK Methodist (ACS), is located along Lahat Road.
Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Anderson is the most well-known secondary school with more than 100 years of history, located beside the General Hospital of Ipoh. This school has been producing numerous of figures in the country.
St. Michael’s Institution, Ipoh, is a public secondary school in Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia. It is situated on Jalan S. P. Seenivasagam, formerly Clayton Road.
Han Chin Pet Soo, the Hakka Tin Miner’s Club, located on Jalan Bijeh Timah (formerly Treacher Street) has been restored and turned into Malaysia’s First Hakka Tin Mining Museum.
Muzium Darul Ridzuan is a historical museum of Perak, in a pretty former tin-mining tycoon’s mansion on Jalan Kuala Kangsar.
Concubine Lane or better known locally as Yi Lai Hong in Cantonese is a narrow and small lane located off Jalan Bandar Timah (Leech Street) in Old Town, Ipoh. It now has different restaurants, souvenir and gift shops and an entirely respectable hotel. To some locals, Concubine Lane is already becoming too busy.
Ipoh wall art murals drawn by talented street art artists clearly breathes in new life into Ipoh Old Town city. The murals do relive a sense of nostalgic moments related to Ipoh’s heritage and culture. It is now a popular tourist attraction, adding more crowns to Ipoh apart from being a food paradise.
Birch Memorial Clock Tower is a popular historical landmark which is located near the Ipoh State Mosque or commonly known as Sultan Idris Shah II Mosque. The clock tower was built to commemorate James W. W. Birch, the first British Resident in Perak who was killed on 2 November 1875 at Pasir Salak.
Train: Ipoh’s railway station is operated by Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM) and is in the Old Town (however, it does not have intra-city travel like in Kuala Lumpur). The railway only connects Ipoh with neighbouring towns and cities. The station is a stately building, referred to by locals as the ‘Taj Mahal’ of Ipoh. KTM Intercity began the Shuttle Train Service between Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh from 1 December 2008 while the modern Electric Train System (ETS) shuttle began from 12 August 2010 with average 145 km/h (90 mph) speed, plying Ipoh-Seremban route, cut the travelling distance between Ipoh and Kuala Lumpur into 120 minutes. There are 10 dedicated shuttle train services between these two cities daily which begins at 5 am from both the stations. Travel time between the cities was expected to be reduced from three hours to two hours and fifteen minutes when the new set of EMU trains arrived in mid-2009.
Bus: The inter-city bus terminal is located at Amanjaya Integrated Bus Terminal in Bandar Meru Raya, just north of the city.
Air: the Sultan Azlan Shah Airport is the only airport in Ipoh. It is near Gunung Rapat. Domestic flights and international ones are available. Scoot provides daily flight out of Ipoh to Singapore Changi Airport. Firefly provides two daily flights out of Ipoh to Singapore Changi Airport while Malindo Air provides daily flights to Johor Bahru and four flights to Medan weekly.