Larkin is a well-established district about 4 km north of Johor Bahru city centre, best known for Larkin Sentral bus terminal (opened 1996) and the 30,000-seat Larkin Stadium. Kebun Teh sits on its southern edge, where EXSIM is building The Asteriaz (848 units) and The Celestz (735 units) at postcode 80350. That puts you about a 10-minute drive (~3.2 km) from the JB CIQ, with KSL City Mall and Holiday Plaza close by.
If you are looking at The Asteriaz or The Celestz, the address says “Larkin, 80350 Johor Bahru”. Many buyers, especially from Singapore, know Larkin only as the place where the long-distance buses leave. This Larkin JB area guide covers the wider district: what Larkin is, how it links to Kebun Teh, the transport, sport, healthcare and shopping around it, and what that means for owners and tenants. For a street-level look at Kebun Teh itself, see our Kebun Teh neighbourhood guide. This page zooms out to the whole Larkin area.
Where is Larkin in Johor Bahru?
Larkin is an older mixed-use district about 4 km north of the JB city centre and the Causeway. It sits between the city core around Bukit Chagar and Jalan Wong Ah Fook to the south and the big northern suburbs along the main highways.
Most of Larkin uses the 80350 postcode, and it is reached by Jalan Tun Abdul Razak, Jalan Dato’ Jaafar and the routes that run north towards Skudai and Tampoi. Kebun Teh is the hillier, greener residential pocket at Larkin’s southern edge, near KSL City and Holiday Plaza. The EXSIM towers on Jalan Abad / Jalan Kebun Teh sit right where the two areas meet. That is why the developer’s materials describe the address as Kebun Teh while property portals often file it under Larkin.
In practice, Larkin JB is three things in one place:
- A transport node: Larkin Sentral, the city’s main intercity and cross-border bus terminal.
- A sports and civic district: Larkin Stadium, the public swimming complex and older government quarters.
- A residential belt: landed terraces, older walk-ups and a newer wave of high-rise condominiums and serviced apartments, the newest of which are in Kebun Teh.
Larkin vs Kebun Teh: what is the difference?
Larkin is the larger, older district built around transport and civic facilities. Kebun Teh is the quieter residential pocket on its southern edge, closer to the malls and the city centre.
The two names do not conflict. Larkin is a broad area name that covers the bus terminal, the stadium, government offices, older housing and commercial strips. Kebun Teh, “tea garden” in Malay, is higher ground that was long known for detached and semi-detached homes in a leafier setting. High-rise projects have only arrived there in recent years. For buyers, living on the Kebun Teh side means you get Larkin’s transport and amenities and Larkin-level pricing, in a calmer setting that is nearer KSL City, Holiday Plaza and the Causeway. It is easy to see why EXSIM chose this spot for its first Johor project.
Larkin Sentral: the bus hub that connects Larkin to the country
Larkin Sentral is the main reason most people have heard of Larkin. It is a three-level bus terminal with about 50 bus bays that opened on 1 January 1996, on Jalan Kenyalang.
From here, express buses run to Melaka, Seremban, Kuala Lumpur, Ipoh, Penang, Kota Bharu and other Peninsular Malaysia destinations. They also serve Johor towns such as Batu Pahat, Muar and Mersing, and local buses go to Pontian, Ayer Hitam and Kota Tinggi. Cross-border services by Causeway Link, Singapore-Johore Express and SBS Transit link Larkin with Kranji MRT and the Queen Street terminal in Singapore. Shuttles run between Larkin Sentral and JB Sentral in the city centre. The terminal also has a wet market on site, which many residents use for daily shopping.
For residents of the Kebun Teh towers, Larkin Sentral is a short drive away. It is a convenient option for weekend trips up-country without driving, and for cross-border bus routes that skip the city-centre crowds.
Sport, schools and civic life around Larkin
Larkin has long been JB’s sports quarter, and it still has some of the city’s biggest public sports facilities.
Larkin Stadium
The Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Hassan Yunos Stadium, known to everyone as Larkin Stadium, is on Jalan Dato’ Jaafar, 80350. It opened in 1964 with room for about 15,000 people and was expanded to around 30,000 seats in a 1991 revamp. It was home to Johor Darul Ta’zim until 2019 and has hosted JDT II since 2020. Match days bring a lively atmosphere to the area.
