Penang Hill
A cluster of forested peaks at the centre of Penang Island, 9 km west of George Town, long used as a cool retreat. A funicular railway climbs to the top, where old bungalows, a mosque and a temple look out over the city and the strait.
- Where
- George Town, Penang, Malaysia
- Grade
- Well known
- Worth
- 10 points collected on site, plus 1 for its grade
- Coordinates
- 5.4228, 100.2658
Get the Penang Hill stamp
Open LOQAH when you are at Penang Hill. It checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp is yours: confirmed on site in gold and struck with the date. It goes into your Penang volume with your photos and a note.
Near Penang Hill
Kek Lok Si Temple 2.8 km
The largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia, built on the hillside at Air Itam between 1890 and 1930. Its seven-storey Pagoda of Ten Thousand Buddhas mixes Chinese, Thai and Burmese styles, and a 36.57 metre bronze statue of Guanyin stands above it.
Penang Botanic Gardens 3.1 km
A botanical garden on Jalan Air Terjun, set in a forested valley at the foot of Penang Hill. People call it the Waterfall Gardens for the cascade nearby, and its lawns and jungle paths are a favourite morning walk, shared with macaques.
Arulmigu Balathandayuthapani Temple 3.5 km
A hilltop temple to Murugan, reached by 513 steps, set even higher above the ground than Batu Caves. Its seven-storey gopuram, 21.6 metres tall, is said to make it the largest Murugan temple outside India, and it is the climax of Penang's Thaipusam.
Wat Chayamangkalaram 5.4 km
The oldest Siamese temple in Penang, on Lorong Burma opposite a Burmese temple, and home to a long gilded reclining Buddha. It becomes the centre of the city's Songkran, Loy Krathong and Vesak celebrations each year.
Batu Ferringhi 5.8 km
Penang's main beach, a 4 km stretch of sand on the island's north coast about 11 km from George Town. Big hotels line the shore, and after dark the roadside fills with a long night market.
Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion 7.6 km
The indigo-walled home of the merchant Cheong Fatt Tze, built at the end of the 19th century on Leith Street. It has 38 rooms, five granite courtyards and 220 timber louvre windows, and served as both his house and the seat of his business.
Khoo Kongsi 7.9 km
The grandest clan temple in Malaysia, home of the Hokkien Khoo clan, its roof and walls thick with carving, gilding and painted figures. It sits on a granite square in the old heart of George Town, ringed by a theatre and the 19th century rowhouses of clan members.
Kapitan Keling Mosque 8.0 km
A mosque founded in the early 1800s by Indian Muslim traders, on land granted to their leader Cauder Mohudeen, at the corner of Pitt Street. It was the first permanent Muslim institution in the area and still anchors the Tamil Muslim quarter of the George Town World Heritage Site.
More famous places to visit in Penang
Questions
Where is Penang Hill?
Penang Hill is in George Town, Penang, Malaysia. The nearest other LOQAH stamps are Kek Lok Si Temple (2.8 km), Penang Botanic Gardens (3.1 km), Arulmigu Balathandayuthapani Temple (3.5 km).
How do I get the Penang Hill stamp?
Open LOQAH when you are at Penang Hill and get its stamp. The app checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp goes into your Penang volume, confirmed on site, with the date.
I have been to Penang Hill before. Can I still have the stamp?
Yes. Add it from Earlier trips in your Penang volume, with the date if you know it, or import your Google Timeline and LOQAH matches the places you were.
Collect your first stamp.
LOQAH is free on iPhone and Android, in India and 20 more countries, with more countries on the way. Stand at a place, collect its stamp, and keep every trip in a passport that grows.