MY · Melaka · 2.20°N 102.25°E

cheng ho cultural museum

Treasure-ship models, voyage maps and old dragon jars on Cheng Ho's trail through Melaka.

Best time
Any time of year; it's open daily. Mornings are quieter, before Jonker Street fills up.
How long
1–2 hours
Getting there
About 2 hours' drive from KL on the North–South Expressway via Ayer Keroh. It's in the old town on Lorong Hang Jebat, a lane off Jonker Street near the river; park in an old-town car park and walk.
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MY · Melakacheng ho cultural museum2.20°N 102.25°Egowherelah.com
Dear group chat,Treasure-ship models, voyage maps and old dragon jars on Cheng Ho's trail through Melaka.— gowherelahTo: whoever’s drivingCheng Ho Cultural MuseumMY, Melaka
KLcheng ho cultural museum
≈ 122 km from KL, as the crow flies
Cheng Ho Cultural Museum, Malacca, Malaysia

Photo: Chongkian · CC BY-SA 4.0

1 / 3

Photos: Wikimedia Commons, credited on each.

Opened in 2005 for the 600th anniversary of Admiral Cheng Ho's first voyage, this private museum fills a row of restored old houses on Lorong Hang Jebat and is much bigger inside than it looks from the lane. Its three floors follow the Ming fleets across Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean, the trade of the time, Cheng Ho's links with Islam in the region, and a collection of Nanyang dragon jars.

Makan

  1. Chicken rice ballsHainanese chicken with the rice rolled into balls, at the old shops along Jonker Street.Map ↗
  2. CendolGula Melaka, coconut milk and shaved ice at the Jonker Street stalls.Map ↗

Things to do

  1. The voyage galleriesMaps and models of the seven Ming voyages between 1405 and 1433.Map ↗
  2. The treasure shipsModels of Cheng Ho's giant junks and how they found their way across open sea.Map ↗
  3. Cheng Ho and IslamA gallery on the Muslim admiral and the spread of Islam through the Malay world.Map ↗
  4. Nanyang dragon jarsBig glazed storage jars that travelled the old trade routes.Map ↗

Good to know

  • Start with the short introductory film; book a guided tour ahead if you want the full story.
  • This is the big Cheng Ho museum, not the small Cheng Ho gallery in the Stadthuys.

Last checked October 2026. Things change, so check opening times, fees and transport before you go.