17 Unmissable Things To Do In Penang With Kids

Penang is 1 of the astir fascinating and divers destinations successful Malaysia. It’s an land located connected the occidental shores, connected to the mainland by bridge, but has a unsocial civilization and scenery that makes it consciousness similar it’s ain land country.

Known for its UNESCO satellite practice tract of Georgetown, which is afloat of aged assemblage buildings and thoroughfare art, arsenic good arsenic stunning beaches, gorgeous past temples, and hearty nutrient (locals telephone it the nutrient superior of Malaysia, and there’s a crushed for it) – you’ll find plentifulness of things to bash successful Penang with kids to support them entertained.

It’s a melting cookware of culture, welcoming some Indian and Chinese influences into its heritage. So, erstwhile looking for what to bash arsenic a household successful Penang, you’ll find the attractions travel successful divers varieties.

In this guide, we’ve listed the apical attractions and activities that you cannot miss successful Penang with your kids, which are amusive for some adults too.

1. Walk astir historical George Town

A emblematic store successful George Town, Penang

George Town, 1 of the large and dynamic cities of Penang, is simply a taste melting cookware filled with a vibrant vigor that lures travelers from adjacent and far.

It was founded successful 1786 by Captain Francis Light, who was sent by Britain to unafraid the land from Kedah sultanate.

Ever since, Penang has been a melting cookware of culture, drafting its influences from its taste premix of Chinese, Indian and Malay cultures arsenic good arsenic assemblage European architecture.

It’s nary wonderment George Town has go a mecca for tourists looking for astonishing experiences filled with past and culture.

Street creation successful George Town, Penang

Here you tin rotation amidst streets lined with fascinating accepted shophouses, and unthinkable thoroughfare creation and sojourn historical sites similar Fort Cornwallis oregon bask immoderate delicious thoroughfare nutrient astatine the iconic nutrient tribunal connected Penang Road.

Downtown George Town is rather walkable and determination is truthful overmuch to spot and explore. From taking successful the architecture to sipping Milo crystal successful cafes, I urge taking clip to conscionable locomotion the streets and instrumentality it each in.

2. Take the kids to Entopia by Penang Butterfly Farm

Butterfly Farm

Kids of each ages volition emotion the Butterfly Farm. You tin get up adjacent and idiosyncratic with truthful galore antithetic kinds of butterflies, they flutter by freely and if you support inactive – 1 mightiness conscionable onshore connected you.

The workplace is filled with chromatic paths starring astir ponds and up bridges wherever beauteous orchids are location to adjacent much butterflies.

Allow 2 hours for a relaxing sojourn here. It is the past halt connected the bus, truthful precise casual to find.

3. Learn astir spice trading past astatine The Tropical Spice Garden

Explore the Spice Garden

Not acold from the Butterfly Farm (a speedy taxi oregon autobus trip), you volition find the Spice Garden.

We had Grandpa with america who loved speechmaking each astir the spice trading history, looking astatine each the signed plants, and smelling the herbs and spices.

Hubby and the small kids didn’t fuss truthful overmuch with that, but had a shot moving on the beauteous paths and roaming freely amongst the gorgeous gardens.

There is simply a elephantine plaything that swings you retired implicit the borderline of the rainforest. There are galore waterfalls, ponds, and bridges to find. It is simply a beauteous spot to halt for an hr oregon two. Nice tree-top cafe too!

4. Take the Funicular Railway up Penang Hill

Funicular Railway

Penang is blistery and precise humid. A large mode to flight the vigor is to caput to the apical of Penang Hill.

Catch the funicular each the mode to the top; successful conscionable a fewer minutes you volition beryllium astatine the apical to person a gorgeous presumption of Penang. It is overmuch cooler up here.

View of George Town from Penang Hill

If it is simply a rainy morning, don’t fuss arsenic you volition beryllium improbable to spot overmuch astatine all. You are champion to hold until aboriginal successful the time erstwhile the rainfall clears. There are a fewer cafes and exhibitions to look astatine also. (If you person small ones, debar the owl depository – recovered retired the hard mode – tons of small breakable things successful there!)

5. Explore Penang Botanical Gardens

On committee the Botanic Garden Train

When travelling with kids, sometimes you request to fto them loose.

The botanical gardens are a indispensable for energetic kids. They tin tally on acceptable paths, ascent bridges and ticker waterfalls. For 1 ringgit you tin leap aboard the mini bid for a thrust astir the gardens.

For mum and dad, you tin bask learning astir each the autochthonal plants and flora of Malaysia portion you’re kids bask the attractions.

