Things to do & places to visit in Penang, Malaysia

Penang #2 destination in Malaysia 2023. The average rating score is 4.16 based on 46.4k traveler reviews, of 62 attractions. Timezone: Asia/Kuala_Lumpur, current date and time: Tuesday, April 30, 2024, 0:20.

Penang Weather Statistics view more »

General weather summary in April

87°F - 79°F

Temperature Highs - Lows

Very warm, muggy

Feels like

72%

Chance of rain

637.0 millimeters

Amount

5.8 mph

Wind speed

78%

Humidity

12.2

Daylight length

7:11 AM

Sunrise

7:25 PM

Sunset

21%

Cloud cover

Sleeveless shirt, rain coat and rain boots

What to wear

Top things to do (37)

Top destinations in Penang 5

Top places to visit (30 attractions) view more »

5.0 Escape Theme Park (2.852 reviews) from $12.00
- A Family Must
Tuesday: 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Spent More than 3 hours Amusement & Theme Parks

ESCAPE is the fun destination with exciting rides and attractions. Hosted with nature in mind. Located in Teluk Bahang, Penang, Malaysia, ESCAPE re-introduces outdoor play in a natural environment so to give the visitor an appreciation of the world around them and shows that there's no age limit to having fun. See more..
5.0 Penang House of Music (218 reviews) from $7.18
- Must visit site in Penang to understand culture and history
Tuesday: Spent < 1 hour Speciality Museums

A celebration of Penang's glorious musical heritage and cultural diversity with carefully curated exhibitions and interactive features. We showcase, among many things, Penang's popular music from the 1940s-1960s, a feature on communal music, a recreation of a radio booth and cinema, and many others! Also available is a resource center where visitors may discover an ever-growing vinyl collection, newspaper clippings, previously unreleased recordings, audio and video interviews and many, many more. See more..
5.0 Danai Wellness @ Vangohh Eminent (95 reviews)
- Highly recommended Wellness center especially for local
Tuesday: 10:00 AM - 9:00 PM Spas

Danai Wellness is a Malaysia-based company established in 2004. Our parent company is listed on 1exchange Singapore and principally engaged in the provision of a wide range of services in the spa and medical wellness industry. We are an award-winning wellness brand with a prominent presence. Our current portfolio encompasses Danai Spa, Danai Wellness, Danai Medi-Wellness & La'gent, providing a myriad of products, services and treatments in various areas that include Spa, Meridian Massages, Advanced Aesthetics Facials, Hair Atelier and Medical Wellness. Tapping into our expertise as a leader in wellness for over 18 years and helmed by a panel of medical doctors, we strive to offer a suite of safe, efficient and effective services by employing a medical-based wellness approach. See more..
5.0 Mega Mall Bowling Centre (1 review)
- Spending valuable time with you loved ones
Spent 2-3 hours Bowling Alleys

Megamall Bowling Centre is the biggest bowling centre in Penang & second largest in Malaysia. Located in Megamall Pinang, we have various type of activities in our bowling alley such as private & group training for students and employees and we also arrange tournaments for bowling fans. See more..
4.5 Pinang Peranakan Mansion (4.424 reviews)
- Beautiful mansion and great tour
History Museums

Went on Tuesday at around 1pm and it wasn't too crowded. Payed RM25 for entrance and tour fee for single the adult. The architect was beautiful and the details of each rooms and the house was well maintained and amazing. The tour guy, Frances, did amazing job on explaining and giving details of the life of the people who lived here and some historical insite of the family. He was friendly and professional, and tour was done in English. (You can get Chinese tour too.) The tour was around 45min, covered all the area in the house. Loved the experience and strongly recommend✨ See more..
4.5 Entopia (1.640 reviews) from $10.97
- Wasn’t expecting much, but it’s brilliant.
Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Spent 2-3 hours Farms • Gardens • Educational sites

Entopia, a tropical sanctuary for our planet's little denizens from those that fly freely in the sky to the ones that creep stealthily beneath the ground. Journey into a magical paradise that honours the unsung heroes of our natural world with plenty to discover from outdoor adventures to cavernous mysteries and a multi-storey Indoor Discovery Centre. Live the moment with exciting interactive workshops and activities. There's something for everyone. Join us to experience the seen and unseen in Nature. We are the voice of nature. See more..
4.5 Armenian Street (1.581 reviews)
- Most popular street
Spent 1-2 hours Historic Sites • Neighborhoods • Historic Walking Areas

