5 Day Georgetown Malaysia Budget Guide

Georgetown Malaysia has a bit of it all- street art, unique architecture, café culture, endless street food, sea line views- and more. For a tiny city that is just over 100 square miles, this UNESCO world heritage site packs a punch of budget friendly activities. So if you’re looking for the perfect addition to your Malaysia budget itinerary, you’ve found the right spot. Follow our 5 day Georgetown Malaysia budget guide to get the most out of your time here.

hawker stand with large yellow size above rainbow metal chairs included as part of a 5 day georgetown malaysia budget guide recommendation
light blue grey water in the background with large grey rocks and stones at the front of the image. skyscrapers separate the water and rocks. walking the promenade is part of the 5 day georgetown malaysia budget guide recommendations

How to get to Georgetown Malaysia?

From Cameron Highlands to Georgetown

We went to Georgetown Malaysia after stopping in the Cameron Highlands. The Cameron Highlands are just about 200 km ( 125 miles) from Georgetown. Though the distance is relatively close, it’ll still take you a good chunk of time to travel there due to the single lane, windy road that compromises the entrance/exit to the Cameron Highlands. To get from the Cameron Highlands to Georgetown, you have two main options, the bus or a taxi.

Option 1: Bus– Taking a bus is the most affordable way to travel to Georgetown Penang Malaysia. It’ll take around 4-5 hours of your time, but a one-way ticket will set you back around $10USD. If you’re staying in Tanah Rata in the Cameron Highlands ( the most accessible area by public transportation), then you’ll be able to take a bus directly from Tanah Rata bus terminal to the Sungai Nibong bus terminal in Georgetown. From there, it’s easy to find a taxi or order an Uber to your accommodation.

Option 2: By Taxi– We would only recommend taking a taxi if you are traveling with a larger group. Taxi’s will still take between 3-4 hours and will cost over 10X as much as the bus ( with an average quote around $140 USD). Since it doesn’t save much time, we’d suggest the bus.

From Kuala Lumpur to Georgetown

If you’re coming from Kuala Lumpur and want to get to Georgetown Malaysia, it’ll also take 5+ hours by road. From KL, you can take a bus, travel by train, or even fly.

Option 1, by bus: There are many busses that run daily from Kuala Lumpur to Georgetown leaving from the main bus station in KL ( Terminal Bersepadu Selatan). Some of the express busses claim a 5 hour route, but the trip will likely be longer. Luckily the bus journey will only be about 40 Malaysian Ringgit ( $9 USD)

Option 2, by train: The closest train station to Georgetown is Butterworth (some busses go directly here as well, so pay attention to what option you select when you book!). The train will cost between $10-$15USD and usually takes around 6 hours. From Butterworth, you’ll take a ferry for less then $1 USD and about 20 minutes of your time to Georgetown. This video provides a nice glance on what to expect if you decide to take the train.

Option 3, fly: For a quick 1 hour flight, you can hop easily from Kuala Lumpur to Penang. Flights can be as cheap as $20 USD and run consistently throughout the day. From the airport, it’ll take around 30 minutes by taxi to arrive in Georgetown central.

Now that you’ve made it to Georgetown, it’s time to start exploring and (maybe most importantly?), eating!

Here’s our recommendations for

Best budget food in Georgetown Penang Malaysia

If you know a bit about Malaysian cuisine, you know that street food is a delicious, budget friendly way to try new dishes. Hawker stalls provide tons ( 50+) stands with local food all in a centralized area with most dishes costing between 5-10 Malaysian Ringgit ( under $2 USD). Some of the most popular Hawker stands are:

  • New Lane Street Foodhall: Follow the crowds and look for food made fresh ( most of it is). You’ll be spoiled for options of both local and international options
  • Chulia Street: During the day, you’ll probably find yourself up and down this street several times without even noticing. There’s loads of shops, temples, and cafes to explore. But at night, return to find crowds of both locals and tourists ( officially located on Carnarvon St)
  • New World Park– Under a large overhang and next to the New World Park shopping area, you’ll be spoiled for local options. This Hawker stand is just a 5 minute walk from the Airbnb in Georgetown Penang we recommend ( where we stayed) so it’s easy to visit at night.

