Fly to Alor Setar Now
Alor Setar, the capital and largest city of Kedah, Malaysia, is one of the major cities on the western coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The city houses the Kota Setar District Administrative Centre at Muadzam Shah and Anak Bukit, the royal city of Kedah. Alor Setar is located 93 kilometres north of Penang and 45 km from Malaysia's border with Thailand. Its location along the main travel route from Malaysia to Thailand has long made it a major transportation hub in the northern Malay Peninsula.
Main attractions
The Zahir Mosque
The scenic Zahir mosque was built in 1912, as a contributory effort of YTM Tunku Mahmud Ibni Almarhum Sultan Tajuddin Mukarram Shah. The architecture of the mosque was inspired by the Azizi Mosque in Tanjung Pura, during the Langkat Sultanate (now present day North Sumatra) and the mosque is enhanced with five large domes to symbolize the Five Pillars of Islam.
The Paddy Museum
The unique marvel is the first of its kind in Malaysia, and the fourth to be opened in the world after Japan, Germany and the Philippines, the unique architecture of the Paddy Museum was designed to mimic the texture of harvested rice stalk bushels. Rice motifs are repeated throughout the building, on staircase banisters, the museum gates and even on the fence surrounding it.
Menara Alor Setar
Primarily built as a telecommunications tower, Menara Alor Setar is the city's greatest marvel based on its height alone. Atop the 165.5m (543 ft) tower, visitors get a complete and unobstructed bird's eye view of the unassuming blend of city and country charm, making it one of the most popular tourist destinations of the city.
Galeri Sultan Abdul Halim
This impressive-looking structure has classical Roman designs with iconic pillar rows and white walls. Formerly the building housed the Alor Setar High Court, before they moved to a new location. The current building has since been refurbished to house the Sultan's private art collection, in a gallery open to the public.
