Sunway Big Box in Johor
There are only ever 2 reasons why Singaporeans make that journey across the Causeway into JB – to eat and to shop. When it comes to shopping in JB, veterans will already know to hit up places like Jaya Grocer Eco Galleria for affordable groceries or even Toppen Shopping Centre for IKEA. But here’s one place you might have missed: Sunway Big Box Retail Park in Johor.
Giving us major Singapore Expo vibes, the mall takes on an open-air warehouse concept with unique stores and hasheries, some of which are exclusive to Malaysia. From a BBT chain that’s a massive hit with locals to an epic trampoline park, here’s our guide to the Sunway Big Box Retail Park, one of Johor’s newest must-visits.
Table of Contents
- Sunway Big Box in Johor
- – What to do at Sunway Big Box –
- 1. BookXcess
- 2. EnerG X Park
- – What to eat & drink at Sunway Big Box –
- 3. TeaLive
- 4. Mr. Dakgalbi
- 5. Miyakori Coffee
- – What to buy at Sunway Big Box –
- 6. Romantika
- 7. MR. DIY
- 8. SSFHOME
- – Bonus: Where to stay near Sunway Big Box Retail Park –
- Sunway Big Box Hotel
- X Park Sunway Iskandar
Is it worth visiting Sunway Big Box?
Make Sunway Big Box a pit stop on your way to do other things to do near the Tuas Checkpoint like LEGOLAND Malaysia. The mall is family-friendly, with its numerous entertainment options like an indoor playground and cinema. There’s plenty to eat as well with cuisines like fast food, Korean, Thai, and Western available.
– What to do at Sunway Big Box –
1. BookXcess
7.5m-tall “Big Box of Knowledge”
BookXcess is where we can expect to find flocks of bibliophiles and social media junkies in the same room. For one, the entire store space is dedicated to books of all genres including fiction, health and wellness, and children’s reads.
Whether you’re looking for titles to gift to friends or to add to your personal collection, the books are affordably priced and average out to about RM25 (~S$7.10) each.
The highlight here has got to be the central book display box. Standing at 7.5m, or close to 2 HDB storeys high, this “Big Box of Knowledge” emits a warm, orange glow – doing double work of inviting patrons to enter and as an IG-worthy backdrop.
The 1st floor of the book box is where parents or family friends can find books and activity kits for young ones. The children’s nook has a shoes-off zone where kids can plop their bums on a soft green carpet to browse books before buying.
Head upstairs for reads catered to us older folks – including comics, fiction, and self-help books.
The workstations at BookXcess’ Setia Alam branch, within Sunsuria Forum mall.
Image for illustration only.
Cushy seats are scattered around the bookstore for patrons to take breaks in between scouring through shelves of books. The ambience here is quite similar to libraries in Singapore, it’s no wonder that we spotted patrons getting work done at desks fitted with power plugs.
Unit: F-01, First Floor
Opening hours: 10am-10pm, Daily
Contact: +60 3-5614 4664 | BookXcess website
2. EnerG X Park
Indoor trampoline activity park with tube slide
Move aside, regular playgrounds. EnerG X Park is an indoor activity park where the worlds of trampolines, high elements, and sports collide. With over 5 zones of high-adrenaline fun, don’t be surprised if you work up a serious sweat despite having stayed indoors.
Before the fun can begin, you and your party will need to sign waiver forms, and get special grip socks which can be purchased over the counter for RM5/pair (~S$1.42). Lockers are available to store your barang-barang at RM5 (~S$1.42) each.
For those who are anything but acrophobic, try the parkour zone where the extra bouncy red trampoline will launch you up a high wall. I was asked to peek my head out of the windows by the foam block pit before diving into the soft blocks, buuut my heart said no.
I tried the zip line and high elements obstacle course instead. The obstacle course has 3 floors and features a variety of planks and steps to manoeuvre. Meanwhile, the zip line gives you an aerial view of EnerG X Park from about 1.5 floors high.
After which, advance to the “Leap of Faith” station where you’ll leap onto a giant punching bag that swings in the air, before free-falling onto a cushy air bag on ground level.
Neighbouring the zip line zone is a giant tube slide. You’ll have to lug the tube up first, then position yourself snugly in the centre before a staff member pushes you down. Task your mates to stand by their cameras to snap a pic of you in mid-air, as the slide down is pretty fast and you’ll only get a smidge of airtime before the landing.
Gather your mates and challenge other groups to a friendly game of dodgeball. You can make use of the slanted trampolines to rebound and launch attacks at the opposing team. Or practice some trampoline tricks here too, if you like.
Other sporty zones include cage ball, where players aim to get the least balls on their side of the court, and good ol’ basketball – with a twist. Channel your inner Lebron James with the aid of a bouncy trampoline, gaining major hang time to score a basket or dunk, even.
