Things to do in Penang

Things to do

1. The street art of George Town

   About fifty walls painted by Ernest Zacharevic and others, to hunt down on foot in the old town. On Wikipedia (in French)

   Off the beaten trackArtwork3 hrFreebest in the morning

2. Kek Lok Si Temple

   Malaysia’s largest Buddhist temple, its Pagoda of Ten Thousand Buddhas and its thirty-meter Guanyin. On Wikipedia

   Culture and historyMonument2 hr 30 min≈ €3best in the afternoon

3. Penang Hill by funicular

   Eight hundred and thirty-three meters, five minutes up, and the whole island out to the mainland. On Wikipedia

   RelaxationViewpoint3 hr≈ €6best in the morning

4. Penang char kway teow

   Considered Southeast Asia’s food capital, and it all happens on a charcoal-fired wok. On Wikipedia (in French)

   FoodMarket2 hr≈ €6best in the evening

5. The Clan Jetties

   Six stilted piers, one per Chinese clan, lived in since the 19th century. On Wikipedia

   Culture and historyMonument1 hr 30 minFreebest in the afternoon

When to go

The most pleasant months in Penang: in January, February, March, June, July and August, taking weather and crowds into account.

More ideas for those months: where to go in January, where to go in February, where to go in March, where to go in June, where to go in July, where to go in August.

Averages measured over recent years: mean temperatures and number of rainy days, month by month.

What budget on the ground?

Per person and per day, including accommodation, meals, local transport and visits — excluding the round trip. An estimate calculated the same way as in the app, from the local cost of living.

Budget

€25

Mid-range

€45

Comfort

€85

Getting there from Paris: the carbon footprint

Per person, round trip, in kilograms of CO₂ equivalent — manufacturing, energy and, for flights, contrails included.

Plane

3.6 t

Factors from ADEME (Impact CO₂); outside France, rail uses the European average published by the European Environment Agency.

Book on the ground

Tours and tickets

• Go City Multi-attraction passes for big cities
• KKday Activities and tours, especially in Asia
• Klook Tours, tickets and excursions
• Tiqets Museums and monuments, skip-the-line tickets
• WeGoTrip Self-paced audio tours

Internet on site (eSIM)

• Airalo Data eSIM, by country or region
• Drimsim SIM card that works in almost every country
• Saily Data eSIM
• Yesim Data eSIM

From the airport

• GetTransfer Drivers make an offer for your ride
• Intui Private transfers at a fixed price
• Kiwitaxi Booked transfers, from taxi to minibus
• Welcome Pickups Driver waiting on arrival, price fixed in advance

Rent a car

• Auto Europe Rental comparison
• EconomyBookings Rental comparison
• GetRentacar Cars from rental companies and private owners
• Localrent Local rental companies, often no credit card needed

Partner links: if you book through them, Tripora may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you and without changing the order of these lists, which is alphabetical.

Good to know: Malaysia

Plugs

Type G, 240 V

Emergencies

999

Driving

On the left

Near Penang

• Langkawi Malaysia, 120 km
• Sumatra — Medan and Lake Toba Indonesia, 270 km
• Kuala Lumpur Malaysia, 290 km
• Krabi and Koh Phi Phi Thailand, 340 km
• Phuket Thailand, 350 km
• Koh Samui Thailand, 460 km

Elsewhere in Malaysia

• Kota Kinabalu and Borneo
• Kuala Lumpur
• Langkawi