Other facilities
The district also has the Larkin public swimming complex and a long-established hotel, Hotel Seri Malaysia Larkin. Older residential estates nearby are served by national and Chinese-medium schools. Many families in Kebun Teh and Larkin also commute to private and international schools in the wider city.
Healthcare near Larkin and Kebun Teh
Larkin is well placed for healthcare. KPJ Puteri Specialist Hospital, one of JB’s established private hospitals, serves the Larkin area, and the city-centre hospitals are a short drive south.
For an owner-occupier, especially families and retirees, being close to a private specialist hospital is a real day-to-day convenience. For an investor, it also matters for tenant demand: medical staff and patients’ families form a steady part of the rental market in established hospital districts. Our upcoming guide to hospitals near JB City Centre and Kebun Teh will list the main options in more detail.
Shopping and food: from KSL City to Larkin’s local markets
The shopping for the EXSIM towers comes mainly from the Kebun Teh side of Larkin. KSL City Mall is about 630 m away in a straight line (about 2.2 km by road), and Holiday Plaza is roughly 550 m away. City Square and Mid Valley Southkey are about 2.9 km and 3.3 km away.
The wider Larkin district adds a more local layer: the wet market at Larkin Sentral, neighbourhood kopitiams and hawker rows in the older estates, and Malay food stalls around the stadium area. We cover the mall-side lifestyle in living next to KSL City Mall. The table below sets out the main daily-life anchors.
| Place | What it offers | Distance from The Asteriaz (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Holiday Plaza | Older neighbourhood mall, electronics, local food | ~550 m |
| KSL City Mall | Large mall, supermarket, cinema, dining | ~630 m straight / ~2.2 km drive |
| JB CIQ (Bangunan Sultan Iskandar) | Causeway checkpoint to Singapore | ~3.2 km / about 10 min drive |
| RTS Link Bukit Chagar station | Rail link to Woodlands North | ~2.9 km straight line (drive, not walk) |
| Johor Bahru City Square | City-centre mall linked to CIQ | ~2.9 km |
| Mid Valley Southkey | One of JB’s largest malls | ~3.3 km |
| Larkin Sentral | Intercity and cross-border buses, wet market | Short drive north within Larkin |
Getting from Larkin to the CIQ, RTS Link and Singapore
From the Kebun Teh side of Larkin, the JB CIQ is about a 10-minute drive (around 3.2 km), and the RTS Link station at Bukit Chagar is about 2.9 km away in a straight line. This is a drive-or-shuttle location, not a walk-to-the-train one.
The developer has proposed a shuttle service from The Asteriaz and The Celestz to the CIQ and RTS. Final details will depend on the management once the buildings are completed. The RTS Link itself is targeted to start passenger service in February 2027, according to the joint LTA–MOT update of October 2026. The ride from Bukit Chagar to Woodlands North takes about 5 minutes. The fare has not been announced yet.
Larkin residents also have the cross-border buses from Larkin Sentral to Kranji and Queen Street, which gives them more than one way across the Causeway. Our Asteriaz to CIQ and RTS guide sets out the routes and drive times in detail.
Larkin property: what you find and how prices compare
Larkin and Kebun Teh are mostly older stock with a newer layer on top. Historically, that has meant more affordable entry prices per square foot than the JB city-centre waterfront, and steady demand from local families and working tenants.
Available market data shows the price gap clearly:
- Kebun Teh NAPIC median: around RM486 psf, mostly for older stock.
- Zennith Suites (leasehold, completed 2013): asking around RM362–489 psf. Asking rents are about RM1,500–2,200 a month.
- SKS Habitat (leasehold, completed 2021): asking around RM516–559 psf.
- City-centre RTS-area comparables such as R&F Princess Cove have a NAPIC median of about RM904 psf (2021–Jun 2026).
