The Batu Caves are just north of which Malaysian capital city?

The Batu Caves are just north of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

This limestone cave complex lies roughly 13 kilometres north of Kuala Lumpur’s city centre in Selangor. The name refers to the caves and the nearby Batu River, while the site’s dramatic limestone hill rises above a major Hindu shrine dedicated to Lord Murugan.

Batu Caves became an important centre of Malaysian Hinduism after the Tamil trader K. Thamboosamy Pillai promoted the site as a place of worship in the late 19th century. The main temple cave is reached by a steep staircase, now famously painted in bright colours, and is fronted by a monumental golden statue of Murugan.

The site is especially associated with Thaipusam, a festival that draws huge crowds of devotees and visitors. Kuala Lumpur is the key geographical reference because Batu Caves sits immediately beyond the capital’s northern urban area. It is not near Kuching, Johor Bahru, or George Town, which are separate Malaysian cities in different regions. The caves are also a geological site, formed in ancient limestone cliffs that contain numerous natural caverns.