Malacca is a state in Malaysia located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca.The state is bordered by Negeri Sembilan to the north and west and Johor to the south. The exclave of Cape Rachado also borders Negeri Sembilan to the north. Its capital is Malacca City, which is 148 kilometres (92 miles) southeast of Malaysia's capital city Kuala Lumpur, 235 kilometres (146 miles) northwest of Johor's largest city Johor Bahru, and 95 km (59 miles) northwest of Johor's second largest city, Batu Pahat. This historical city centre has been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 7 July 2008.
Tourism
Tourism is a booming industry in Malacca. It is a popular travel destinations for Singaporeans during the weekends. Malacca has adopted as its slogan, "Visiting Malacca Means Visiting Malaysia" ("Melawat Melaka Bererti Melawati Malaysia"). There is a tourist map provided by Malacca.
In 2017, the state recorded 16.79 million tourist arrivals, the highest number to date. Despite been a small state spanning 1,644 km2, Melaka has been a destination of choice for travellers from China, Singapore, Indonesia, Taiwan and Hong Kong.During the first six months (January–June) 2018, over 8.73 million tourists were recorded visiting Melaka which is over seven percent compared to 8.14 million tourists for the first six months of 2017. It showed an increase of 599,037 tourists. The increase was contributed by the increase of domestic tourists to Melaka which was more than 72,000 or 1.36 percent. For domestic tourists, five states reportedly visited the most are from Selangor, Kuala Lumpur, Johor, Terengganu and Negeri Sembilan. Most of these tourists love to enjoy grilled fish and asam pedas in Malacca. In addition, foreign tourist arrivals also experienced a sharp increase of more than 520,000 or 19.03 percent. Travelers from five countries recorded the highest rates are China, Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea and Vietnam.
In recent years, Malacca has received numerous international accolades. The city has been listed by several publications, including Forbes and Lonely Planet, as one of Asia's and World's Top Travel Destinations.Malacca listed as one of 10 Best Destinations in Malaysia by Tripadvisor.Waze App recognized Malacca with 'The Best City to Drive In' Award.Globally, the historic city is ranked ahead of other major metros like Sydney, Lisbon, and Barcelona.The city also has been recognised by HuffPost as 15 of the Best Street Art Cities.In addition, Time publication placed Malacca as one of the best places to live and retire.
Transportation
Air
Malacca International Airport (IATA: MKZ, ICAO: WMKM) (formerly known as Batu Berendam Airport) is an airport located in Batu Berendam, Malacca, Malaysia. The airport serves the state of Malacca, as well as northern Johor, with links to Pekanbaru and Penang
There are currently two Keretapi Tanah Melayu railway stations in Malacca, which are the Pulau Sebang/Tampin Station in Pulau Sebang, Alor Gajah and Batang Malacca Station in Batang Malacca, Jasin.
There were railway tracks from Pulau Sebang to Malacca City before World War II, but these were dismantled by the Japanese for the construction of the Burmese Death Railway.On October 10, 2015, Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) commuter service has introduced a new route, shuttle service between Seremban-Sebang/Tampin-Gemas station.
A 1.6-km line of Malacca Monorail was launched in October 2010, served the route along the Malacca River. Due to several technical glitches months into its operation, the system was left idle in 2013. However, in June 2015 the Malacca State Government decided to revive the project.On December 4, 2017, Malacca Monorail has re-operate with enhanced safety features such as lightning-prevention devices and the addition of a rescue vehicle to attract wagons in the event of a technical problem.The previous incident is believed will not recur as tests had been performed for two months before re-operation. The Malacca Monorail operating hours are 10.00 am to 10.00 pm on weekdays and will be continued until 12.00 midnight on Saturdays and Sundays.
Water
Daily ferries run from Malacca to the Indonesian cities of Bengkalis, Dumai and Pekanbaru departing from Harbour Master's Jetty.Regular boat services to Big Island depart from mainland Malacca in Umbai. Several jetties around the state, such as in Merlimau, are used by fishermen.
Two existing container ports in Malacca are the Port of Kuala Sungai Linggi and Port of Tanjung Bruas.
Road
The Malacca Sentral bus station, combined with taxi terminal, serves cities around Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore.The Panorama Malacca bus is the public bus serving Malacca City and major landmarks.
The Ayer Keroh exit at the North–South Expressway is the main entry to Malacca, connected by Ayer Keroh highway to Malacca City. There are two additional exits along the North–South Expressway, namely the Simpang Ampat and Jasin exits. The Syed Abdullah Aziz Road or Malacca Coastal Highway roughly connects the western and eastern sides of Malacca separated by the Malacca River through the Malacca Coastal Bridge.
Many of the heavily decorated cycle rickshaws (Malay: beca) equipped with sound system can be seen on the streets in Malacca. Most of them are used to bring tourist around the town for sightseeing. The average size can accommodate two average adult with probably a child.
