Why Stay in Penang?

Penang, which was founded by the British more 200 years ago (brief history),  is famous for its food, diverse culture, friendly people and beautiful beaches. These are the reasons why foreigners love Penang.

Why Penang?

Penang attracts the most MM2H retirees. It is the destination of choice for people who want to retire or relax. Life in Penang is slow and quite laid back. Things are done in an unhurried pace. Traffic congestion is tolerable and only during peak hours only.

Georgetown, Penang has been listed in the UNESCO World Heritage Site - Georgetown and Malacca constitute a unique architectural and cultural townscape without parallel anywhere in East and Southeast Asia. Click here for details

Below are the advertisements on the local The Star Newspaper for National Front, the governing party for Penang. It tells you something about Penang. The advertisement was published on 28th February 2008.

Please click on the links below. Each page is approximately 5Mb.

1. Page 1 - Economy & Jobs, Quality of Life and Manufacturing

2. Page 2 - Tourism, Agriculture & Fisheries and Services & Trading

3. Page 3 - Living Environment, Healthcare, Housing For The People, Water, Power & Broadband and Public Safety & Security

4. Page 4 - Moving People & Goods, Two Bridges & First Cyber City

5. Page 5 - New Industrial Strategies, NCER and Key NCER Infrastructures

6. Page 6 - Education & Training, Culture & Harmony, Rural Development, Women, Youth & Sports and Caring Society.

Things to do in Penang

1. Savour the great varieties of local food and delicious hawker fare. Penang was voted Best Street Food 2004 by Time magazine. Click here for details.

2. Visit places of interest, historical sites and heritage buildings

3. Enjoy the fine beaches and lovely weather. A daily morning walk along the sandy beach is never boring. Listening to the lapping waves is therapeutic.

4. Visit the shopping malls and get stuff at bargain prices.

5. Interact with local people. They are helpful and friendly.

6. Travel to other parts of Malaysia to make more wonderful discoveries.

7. Relax and indulge in various forms of recreation.

Lower cost of living compared to Kuala Lumpur or Johor Bahru
Life in Penang is great and not expensive. A decent meal for a person at the food court, hawker center or coffeeshop costs RM5. An excellent meal for two at good restaurants only costs RM50. High end and classy restaurants will charge you about RM150 for two people. Cooking at home is relatively cheap. For a family of 4, you need to spend  only RM600 per month.. Parking is cheap at RM0.80 per hour by the roadside or RM2 per hour in parking garages.

Excellent facilities and infrastructure
Penang has the facilities of a modern city. Hospitals and healthcare centers offer good medical services (no waiting required). Universities, colleges and international schools are available in Penang too.

Close proximity to all major cities and resorts
Penang is just 45 minutes by air away from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Promotional airfare by low cost carrier from Penang to KLIA is just RM29 (USD8). There are direct flights from Penang International Airport to Singapore, Bangkok, Korea and Japan. By road, it is just 4 hours to Genting Highlands Resort.

Affordable real estate that is investment-worthy

Penang has a lot of property for acquisition and investment, condominiums resorts by the sea, large bungalows and terraced houses. One can find any type of property to suit his taste and budget. Investing in Penang can be a good choice as the rate of appreciation in the property is quite desirable.

Georgetown, Penang was rated the 10th best place to live in Asia (2006) by ECA International . The other cities are large modern metropolitan. Penang island has less than 800,000
people and it is already on the list. Check out the official website from the company that did the survey : http://www.eca-international.com/ASP/ViewArticle2.asp?ArticleID=183

Penang has attracted many foreigners who want to make it their retirement or holiday homes. It is a combination of slow life, friendly people, great food, absence of language problem, excellent
infrastructure, affordable homes and individual home ownership that makes Penang a great place to stay.

If you looking for small town charm but the conveniences of a large city, Penang has it all !

ECA International has rated Georgetown as number #9 in Asia. This is an improvement over 2006's ranking of #10. Georgetown was ranked 74 globally last year and 63 this year (11 rank increase). Quoted from its website at http://www.eca-international.com/ASP/ViewArticle2.asp?ArticleID=209

"Georgetown has seen the biggest improvement in scores of all the Asian cities, reflected in an 11 place rise in the ranking, due to improvements in recreation, housing and personal security situations."

Quote from ECA's website - "Undertaken annually, ECA International’s Location Ranking Survey compares living standards in 254 locations globally according to categories including climate, air quality, health services, housing and utilities, isolation, social network and leisure facilities, infrastructure, personal safety and political tensions."

The table below shows the approximate living expenses for 2 person in Penang. (based on 22nd October 2008 exchange rate)