Part of Entopia is the Natureland, a surviving plot vivarium wherever animals and insects tin thrive.

You tin spot everything from reptiles to snakes, and beryllium definite to caput implicit to the largest butterfly plot successful Malaysia which contains 15,000 free-flying butterflies.

The surviving plot is 1 of the highlights of the gardens. It has much than 200 taxon of flora, which tin beryllium champion seen from the mezzanine terrace successful David’s Garden.

Entopia is not conscionable a spot wherever jungle plants tin thrive, but it’s an acquisition resource. Be definite to instrumentality the kids to The Cocoon indoor find centre to larn astir the plants and wildlife here.

There are tons of monkeys to spot – beryllium cautious to fell your food!

6. Marvel astatine the Kek Lok Si Temple

Kek Lok Si Temple

Kek Lok Si Temple is the largest Buddhist temple successful Malaysia.

It is unfastened to the nationalist and a worthwhile acquisition for you and the kids. There are tons of steps and constrictive columns to climb, truthful permission the stroller behind.

The temple grounds are beautiful; determination are ineffable ponds and manicured plants to admire. The kids volition emotion climbing the seven-tiered Pagoda of King Rama VI and volition beryllium awed by a monolithic bronze statue of the goddess of mercy.

There are besides solid elevators to thrust successful and turtles to feed. A large 2 hours of exploring and learning!

7. Eat, and past devour immoderate more!

First Curry successful Little India

I could earnestly constitute thousands of words astir eating successful Penang, but I won’t. Try thing caller each day, determination is truthful overmuch for your tastebuds to learn.

By acold our favourite spot to devour is Gurney Drive Hawker Centre. I americium drooling arsenic I retrieve it.

From 6pm until precocious determination volition beryllium hundreds of Penang’s finest foods for you to illustration – and volition outgo you a fewer ringgits only.

This spot volition beryllium buzzing with locals; don’t beryllium acrophobic to inquire them for a recommendation, oregon travel down and bid the same. When buying nutrient for the small ones, retrieve to inquire the navigator to not enactment immoderate chili connected their food.

My favourite food:

• Char Kway Teow (flat noodles fried with seafood)
• and Nasi Kandar: aromatic atom with curry oregon whatever.

We besides caught the escaped shuttle autobus to Little India. You volition person a large clip exploring laneways and uncovering the cleanable curry. The restaurateurs volition delight successful making your kids consciousness astatine home. And astatine the close thoroughfare nutrient stall, samosas for $1 anyone?

8. Shop ’till you drop

You request to instrumentality vantage of large buying and inexpensive prices.

Shops mostly unfastened aft 10am and are unfastened till precocious astatine night. Gurney Plaza is 1 of galore upmarket modern buying centres wherever you volition find your brand-name stores with large savings.

If you privation to store for souvenirs with the locals, caput to the Komtar (the biggest gathering successful Penang) oregon Prangin Mall which is crossed the road.

Here you volition find a myriad of absorbing shops and boutique stalls. You’ll find tons of chill gadgets and knick-knacks for the kids to person amusive with.

9. Catch the ferry to Butterworth

Ferry to Butterworth

If you caput to the ferry terminal successful Georgetown, rotation on the pier and nutrient stalls and leap connected a ferry – conscionable due to the fact that you can.

You volition astir apt beryllium the lone foreigners connected it, but it is truthful overmuch amusive for the kids. They tin beryllium and ticker different elephantine ferries walk by and aft astir 20 minutes you volition beryllium astatine Butterworth, the mainland.

When you get here, it is up to you what you do. You tin crook astir and spell backmost – the instrumentality travel is escaped – oregon you tin enactment and explore.

The Penang Bird Park is simply a abbreviated taxi thrust distant and determination is simply a Temple adjacent doorway worthy of a look.

You could besides instrumentality the autobus to Sunway Carnival Mall for immoderate retail therapy. From present you tin drawback a autobus backmost to Georgetown which takes you crossed the span which links the mainland (quite a agelong journey, our kids fell asleep!).

10. Check retired Adventure Zone

Adventure Zone is an amusement parkland that’s portion of the Shangri-La Rasa Sayang Resort, but you don’t request to beryllium a impermanent to instrumentality your kids here.

This indoor playground is implicit with slides, shot pits, climbing frames, and more. It’s the cleanable spot to instrumentality the kids to expel immoderate energy.

Entrance fees outgo conscionable 40 MYR per kid for 2 hours and it’s unfastened each time from 10am – 1pm and 2pm – 6pm. 

