Rickshaw Ride to the Temples of Penang

Penang Tour

Penang has a fascinating atmosphere of colonial heritage mixed with a fascinating melting pot of Chinese, Malaysian and Indian culture. In Georgetown travel back in time as you wander through the mystical temples and admire the intricate Chinese shop facades. Most travellers tend to gather around the touristy Batu Feringhhi but we actually prefer the more interesting cultural heart of the island. Besides, Malaysia has a lot better beaches than Penang which you’re sure to visit at some other point on your trip.

During this Penang travel experience you’ll be staying in a comfortable middle-class hotel in the centre of Georgetown. The atmosphere of the hotel really reflects its surroundings and that’s one of the reasons why we like staying here when we’re in Penang. We’ll arrange a trishaw to take you along the heritage route past all the interesting buildings in Georgetown. If you like good food you’ll be in for a treat. Penang is the culinary heart of Nyonya cuisine, a uniquely Malaysian mix of Chinese, Malay and Indonesian influences that you can try at one of the many food stalls or restaurants.

Duration:	3 days /2 nights	Accommodation:	Double room in authentic hotel with pool in Georgetown. Accommodation category 3
Price:	from $179 per person - based on 2 people sharing	Includes:	2 nights accommodation with breakfast, half-day trishaw ride
Transport:	trishaw	Excludes:	other meals

Day 1

Many people arrive into Penang via Butterworth along the 8-mile long Penang Bridge and into the heart of Georgetown. Your hotel is in the centre of town and has its own little hawker’s market out front but if you want venture a bit further afield we suggest the hawker’s centre next to Cheong Fatt Tse Mansion in Chinatown where you can try some of the best local dishes in Georgetown. And while we’re on the subject of food, make sure you try the typical Nyonya cuisine, a unique mix of Malaysian, Chinese and Indonesian influences. You can find it at the Datuk Keramat Hawker Centre, also known as Padang Brown. This is also where the lively night markets are held, just ask at reception for the exact days or dates as they tend to change.

Your centrally located hotel has a pool, a nice place to escape the heat in Penang. The comfortable rooms are tastefully decorated and although you’re in the middle of a busy city you’ll feel like you’re in the middle of a peaceful oasis. A great base from which to explore the cultural and culinary delights of Penang.

Day 2

After breakfast you’ll be picked up at the hotel by your trishaw driver around 9am for a tour of the highlights of Georgetown including the Khoo Khongsi Clan house, Fort Cornwallis and the Goddess of Mercy Temple. If you like he’ll stop off at the Penang Islamic Museum for a visit.

Early afternoon you’ll be dropped off at the hotel where you can spend the rest of the day relaxing by the pool, or perhaps explore more of the island. There are several ways to travel around Penang; besides local buses there’s a free shuttle hop-on hop-off service to all the major sights, very useful if you want to visit other places outside Georgetown. For suggestions on some of the most interesting attractions see our travel tips at the bottom of this page.

Day 3

This Penang tour module includes a full day in Penang, which should give you enough time to see all the major sights but if you want delve deeper into the cultural history of Penang we can always extend your stay with an extra day. Just let us know in your quote request form.
From Penang you can continue your Malaysia trip in various directions with one of the following modules:

North: Lazing around on Langkawi
East: Perhentian Island Escape - No Worries on Lang Tengah - Perhentian and Lang Tengah Island Hopping
South: Hammock Beach Break on Pulau Pangkor - Time for Tea

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Accommodation images
Penang tour

Special stay accommodation
Penang tour

The fabulous Blue Mansion is an original 19th century Chinese mansion which in 2000 was awarded the UNESCO Most Excellent Heritage Award. Besides a small hotel the mansion also houses a museum on the history of the original owner Cheong Fatt Tze and its unique 18th and 19th century Chinese architecture. The mansion has limited guest rooms so we can’t guarantee availability but if you book well ahead we can arrange a beautiful room for you in this exceptional house for a truly Special Stay in Penang.