Best Vegetarian Food Options in Georgetown Malaysia

We are both veg-heads and Georgetown ( like all of Malaysia, honestly) is a very easy place to be vegetarian. Yes, you can find plenty of western vegetarian options if that is what you are after, but these recommendations are our favorite for more local-style options.

1) Pinxin Vegan Cuisin: More of a mid-budget option, but you are paying for high quality-delicious food. They also deliver! Lots of Malaysian classics with a Vegan twist.

2) Yun Shan Ge Vegetarian House: Vegetarian Chinese food with a vast menu- mostly a local crowd.

3) Ee Beng Vegetarian Food : This is our favorite vegetarian spot in Georgetown! It’s an all-veggie buffet with fresh food and tons of flavor. You pay for what you take and our most indulgent meals cost about $3.00 USD. They also have really good steamed buns which I typically have a hard time finding fully vegetarian options for!

If you’re interested in more vegetarian-only suggestions for your Malaysia budget itinerary, check out our recommendations for KL!

Coffee/Café Recommendations

You’ll be spoiled for choices for coffee shops. Here are our top three that we didn’t find to be nearly as touristy as some other recommendations we read up on:

1)Ome by Spacebar Coffee – A cozy, hip, brick-walled spot to get all your coffee ( and tea) favorites.

2)We also loved Higher Ground Coffee which is a VERY spacious spot and has a menu that also serves light meals and often has live music ( with indoor and outdoor seating). And one more coffee recommendation (because you can never really bookmark too many coffee spots…)

3)Our Airbnb was right behind Sinar Koffee Penang. The owner is super friendly and they serve American style pancakes which we oddly missed after traveling for a few weeks in SE Asia.

Our Favorite Sweet Spots in Georgetown Malaysia

1) Frozen Love Ice Cream – Delicious, high quality ice cream. And the best part? It can be delivered!

2) Hema Hema Artisan Ice cream -Found this spot on a blog and it has such a following. There are about 10 flavors and they close when they run out of ice cream. We went twice and both times (at the end of the day) they only had less then 3 flavors left!

Now that you have plenty of food options to work through, it’s time to explore the streets of Georgetown. It’s easy to fill your days with activities for a 5 day Georgetown Malaysia visit, but these are our suggestions for the:

Top things to do in Georgetown Malaysia

the panoramic view of the Georgetown Malaysia skyline from the Kek Lok Si Temple
  1. Kimberly Street – Best enjoyed at night when the food stalls are set up, this passage is known for it’s big flavors of iconic Malaysian dishes
  2. Explore Chowrasta Market– a local market about a 5 minute walk from our Airbnb. Lots of produce and snacks, but also shops with clothes nearby ( I got a dress here for $2.50)
  3. Stroll through Chinatown – Though there is a clear Chinese influence on many of the restaurants, shops, and architecture that make up the whole of Georgetown, there are more concentrated and preserved areas worth visiting as outlined by Feast of Travel in their Georgetown Chinatown guide
  4. Loudspeaker Family Karaoke– Located right next to New World Park food city, we found this karaoke bar. After traveling through Japan for 3 weeks and becoming addicted to our mid-day private karaoke parties, we decided to give this place a try. It’s not the same as a Japanese karaoke room experience ( are there places that can really compete?), but if you too enjoy the occasional sing-along in the privacy of your own room with food and drinks, then this is a great spot to check out and enjoy some AC.
  5. Soak in the street art on Campbell Street : Go searching for some of the most iconic recommendations or just forget the internet searching and enjoy an authentic experience of experiencing something truly for the first time
  6. Pinang Peranakan Mansion– One of the most iconic preserved houses in Georgetown. Admission is $6 USD which is very reasonable, but we honestly opted against this one at the time as we were at the cap of our stingy ” activities budget”. Instead, we decided to visit Cheong Fatt Tze ( The Blue Mansion) for admission ( $6 USD) with an audio guide (for $6 USD). While the house is beautiful ( and is the home for several pop-culture phenomenon’s) the exhibits are pretty small and you’ll end up listening to several audio-guide ” stops” all from the same space.
  7. Padan Kota Lama Promenade – Outside of the main historic streets and away from the hustle of tourists, escape to the water front promenade for a long stroll
  8. Kek Lok Si Temple -This is one of the largest Buddhist temples in South East Asia- and it’s free to enter. Take an Uber from your accommodation and be prepared for beautiful architecture and panoramic views. It’s hilly ( and hot) so stock up on even more water then usual.
  9. Indulge in an Malaysian Mall experience at Gurney Paragon Mall– You don’t always put ” shopping mall” on a travel itinerary, but if we are being honest, this will be a nice reprieve from our other recommendations due to one factor- the weather. Georgetown is HOT and HUMID pretty much all year round. If it’s not the sweat getting to you, then it might be the rain. We needed a reprieve from both ( i.e. the excessive sweating and the mid day rain) and decided to take a $5 USD Uber to the mall. Not only do you get to experience mall culture, you can window shop through some very boogie brands, but more practically, enjoy endless options at one of the giant food courts.
  10. Meander through the local jetties: These local, family run jetties offer authentic experiences of the small traditional floating villages that used to sustain primarily on fishing. While some of the jetties are more tourist centered then others, our top three to explore are:
    • Tan Jetty
    • Lee Jetty
    • Yeoh Jetty
      • * The Chew Jetty is the most famous ( and most touristy)- it’s worth exploring here too as they are right nearby. There’s also no admission fee required to enter any jetty- but some ask for a donation.

