Transport to Kulim Vipassana Course Site.

If you have transport information that could help other students, please email it to [email protected]. As and when we get such information we may add it to the list.

Kulim is in North , state, west of Butterworth and . Private Cars

At Kulim town, if you are driving along Jalan Raya, turn left at the traffic light near the Kulim post office into Jalan Tunku Bendahara. If you are driving along Jalan Tunku Laksamana, at the traffic light where you can see Kulim Clock Tower on your right and the Kulim post office across the road in front of you, go straight to enter into Jalan Tunku Bendahara.

After that drive straight for another 2.2km, pass 3 schools on your left, where the last one is SJKC Chong Cheng. Then pass the main entrance of San Fo En Buddhist Temple which is on your right. Go straight for another 150m to the downhill steel gate on the right which is the entrance to Kulim Vipassana Course Site. (GPS coordinates: 5.3460636, 100.5537686).

After entering the oil palm estate from the road, please drive another 200m uphill. 50m before reaching the course compound entrance, you will see a sign board showing you the open grass field to park your car. The open grass field is big enough to park about 12 cars. Please refer to this link for the location map to Kulim Vipassana Course Site: http://www.malaya.dhamma.org/malaya/locations/docs/Kulimlocationmap.jpg

Bus Services

Buses from other states and Singapore stop at Kulim Bus Station. Kulim bus station is around 3.5km away from Kulim Vipassana Course Site. There is taxi service here, where a trip to the course site takes around 10 minutes and costs around RM8 to RM12.

Purchasing Bus Ticket

You can buy your bus tickets from the below websites in advance, print out the e-ticket before going to the bus station:-

 Easybook – www.easybook.com  Catch that Bus – https://m.catchthatbus.com  Red Bus – https://m.redbus.my  Bus On Line – www.busonlineticket.com Important Note: There is no public bus () or private bus from Island to Kulim. Those who are travelling from Penang Island have to board a ferry to Butterworth to catch a bus to Kulim (or take a taxi).

Buses going to Kulim Bus Station Departure Point Bus Operators Departure Time Fare Cepat & Cekap 6am-9pm RM4.50 ~1 hour journey Express (Daily) Billion Stars 6.45am-9:30pm RM35 (Daily) Thai Good Travel 6.30am-8:45pm RM40 & Tour (Daily)

Butterworth Penang Sentral Lean Hock Bus 8.00am RM3.80 (Butterworth Bus Corp. Sdn Bhd Every Hour Terminal) 8.30pm (last bus) Ticket Counter 28 45-55 mins.’ journey Ipoh 2-2.30 hours’ journey Plusliner 2.30pm RM12.90 Transnasional 8.00am RM13.60 Era Mesra 1.30pm RM25.00 Kulim First Travel 2.30pm RM48.00 Terminal Bersepadu Plusliner 4.30pm RM37.10 Selatan (TBS) 6.00pm 5 hours’ journey 9.00pm 11.00pm Jalan Duta Super Nice 11.00am RM40.00 5 hours’ journey 1.00pm 8.00pm Economy Express 11.00am RM37.00 10.30pm Kajang Star Mart 10.00am RM40.00 5 hours’ journey A Class 5.00pm RM40.00 Economy Express 9.00am RM40.00 10.30pm RM40.00 Shah Alam Era Mesra 9.30am RM46.00 5-6 hours’ journey 1.30pm 7.30pm Transnational 8.30am RM41.00 3.00pm Putrajaya 5-6 hours’ journey Plusliner 9.30am RM45.00 Transnational 12.00pm RM42.00 Malacca 7-8 hour’s journey Kejora Masyhur 6.45am RM60.00 Transnational 8.30am RM60.00 Johor 10-11 hours’ journey Super Nice 9.00am RM 70.00 Pacific 10.00am RM70.00 Larkin 10-11 hours’ journey Starmart 9.30pm RM70.00 Sin Yong Express 8.45am RM75.00 KPB 10.00am RM77.00 Singapore Super Nice 9.00pm RM75.00 11-12 hour’ journey

Note: Please counter check schedule & cost again for the latest information as the above figures are only valid as of April 2018 from the internet.

Students are responsible for arranging their own transport for leaving the course site at the end of the course. It is strongly recommended that return tickets be purchased prior to arrival as tickets cannot be purchased at the course site.

Students may make arrangements among themselves near the end of the course to share taxis that are going to a common destination to save cost.

