A guide to JB’s Ramadan bazaars: Which ones to visit, best time to go, what to look out for
In Singapore, there’s Geylang Serai and Kampong Glam, of course. But if you want to check out Johor Bahru’s bazaars, we break it down for you – including where to park and what roads to avoid.
Ayam percik stall at Angsana Mall Ramadan bazaar. (Photos: David Ngiau)
Malaysia turns into a wonderland during Ramadan. It’s the holiest time of the year for Muslims, who observe the month through prayers, spiritual reflection, giving to charity and fasting from dawn to dusk. To celebrate breaking your fast at dusk, there are huge open-air bazaars in pretty much every neighbourhood.
If you can’t see one, you’ll likely detect one nearby from the aroma of grilled lamb kebabs, laksa Johor, simmering bubur (rice porridge) and nasi kerabu from mid-afternoon to dusk.
And if you’re heading to Johor Bahru, or JB, during this period, you can't miss them – there are over 100 Ramadan bazaars planned this year. And in JB’s outlying towns, you can find even more: Kulai has six, Pontian and Kota Tinggi have nine each, while Kluang has a dozen. (And this site has got a pretty extensive list.)
Despite empty stomachs during the day, vendors and everyone else are generally in high spirits during Ramadan, more so at the bazaars with their welcoming, festive atmosphere with handicrafts, traditional clothes and other goods on sale. These bazaars are a real celebration of community, folks united by culinary cravings over creed and colour, and non-Muslim visitors are welcome.
WHICH BAZAARS TO VISIT
If you’re so inclined, you could visit two bazaars a day without ever having to circle back to one you’ve already done. You’d also be crazy, and a lot more “prosperous” around your middle kingdom thus needing to add new notches to your belt.
For the rest of us, here are a few of Johor Bahru's biggest and best-known Ramadan bazaars to visit and savour.
1. ANGSANA MALL
Thanks to its huge open-air parking lot and large empty plots of land adjacent, the Ramadan bazaar next to Angsana Mall in Tampoi has room to breathe. Thanks to all that space and organisers’ planning, ample room is allocated between the rows of stalls (whereas popular but poorly laid-out bazaars can be claustrophobic affairs).
The Angsana bazaar, one of the cleanest bazaars you’ll come across, has a huge circus-like tent for stalls selling snacks like keropok, Hari Raya cookies and festive clothes, while stalls cooking fresh food are just beyond. Meanwhile, an adjacent empty lot has just been completely paved over into a massive parking lot to make room for the bazaar crowds.
Alas, there’s not much room to breathe on the surrounding roads; severe congestion will mean 30 minutes to inch down a 1km stretch there during peak periods. There’s only one entrance to the aforementioned new car park, and there was already a long queue of cars to get in at 3.30pm on the first day of Ramadan.
Head instead for the service roads across from Angsana’s main entrance (facing thoroughfare Jalan Tampoi) and look out for used car dealer KH Lee at the junction or Jalan Dato Muthuthambi. Parking here will spare you nightmarish jams when you exit as you’ve easy access to Skudai Highway from here.
Of course, if you’re going early and there’s nary a soul about, go ahead and park right next to the entrance but make sure you leave before you’re hemmed in.
WHEN TO GO
Ramadan bazaars typically start around 4pm, with some opening as early as 3pm, depending on the neighbourhood, patronage patterns and vendors. Being one of the earliest customers may not be a great idea as the bazaar won't be running at full steam with some stallholders choosing to start later.
If you’re keen to beat the crowds, the ideal time to go is around 5pm. To fully experience the atmosphere, head in at 6pm. If you go at 7pm, you’ll likely find empty stalls, especially the popular ones, having already sold out and the vendors will be packing up.
Iftar, signalling the breaking of the fast for the faithful, depends on the moonrise for the day and will as such differ from state to state. All fasting Muslims, including stallholders, will break fast at that time which means the bazaars will wind down after 7pm.
2. S’MART PANDAN
One of the biggest of all the Ramadan bazaars in Johor Barhu takes place in the car park of the granddaddy of JB’s pasar borongs (“wholesale markets”): S’Mart in Pandan on the Tebrau Highway. Most visitors from across the Causeway heading to Austin Heights, Aeon Tebrau or Ikea would have passed by this wholesale centre next to a drive-through McDonald’s. For smart grocery shoppers, it’s their primary target on any cross-border expedition.
With such a glowing reputation, competition for a spot at the Ramadan bazaar here is fierce among vendors. Previous years’ editions here have featured around 200 stalls so plan for more time browsing here, especially if it’s your first time.