This is honestly just the tip of the iceberg for suggestions of things to do in Georgetown Penang Malaysia. We hope our Georgetown Malaysia budget guide has convinced you to add Georgetown to your Malaysia budget trip itinerary!

a religious building in georgetown Malaysia
a wooden house jetty with stone column legs over murky green water in georgetown penang

Now you know where to eat, and what to do, it’s time to decide where to stay. Here’s our recommendations for:

The best Georgetown Malaysia Hotels

For under $30 USD, you can find endless centrally located options for budget accommodation in Georgetown ( all with 8/10 or better average reviews):

–The Frame Guesthouse ( double room for $20USD with shared bathroom)

–Kimberly Hotel ( Queen Bed from $25 USD)

–The Link Hotel ( Double bed from $24)

–B Street Hotel ( Doubles from $27)

Where we stayed: We stayed in this multi-unit Airbnb in Georgeton Penang and would definitely recommend it. It has a shared kitchen and a shared couch area, but everything is very spacious and kept very clean ( cleaning staff are there daily!). There are some rooms with shared bathrooms, but we chose a room with a private bathroom. Location is very central, walkable to whatever you want to do!

Top Things to do in Georgetown Malaysia in 1 day

If you only have 1 day in Georgetown, you can still manage an authentic experience to get the gist of the city.

Morning: Start with breakfast. If you want baked goods, head to Continental Bakery for a take-away treat. If you’re looking for a cheap savory local option, go to Tua Pui Cafe. From there head to Armenian Street for street art hunting.

Afternoon: Make your way to The Blue Mansion ( Cheong Fatt Tze)- make sure to also pay for the audio guide to appreciate the exhibitions more. From there, stop by the New World Park Hawker center for lunch. If you have space, Frozen Love Ice Cream is just a few blocks away.

Evening: Take a walk along the promenade seafront once the temperatures have cooled. After you’ve finished digesting lunch, make your way over the Chulia Street Hawker Stalls for dinner and more sweets.

We hope this perfect 5 day Georgetown Malaysia budget guide inspires you to add Georgetown as part of your Malaysia travels! Besides the heat ( you’ll see that as part of a common thread on our Malaysia posts…) we really enjoyed Georgetown ( especially the food) and are really glad we included it as part of our budget Malaysia itinerary. From Georgetown we took a break from the city vibes and made our way to Langkawi for a little off-season quiet beach time.

Looking to continue your travels in Malaysia?

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Welcome! We're Vic and Pat- 30 somethings that have accumulated 10+ years of international travel experience who finally have the guts to share their experiences. We focus on budget couple travel in unique locations that aren't necessarily on a "bucketlist." We don't believe in taking time for granted and we do believe in living our life on the move. Sometimes we have long weekends, sometimes we have a 2 week holiday, sometimes we travel and work remotely for 2+ months at a time. Regardless of what chapter of life we're in, we want to show you how to stretch your budget, maximize travel hacks, and create memorable experiences.