Buses leaving Kulim Bus Station (KBS)

Bus Operator Bus Departure Time Fare Destination Lean Hock 8.00am RM3.80 Penang Sentral/ Every Hour Butterworth Railway 7.00pm (last bus) Station

Super Nice 10.00am RM30.00 Ipoh Economy Express 1.00pm RM30.00 A Class 5.00pm RM30.00 Kejora Masyhur 6.45pm RM30.00

Plusliner 9.45am RM37.10 Kuala Lumpur 12.15pm Terminal 4.30pm Bersepadu Selatan 11.30pm (TBS)

Super Nice 10.00am RM40.00 Jalan Duta 11.00am 3.00pm Kejora Masyhur 5.00pm RM40.00 10.30pm 11.30pm Economy Express 1.00pm RM40.00

Star Mart 10.00am RM50.00 Kajang A Class 5.00pm RM50.00 Kejora Masyhur 6.45pm RM50.00 10.30pm

Era Mesra 10.00am RM50.00 Shah Alam 1.00pm 11.00pm Super Nice 11.00am RM50.00 3.00pm

Pacific 9.30am RM40.00 KL Sentral

Plusliner 11.30pm RM53.00 Putrajaya

Star Mart 10.00am Rm60.00 Malacca Kejora Masyhur 10.30pm RM60.00 Mayang Sari 10.30pm M60.00

Super Nice 9.00am RM 70.00 Johore Pacific 10.00am RM70.00

Kejora Masyhur 10.30pm RM70.00 Larkin

Super Nice 9.00pm RM75.00 Singapore

Note: Please counter check schedule & cost again for the latest information as above figures are only valid as of April 2018 from the internet.

Taxi Service

Taxi from Kulim Bus Station

There is taxi service at Kulim Bus Station, where a trip to the course site would take around 10 minutes and costs around RM8 to RM12. Taxi service telephone no.: +6044917193 and +6044903585

Taxi from Penang International Airport

a) By Airport Taxi

Prepaid Airport taxi is available at Penang International Airport. Taxi fare from Penang International Airport to Kulim Vipassana Course Site is estimated around RM130 (show them the course site location map). The journey takes about 1.5 to 2 hours depending on the traffic. Alternatively, a cheaper way would be getting a taxi or Grab from the airport to Butterworth bus station for around RM50, and then take a bus to Kulim.

b) By Pre-arranged Taxi

You can pre arrange with Mr Balvir Singh, +6014 4909 244 to pick you up at Penang International Airport to Kulim Vipassana Course Site for around RM100 and during off-peak hours for RM120. Please note this taxi drivers do not have any connection with Kulim Vipassana Course Site. Kulim Vipassana Course Site will not be responsible for services provided by him.

Electric Train Services (ETS)

The nearest railway stations to Kulim are at Sungai Petani in Kedah, Bukit Mertajam & Butterworth in Penang. Below are some guidelines for those who are coming from Kuala Lumpur.

From Sentral Kuala Lumpur to Sungai Petani railway station, the train journey takes 4 hours 15 minutes for RM62 for Gold Class one-way ticket in the morning. The Ukir Square Sungai Petani Express Bus Terminal is around 300m away from the railway station. Bus schedule & cost are shown in the earlier “Bus Service” section.

From Sentral Kuala Lumpur to Bukit Mertajam railway station, the train journey takes 3 hours 53 minutes for RM77 for Platinum Class one-way ticket in the morning. Gold Class tickets are cheaper but only available in the afternoon. Taxi is available outside the railway station and it costs around RM30 and takes around 30 minutes to the Kulim course site. From Sentral Kuala Lumpur to Butterworth railway station, the train journey takes 4 hours 2 minutes for RM79 for Platinum Class one-way ticket in the morning. Gold Class tickets are cheaper but only available in the afternoon. The Butterworth Bus Terminal (Penang Sentral) is within the same compound for you to take a bus to Kulim Bus Station. Bus schedule & cost are shown in the earlier “Bus Service” section.

From Sentral Kuala Lumpur to Butterworth railway station, the train journey takes 4 hours 2 minutes for RM79 for Platinum Class one-way ticket in the morning. Gold Class tickets are cheaper but only available in the afternoon. The Butterworth Bus Terminal (Penang Sentral) is within the same compound for you to take a bus to Kulim Bus Station. Bus schedule & cost are shown in the earlier “Bus Service” section.

For train schedule or tickets from other places to Penang or Kedah, please refer to below link: https://intranet.ktmb.com.my/ktmb_ui

Air Services. There are many international and domestic flights to Penang International Airport. The main airlines for domestic flights are Air Asia, Malindo, Fireflyz and Malaysia Airlines. The main international airlines are Silk Air, Scoot, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Dragon, China Airlines and Qatar Airways.

See the above section Taxi Service from the airport to Kulim. Alternatively you can take a rapid bus 401 or 401E bus to the jetty and travel by ferry to Butterworth.