M’sian Walks to Bookstores in Downtown KL to Test the City’s Walkability

X user @ErnestOnPT recently took it upon himself to walk to the big and small bookstores throughout downtown KL to find the answer to the questions: “What are the most annoying things one encounters while walking?” and “How long did the walk take?”

Ernest walked to the following spots, in this order, and this was his take on them:

Tsutaya Books (Intermark)

The good: Surprisingly, he was only made aware of the second Tsutaya store after Pavilion Bukit Jalil’s a day prior, “presumably the lack of hype leading up to it,” said Ernest. He finds that it’s pretty quiet, with decent seating for coffee.

Rating: 7/10

The bad: Walking to MRT Ampang Park in the rain would be annoying as there is no shelter between the stairs from the elevated pedestrian path between the Intermark Mall and LRT Ampang Park.

Tokosue (Wisma Central)

The good: The store is located in a shopping complex that stands as one of the remaining ‘legacy-designed’ malls like the Pertama Complex. Ernest wasn’t able to enter as the bookstore wasn’t open, but said that “the window has a display of interesting books.”

Rating: 6/10

The bad: Ernest said that the intersection between Jalan 1/68B and the Ampang roads “is pretty terrible” since it is a car-only intersection with no pedestrian crossing, as depicted.

He commented that pedestrian bridges are a form of car infrastructure, but they are located far from where people can even use them.

AK Library (Avenue K)

The good: Although this is not actually a bookstore, it is the quietest venue of them all –– a self-service second-hand book reading corner. Ernest finds it great to rest after walking along Jalan Ampang, but there are limited book and magazine selections here.

Rating: 5/10

Kinokuniya (Suria KLCC)

The good: Ernest dubbed it “the bookstore that everyone in town knows” and said that it “stocks up on the latest titles of everything… at a price (note: yup, books are always pricey here)”.

If you’re lucky, you might see a former prime minister, a deputy minister, or a sultan browsing books, and there is quite a crowd here.

Rating: 9/10

The bad: Some escalators were not in service in the mall, and it is a pretty familiar sight here (note: shoppers are constantly posting about this on social media). “If only Anthony Loke (Malaysia’s Minister of Transport) could solve this problem,” Ernest said.

BX+ (Pavilion Kuala Lumpur)

The good: Ernest said the bookstore looks like a budget/scaled-down version of the BookXcess book chain. There is also a ‘book blind date’ section here, which is exciting and piques people's interest in reading something different. He also found it to be the quietest bookstore but with the fewest latest selections.

Rating: 6/10

The bad: The walk between KLCC and Pavilion Bukit Bintang’s elevated bridge is a mixed bag. The air conditioning works half the time, while the other half is probably disabled or malfunctioning, so it gets pretty humid. (Note: Having worked in that area before, this writer can confirm that this situation has been ongoing since 2021 *rolls eyes*.)

Eslite (The Starhill)

Ernest remarked, “If Kinokuniya specialises in Japanese publications, Eslite is rooted in Chinese publications (note: if you didn’t know, Eslite is a Taiwanese chain).” To his knowledge, it also has the most prominent magazine stand in town, well stocked with domestic and foreign magazines. The bookstore also has a stage forum with ample seating.

Rating: 8/10

The bad: Ernest wishes the road in front of Starhill Gallery and Pavilion KL was pedestrianised because allocating so much space to a few people in big cars is an incredibly inefficient way of using the land.

MPH (The Exchange TRX)

As this store only opened recently, everything feels fresh and new here, according to Ernest. But it is also a problem as everything is new, so there are not many books to see here. He hopes to see more books in the future.

Rating: 6/10

The bad: Ernest found the walk to the place poorly lit (but at least sheltered in the event of rain). He also said that the and wait time is far too long and crossing times too short for those with mobility aids to cross safely at the pedestrian crosswalk at the Imbi/Gading intersection.

BookXcess (LaLaport)

The good: It was closed by the time Ernest went, but on his previous visit, Ernest said it “reminds me a lot of an 80s sci-fi movie set piece.” He also mentioned that it had a great ambiance in one of the quieter malls in KL.

Rating: 8/10

The bad: The walk from The Exchange TRX mall to LaLaport, while well-lit, is undoubtedly the most dangerous as one would be mostly walking on the very busy Jalan Imbi even after shortcuts to avoid it. He also found that pedestrians certainly can’t avoid illegally parked Alphards.

Overall take

Overall, Ernest said that his walk covered almost 5.7km, including:

• 1.88km between KLCC and Pavilion
• 2.81km between Pavilion, TRX, and LaLaport
• Note: His walk from Intermark to Avenue K was not recorded.

He spent almost 4.5 hours on this, including the time spent browsing books.

To answer the question, “Is downtown KL walkable?” Ernest replied, “Absolutely if you’re able to avoid the busy road paths, ignore the odd street furniture and parked cars obstructing your paths once in a while.”

He remarked that there is “lots of work to be done, especially walkability audits, to enable people of all abilities to walk safely.” Govt folks, take note!

What type of crowds each bookstore attracts

This was his overall hilarious take on the better-known bookstores and what crowds they attract:

• Kinokuniya: Anime/NEET magnet (FYI NEET refers to those ‘not currently engaged in Employment, Education or Training")
• ​BookXcess: Instagram pics
• Popular: stock up on stationery
• MPH: lots of self-help books
• Tsutaya: the coffee is better
• Eslite: nice benches to doom scroll Douyin

Note: As a bookworm, this writer has to agree this is somewhat true.