Today’s blog post is a special one, dedicated to my amazing friend and travel buddy Kay Kalkbrenner, who recently hit his 500th milestone visit — and what better place to celebrate it than in the vibrant and misty hills of Genting Highlands, Malaysia. From bustling cities to hidden gems, Kay has explored the world with curiosity and passion, and this milestone marks not just a number, but a journey filled with unforgettable memories.
In his own words, here’s how he experienced this special moment:
Kay Kalkbrenner’s Genting Highlands Review
On Saturday June 28th my Asia tour started with a train ride from Frankfurt to Memmingen followed by a flight to Bucharest to visit the new City Rock Shop. After that I was flying via Istanbul and Abu Dhabi to Dubai as my initial flight got cancelled due to the crisis in Middle East. In Dubai I had the opportunity to meet my long time local friend Alex again which is always a great time. We even drove all the way South to the Coming Soon Cafe in Dubai Sports City. After that I flew to Kathmandu for another new Rock Shop before I took another flight to Osaka with a short stopover in Bangkok. From Osaka I went to Kyoto and Tokyo to catch another flight Nonstop to Clark, Philippines for another new Hard Rock Cafe. Next was an easy bus ride to Manila to catch a flight to Bali for the latest Rock Shop in Nusa Dua before heading to Kuala Lumpur where the highlight of the trip should follow in Genting Highlands (Malaysia), my official visit No. 500.
How to get to Genting Highlands
It’s Friday, July 4th – a nice morning when I woke up in my Hotel next to Kuala Lumpur Sentral Station. It was the time to catch a Bus from KL Sentral to Awana Station to reach Genting Highlands. The Bus ride takes around 90 minutes and ends at Awana Bus Station, that’s also where the Genting Highlands Premium Outlet and the Cable Car to Genting Highlands is located. After arriving at Awana Bus Station you simply follow the signs a few levels up by the escalator to reach the cable car station. There are vending machines to get your Ticket which is very simple and rather cheap. The ride up to Genting Hills takes around 10 minutes and you’ll end up right inside another Mall as well as the small indoor amusement park.
How to reach Hard Rock Cafe Genting Highlands
From Upper Station Genting Highlands you go all the way to the basement to the Crockford Hotel as this is the place where Grab drivers will pick you up. It’s an easy 10 minute drive Northwest from Crockford Hotel to the Hard Rock Cafe Genting Highlands.
Hard Rock Cafe Genting Highlands
In Genting Highlands there are 2 visit credits to get, one is for the Genting Highlands Rock Shop that opened 14 January 2025. This Rock Shop is located in the Lobby of the Wyndham Ion Majestic Hotel, you immediately see that one once you enter the Hotel.
The other visit credit is for the actual Hard Rock Cafe Genting Highlands Restaurant which opened 30 April 2025. The Café is located on the 50th floor in the same Hotel tower complex. There are actually two Hotels in this tower, the Wyndham Ion Majestic Hotel and the other one is the 1001 Nights by Wyndham Hotel.
Actually as of now the better Hotel option would be the 1001 Nights Hotel as the elevators in this part of the tower lead all the way to the 50th floor on a height of 6500 feet where the Hard Rock Cafe is located.