How to get from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore

Why visit Singapore?

For a small island city-state, Singapore is a huge tourist hub in Southeast Asia. In 2017, the number of tourists visiting Singapore was actually 3x more than its population!

This is for good reason. Head to downtown Singapore and you’ll find a number of tourist attractions, all connected by efficient and high-quality transportation.

To revisit your childhood, there’s Universal Studios and the resort island of Sentosa. For shopping, head to Orchard Road. For art, visit the Kampong Glam area. For an amazing night and light show, you have to visit Marina Bay Sands.

There are 3 ways to travel the 315 kilometre (196 miles) distance from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore. You can choose between the bus, train and flight. The journey takes 1 to 8 hours and the quickest way is by flight. If you're on a budget, the cheapest option is by bus with tickets starting at 46 MYR ($11.10).

You have plenty of bus options when travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore. There are several departure points within Kuala Lumpur too, which is why we highly recommend booking online beforehand. This way it will be easier to find the best deals and schedules!

BusOnlineTicket is our preferred booking website for this route, mainly because they offer the cheapest rates. Also, you’ll be travelling with Transtar Travel, a trusted company that also receives good reviews.

They have several departure points in Kuala Lumpur, below are the schedules for each location:

Years ago, at least 3 direct trains operated from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore every day. Currently though, this route is suspended as both countries prepare to build high-speed rail. For now, you’ll have to take at least 3 trains if you’re really determined to travel by rail.

Another thing to note is that you’ll have to travel this route at night. That includes a 2-hour midnight stopover at the railway junction in Gemas.

Are you up for that kind of adventure? If so, continue reading for a step-by-step guide when taking the train from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore.

Your first train is to Gemas, a railway station about 170 km south of Kuala Lumpur. There are 2 trips available for this route every day, departing from KL Sentral at 12:12 and 21:35.

Unless you want to spend a night at Gemas, your best connecting train from here to Johor Bahru departs at 02:00. We recommend that you take the evening train from Kuala Lumpur, which arrives in Gemas at 23:59. This way, you only have to wait 2 hours for your connecting train to Johor Bahru.

Travel time from Kuala Lumpur to Gemas takes almost 2.5 hours. A ticket costs 31 MYR ($7.50) when you book online on Baolau.

As a popular railway junction, Gemas Train Station is surrounded by shops and small-town eateries. You should be able to find somewhere to eat even at midnight, or you can just rest in the train station’s waiting area.

From Gemas, you will continue by train for 210 km to Johor Bahru in Malaysia’s southern tip.

We suggest taking the 02:00 train from Gemas to Johor Bahru. But here are other options you have:

From Johor Bahru, the train that crosses the border to Singapore only takes 5 minutes. You should buy your ticket at the train station for 16 MYR ($3.90) before heading to the customs and immigration office.

Woodlands Train Checkpoint

The good thing about the Woodlands Train Checkpoint is that it already has both Malaysian and Singaporean immigration offices in one location. You won’t have to make 2 stops as you will with the bus.

Here’s what your train itinerary for this route would look like:

Train Itinerary

The first step to actually get to Kuala Lumpur airport isn’t as easy as most may think. With the airport situated 45 km from Kuala Lumpur city centre, it requires some effort to get there.

However, you do have 3 options: the train (30 minutes), the bus (1 hour), or a taxi (1 hour). Fares start from 12 MYR ($2.90). You can visit our page on Kuala Lumpur Airport for more details on this.

Air Asia normally offers the cheapest flights from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore, with airfares starting from 64 MYR ($15.50) if you book your tickets in advance. Other carriers operating this route are Firefly and Malaysia Airlines.

The flight departs from Kuala Lumpur International Airport and arrives at Changi Airport in Singapore after a little over an hour.

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From Changi Airport, you’ll have to travel 25 km southeast to reach downtown Singapore. To get there, you can take the train for 5.50 SGD ($4.20), a shuttle bus for 9 SGD ($6.90) or a taxi for around 30 SGD ($23).

Our preferred ride is the shuttle service offered by Klook. It picks you up from the airport and drives you straight to your hotel for 9 SGD ($6.90). Travel time is 30 to 50 minutes depending on the number of stops your bus makes.

TIP: If you decide to travel by plane, please consider including a carbon compensation fee to reduce your impact on the environment.