The street art first drew crowds to this small area and then every possible space was turned into a souvenir shop. Interesting cafeterias also appeared like the white glass cubicle Your Local Club on a heritage site next to the almost fading Girls on a bike drawing. The constant action on the narrow adjoining streets keeps people coming to pose with their chosen piece of art. See more..
4.5 Tropical Spice Garden (1.399 reviews)
- A great morning trip
Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM Spent 1-2 hours Gardens

Asia's Hidden Eden! Timeless and enchanting, Tropical Spice Garden is an eco-attraction tucked within a natural valley fronting the Straits of Malacca. The showcase garden houses over 500 species of herb, spice and tropical plants. Explore and discover the fabulous diversity of nature as you through trails and pathways that meander through undulating hills, jungles terraces and natural streams. Garden Audio Tours available in 7 Languages: English, Chinese, Malay, Arabic, Japanese, German & French. Alternatively, you may take the Live Guided Tour that starts at 9am, 11am, and 1.30pm. The trails are slightly inclined so do wear comfortable walking shoes - unfortunately wheelchairs & strollers are not recommended. See more..
4.5 Street Art in George Town (1.184 reviews)
- Amazing!
Spent More than 3 hours Points of Interest & Landmarks • Scenic Walking Areas

We decided to go and explore the street art ourselves one afternoon. From Batu Ferringhi (beaches) you can get a taxi (approx 50RM) or enjoy the local bus (2.50RM per person). The bus takes approx 1 hour. We hit Armenian Street where most of the action was happening. But we then wandered in and around the streets to discover more artwork. There are lots of shops and food stalls to look at as well. See more..
4.5 Dharmikarama Burmese Temple (874 reviews)
- Burmese facing Thai
Religious Sites

Less shining than the Thai version opposite it the Burmese Buddhist Temple grounds have many painted statues of gods and other mythical characters. Several ponds are full of big fish, introducing live turtles is prohibited, but somebody already did it. This building too is kept in pristine condition by constantly repainting the gilded ornaments. Entrance is free and begging is not encouraged by the temple. I bought a small massage device made from real horn from the man by the gate. See more..
4.5 The Habitat Penang Hill (699 reviews) from $13.65
- Hidden gem in Penang - try the guided tours if it’s your first time
Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 7:00 PM Spent 1-2 hours Nature & Wildlife Areas

The Habitat Penang Hill provides the most authentic, diverse and educational Malaysian rainforest experience. Reconnect with nature in its purest form as you immerse yourself in our 130-million year old rainforest. Starting at the forest floor, our Naturalists will take you on a journey along our Nature Trail to explore the myriad of flora and fauna – plants, trees, insects, birds, reptiles, and mammals that call The Habitat home. Explore the biodiversity of the rainforest canopy on our 230m Langur Way Canopy Walk. Visit Curtis Crest Tree Top Walk at the top of Penang Hill, and embrace the 360-degree panoramic views of Penang Island from the highest viewing point of Penang. Our Shop on the Hill carries educational and ethically produced merchandise themed around all things nature and culture. Finish at our Habitat Café with refreshments ranging from artisanal coffee,and gourmet cakes. Discover a different side of Penang Hill. The Habitat is open from 9am - 6pm (Last entry at 4:45pm) See more..
4.5 Colonial Penang Museum (374 reviews)
- Super Duper Cool
This location was reported permanently closed Speciality Museums

Our Colonial Penang museum will bring visitors back to Penang's colonial past. Experience the unique lifestyle of both the British Administrators & the wealthy merchants, appreciate the intricate art form from the past and the influence of British to our Penangites. Visitors can find unique antiques such as :- - Parchment handwritten document by Captain Francis Light, founder of Penang, - Francois Linke ,the Belle Epoque of French furniture, - The white carrara marble statues by Atelier R.Bigazzi Florence, - Reverse painting by William Morris & Company (Westminster) Ltd., ( Ruskin House ), - Stained Glass window by Hubert McGoldrick / Alfred Ernest Child and Katherine O'Brien , - Roman pillars and tree house and many more. The museum can also be used as an educational instrument for students to promote the understanding and significant of our rich heritage in the past. See more..
4.5 Wonderfood Museum Penang (374 reviews) from $4.83
- A fun and colourful food museum to visit!
Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM Spent 1-2 hours Speciality Museums

We visited this museum and had a great photo time with the different food exhibits. It was a museum full of colours as well as interesting thoughts about food. We truly enjoyed the experience with many photo memories. See more..
4.5 Adventure Zone (318 reviews)
- Best fun on the island
Playgrounds