Duration:	3 days /2 nights	Accommodation:	2 nights in double room in authentic Chinese mansion. Accommodation category 4.
Price:	from $229 per person - based on 2 people sharing	Includes:	accommodation with breakfast, trishaw city tour
Transport:	trishaw	Excludes:	other meals

Travel tips

Best time to travel
Pulau Penang, like the rest of the west coast is fine to visit all year round.

Food
Penang is the culinary heart of Nyonya cooking, a unique combination of Chinese and Malaysian influences with sweet, sour, spicy flavours. Specialities are the assam laksa (sweet and spicy fish soup), nasi kandar (curry), mee yoke (king prawns in chili noodle soup) and inche kabin (chicken marinated in spices and then fried). The food stalls are famous for their Nyonya dishes. Thirty Two is a great restaurant in the north of Georgetown that serves fusion cuisine. Besides fantastic food the restaurant has a great atmosphere, a waterside terrace and a live jazz band. We couldn’t tear ourselves away.

Beaches
The word Pulau, Malaysian for ‘island’, conjures up images white beaches and clear blue sea but on Penang most of these paradise beaches have long disappeared. These days Batu Ferringhi, once a favourite hippy hangout, is more reminiscent of the Spanish Costa Brava than a Malaysian tropical island. The place does have plenty of excellent restaurants though, as well as a butterfly farm, a small orchid farm and a botanical garden. It’s also the starting point of an interesting 6 mile (1 ½ hour) trail to Penang Hill.

Street names
The street names on Penang can be a bit confusing because they use both the Malaysian and English names, for example the Jalan Penang/Penang Road and the Lebuh Penang/Penang Street. Many of the street names have also been changed; Lebuh Pitt (Pitt Street) is now called Jalan Mashid Kapitain Kling, and Beach Street is now Lebuh Pantai. As soon as you arrive in Penang, buy the most recent map available to help you find your way.

Local transport
There are local bus routes across the whole city but you can also take the free hop-on hop-off shuttle service along the major sights. The shuttle service departs every 12 minutes Mon – Fri 7am – 7pm, Saturdays 7am – 2pm. For $10 a day you can hire a bike at the Swiss Hotel on Lebuh Chulia, or just take a trishaw or taxi.

Georgetown
The Penang Clock Tower, Fort Cornwallis (RM3) and the ABN AMRO Arts & Culture Centre (free admission) are just a few of the attractions of Georgetown. Go via Little India to Chinatown with its many colonial buildings like the Courts of Justice, the Mariner’s Club and the Penang Museum & Art Gallery (RM1). Not far from here is the ‘Religious Square’ where you’ll find among others the Catholic Cathedral of Assumption, the Anglican St Paul’s Church, the Chinese Goddess of Mercy Temple (Kuan Yin Teng), the Indian Sri Mariamann Temple (with lots of little restaurants and tea stalls around it), the Islamic Kapitan Kling Mosque, which unfortunately was a little disappointing. You’ll also find the many Chinese shophouses that Penang’s so famous for. One of the most interesting sights has to be the ornately decorated Khoo Kongsi (RM5), just south of the ‘Religious Square’ and the nearby Malay Mosque with its distinctive Egyptian minaret.

Western Penang
Wat Chayamangkalaram, the largest Thai temple of Penang with a 100ft Reclining Buddha, and opposite the Burmese temple guarded by giant stone elephants. You can take bus 93 to Penang National Park where you can go hiking through the jungle.

Central Penang
The largest and newest temple of Penang, the State Mosque. The Bat Temple, the Ayer Tam Dam and definitely not to be missed; the Kek Lok Si Temple. You can reach all these attractions by bus 101 or 130.

Southern Penang
Snake Temple and the Chinese fishing village Batu Maung, known for its floating restaurant, good beaches and the War Museum.

Northern Penang
The area around Batu Ferringhi beach is worth a visit. Don’t expect the paradise beaches, it’s more of a large-scale tourist resort and you can’t really swim here. The place does have several excellent restaurants though as well as a Butterfly Farm with over 4000 butterflies and an orchid farm. There’s also an interesting botanical garden, dating back to 1844 (take bus no. 7). You can follow a 6-mile hiking trail to Penang Hill (or take the train from the other side of the hill).

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