Penang National Park

Considered the smallest national park in the world, I hiked all the way across in a little over an hour. It was hot so bring a lot of water and food as there isn't a place to buy any at turtle beach. There were monkeys, huge water monitor lizards, and newly hatched greenback sea turtles! This was definitely the highlight. I would recommend taking the long boat from turtle beach to monkey beach. It's worth the money and the stop. Here you can purchase food and drinks, and swim in the water. Best day in Penang so far!

Nice place, super friendly staff especially the ranger located at the kerachut beach. Went there with some friends last week. Overall good. A lot of tourist. The trail is fairly good, suitable for beginners.

Quite an easy trail to trek from the entrance to turtle beach. The sand at the beach is clean & soft. If you are lucky you could see jellyfish "floating" around the jetty. We took a speed boat back to the entrance after wondering there for a while.

Nice nature walk. Be careful on the wooden steps along the coastline, some steps are loose/missing. You can take a dip at the beaches, and in the 'post-apocalyptic' pools where the once majestic Canopy Walk has been left to fall into dilapidation. There is a turtle conservation centre you can visit and watch cute baby turtles paddle around.

Unfortunately the trails were closed for maintenance. However I found information given by staff very helpful and offered a boat trip to monkey beach for 100 rm. I didn't go but if you have a group then this would be a good trip

We did the hike to Teluk Kampi, only suitable for hikers with a very good condition. About 12 kilometres and 4 times hill climbing, try to avoid it when it's raining, walkways are slippery then. Although an expensive entrance of 50 Ringgit we gave it 5 stars while the nature is mesmerising beautiful.

I went hiking in the late afternoon and the best part were the monkeys at the beach, as you can tell from the photos. They’re not afraid to come right up to you, so keep your items close.. or don’t.

The hike is moderately challenging and takes about 1.5 hours from one end to the other.

Our favourite activity on Penang island.

We enjoyed the beautiful & fairly easy hike to Turtle Beach/ Pantai Kerachut.(1,5 hrs was accurate for us)

We opted to hiked to Turtle Beach and take a boat back via Monkey Beach as the path to Monkey Beach was closed. However, in hindsight, We preferred Turtle Beach anyways for it quietness and beauty (no swimming due to jelly fish). So if your purpose is coming for nature and calm , and want to reduce cost, I suggest to opt to walk to Turtle beach for a picnic (incl a visit to the turtle conservation center and Meromictic lake) and walk back.

If you want to swim and have coffee/drinks/food, do opt for Monkey Beach as part of the boat trip back. It's also a beautiful boat ride, and it's a well organised boat association, modern safe boats and friendly staff. (Providing nice info and give you as much time as you like before heading back to the entrance) Otherwise cut these cost (120 RYM) and walk back instead.

Did not mind paying 50 RYM pp. for conservation /park fee. It's much better spend on conservation than on jetski's and alcohol (the fee keeps the Batu Ferringi circus away😉)

We did the shorter walk to turtle beach and loved it.

It's a 3km walk through the woods to the amazing quiet white sand beach of Pantai Kerachut beach.

If you don't want to walk the 3km back book a boat at the booths in the National Park before you set off, for whatever time you want to return. We gave ourselves 3hrs which was more than enough time, as the walk is about 1 hour 30 minutes.

I've seen other reviews say the walk is tough but it's not. I'm out of my fitness peak and doing a walking Parkrun at 45mins and this walk was fine for me. The first 1km is a bit is up hill on some steps but then it levels out and it's a gradual up and down route. If you are a novice walker or do not do well in heat them you may struggle. We set off about 9.30am so it was cooler.

The beach is a turtle conservation area so there are no stalls or hawkers on the beach so bring water and take your rubbish home.

The boat back is about 25mins and part of the fun. At time of writing it cost RM100 for 2 people, you can extend it to Monkey bay but we didn't so don't know how that is.

Would highly recommend if you love a jungle walk and beach.

Nice to be out in the jungle and the beach not far from George Town. The trail is overgrown in some areas, so long pants might help avoid scratches. On a dry day I had no difficulties at any point. I couldn't find a Grab on the way back, so I took the bus.

The Penang National Park is beautiful and well maintained. There are a few different trails, and most are well marked. Easy walking with little inclines. You can choose to buy a boat ticket in advance to return or walk the trail back. Lots of natural sounds and sights. Highly recommend for those who want to explore, be in nature, and away from people.