11. Learn astir Chinese communities successful Malaysia astatine the Clan Jetties

A location successful a Chinese Clan colony with thoroughfare art

Visitors of Penang, whether you’re travelling with kids oregon not, should not skip the jetty successful Penang.

This is wherever the Chinese clans unrecorded successful a benignant of “Floating Village” since it sits connected stilts supra the water.

It began successful the 19th period erstwhile galore Chinese immigrants came to Malaysia, wherever they built their homes successful clans.

These tiny villages springiness visitors a accidental to spot the aged Chinese traditions, arsenic each clan has its ain temple.

There are six villages successful total, each 1 adjacent to the other. Each colony belongs to 1 clan.

12. Visit the Snake Temple

The Snake Temple is simply a tiny Chinese temple successful the Southwest country of Penang.

It was built successful 1805 and dedicated to Master Qingshui oregon Chor Soo Kong, a deified Buddhist monk.

This is simply a precise peculiar and ineffable temple successful Malaysia, and it is said that devotees from arsenic acold arsenic Singapore, Taiwan and China travel present connected the monk’s day to wage their respects.

What’s absorbing astir the temple is the snakes. The temple is filled with fume from burning incense, arsenic good arsenic a assortment of pit vipers. 

But due to the fact that of the smoke, the vipers person go docile, and it is believed they are rendered harmless due to the fact that of the ineffable smoke. But conscionable to beryllium safe, they person been de-venomed.

If you’re acrophobic of snakes, it’s astir apt not an attraction successful Penang for you. And possibly don’t bring immoderate toddlers inside…

13. Go hiking successful Penang National Park

If you emotion hiking and getting retired into nature, you’ll find 2 fantabulous hiking trails successful Penang National Park; the hike to Bukit Batu Hitam, oregon to the reservoir.

Located conscionable 42 km from Georgetown, visitors tin flight the hustle and bustle of the metropolis to the solitude of quality successful little than an hour.

Penang National Park has hundreds of taxon of birds, including the White-bellied Sea Eagle, White-throated King Fisher, White-rumped Shama, and Emerald Dove.

If you’re lucky, you whitethorn besides spot immoderate squirrels, otters, deer, pangolins, and pythons.

Be definite to cheque retired the canopy walkway, which is 210 meters agelong and sits precocious successful the canopy of Sg. Tukun.

The parkland is besides location to the Turtle Conservation Centre, a Meromictic Lake, and the Muka Head Lighthouse.

14. Go to 1 of Penang Island’s beaches

Aerial presumption formation astatine Batu Feringghi

Penang is wide recognised for its cities, but not truthful overmuch for the beaches. The adjacent land of Langawai gets astir of the recognition for having immoderate of Malaysia’s apical beaches.

But that does not mean that determination are not gorgeous beaches successful Penang.

The astir fashionable formation successful Penang is Monkey Beach, which gets its sanction because, you guessed it, monkeys unrecorded there.

The monkeys are utilized to radical but bash beryllium cautious with integrative bags, bottles, and food, arsenic they volition beryllium much than blessed to instrumentality them retired of your hands.

Once you’ve seen capable monkeys, you volition find a tiny barroom connected the formation wherever you tin acquisition refreshing juices, oregon bask the gentle waves of the formation – since it’s successful a bay, the waters present are usually precise calm.

For a relaxing time connected the formation without monkeys, caput to the Batu Ferringhi Beach successful beforehand of the Shangri-La Golden Sands Resort, arsenic this is wherever you’ll find a nice, cleanable formation that you tin aquatics in. It besides has 1 of the champion nighttime markets connected the island.

15. Go to the Toy Museum

Kids volition emotion exploring the Penang Toy Museum successful the Teluk Bahang neighborhood, which has much than 110,000 toys, dolls, miniatures, and different collectible toys connected display.

You whitethorn adjacent beryllium shocked to larn that it’s the largest artifact depository successful the world!

Come and research what toys looked similar successful the days of old. This is simply a nostalgic sojourn for parents, and an eye-opening acquisition for kids.

16. Or to the Teddyville Museum

A unsocial attraction that your household whitethorn beryllium funny successful is Teddyville, a 9000 quadrate feet depository dedicated to teddy bears.

It’s the archetypal and lone teddy depository successful Malaysia and has 30 themed displays of teddy bears, each reinacting moments successful Penang past and showcasing the culture.

It’s a unsocial mode to larn astir Penang’s mode of life.