The Asteriaz and The Celestz bring something the area has had little of: a new-generation, facility-rich EXSIM development. The Asteriaz is a single tower of 848 units with a space-themed facility deck. The Celestz adds a 44-storey tower of 735 units next door, including triple-key layouts. Both are expected to complete around 2029–2030. For the latest SPA price list for either tower, WhatsApp us. For a detailed side-by-side with SKS Habitat and older Kebun Teh condos, see the dedicated comparison in this series.
Who Larkin and Kebun Teh suit best
Larkin works best for buyers who want a lived-in neighbourhood and a lower entry price per square foot than the waterfront, and who are happy to drive or take a shuttle 10 minutes to the Causeway.
- Own-stay families: malls, a private hospital, schools and established estates are all close by, and the leafier Kebun Teh streets are quieter than the CIQ core.
- Johor-based professionals: fast access to the highways north and to the city centre, without paying city-centre psf.
- Cross-border commuters who drive: a short run to the CIQ, with the RTS Link and Larkin Sentral buses as backup routes.
- Rental investors: layouts like the Asteriaz 560 sq ft 1+1 or the Celestz triple-key suit a broad local tenant pool, from mall and hospital staff to young professionals.
If you are still choosing between this belt and the waterfront, our Kebun Teh vs JB City Centre comparison sets out the trade-offs, and the complete Asteriaz guide covers layouts and facilities.
Practical tips for living in the Larkin area
New residents get the most out of Larkin when they plan around its rhythms: market mornings, stadium nights and Causeway peak hours.
Plan your Causeway timing
For cross-border commuters, the drive from Kebun Teh to the CIQ is short. The real variable is the queue at the checkpoint. Many commuters build a routine around off-peak crossings. When the RTS Link starts service, it gives a quicker train option from Bukit Chagar to Woodlands North. Pairing a short drive or shuttle with a 5-minute train ride is the main reason the RTS matters for Larkin and Kebun Teh owners, even though the station is not walkable from here. Our JB to Singapore commute comparison weighs the bus, driving and RTS options.
Use the local layer, not just the malls
KSL City and Holiday Plaza cover most weekly needs. For fresh produce, residents often head to the Larkin Sentral wet market or neighbourhood markets early in the morning. The older estates around Larkin also have long-running kopitiams and hawker stalls, which are a big part of daily life and a draw for tenants who prefer local food at local prices.
Know the event days
On football match days at Larkin Stadium, traffic around Jalan Dato’ Jaafar picks up in the evening. If you live in the Kebun Teh towers, this rarely affects your route to the CIQ, which runs south, but it helps to know when you plan trips north.
Think about the tenant you want
If you are buying to rent, look at who already works and lives nearby: mall and retail staff, hospital workers, young professionals working in JB, and Singapore commuters who prefer more space for the money. Matching your layout and furnishing to that tenant pool tends to matter more than small differences in psf. Our rental yield guide shows how to run the numbers before you commit.
Larkin JB at a glance
In short, Larkin offers transport choice, big-ticket civic facilities and everyday convenience, with Kebun Teh as its most modern residential corner.
| Topic | Larkin / Kebun Teh |
|---|---|
| Postcode | 80350 Johor Bahru |
| Distance to city centre | About 4 km |
| Key landmark | Larkin Sentral bus terminal (opened 1 Jan 1996) |
| Sport | Larkin Stadium, about 30,000 seats |
| Malls | KSL City, Holiday Plaza; Southkey and City Square a short drive away |
| Healthcare | KPJ Puteri Specialist Hospital in the Larkin area |
| Newest projects | The Asteriaz (848 units) and The Celestz (735 units) by EXSIM, expected 2029–2030 |
| To Singapore | About 10 min drive to CIQ; proposed shuttle; Larkin Sentral cross-border buses |
Want to see how a unit at The Asteriaz or The Celestz fits your budget? WhatsApp us for the latest SPA price list and floor plans.
Sources
- Larkin Sentral, Wikipedia
- Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Hassan Yunos Stadium, Wikipedia
- Larkin, Johor Bahru, Penang Travel Tips
- The Asteriaz project site
- LTA newsroom: RTS Link service start update (Oct 2026)
- PropertyGuru Malaysia: Kebun Teh and Larkin asking prices
This guide is general information, not financial advice.