Everyone enjoys a good bargain, whether it be for the thrill of it or just to knock off a few bucks. One of the best places to find a good bargain in Kuala Lumpur is Petaling Street . Better known to the Chinese locals as “ Chee Cheong Kai ”, this is the city's very own Chinatown . It comes to no surprise then that it is one of K.L's hottest tourist attractions and where there are tourists, there are people who attempt to scam them to make a quick buck.
The best way to avoid being duped is to bring a local along to help you with your shopping. The presence of someone who speaks with a Malaysian accent and uses Malaysian English would definitely help. Alternatively, Bahasa Melayu and Cantonese would also be enough to make the shop keeper think twice about blurting out absurd numbers. If you don't have the privilege of having a local escort, its best to do some research on average prices for merchandise on Petaling Street . A standard T-shirt would cost between RM12 to RM20 and watches range from really cheap (RM10) to really expensive (RM100).
Do bear in mind that the merchandise at Petaling Street is genuinely fake which explains the ridiculously low prices. Christian Dior items and Gucci items are being sold for RM50, but to ensure that it is not obviously fake do check the labels to make sure its not Christian Door and Gucki. Another trick that you might want to try is the “walk away” trick. If you're tired of haggling and the shop keeper still refuses to go down to your asking price, try walking away. They might respond by frantically waving their hands and calling you back to take you up on your deal.
Sometimes it might help to engage in some friendly banter with the shop keepers but keep it concise, polite and clean. You wouldn't want to get into trouble with them as they are notorious for not exactly being your poster boys for courtesy campaigns.