Penang

Penang Island has long been one of Malaysia’s major tourist draws, with such illustrious names as Rudyard Kipling, Somerset Maugham and Queen Elizabeth II herself on its tourist list. This lovely island in the tropics is a fascinating location to visit, a place so steeped in history that whole streets exist as testament to times long past, yet also a place where the enjoyments of today are at their best, with the island’s shopping and modern dining experiences among the best in all of Asia. Penang is a place full of answers for the eager tourist—the only question he really has to ask is, “Where do I start?”

One can start with Georgetown, a UNESCO World Heritage site that stands as one of the most charming memorials to the country’s colonial past, even while managing to keep the thrumming energy of The Now animating its quaintly antique veins. Indeed, half the attractions of Penang are in Georgetown, where one may see such sights as the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion and the Wat Chaiyamangalaram—the latter also housing another attraction in its own right, the 33-metre reclining Buddha.

Georgetown’s success as a tourist spot has always been in its ability to please everyone, though, so don’t be too quick to think it a mere memorial of olden times. This is a place where you can go straight from walking whole streets of preserved colonial houses and shopfronts, then turn a corner and find yourself in a hip urban district populated with modern clubs and bars.

Penang on the whole is a smorgasbord of tourist experiences. From the inland sights in Georgetown and the Penang National Park (which is a superb place for trekkers, by the way), one can easily migrate to the coastline fun always happening around Batu Ferringhi. Batu Ferringhi, actually, is another of the must-visit spots on the island. This is the most developed of all the coastline hangouts and as such one of the most exciting locations here. Batu Ferringhi is all about white sands and tropical waters bordered by posh resorts and hotels—and with so many competing tourist establishments in the same area, you can expect lodging prices to stay reasonable. And when you put that sort of economic reasonability with the tourist appeal of this place, how can you stay away? Penang is definitely one of the places to see in Malaysia—perhaps even, some may say, THE place to see.