We just had bowls of delicious curry mee—that’s just how it is when in Penang—and it was almost evening when we wended our way back to our hotel. Located right in the midst of George Town, warm lights now illuminate its handsome colonial façade, contrasting beautifully with the electric hues of early twilight. The George Penang, indeed lives up to its name, it really does look gorgeous.
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| OUR SON AT THE SALTWATER POOL AT THE GEORGE PENANG |
Penang was the first leg of our Backpacking With a Kid 2023 trip. We’re actually spending eight days on the island state, but most of these were at Blissfulguro’s aunt and uncle at the suburbs of Tanjung Bungah.
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| THE GEORGE PENANG BY THE CREST COLLECTION |
We’ve actually stayed at George Town a couple of times before—from the luxurious E&O Hotel Penang, the chic Hotel NEO+ Penang, to Lone Pine Hotel’s beachfront resort, and even on a cruise ship, the Superstar Gemini. Still, for this trip, we thought of at least spending a night at Penang’s historic center, the UNESCO World Heritage area of George Town. And this time, The George Penang perfectly fitted our bill.
ABOUT THE GEORGE PENANG
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| THE GEOGE PENANG LOBBY |
The five-star hotel is housed on a restored 1923 building. From times past, it transformed from being the Australia Hotel, the Teik Bin Chinese Dispensary, and the Osakaya Japanese Sundry Shop, and now, The George Penang.
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| ELEVATOR HALLWAY DECOR |
While its façade sports a neo-classical colonial look, its interiors has a more modern art deco flourish. A mix of metal, textured glass, and dark wood exudes a luxurious chic feel that doesn’t feel intimidating.
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| POSTAL STAMPS DISPLAY |
I also noticed, scattered across the hotel from the lobby all the way to the hallways, are framed postage stamps from various countries and eras. It turns out that the hotel owner is an avid philatelist. It does add a unique touch, something I’ve never seen in a hotel before.
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THE GEORGE PENANG PET POLICY: Unfortunately for pet lovers, The George Penang is not pet-friendly. It does not allow pets on its property.
SUPERB LOCATION
One of the best assets for The George Penang is its superb location. It sits right on George Town’s Penang Road, Leith Street, Chulia Street, and Argyll Road.
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| LEBUH CHULIA NIGHT LIFE |
This is especially perfect for guests who love food.
Chulia Street, one of the oldest in Penang, is filled by an array of restaurants and hawker stalls. Walk a few blocks more and you’d come across Love Lane, a small road that comes alive at night with its numerous street side bars—a favorite hangout for travelers and backpackers. Then there’s Lebuh Kimberly for an evening filled with street hawkers. And if you’re looking to score the cheapest beer in town, Antarabangsa Enterprise is also within the area.
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| THE FAMED PENANG STREET ART |
The hotel is also within striking distance to Penang landmarks like the Kapitan Keling Mosque, Chinatown, The Old Penang Protestant Cemetery, and Armenian Street which is famous for its Penang street art.
CHECKING IN
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| CHECKING IN AT THE GEORGE PENANG |
We arrived a bit early at The George Penang after enjoying an Indian lunch at Rockafellers Straits Quay. Check in time is at 3:00PM, and check out is before 12:00PM. So, instead of waiting in the lobby, we asked if we can swim and lounge at the pool area instead—to which they readily agreed.
SALTWATER POOL
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| THE SALTWATER LAP POOL |
The George Penang’s saltwater pool is strategically located on a central courtyard surrounded on two sides by hallways that connect to rooms. It is more of a lap pool, being narrow and long, but it does look inviting nonetheless.
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| REALLY STYLISH POOL AREA TOILET AND BATH |
We were, however, unable to swim it since there wasn’t a shallow kiddie pool that would be safe for our toddler. Unfortunately, we also didn’t have any floaters that A can use, so we just contented ourselves with simply relaxing on the loungers and our son wading his feet on the waters.
And finally, after a while, we’re finally led to our room.
THE ROOMS
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| FREE SHADES FOR OUR KID |
The George Penang has a total of 92 rooms, situated on six floors and divided into seven room types—Deluxe, Executive Deluxe, Premier Deluxe, Governor Suite, Colonial Suite, Pearl Suite, and Heritage Suite. We were billeted on their Colonial Suite at room 306 and it was simply beautiful.
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| THE COLONIAL SUITE LIVING ROOM AREA |
The room is minimally decorated with muted walls and dark wooden floors accented with thick rugs. The suite’s living area is spacious and tastefully furnished—I especially like the leather accent on the sofa—which also has a pull out for sleeping.
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| FREE LOCAL SNACKS |
There’s no kitchen, but they do have a fridge. There’s also a mini dining table near the TV area, which I thought to be a bit out of place. I like the complimentary snacks they provided for guests—a menagerie of local Penang street snacks, very charming, indeed.
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| THE COZY BEDROOM |
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| REALLY SPACIOUS AND STYLISH TOILET AND BATH |
The bedroom is much more cozily spaced, but its en suite toilet and bath was as grand as can be. It is massive. I also love the monochromatic approach on its interior. And yes, the bath tub looks particularly lovely.
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| OUR SUITE’S MASSIVE BALCONY |
But the main draw of staying at The George Penang’s Colonial Suite is its balcony. It is, I think, bigger than the entire suite and looks into the streets of George Town below. Perfect for a couple of rounds of beer—which we readily got from the nearby Antarabangsa Enterprise, by the way. If you know, you know.
BAR & RESTAURANT
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| THE GORGEOUS GEORGE BAR |
The George Penang has two dining options at the ground floor, the George Bar and Saffron Dining.
While we weren’t able to try the offerings at their very handsome bar, preferring our drinks at our very own balcony, we did get to try the food at the Saffron Restaurant since a stay at The George Penang comes with a complimentary breakfast buffet.
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| SUNNY MORNING AT SAFFRON DINING |
I love the restaurant’s sunny and airy vibe, but I love their offerings more. They mostly have local Malaysian dishes with a few western choices, which is perfect—we absolutely love Malaysian cuisine.
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| OUR BREAKFAST MEAL FROM THE COMPLIMENTARY BUFFET |
Soon, our table was packed with plates filled with mee goreng, roti canai, chicken curry, pork dimsum, noodle soup, nasi lemak, rice congee, along with a western omelets, pork and beans, and pastries. Everything was good, but their curry mee was the one worth writing home about. Definitely a fitting end for our stay in George Town.
~ OUR STAY WAS MADE POSSIBLE BY THE GEORGE PENANG. VIEWS AND OPINIONS ARE ALL MINE.
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The George Penang â–ºROOM RATES
Address: 138 Jalan Penang, George Town, Penang, Malaysia
Contact Number: (+60) 4291-9000
GPS Coordinates Map: 5.419986, 100.332212
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