Adventure Zone is a 10,000-square-foot facility comprising of a comprehensive indoor playground with three categories of drop slides and multiple sections of modular play equipment. The main highlight will be the drop slides, which have proven to be extremely safe and offer high level of enjoyment for both children and adults. See more..
4.5 Asia Camera Museum (285 reviews) from $5.73
- Great exhibits with an enthusiastic guide
Tuesday: 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Spent < 1 hour Speciality Museums

This is an unusual museum all about photography from beginning to modern times. The entrance fee includes a guide who will take you through the processes involved in professional photography. The guide will also show the old school way of touching up photos back in the days before photoshop and editing too that can be done easily on even your phones. An honourable mention also goes to the mock-up of a dark room where I got another great explanation of how this worked. I do not consider myself a photography enthusiast, but I found myself captivated by the passionate narrative and sheer enthusiasm of the guide. A fantastic visit and well worth the small entrance fee. I wish all museums had guides this interested in their exhibitions. See more..
4.5 Tech Dome Penang (124 reviews)
- Wondrous Experience Under a Dome
Tuesday: Spent More than 3 hours Speciality Museums • Natural History Museums • Science Museums

Explore, discover & experience science at Penang's 1st Science Discovery Centre (KOMTAR, Georgetown). 150 interactive exhibits & countless hours of fun. See more..
4.5 St. Anne's Church (89 reviews)
- St. Anne Bukit Mertajsm
Churches & Cathedrals

We stayed at St Joachim. It quiet at night. Guest are encourage to stay silence as the center is a place where priest do their study. Nearby to the new church of St. Anne, the old chapel, and the bookstore center. Food you can cater and delivered to the center or just call food delivery. See more..
4.5 Tow Boo Kong Temple Butterworth (48 reviews)
- Beautiful Taoist temple
Religious Sites

Rumah Berhala Tow Boo Kong Butterworth, or Tow Boo Kong Temple for short, is one of the most distinctive Nine Emperor Gods Temple in Malaysia. Located in Jalan Raja Uda, Butterworth, Penang, this majestic temple stands on 2 plots of land with a total area of 40, 000 square feet.From a small unknown attap shed 40 years ago to an opulent renowned place of worship, Rumah Berhala Tow Boo Kong Butterworth had a humble beginning and had grown steadily throughout the years. Built in 1974 and fully completed on 26th April 2000, the building of this temple is made possible through the generous contributions and support of the government and its devotees. The existence of this impressive temple is a form of affinity that brought the devotees and the temple together. See more..
4.5 Bukit Mertajam Recreational Forest (33 reviews)
- Taman Rimba Bukit Mertajam
Forests

It's a well kept recreational park. Suitable to exercise/ walking with family member. There are 2 ways to hiking up to the hill. Jungle track (1.9 km) or bintumen road (3.5km). Second option is much easier than the first See more..
4.5 Butterworth Art Walk (19 reviews)
- NICE!
Tuesday: 12:00 AM - 11:59 PM Points of Interest & Landmarks

It is the only one art street at Butterworth, there show the different famous artwork on the buildings You are recommended to go there and take some amazing photo with your loved one, family members as well as your friends. Reminder: spent your time at night. See more..
4.0 Penang Hill (8.379 reviews)
- Natural Hill top definitely fun for family
Tuesday: 6:30 AM - 11:00 PM Spent 1-2 hours Trams

Penang Hill is the oldest British hill station in Southeast Asia, dated late 1700’s. The highest peak of Penang Hill stand at 833 metres (2,732ft) above sea level. Penang Hill funicular train service started on October 1923 The current funicular trains is the 4th generation system which started its operation on 24th April 2011. The funicular track stretches a distance of 1,996 metres (1.99KM) from lower to Upper Station which is the longest in Asia. Penang Hill funicular tunnel, at 79 metres (258ft) long and 10feet (3.0m) wide with a steepness of 27.9degree, is the steepest tunnel track in the world. There are a total of 52 hill bungalows located on Penang Hill (42 of them are private-owned and 10 bungalows are state-owned). Most of them are more than 100 years old and Bel Retiro (Governors Bungalows) built in1789 is the oldest. Number of visitor to Penang Hill in 2016 exceed 1.6million. See more..
4.0 Kek Lok Si Temple (3.927 reviews)
- Exploring after a business appointment
Tuesday: 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM Architectural Buildings • Religious Sites