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– What to eat & drink at Sunway Big Box –
3. TeaLive
Malaysians’ favourite BBT brand from RM7.90
Image credit: Sunway Big Box
Singaporeans and Malaysians can agree on this – our love for bubble tea. It’s no wonder that bubble tea store TeaLive has taken centre stage of the indoor atrium at Sunway Big Box’s ground floor.
We tried the Signature Brown Sugar Pearl Milk Tea (RM 7.90, ~$2.24) and Signature Coco (RM 7.90, ~$2.24).
This BBT chain store is exclusively found in Malaysia and has all our favourites, like the quintessential Brown Sugar Pearl Milk Tea (from RM7.90, ~S$2.24) amongst other fruit teas and chocolate milk variations on the menu.
Unique menu offerings include the Nishio Matcha drinks (from RM10.40, ~S$2.95) – made from premium matcha.
Unit: G-AK-12, Ground Floor
Opening hours: 10am-10pm, Daily
Contact: +60 12-7503066 | TeaLive website
Bonus: If you’ve got the feels for something other than BBT, check out nearby shops like Dum Dum Thai Tea for Thai Tea (RM9.90, ~S$2.81) and Shake Shake for smoothies and yoghurt drinks – stationed right behind TeaLive.
4. Mr. Dakgalbi
Cheese fondue set from RM98/4pax (~S$27.85)
Mr. Dakgalbi is a Korean resto specialising in spicy dakgalbi, or stir-fried chicken. Their signature is a cheese fondue ring that surrounds the central grill plate, making light work of creating your own cheese-wrapped chicken.
Image credit: Mr.Dakgalbi via Facebook
Depending on how many you have in your party and how much tummy space you have, the menu has a Couple Set (RM94/2pax, ~S$26.70) and a Family Set (RM149/4pax, ~S$42.33). Each comes with fried rice and ramen for carb lovers, marinated chicken for you to grill to your desired level of char, and plenty of cheese fondue to go around.
Unit: G-05, Ground Floor
Opening hours: 10am-10pm, Daily
Contact: +60 11-3601 4059 | Mr. Dakgalbi website
5. Miyakori Coffee
Freshly baked waffles daily & Japanese cafe food
Image credits: faqihahfzl via Google Maps, ming via Google Maps
There’s no shortage of cafes in JB if you’re craving brunch favourites like pastas, cakes, and coffee. Sunway Big Box is no exception with Miyakori Coffee, which has Arabica coffee, freshly baked waffles, and Japanese mains on the menu. Even if you’re only dropping by for a drink, this is a charming place to relax in, with its aesthetic, minimalist interior.
While you’re here, we recommend trying their Iced Belgian Chocolate Drink (RM$13.90, ~S$3.96) and Miyakori Kurimitsu Coffee (RM$14.90, ~S$4.25). For waffles, we recommend going for their Chocolate Brownie Waffle (RM19.50, ~S$5.56).
P.S. Coffee lovers do take note that their coffee is on the milkier side!
Unit: G-11, Ground Floor
Opening hours: 10am-9pm, Daily
Contact: +60 10-822 2757 | Miyakori Coffee website
– What to buy at Sunway Big Box –
6. Romantika
Affordable home decor items
Ask any Malaysian makcik and they’ll point you to Romantika for home and decor items that’ll barely make a dent in your wallet. Unlike regular homeware stores like IKEA which focus on furniture and decorations, Romantika focuses on bringing the outdoors, indoors with a wide variety of artificial plants and “ceramic” pots made of plastic.
By “wide variety”, we mean that the entire store space resembles wholesale florists where shoppers can scour through large pots of flowers and create their own bouquet to take home.
While most of the vases are made of plastic and thus resistant to breakage, you’ll also be able to find ones made out of actual ceramic. Pair it with your curated bouquet to gift your mum or aunties for lasting touches of colour to the living room.
Besides jazzing up the home with artificial blooms and faux ceramic pots, Romantika also has lots of fabrics for sale. These can be transformed into carpets and drapes to match your home’s aesthetic.
Unit: G-09, Ground Floor
Opening hours: 10am-10pm, Daily
Contact: +60 12-980 7751 | Romantika website
7. MR. DIY
Discounted knick-knacks like soft toys & tumblers
We’re no stranger to hardware store MR. DIY, where anyone can find knick-knacks of all kinds along with, well, DIY stuff. Aside from hardware gear and DIY items, there’s also everyday lifestyle items like cute soft toys, water bottles, and caps – think anything that belongs in your home, and you’ll find it somewhere in MR.DIY.
There are a couple of MR. DIY outlets around Singapore’s heartlands too, and with already discounted price tags. You can expect to find the same discounts applied here in the OG Malaysian stores. Coupled with the added advantage of the favourable exchange rate, I couldn’t help but grab a handful of items for myself.
Should you set your eyes on an item that’s been placed in the wrong aisle, just take it to the nifty price checkers stationed around the store to confirm how much it costs before you add to cart.
