Penang with a 6 year old ?

[dazedandblue]

Planning a holiday for 2027 and considering Penang as part of it.
DC is 6.

Has anyone been? Any recommendations? Would a 6 year old love it? He’s active, loves swimming and loves to explore but can also be a bit lazy with walking if it’s to get from point A to B.

Penang is one of my favourite places. I would perhaps suggest staying in both batu ferrangi and George Town as the vibe is really rather different. The butterfly sanctuary and spice gardens are v good.

Georgetown in Penang is lovely, I went a long time ago as an adult before I had kids. We took a ferry to Langkawi for down time afterwards. I've done some Asia travel with my kids, they are older now, but I would have been fine taking them to Penang at that age. We stayed in the blue house, Cheong Fatt Tze mansion, in Georgetown. It's a fabulous building.

It's my hometown.

I agree with @AbzMoz it is worth staying in a few places on the island because the vibe is so different, it's like having several holidays in one place. City + beach (+countryside) for example.

The blazing sun, heat and humidity might be a struggle for a small child especially in Georgetown itself. Sun and mosquito protection is a must, and it will all be sweated off very quickly. General tip from a local perspective - wake up early, do some walking around, scuttle back indoors by mid-morning (lots of air-conditioned malls and cafes), don't go back outside until 4/5pm, stay out until LATE. Sunset and night strolls by the sea is what all the locals do, even tiny children - we don't seem to believe in kids' bedtimes.

Some excellent museums (e.g. Peranakan Mansion, Khoo Kongsi) and "museums" (e.g. Upside-Down Museum, Food Museum) I think we've been to every single one and love them all for their quirkiness - the "museums" are very child-friendly. These are the things we do indoors during the hot hours of the day.

When we stay in Georgetown, we always choose a heritage hotel to enjoy the historical vibe (which sometimes means no pool). The Blue Mansion @TeamGeriatric is fabulous, having said that it is a little bit away from the main conservation area - this is both a bonus (fewer crowds) and a disadvantage (longer walk to the more famous streets) - even if you don't stay there, you can book a guided tour of the Blue Mansion, or go to its restaurant. Some heritage hotels have amazing family rooms which are more like a house of your own e.g. Hotel Penaga Clarke Terrace, or 23 Love Lane.

The beach at Batu Ferringhi isn't as good as it used to be, due to longshore drift. However, if you choose a hotel at the further end of it, the erosion is much less. There are plenty of nice hotels there with gorgeous pools and grounds, too many to mention. But if you have a shortlist I can comment.

A much further beach that is still in good shape is Teluk Bahang. There are a couple of 4/5-star hotels there. But it's a very long drive/bus ride from Georgetown, which is worth bearing in mind if you want to explore both. The advantage of Teluk Bahang is that it is super close (practically walking distance) to Escape - my DC favourite adventure water park ever.

I also concur with recommendations for the Tropical Spice Garden (between Batu Ferringhi and Teluk Bahang) and the butterfly park. Another must-see is Penang Hill, the queue for the funicular is often insane but it's the only way to get up there. There are nice nature walks up there and I particularly love The Habitat, tickets a bit pricey but 100% worth it.

Why on earth would you drag a 6yr old child to bloody Penang?! That’s really selfish in my opinion. Why can’t you go somewhere with kids in mind?

😂😂😂😂😂😂

It’s certainly an interesting take!

Yes, the kids club with the huge treehouse slide, swimming all day, the easter egg hunt , the slides, the pools, the huge lizard who, every morning before the kids pool had anyone in would swim leisurely across it. The butterfly garden, the giant swing at the spice garden, the fenicular railway up Penang hill, having a model made of her hand in wax - finding the British postbox at the top of Penang hill, going on a tuk tuk ride at night in Georgetown to look at the street art. Oh and the walk of faith thing at the big tower in Georgetown. Terrible parenting on our part.

This is so helpful and amazing!
It sounds so ideal! Would you have any good hotel recommendations?
I'm going to Google the Blue Mansion! I was also looking at Park Royal or Shangri La Golden Sands. Has anyone stayed here before?

Also, on why I would drag a child to Penang? He seems to love travelling and especially to Asia. Adores the food, hotels, activities and amazing things to do, the swimming, and keeps asking every month when we're going back. Maybe it's his vibe.

What time of year are you going? If it’s our summer I’d probably pick the east coast Malaysian islands instead for better weather.

I was thinking around early April time as it works perfectly with the school holidays he gets.

🤣🤣

Ignore the weirdly angry Negative Nelly, OP! Plenty of people "drag" their young children to Penang and selfishly have a fabulous time despite it not being entirely constructed with kids in mind, whatever that means. And plenty of children actually live in Penang and have somehow survived the tedium of delicious food, fascinating history and culture, lovely beaches and amazing nature.

Over the years we've probably stayed in almost every 4/5 star hotel on Batu Ferringhi beach Park Royal and Golden Sands are both fabulous and very family-friendly, love them! Both have lovely grounds and pools and a laidback beach vibe, Park Royal goes for a slightly "posher" feel but still relaxed and informal.

I've only stayed in Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion without my DC so can't comment on how it would be for kids, I do adore it though, also they have jazz or Chinese classical concerts for guests, themed dinners, et . Like I mentioned above, there are many other heritage hotels in Georgetown which have family rooms so do have a look at the options. Another option in Georgetown is the E&O hotel, a luxury heritage hotel, by the seafront, has a pool - it's also away from the core conservation area so a bit of a walk to get there.

We took our then 4 and 2 year old a couple of years ago. We stayed in Georgetown and really enjoyed it. The kids loved Escape water park and the butterfly park. They also did quite well with visiting temples and the street art. Just make sure you break up the site seeing with plenty of snack breaks 😊
Food was great and the kids loved fresh juice being available everywhere. Plus Malaysian people are so welcoming and love the kids.

Or maybe he knows no different than being dragged on adult focused trips to dirty cities in the third world?

Seriously?

Pure curiosity, what and where do you consider a good successful holiday with kids in mind?

Sometimes people lash out provocatively because they didn’t get enough loving attention when they were babies.

Maybe she meant somewhere like EuroDisney, Alton Towers, one of those EuroCamp places, Margate…? Deffo not a real holiday for the adults and not nearly as rewarding as Penang for the children.

Malaysia has been a first world country for 25+ years.

We stayed at the Park Royal last year and loved it! The pool and grounds are fabulous and the staff are so lovely. We don’t have young children anymore but there was a really good kids pool for them. The beach looks lovely but we could not go in the sea because of jelly fish.
We spent a few days in Georgetown then a week in Batu Ferringu. We loved exploring Georgetown and also enjoyed a trip to Penang Hill.

Judgement with a side of racism, lovely.