Kotajail

Chat Hall

3 weeks ago

Discovered this awesome tourist attraction by accident by walking around downtown. Entrance is actually free and you can wonder at will. However, they do offer guided tours for a small fee; therefore I chose their short 30 minute tour (which was later in the evening). Coming back for the 7pm tour there was a small group of us, which was led by an ex-prison guard. I wish I remembered his name as he was an excellent guide! He led us to a prison building full of cells—tellling us about the conditions, procedures and routine of the prisoners. He happily answered any questions we had (both in English and Malay), showed us where the prisoners showered and then ked us to a series of rooms which displayed different aspects of prison life; including uniforms, guard equipment, prisoner made weapons and even a room displaying punishment—including the hangman's noose! The tour culminated in a film which I'll never forget: it showed an open area in a prison where a succession of real prisoners were brought in to be caned. At first I thought it was a dramatisation, but the guard stated the people were genuine. You witness real gruesome punishment with images of open flesh and blood! Amazingly, part of my tour group included young children! I understand the prison closed down some years ago. It's a big complex. Definitely recommend coming here for a very unusual and fascinating experience!

Wanny Syazzo

2 months ago

Never knew or even heard about Kota Jail until I ended up here mainly for the matcha. Honestly had no idea what this place was at first, probably cause I hardly ever come to JB, so it wasn’t even on my radar. Came in with zero expectations and didn’t really know what to expect. Once there, I was surprised by how interesting the place actually was. There was quite a number of people sitting around the waiting area, which instantly made me more curious and straightly went up to the counter and asked the front desk staff, who was really friendly and helpful, to explain what the place was about. That’s when I found out that visitors can pay for a guided tour inside the jail, led by a so called warden, and that there are a few different packages to choose from. The most interesting one for me is the torchlight package, which starts at midnight and sounds pretty intense. Unfortunately, since the place isn’t wheelchair-friendly, we decided to skip the paid tour and just walk around the free entrance area instead. Even so, I really loved the overall vibe of the place. There are plenty of nice spots to take photos, and the atmosphere feels unique and different from the usual places we’d visit. Also got a few eateries around, can grab something to eat or drink while exploring. Was genuinely satisfied with this unplanned visit and didn’t regret stopping by at all.

Family Miri Travels

3 weeks ago

We visited this prison following a recommendation, and it is a very, very interesting place for a very reasonable price. We chose the 30-minute express tour, which is more than enough to see and understand a lot. I recommend it, but please be aware of the end of the visit: a video is shown in a room depicting punishments inflicted on prisoners by the guards. While these punishments were imposed following misconduct inside the prison, the footage can be quite disturbing. For adults it is okay, but for children it is more difficult — some children were crying when leaving the room, and even some adults were affected. Because of this, our feelings are a bit mixed regarding that part. That said, we still give five stars: the visit is well done, the guide speaks English, and overall it is very interesting. We recommend it.

Jackson Foo

a month ago

Please go for full tour without ever think twice, the experience is great. You will learn about the life inside the prison and u will know the prison purpose was to educate not punishment. The staff lizam give a very details explanation and the treatment was pleasant. Overall the experience was nice and the conversion is successful.

Wal

2 months ago

Interesting site, entry fee. 5/px, free for kids… the sites are not pretty, brutal. You get a sense how ii’s like when there were inmates around. The walls, floors, not a pretty sight. It is as authentic as it gets. Too many section still closed. Dont know if it will open. Some renovation/restoration in progress.? It has potential to be a great museum. The whole site is very historical. (Too few like this in malaysia) just hope the originality stays.