Hanis Maketab, The StarDowntown Kuala Lumpur is set to come alive again with the KL Festival (KL Fest) from May 6-31. Previously billed as Kreatif KL in its inaugural edition in 2024, the festival will transform the city’s heritage buildings, streets and public spaces into an inclusive, largely free, and family-friendly celebration of art, culture and shared civic experiences.

“One of the things we’ve been looking at is to build a strong brand identity for the festival. We felt that Kreatif KL could potentially be seen as limiting the event to a particular aspect, whereas KL Festival embraces a much larger dimension, increases the coverage of what Malaysia has to offer and projects the country forward,” said Datuk Hamdan Abdul Majeed, Think City Managing Director at the festival's launch event in KL on March 13.

“If you look at Sydney Festival, Singapore Arts Festival, Adelaide Festival, these all anchor on the city’s name, so we thought KL Festival had a nice ring to it, in that it centres Kuala Lumpur,” added Izan Satrina Mohd Sallehuddin, senior director of Think City.

Over 26 days, KL Festival unfolds across 25 venues across downtown KL, presenting over 80 events and more than 700 hours of programming. With 90% of its line-up free and open to the public, the festival aims to make the arts more accessible while fostering city-wide participation.

Organised by Think City and Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) and supported by the Ministry of Finance and the Federal Territories Department (Prime Minister’s Department), KL Fest is held in conjunction with Visit Malaysia 2026, Warisan KL, and Kuala Lumpur’s designation as a UNESCO Creative City of Design.