Unit: FF-L-10, First Floor
Opening hours: 10am-10pm, Daily
Contact: +60 3-8961 1338 | MR. DIY website
8. SSFHOME
1-stop home lifestyle store selling furniture, home decor & kitchenware
Image credits: SSFHOME
Whether you’re a new homeowner or looking to rejuvenate your space with home decor, we recommend SSFHOME – which we liken to a Malaysian version of IKEA. Here’s where you can find everything you’d need whether it’s a new sofa, bed frame, curtain or some carpets. There are also artificial flowers and plants that you can buy to zheng up your place.
You might also want to consider their VIP membership if you expect yourself to be buying items from them frequently. Perks include a 20% birthday discount on top of a welcome gift (worth RM199, ~S$56.51) or a RM100 (~S$28.40) voucher when you sign up. Membership goes for RM99/year (~S$28.37).
Do note that SSFHOME only accepts Malaysia bank-issued credit and debit cards. Additionally, they don’t provide delivery services out of Malaysia, which means that you’d need to arrange for delivery by yourself if you need it.
Unit: G-08 and FF-04, Ground Floor and Fourth Floor
Opening hours: 10am-10pm, Daily
Contact: +60 19-236 1816 | SSFHOME website
– Bonus: Where to stay near Sunway Big Box Retail Park –
Sunway Big Box Hotel
Family suite room from RM836/4pax
Image credit: Sunway Hotel Big Box
With so much to do around Sunway Big Box Retail Park, the developers of Sunway have conveniently stacked a hotel in the vicinity so visitors can continue in the fun till late, without worrying about transport at the end of the night.
The Family Suite room comes with 1 Super King Bed, a sofa bed, and a pantry.
Image adapted from: Sunway Hotel Big Box
Be it with family or friends, a group of 4 can opt for the hotel’s Family Suite room from RM836/night, which makes it about S$59.39/pax.
X Park Sunway Iskandar
ATV, high elements & glamping
Image adapted from: @zedzaid via Instagram, X Park Malaysia, @fiqh_shariff via Instagram
Another attraction for the fearless is X Park Sunway Iskandar. Their catalogue of activities ranges from muddy ATV rides to team paintball games and go-karting. Daredevils can also try cycling along a tightrope in the high rope circuit (from RM45, ~S$12.79).
The glamping “rooms” are modern square huts for 2.
Image adapted from: X Park Malaysia
After a day’s work of engaging in exhilarating activities, guests can kick back and spend the night at X Camp Glamping. The campsite comprises cube rooms fitted with amenities to house up to 2, as they recharge for the next day.
Adventurous duos can go for the glamping package (from RM400/2pax per night, ~S$113.68) that comes with access to 7 activities including archery, go-karting, and ATV rides, on top of a 2D1N stay. If you and boo are simply looking to try out glamping without the added thrills, rooms are available on their own from RM200/2pax (~S$56.84) per night.
Visit Sunway Big Box Retail Park in Johor
Sunway Big Box in Johor has plenty to boast about in its directory. From mouth-watering cheese fondue grilled meats and IG-worthy spots to a next-level bookstore and indoor activity park to spend hours at, it’ll be worth setting aside a full day to explore this container-style retail park.
Staying true to its shopping mall core, you’ll be able to find NSK Trade City on the ground floor for home essentials and groceries to stock up on if you’re headed for glamping experience; and GSC on the 1st floor to catch the latest movies, with showtimes as late as midnight.
What amenities are available at Sunway Big Box?
Sunway Big Box is a family-friendly mall with amenities like a kids playground on the ground floor for little ones. Parents with even tinier tots can also check into the baby rooms to change diapers and private nursing rooms for breastfeeding mums. You’ll even find thoughtful touches like baby lotion and soap, as well as hot/cold water dispensers to make formula.
Another amenity Muslims would find useful would be the Surau. The prayer room is located on the ground floor near the playground.
How to get to Sunway Big Box?
There are 2 entrances to JB – via the Woodlands or Tuas Checkpoints. For Sunway Big Box, it’s the Tuas Second Link you’ll want to take. After arriving at JB, it’s about a half-hour drive to Sunway Big Box. If you aren’t entering JB via car, consider booking a Grab.
Alternatively, there are car rentals in JB as well, which would be more convenient if you’re planning on visiting multiple locations within JB. Good news for drivers – there’s free parking all day. And if you drive an EV, there are Tesla charging stations at the West Wing.
It’s possible to get to Sunway Big Box via public transport from Tuas Checkpoint. Hop onto bus service CW7L from the checkpoint and the mall is the first stop along this route. The whole journey will take just about an hour.
Find out more about Sunway Big Box Retail Park
Address: Persiaran Medini 5, Sunway City Iskandar Puteri, 79250 Nusajaya, Johor, Malaysia
Opening hours: 10am-10pm, Daily
Contact: +60 7-533 1333
Check out our JB guides for more things to do in Johor:
Photography by Alvin Wong.
A portion of this content may contain referral links to products. Our opinions remain our own.
Last updated by Gracelyn Lim on 12th March 2024