Penang - Penang Hill

Behind the township of Georgetown on Penang Island is the high mountain known as Penang Hill. This has long been a place of refuge from the day's heat for Penangites. At the top, it's a good 2 to 3 degrees cooler than the often muggy township.

Getting to the hill is straightforward. A short taxi ride takes you to the edge of Georgetown where the funicular starts. Actually, it's two funiculars. The first one takes you about a quarter of the way to the top and takes about 10 minutes. There are some good views to be had from that point.

I was quite shocked when I got to the end of the first funicular. I thought that was it. I didn't realise there were TWO!

The second one is much longer. It's a good 20 minutes to the top. I badly mistimed my trip. The plan was to get to the top before dark, then watch the sun set over the city. Luckily, there was a 15 minute stop between the first and second funicular, so I had a chance to take some pics while the sun was still up. By the time I got to the very top, the sun had well and truly set.


It's a wonderful view from the top. You can see clearly the brightly lit Penang Bridge. It's the third longest bridge in the world and the longest in Asia. It really is long!

Apart from the view, there's not much else up the top. There's loads of restaurants, food stalls and souvenir stands, but not much else. That's OK though, because the view is great!


Going back down was much less exciting than going up. It was pitch black, so there wasn't anything to look at.

At RM4, it was a bargain. In a town of small pleasures, the trip up Penang Hill is not to be missed.