The S’Mart bazaar, however, doesn’t look as organised and prepared as its Angsana rival, with two-thirds of stalls yet to be set up by 3pm on the first day of Ramadan. Angsana and Taman Suria’s bazaars, in contrast, were already bustling with half to two-thirds of stalls already running by around the same time.
As the wholesale centre’s entire front parking lot is taken over by the bazaar, finding a place to park your car will be a challenge in the streets surrounding S’Mart (full name “Supplier Smart”, incidentally).
Aim for Jalan Waja 4 to 6 to the south-west of the bazaar, which means turning off Tebrau Highway before getting to S’Mart if you’re approaching from downtown or Singapore. Parking here also means an easy escape route by heading to Jalan Angkasa Mas Utama on-ramp to the Pasir Gudang highway – this interchange is better known as the one next to the Johor HQ of the JPJ (the transportation department).
WHERE TO PARK
You don’t want to be that person trying to inch through hordes of hungry hunter-gatherers, even if they’re all in positive spirits during Ramadan. Even if you do score a spot right next to the bazaar entrance, you’re going to find yourself hemmed in by double-parked cars – if that happens, sabar lah (be patient), as most bazaar visitors don’t stay for long.
Bazaars will be set up in huge closed-off parking lots or along cordoned-off neighbourhood streets, sometimes in usual pasar malam (night market) locations. Particularly with the latter, be prepared to park a little further away on parallel lorongs (lanes) and maybe cut through the side-alleys on foot. If you absolutely have to double-park to allow your elderly relatives a shorter walk into the bazaar, make sure someone stays in or near the car to move it should another motorist need to leave.
If you’re taking a ride-hailing car in, trust the driver’s judgement on adjusting your drop-off location because insisting that she drive right up to the bazaar is not cool. The same goes for pick-ups: Don’t be waiting where cars can’t get to and then wonder why you’re getting cancelled on.
3. TAMAN SURIA (GIANT SOUTHERN CITY)
This big Ramadan bazaar is on the edge of the kampung heart of JB and within a few minutes of KSL Mall and Mid Valley Mall Southkey. Many consider this to be the prime Ramadan Bazaar of downtown. Situated in an open lot just outside the Giant Southern City supermarket, the area has its down-to-earth charm. A tip – wear shoes, especially if it’s been raining.
Impressively, the bazaar was already humming along by as early as 2.30pm on the first day of Ramadan. Credit to the organisers for getting all the infrastructure and tents well sorted early, and to the vendors, of whom a majority were already busy preparing for the coming crowds.
This bazaar is very much worth a visit – don’t need to bother heading to Larkin. You can even see the towers of the Mid Valley Southkey from the bazaar. If you’re approaching from KSL, you’re in luck as access by Jalan Murni 8 from the south bypasses the perennially congested Tebrau Highway.
OTHER THINGS TO NOTE
The usual etiquette applies: Don’t dress skimpily and don’t be a snobby spendthrift chirping away about the conversion rate – while staying mindful that Muslims will be fasting during the day so resist the urge to wolf down that fresh goreng pisang (fried banana fritter) immediately.
A final note: Do your small part by bringing reusable containers or tiffin carriers to bungkus (takeaway) your food in recyclable carrier bags. It’s a gentle way to lead by example and influence positive change in reducing waste, at the very least.
4. BANDAR BARU UDA
One of the best-run and sizeable neighbourhood Ramadan bazaars is in Bandar Baru Uda (known to locals as simply “BBU”), not far from Angsana Mall.
Stalls ring a block of shophouses, on all four bounding service roads, rather than simply lining a single stretch as is typical in smaller neighbourhoods. BBU is one of the nicest, cleanest upper-middle-class suburbs in the geographic centre of Johor Bahru, after all.
Roads into the BBU bazaar are generally quiet, but check traffic data on Google Maps before venturing into this heartland. Set your destination for the Masjid Jamek Bandar Baru Uda, which is on the south side of the bazaar.
5. SOME NOTABLE MENTIONS
Every township and taman will have its own Ramadan bazaar so you don’t have to drive across town or into the heart of JB just to experience one.
If you’re looking for a more modern take, the J Seri Alam container cafe park in the far east and the Desa Tebrau food truck park (past Ikea in the north-east) will stage their own small bazaars.
In the west, the bazaar staged in the big back lot of Perling Mall is worth checking out. It’s spacious, neatly laid out, and parking isn’t a hassle with plenty of under-used service roads ringing the mall.