Note: bring water, hot, sunglasses, and mosquito repellent

Entrance fee is 25 MYR- cash only

Entry the national park will cost you 50(including go to the turtle conservation area). But you can pay 100 per boat (which can be filled up to 10 persons) to enter the national park (without entry to national park). The walk itself is up and down hill for 1 and 45 minutes to conservation area.

The way to turtle beach was nice. I made it twice at the same day.With one ticket you can go out to eat and return back at the same day if needed.Good adventure and bring a lot of Water

Great spot. Beautiful beach (probably the cleanest you could find in Penang). Highly recommend for a nice walk. Boat is also available if you don’t feel like walking.

Love it. 50 ringgit conservation fee paid in cash by foreigners. They don't take card. Good trails well marked out. Although they're a little longer than the trail markers might suggest. Walking from the beach Pantai Kerchut to the 2km marker was 3.4km on my watch so make sure you're well prepared with lots of water.

A very beautiful park and the trails are not difficult at all, just make sure you have enough water as it's very humid and no breeze until you arrive at a beach. I walked from the main entrance to 'turtle beach' then took a boat to 'monkey beach' and after eating and a short rest, took the boat back to the main entrance. You need to reserve a boat at the main entrance where you agree a pick-up time as phone signal is hard to come by.

It’s simply one of my favourite places in Penang. It’s a hidden gem, and the beach is peaceful. The hike is easy and rewarding.

My route is 𝐄𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 - 𝐌𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐋𝐚𝐤𝐞 - 𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢 𝐊𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐭 (the red line on the map below)

During the first 15 minutes, the consecutive stairs made my legs tired. So I decided to move slowly because of a long way ahead. Afterwards, the altitude changed less, we found it easier to walk. Some dangerous downhill sections were equipped with ropes to hold onto. And the signposts helped us stay on the right way.

You have to be careful with ants, especially the 2cm-sized queen ants. The ants were everywhere, and the mosquitoes were the same. I got bitten by the mosquitoes when stopped for a moment. The bites caused itching for a week. The path was covered by the canopies. I moved under the shade and felt cool. There were a few small streams along the way where you could wash your face and hands, that felt refreshing, but you shouldn't drink the water.

The map indicated a total time of 1 hour and 20 minutes.
We took some breaks to wash our faces and drink water. So it took us almost 2 hours to reach the beach. After spending an additional 15 minutes on the boat, we returned to 𝐓𝐞𝐥𝐮𝐤 𝐁𝐚𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐉𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐲 at the entrance.

If you are also a person of normal health, trekking for your first like me, the following tips may be helpful for you:
- Have breakfast and apply mosquito repellent before.
- Dress appropriately (sport shoes, stretchy clothes, a raincoat in case it rains).
- Carry more food and water.
- Pre-purchase a boat ticket to return the entrance after trekking.
- Try to lighten your backpack weight (no need of hats, coats, backup battery chargers)

Conservation fee (Entrance ticket): 50RM/person
One-way boat ticket: 50RM/person
You should buy one-way boat ticket at the entrance because of no service at the beach. The boatman didn't sell tickets and just picked up passengers having boat tickets.

The hike is around 3+KM took about 1 hour + for average hikers , the trail is not that steep but still steep and not very challenging, very good hiking trail for those who are looking for a relaxing hike. The beach also very beautiful and clean and they have a Sea turtle sanctuary you can go and visit for free. Dont be like me I forgot to book a boat earlier at the entrance or else you will need to hike back again , luckily there are these good women who kindly let us join their boat to go to monkey beach and go back to entrance. In monkey beach you can drink and eat there.

Very very beautiful place. I had low expectations after reading the comments here about rubbish but the place turned out amazing. Yes there are one or two lying around but it's not as bad as what is written.

We took the trail to Kerachut beach with the turtle sanctuary at the end of the trail. They little turtles were so cute and the guy did a fantastic job in explaining and answering all of our questions. The hike to and fro was so serene with the sound of cicadas and stream flowing in the background. We literally had the entire place to ourselves tht day.

The hike was about 1 hr and 10 mins to kerachut and it was not at all difficult. Saw so many things along the way. It was truly a mesmerising experience. Definitely will return in the future.