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The city of Malacca is located on both sides of the Malacca River near its fall into the Strait of Malacca. The historic central area of the city is located near the old coastline, includes St Paul's Hill with the ruins of the Portuguese fortress, A Famosa and the Dutch Square on the right (eastern) bank of the river, and the old Chinatown on the left (western) bank. The modern city has grown in all directions from this historic core, including to the south (because the present coastline of the Strait of Malacca is somewhat farther down to the south than its original location due to land reclamation). The "Chinese Hill" (Bukit Cina), where a large old Chinese cemetery is located, was formerly located to the northeast of the town, but now is surrounded by the city on all sides.

The site where the city of Malacca stands today was the center of Malaccan history. It was the capital of the Malaccan Sultanate and was the centre of the Malay world in the 15th and the 16th century after the Malays moved over from Sumatra and was the most developed part of the Malay Peninsula before it fell to the Portuguese in 1511. Centuries of colonization by the Portuguese, Dutch and the British as well as development of Straits Chinese (Peranakan) culture have influenced the architecture of the town.
Since the founding of Singapore in 1819, Malacca has been in decline as its port was silting up and Singapore and Kuala Lumpur have grown. Over the years, many Malaccans have moved to Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian capital.
After World War II, anti-colonial sentiment developed amongst Malay nationalists which led to negotiations with the British and eventually the announcement of Independence by Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia's first Prime Minister, at the Padang Pahlawan (Warrior's Field) at Bandar Hilir, in Melaka on 20 February 1956.

Tourism
Most tourist attractions are concentrated in its small city centre and one can walk down Jonker's Walk which is a row of shophouses that has Peranakan architecture. In the Bandar Hilir area, A Famosa Fort, St. Paul Hill and many museums (paid entrance) are available. One can also visit Pulau Melaka, an island formed through land reclamation mainly for housing purposes just by crossing a causeway that leads to the island. At the end of Pulau Melaka is situated Masjid Selat (Strait Mosque). Other islands include Pulau Upeh near Klebang Beach (currently udergoing reclaimation works) and Pulau Besar. Pulau Besar can be reached from Anjung Batu jetty at Umbai.
Tourists can go around the town and its surrounding areas by using Bas Panorama Melaka. The bus operate in circle on the 2 routes. The bigger route starts at Melaka Sentral to Old Bus Station, Gajah Berang, Jonker Walk, Bandar Hilir, Kampung Portugis, Bukit Baru, State Mosque, Giant Hypermarket and finally back to Melaka Sentral. With reasonable round trip fare, the trip provides access for tourist for many places in the city because they can drop at all those places and get into another bus for further trip.
To reach Malacca city through the North-South Expressway to Malacca Monorail and Melaka Sentral, one has to take a detour from the town of Ayer Keroh and travel south through the Lebuh Ayer Keroh, while to reach Muar, which is 40 km from the Malacca Town itself, one has to travel by Jalan Ujong Pasir or using AMJ highway.