Decided to make a trip over to see the statue, originally the statue were placed outdoor up high on the mountain after the years with the fundraiser donations from the people a pagoda structure were builded. My appreciation to all. One can now drive all the way up to the main sanctuary point with minimal parking fees of RM3 per vehicle, alternative you can drive half point and take the so call elevator up with a minimal fees of RM6 per person’s two way plus the minimal parking charges too. If one could remember the olden days with the extreme visitors by walking up where visitor could shop and dine along the way up well one could still be able to experience this. We decided to drive half way point as the weather were too hot to walk up and time taken is less in exploring the site that having said if you are in a hurry otherwise the walk is something to explore. See more..
4.0 Cheong Fatt Tze - The Blue Mansion (2.787 reviews)
- A well worth tour experience of the mansion
Tuesday: Spent < 1 hour Historic Sites

Discover the story of The Blue Mansion Come in and immerse yourself in the architecture and history of iconic The Blue Mansion, one of George Town’s most lauded architectural gems. Our trained guides will provide comprehensive insight into how the mansion came to be, its heritage, and the man whose vision brought this grand home to fruition. Covering the reception hall, the famed courtyard and the museum exhibition on the second floor, the tour will take 45 minutes in total. Please note that in order to guard the privacy of our hotel guests, only some parts of the mansion are accessible during the tour, but we do encourage guests to experience different facets of The Blue Mansion through staying with us, having a classic cocktail at the bar, or enjoying a meal at our restaurant – Indigo See more..
4.0 Khoo Kongsi (1.784 reviews)
- Gorgeous place
Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM Speciality Museums

The part you can see is the actual temple, but it's only a small part of what was a huge complex housing hundreds of people at some point, all part of the Khoo Kongsi clan. There is a lot of information about the place, and it's very nicely done for you to understand the local culture, the role of the clans, and of course the role of the houses and temples. Loved visiting this! See more..
4.0 Penang Botanical Gardens (1.397 reviews)
- Lots of hidden gems
Gardens

We came on a weekday, so traffic of joggers was much subdued. We enjoyed the greenery and streams. We were last here perhaps 11 years ago and there was a slow train operating but this time round the train was no longer around. The positive side of it was we walked further and in the process found little hidden gems that we overlooked previously like the lily pond in a secluded corner of the garden and the thematic gardens e.g. herb garden and Japanese garden. Visitors can also hire 4WD jeeps from here as an alternative to the cramped funicular train. See more..
4.0 Penang National Park (Taman Negara Pulau Pinang) (959 reviews)
- Brilliant Hike
National Parks

My wife and I chose to visit the National Park to do some hiking and see some of Penang's off the beaten track forests and beaches. If your motives are similar then it is definitely worth a visit! It costs 50 ringgit per person to enter the forest and you can boats direct to each of the beaches (if you want a boat just for the way back then organise this before you start walking, as they don't wait around at the beaches). We chose to walk to Turtle beach and back, which was about a 2.5 hour journey. The forest is great and there is plenty of wildlife to see. The trails are well marked and sign posted, so getting lost is not an issue. Nevertheless the routes are challenging enough that you feel completely immersed in the forest, which is awesome! If you are the adventurous type or simply fancy getting out of the hotel for a morning, then I would definitely recommend visiting the National Park. Wear long trousers though as it is a proper forest and there are leaches and loads of ants. See more..
4.0 Upside Down Museum (853 reviews)
- Wonderful visit to this hidden gem
Tuesday: 9:00 AM - 6:30 PM Art Museums

Didn't plan to visit, but boy are we happy we did. Entry price was reasonable, and the setup of the museum is very well organised. The highlight though is the staff. They clearly realise that we all now live in a social media culture, so every room had a few staff that rapidly arranged you into the correct positions in order to take the best possible photo's. They then took the photos using your own smartphones. This made maximising the visit so simple as every single picture from each room were IG ready. See more..
4.0 Reclining Buddha Wat Chaiyamangalaram (768 reviews)
- It leaves you amazed!
Tuesday: 6:00 AM - 5:30 PM Religious Sites

The golden Buddha reclining in leisure pose is a sight to behold. The approx 100ft length. The feet soles are engraved with scriptures. The complex has multiple temple structures and statues. Just can't get enough of them, beautiful-calm-carved sculptures. Gold & hues of gold See more..
4.0 Kapitan Keling Mosque (646 reviews)
- Main mosque
Spent 1-2 hours Religious Sites

A visitor's centre is open in a separate building in the vast green garden. To enter the main building shoes must be left on the racks outside, locals even wash their feet in the covered water baisin on the courtyard. Toilets in mosques are usually free to use for anybody. See more..
4.0 Tropical Fruit Farm (613 reviews)
- nice trip
Farms

Got a taxi here three of us best way to get there you dont need organised tour. You have a guide showing you around and explaing various fruit, you then get to try some which is lovely and fresh. The views are fantastic this place is really worth a visit the cost for the far. is about £6 English pound x See more..