What's on in Ipoh, Malaysia through the year

Peak crowds — Thaipusam at Kallumalai, Chinese New Year

• Festival

  Thaipusam at Kallumalai

  20 Jan – 20 Feb · usuallyReligious feastCrowdedClosures

  The chariot leaves the Buntong temple before dawn and takes most of a day to reach the limestone-hill shrine north of town, with kavadi bearers walking behind it. A state holiday in Perak, so the city is shut around it. Source ↗

• Holiday

  Chinese New Year

  20 Jan – 25 Feb · usuallyLunar New YearClosuresCrowded

  Ipoh is where a good part of Kuala Lumpur drives home to, so the old-town kopitiams the city is famous for shut for three or four days while the roads in are solid. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Thaipusam at Kallumalai, Chinese New Year

• Holiday

  Ramadan and Hari Raya

  5 Feb – 25 Mar · usuallyRamadan & EidClosuresCrowded

  Through Ramadan, evening food bazaars appear and some Malay eateries close by day. Hari Raya Aidilfitri ends it with public holidays, a mass trip home, busy roads and transport, and shops shut for a few days. Source ↗

Still on: Thaipusam at Kallumalai (20 Jan – 20 Feb (usually)), Chinese New Year (20 Jan – 25 Feb (usually))

Peak crowds — Ramadan and Hari Raya, Term-1 break (Hari Raya 2026) in Malaysia

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Ramadan and Hari Raya (5 Feb – 25 Mar (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in April.

Peak crowds — Wesak at the cave temples, Mid-year break in Malaysia

• Festival

  Wesak at the cave temples

  1 May – 5 Jun · usuallyReligious feastCrowded

  The Buddhist holy day draws devotees with offerings and chanting to Sam Poh Tong and the other limestone cave temples south of town. Go early, before the heat and the crowds build. Source ↗

Peak crowds — Wesak at the cave temples, Mid-year break in Malaysia

• Season

  Durian season

  15 Jun – 31 Aug · usuallyHarvest

  Perak is the country's biggest grower of village durians, and roadside stalls around Ipoh fill from late June; a smaller second crop comes around the turn of the year. Source ↗

Still on: Wesak at the cave temples (1 May – 5 Jun (usually))

Peak crowds — travelers describe it as peak season, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Hazard

  Transboundary haze

  15 Jul – 15 Oct · usuallySmoke season

  Smoke from land clearing across the strait drifts over the peninsula in the drier months, worst in El Nino years. The Kinta valley limestone hills go flat grey and stay that way for days. Source ↗

Still on: Durian season (15 Jun – 31 Aug (usually))

Busy — Term-2 break in Malaysia, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Durian season (15 Jun – 31 Aug (usually)), Transboundary haze (15 Jul – 15 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Nine Emperor Gods Festival, Term-2 break in Malaysia

• Festival

  Nine Emperor Gods Festival

  20 Sep – 25 Oct · usuallyReligious feastCrowded

  Nine days of vegetarian food, opera stages and processions around the Tow Boh Keong temple, ending with the send-off to the river. Half the town's hawkers go meat-free with it. Source ↗

Still on: Transboundary haze (15 Jul – 15 Oct (usually))

Peak crowds — Nine Emperor Gods Festival, Deepavali in Little India

• Festival

  Deepavali in Little India

  20 Oct – 15 Nov · usuallyDiwaliCrowded

  In the weeks before the festival, Ipoh's Little India around Jalan Lahat turns into a bazaar of clothes, sweets and decorations. Expect crowds and traffic on the final weekend. Source ↗

Still on: Transboundary haze (15 Jul – 15 Oct (usually)), Nine Emperor Gods Festival (20 Sep – 25 Oct (usually))

Busy — Deepavali in Little India

Nothing new starts in November.

Still on: Deepavali in Little India (20 Oct – 15 Nov (usually))

Busy — Year-end break in Malaysia, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.