Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital and most populous city, began as a humble, 19th-century tin-mining town carved from the dense tropical rainforest. Today, the former British colonial outpost is a dynamic, modern metropolis that hosts thousands of international business travelers annually. The gleaming, 88-story Petronas Twin Towers dominate the skyline, a powerful symbol of the city’s aspiration to be a strong player in global commerce.

Booming Kuala Lumpur, or KL as locals call it, hasn’t escaped the notice of meeting and conference planners who applaud the quality and abundance of event space as well as its strategic location as a gateway to the rest of Southeast Asia. As a result, the MICE market skyrocketed over the last decade, and Kuala Lumpur thrives as one of the top meeting destinations in the Asia Pacific region, jumping from 33 to 28 in world convention rankings in 2014 (by the International Congress and Convention Association). There’s also the benefit of having the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau on hand to assist with booking meetings or events.

The appeal of this multicultural city with a polyglot population of Malays, Straits Chinese and Indians is easy to grasp. Interspersed with miles of high-end shopping malls, luxury hotels and restaurants serving fine Asian cuisine are mosques, Buddhist temples and Hindu shrines, a cultural amalgam unique to this tiny corner of Southeast Asia.

And KL offers big bang for the buck, too. Visitors find meals and accommodations reasonably priced, and Malaysia boasts a favorable international exchange rate. Political instability in neighboring Thailand and soaring prices in Singapore make Kuala Lumpur all the more attractive.

The award-winning Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, a multipurpose facility conveniently located in the Central Business District, hosted a record 1,759 events in 2014, an 11 percent increase over the previous year.

KLCC general manager Alan Pryor attributes the growth to “having a world-class facility, strong industry relationships and awareness of industry trends.”

He adds that he relies on “a knowledgeable and professional team that remains committed to meeting and satisfying clients’ evolving meetings needs through the delivery of innovative products and services across the board.”

Fountain show at night in front of Petronas Twin Towers and Suria KLCC mall © Eermakova | Dreamstime.com

With 40,387 square feet of exhibition space, a grand ballroom, three conference halls and 20 meeting rooms, KLCC is fully equipped to meet a broad range of requests.

Plenary Hall, the centerpiece of the sprawling facility, offers tiered auditorium seating for 3,000; an innovative sound and light system; and an interpretation system for up to six languages, making it the venue of choice for keynote sessions and concerts.

KLCC looks to the future with an expansion that kicked off in April and is slated for completion in 2018. Lot 91, as the mixed commercial development project is called, will not only add convention space, it will also incorporate an office tower and retail areas. The design allows for seamless integration with the existing convention center.

The Mandarin Oriental, Kuala Lumpur has long been the last word in luxury but after an extensive renovation, this stellar property in the heart of the financial district raised the bar higher still. Eleven enhanced meeting suites with state-of-the-art audiovisual technology facilitate flawless presentations in an inviting, functional space. Some provide sweeping views of KLCC Park, a verdant, 50-acre garden. Groups requiring a larger venue can book the Grand Ballroom, the largest in the city.

Another popular hotel option is the Grand Hyatt Kuala Lumpur, conveniently located next to the KLCC and just a short walk from the Golden Triangle shopping and entertainment district. The property offers 35,530 square feet of dedicated meeting and event space in seven venues. At 11,248 square feet, the Grand Ballroom houses the largest meeting space in the hotel, a favorite venue for annual conferences.

Other suitable 5-star hotels with plentiful meeting space include The Westin, the Shangri-La and the recently refurbished InterContinental.

For a one-of-a-kind setting that embodies the spirit of Malaysia, schedule your next meeting or exhibition in a space surrounded by ancient treasures from the Islamic world. The Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia, the largest museum of its kind in Southeast Asia, houses more than 8,000 artifacts, including calligraphy-inscribed pottery, jewel-encrusted swords, embroidered prayer mats and much more.

In many ways, the building itself is a work of art, with a contemporary, four-story structure topped by an imposing turquoise dome — an architectural marvel and a city landmark.

The Inverted Dome Pavilion, named for the dome that seems to hover above the galleries instead of protruding outside, frequently hosts meetings and product launches. Attendees appreciate the light-infused, airy feel of the 2,125-square-foot space, and floor-to-ceiling glass provides spectacular views of the city.

For a memorable post-conference tour or incentive travel, head eight miles north of KL to Batu Caves, a Hindu temple complex devoted to Lord Muragan. Wear your walking shoes: Visitors climb 272 steps to the main cave where Hindu ceremonies take place. Wander through a mystical, incense-perfumed world where sari-clad women pay homage to their god as the hypnotic tunes of the shehnai, a traditional wind instrument, echo throughout the limestone cave.

Malaysia’s tropical heat and humidity make walking an unappealing option, so consider a taxi, even for short distances. Kuala Lumpur offers two kinds of taxi service: standard and executive. Flag down standard taxis from roadsides or at taxi stands; drivers usually charge a reasonable metered fare, but some charge a flat rate. For a cleaner, more comfortable ride, catch a slightly more expensive executive taxi, usually plentiful in the financial and shopping districts.

A word of caution: Traffic jams are a fact of life in Kuala Lumpur, so hopping on a train is preferable for longer trips. The KL Monorail provides access to the city’s main hotel and shopping corridors, including stops at KL Sentral, Imbi, Bukit Bintang (the main shopping strip) and Raja Chulan (along Jalan Sultan Ismail, the location of many hotels).

Forget about renting a car. Driving British-style on the left side of the road proves the least daunting of the myriad challenges faced by American drivers. As is common in this part of the world, countless motorbikes crush into narrow lanes, swerving haphazardly around cars and buses, occasionally going against traffic. To the uninitiated, it may seem traffic laws either don’t exist or are ignored by the majority of drivers.