17. Ride the slides astatine Escape Penang

If your household emotion taxable parks and adventure, sojourn the Escape Theme Park, which holds not 1 but FOUR Guinness World Records – the longest conduit h2o slide, the longest zip coaster, the longest tubby racer, and largest tipping bucket!

Not lone does it person grounds holding rides, but it’s an eco park, truthful it’s environmentally conscious too. It has 35 rides and activities to explore, and is surrounded by jungle.

If you privation to get your thrills on, situation each different to the 111 enactment people successful the jungle canopy, Monkey Business successful the Adventureplay zone, oregon if it’s a blistery day, chill down successful the Waterplay portion and splash astir successful the question excavation oregon thrust down h2o slides.

Plan for a afloat time here, there’s truthful overmuch to spot and do.

Getting astir Penang

Personally, I wouldn’t fuss with organised tours. You tin get bundle deals done assorted operators who volition prime you up from your edifice and instrumentality you to 3 attractions successful 1 time – easy!

When you person kids you request that flexibility to enactment longer oregon permission earlier, it’s precise casual to emblem down a taxi operator and negociate his services for the day.

This mode you tin spot 2 oregon 3 attractions successful 1 time and your operator volition beryllium waiting patiently until you are acceptable for the adjacent 1 oregon to instrumentality you to your hotel. He’ll fto you permission the stroller and umbrellas successful the footwear too.

Alternatively, you tin usage rideshare app, Grab, and bid taxis oregon motorbikes (or scooters). If you person older children, you whitethorn privation to opt for motorcycle – this is the mode to get astir successful Malaysia, truthful nary request to interest astir whether it’s safe, the motorbike riders person astir apt been driving motorbikes since they were 10 years old!

The autobus strategy is truthful fantastic and cheap. You tin scope astir destinations by autobus and the drivers are blessed to constituent you successful the close direction. You tin bargain prepaid autobus tickets to springiness you unlimited hassle-free travel.

Where to enactment successful Penang

Penang is an land composed of 121 km², truthful making definite you person the close basal is indispensable for making the astir of your trip.

Where you enactment successful Penang volition beryllium determined by the attractions you privation to see, but there’s 2 main neighborhoods that tourists take to enactment in, Batu Ferringhi and George Town.

Here’s a speedy overview of each neighborhood.

Batu Ferringhi, Penang

Most radical take to enactment astatine Batu Ferringhi (the locals telephone it ‘foreigners rock’).

This is wherever you volition find each the big-name resorts with kid’s clubs, and buffet breakfasts, and astir of them are close connected the beach.

While it is simply a formation and you volition find galore h2o sports, beryllium alert that it is not truly a swimming beach – the h2o is not arsenic cleanable arsenic you whitethorn expect it to be.

Batu Ferringhi comes live astatine night. The main thoroughfare is transformed into a bustling marketplace, with each benignant of ware (including genuine fakes) available. Feel escaped to haggle and barter for your champion bargain.

Don’t devour astatine your over-priced edifice restaurant, locomotion to the Long Beach Hawker Centre with immoderate spare alteration and you volition acquisition immoderate of Penang’s champion food.

Batu Ferringhi is the champion spot to enactment for families oregon groups of radical who bask nightlife. If you determine to enactment here, delight permission your edifice to research Penang. There are attractions easy accessed from the autobus halt successful beforehand of your hotel.

George Town, Penang

If you are aft thing less ‘foreigners rock’ past George Town is the spot to stay. It’s grown successful popularity implicit the years arsenic it offers affordable accommodation options successful unique, accepted impermanent houses.

As the superior of Penang, it has thing for everyone. It is simply a spot wherever determination is simply a Catholic Church adjacent to a Mosque adjacent to a Temple.

In George Town, determination is simply a scope of accommodations disposable for families from ample hotels, homestays, and self-catering apartments.

You won’t find a edifice here, but determination is thing astir surviving amongst locals that truly does it for me. You tin adjacent find VRBO rental properties to springiness you that much section experience.

George Town is champion suited to couples, backpackers, solo travelers, families, and well, everyone!

Final thoughts

I emotion Penang, it is my spiritual home. As you tin see, determination are plentifulness of things to bash present to support you and your household busy.

I bash anticipation your sojourn is arsenic overmuch amusive arsenic ours, and that you emotion it arsenic overmuch arsenic we did.

Make definite you enactment for astatine slightest 1 week, much if you are able. There is truthful overmuch much to spot – and eat!

Popular Tours of Penang

Check retired these astir fashionable tours successful Penang, Malaysia

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