Visiting Penang for the weekend? Time to load up on food, fun, and of course, Penang photos! 

Where are the best places to take photos in Penang? Here’s a tip: look well beyond Penang’s famed culinary fare and street art, and you will be rewarded with a bounty of Instagram-worthy photo and video opportunities.

The team at PARKROYAL Penang Resort has compiled a list of top Penang photography spots, where you can capture the highlights of Penang’s nature, culture, and heritage. To visit interesting places in Penang during your holiday, follow this guide and soak in these photogenic sights!

For guests at PARKROYAL Penang Resort, right at your doorstep lies the perfect Penang backdrop—Batu Ferringhi Beach—for an achingly beautiful sunrise or sunset snapshot. Look up sunrise and sunset timings online, and make your way to the beach at least 20 minutes in advance, so you can stake your claim at a prime viewing spot and set up your tripod, camera, and other photography gear.

Get directions to Batu Ferringhi Beach

To create a moody, textured photo, head to a spot favoured by Penang photographers—the Jelutong Jetty, also known as Dove Jetty. This makeshift pier along the coast of Jelutong on Penang island is apparently earmarked for demolition. While there is no official word on when this will take place, it’s as good a reason as any to visit the jetty while it’s still standing! 

Following your photographic sojourn, make time to explore the Jelutong neighbourhood. Once a working-class suburb, it is now a residential district that has gained local acclaim for its authentic Penang hawker food.

Get directions to Dove Jetty

Many weekend visitors in Penang head for The Habitat at Penang Hill for an immersive nature experience. This rainforest discovery centre offers several walking tours, including a treetop walk and a sunset walk. While you’re here, photo opportunities are aplenty; you could catch Penang Hill’s funicular railway in action, focus on close-up shots of flora and fauna, or find creative ways to let your photo subject’s personality shine through. 

Get directions to The Habitat

Myth: If you’ve seen one shophouse, you’ve seen them all. 

Fact: Penang’s capital George Town has six shophouse styles, each reflecting a specific era in George Town’s history. Among them is a style broadly known as “Straits Eclectic”; this came about when shophouse owners adopted a mix-and-match approach by fusing eastern (usually Chinese) and western design elements. You’ll find examples of these shophouses along Kek Chuan Road, and it’s one of the most instagrammable places in Penang. It’s all because the shophouses here have been repainted in colours vivid enough to make your heart sing! 

Get directions to Kek Chuan Road

If you’re paying your respects at Kek Lok Si, the largest Buddhist temple in Malaysia, you may be overwhelmed by the sheer size and volume of what you see. For instance, the temple’s pride and joy, its 36.5-metre tall Goddess of Mercy statue, can be tricky to contain in a shot. And with so many distinct visual elements vying for your attention, it may be easier to cast your gaze on a specific standout feature. 

Instead of trying to capture everything in one frame, consider focusing on details such as the eye-catching patterns on the wall or floor tiles, or the way that the temple’s religious statues are arranged. 

Get directions to Kek Lok Si Temple

They’re both star attractions, but should you visit the Pinang Peranakan Mansion or the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, better known as the “Blue Mansion?” If you’re a photographer, the choice is clear—pick the Pinang Peranakan Mansion, because you’ll have free rein to wander about the heritage-rich home. (Visits to the Blue Mansion are by guided tour only.) 

At the Pinang Peranakan Mansion, you can inspect the vintage collectibles at your leisure, or draw inspiration from your surroundings to compose an image depicting the traditional way of life. Set your mind free, and the photo ideas will flow naturally!

Get directions to Pinang Peranakan Mansion

In Penang, a kongsi or clan house is a place where Chinese families with the same surname gather to worship their ancestors. In the past, such a place would’ve been important as a show of solidarity for the community, and to cement social ties and spiritual affiliations. 

Khoo Kongsi is considered one of the most prominent clan associations in Malaysia, as its lineage can be traced back 650 years. If you should visit, you must take the self-guided tour through the clan house to learn about its architectural design and features. Doing so will give you a better perspective, and help you decide which elements to train your lenses on.

Get directions to Khoo Kongsi

For serious Instagrammers, a visit to Penang would not be complete without a trip to Pulau Jerejak. It’s an islet—and a recreation space—off the eastern coast of Penang Island, and you’ll need to take a 10-minute ferry ride from the Pulau Jerejak Jetty to get there. The islet has a rainbow-coloured pier, a rainbow-coloured climbing wall, and prop stairways that will make any Instagrammer leap for joy. It does get crowded though, so visit early if you want more breathing space for photo taking. (The ferry service begins at 6.30am.)

Get directions to Pulau Jerejak Jetty

When BookXcess opened last year in Gurney Paragon Mall, it wasn’t just the bibliophiles that took notice. Its two-storey “Really Tall Shelf” was an instant hit with social media influencers—a 10-metre wall of books is certainly a literary photographer’s ultimate fantasy! If you need a break from outdoor jaunts, you can certainly take some holiday snaps here, while getting a caffeine fix along with some intellectual stimulation.

Get directions to BookXcess

Welcome to Penang! Discover a tropical retreat at PARKROYAL Penang Resort, located along the Batu Ferringhi beach. Take your time to explore Penang places of interest on your own, or simply stay indoors to recharge, while enjoying the sea view from the comfort of your room. Check out our room offers or contact our friendly team today!