Below is a little guide of what we got up to on our trip! Feel free to use what we did to guide your planning!
A little tips is I mark all the places I want to go into google maps as saved places so they pop up with little green flags allowing me to plan my route for the day most efficiently! If you are more of a go with the flow traveler feel free to ignore the hyper-organisation haha
Cost for 2 People for 4 days = 1200 RM = roughly $400 AUD
Wednesday
– Leave home at 6pm
– Catch KTM
– Bus leaves 8pm from KL central
– Arrive 12:30am at Terminal Bus Sungai Nibong
– Get grab to accommodation
– Sleep!
NOTE: when it comes to accommodation there is a very wide range of options whether you want luxury and quite to efficient and in the thick of it!
Personally when travelling I much rather be out and about all day so I am less worried about the place where I am sleeping. However it still needs to be comfortable and clean!
On this trip my partner and I stayed at the Hostel called Swing and Pillows. A great place, super clean and very comfortable, our experience was great! located in the heart of Georgetown it made the next few days of walking and travel super easy! Highly recommend!
Thursday (exploring day)
Breakfast: Wheelers, Love Lane
– Hire bikes: Link Bike Station (2 bikes all day = 10RM)
Okay so that was the plan and you could toottalllyy do it! The bike hire is super easy, but you do want to grab them earlier in the day. I love to walk so decided on that option for the whole day but it is fully up to you! Grabs are also super accessible.
– Padang Kota Lama
– Fort Cornwallis
– Goodness of Mercy Temple
– Penang little India
– Wonder Food museum (As a big foodie, I loved it here. The intricate detail the put into each sculpture was phenomenal as well as the curation told a great story of their history.)
– Penang street art
There is a lot of street art all around George Town which can be super fun to go around and spot! the streets near them are often filled with little shops for food stalls so there is always places to hop inside and look around.. to get out of the heat that is haha
Lunch: Loo Beef noodle (this wasss amazing! situated in a hawker center near the big shopping center. The oyster omelet as well was the best i have ever tried from a stall next door!)
– Tan Jetty and Chew Jetty (walk around)
– Tow Boe Keong Kew Ong Tai Tay Temple
– Persiaran Karpal Singh
– Return bike to appropriate stall (if you hired them)
Dinner: New Lane Street Food stalls (the must try is the Char Kway Teow, but be warned there will be a line… it is worth it though!)
The rest of the night was walking about and randomly finding little gems at different road night markets
Friday
We got even more organised with this one hahah!
7:30am: Seven star gym (2 day passes = 20RM)
9:30am (Breakfast): Hutton Lane Boti Bakar (recommended their chicken curry!! So good!)
10:30am: Travel to Kek Lok Si Temple. (Grab)
11am/11:30am – Kek Lok Si Temple (free). Kek Lok Si Temple address: https://maps.app.goo.gl/1VGVW5cCjoRPVzmX8?g_st=ic
This place is stunning! You can pay a couple RM to get access into different places but it is totally worth it! SO SO PRETTYY… but please don’t be a Suraya and hit the bell super hard….
12:30pm/1pm: head to Penang Hill Lower Station. Address: Penang Hill Lower Station
https://maps.app.goo.gl/kTtVFuH1MBioJU6x5?g_st=ic (buy fast lane tickets!! it is worth it! We got to walk past the roughly 2 and a half hour long line straight onto the train both onto the way there and the way back.. the ticket is worth it!)
1:30pm/2pm: Arrive at The Habitat Penang Hill
2pm (Lunch): see what we can find (there is a big food court upstairs with lots of classic Malay ice desserts down stairs, the ABC was delish!)
2:30/3pm: explore (There was a bunch of walking around to do and we paid to enter and walk around the habitat. If you are going up that is probably the main thing you want to go do otherwise there is too much to see. Very beautiful view and a lovely forestry board walk.
Dinner: Banh Mi Kitchen ( hiigghhhlllyyy recommend!)
The next day was filled with catching up with friends and more random planning but there is sooooo much to do here or is a great place to just chill out! I’ll attach a couple more places we went to below :))) On our trip home me managed to grab a ride with some friends but the reverse of how we got there could have been done too!
Notable Places to visit:
New World Park Food City
An Awesome atmosphere with so much food to try from! We shared Rojak, Chee Cheong Fun, Nasi Lemak, Otak-Otak and Century egg to just name a few. All was really good. If you haven’t tried century egg I recommended it! super mild egg taste but a really cool texture.
The Mugshot Cafe
Situated near Wheelers in Love line, it was a love spot to find a unique pastry!
Hin Bus Depot
With markets every Saturday (starting at 11am) you are sure to find a treat to eat and really interesting often handmade items to buy. The live music and seating areas make it an awesome place to hang out and relax too. Also I found a guy who was carrying around this little guy! So cute!
Eastern & Oriental Hotel
If you a looking for a little bit of a fancier experience this was a great spot to stop for a drink and sit out looking at the water. The staff are lovely and you feel 10 x fancier as soon as you walk in! There is a lot of interesting history about this place to with artifacts you can find scattered around the place too.
The Pharm Hut
If you are a fan of kombucha, this is the place to go! Its a little shop where they make their own house made kombucha and kefir drink. They were soooo delicious. The owner invited us in and showed us her SCOBYs and let us test different types of drinks. She sells the starter kits and does lessons as well if you are interested. A little unexpected gem!
China House
A stunning little hidden café which is one of the oldest cafes in Penang! Filled with cakes, teas and more its a little treasure trove. If you are in a group I recommended going a couple at a time while the rest keep your table to explore the garden out back, the art along the walls and upstairs as well as the little shop upstairs . You also can ask for paper and they will give your table paper and crayons to draw like in the best Chinese restaurants back home when you were a kid! If your drawing stands out to them they will hang it on their wall! Lastly the café has a big spread of books which are all there for book swapping! So if you have any books laying around that you would like to change to something new, bring them with you!
There is so much to explore when It comes to Penang. Situated near to Taiping and Ipoh, its is the ultimate final destination if your taking a quick trip from KL.. but you could also stay in the area for much longer than I did to just relax and enjoy all its culture!
I loved Penang and cant wait to go back!
