Tourist Guide

Penang is a well visited tourist destination, which means that getting accommodation, accessing facilities and travelling around the island is a breeze. Penang's charm lies in its rich cultural heritage and warm environment, evident in the friendliness of its people and the good governance of the state authorities. It is the state with the highest population density in Malaysia, and home to one of the largest expatriate communities.

Penang enjoys mostly calm or predictable weather throughout the year, which is a hot and humid climate, so the best time to visit is practically anytime. Day time temperatures average around 29-30 °C while night, around 24-27°C. The weather can get colder after heavy rainfall. Surprisingly, Penang is relatively cooler that most major cities in Peninsular Malaysia, such as Kuala Lumpur. The hottest months are between January to April, with the least rainfall. Heavy rains usually spike upwards in the months between May till July and once again at the year end between October till December, in response to the monsoon winds. Penang is generally safe from most metrological disasters, save for the rare tsunami, but it would be best to avoid months with monsoon winds blowing if beaches are a priority.

The Hokkien Chinese are the largest ethnic group in Penang, speaking a colourful dialect that originates from Fujian in Southern China. The original Hokkien dialect spoken by the first migrants has now become somewhat of a creole, having incorporated many words from Cantonese (another popular Chinese dialect in Malaysia), national language of Malay and even English. The Penang Hokkien spoken by the islanders can today be regarded as being a distinct style of Hokkien that differs from the dialect as spoken in Taiwan or Southern China.

Hokkien is a language that is highly adaptable to local cultures and slang terms, which is why the Hokkien spoken in Penang is slightly different than those spoken in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, where their own Hokkien is also distinct in style and nuances. It is not surprising to find non-Chinese speaking Hokkien in Penang, such is its colourful influence. The national language of Malay is spoken by all locals on the island, but most will be able to speak English to some degree, as Penang is after all, an international tourist destination.

Penang has a modern transportation network that incorporates buses and trains. Plans were afoot to build a Monorail train system to link the island with a high speed elevated railway track but it has been deferred, no thanks to the Federal Government (who cut the funding for the project) that lost the state elections in Penang to the Pakatan Rakyat coalition. It is a well known fact that taxis and cabs in Penang do not use meters, which are just showpieces in the car to comply with the law. Discuss your destination first with the driver and inquire the fare before you get in. Alternatively, you can take the public bus from most places to get around Penang. Finally, the trishaw ride still exists in Penang as a novelty for tourists to travel around the cultural sights and heritage buildings of inner Georgetown.