Buzzing with energy and life, George Town is the atmospheric hub of Penang. A rich history of migrations, colonialism, and trade has forged it into a place full of peoples, creeds, faiths, and flavors. You can sample soy-doused noodles, ride hand-drawn rickshaws, sip hand-roasted coffee from the Malay highlands, and delve into gold-gilded Taoist shrines, all in the very same morning.

One of the great features of George Town is its patchwork of neighborhoods. Take Chinatown, where dim sum and rice cakes sizzle over open flames, all while dragon-topped bungalows line the streets. Then comes Little India, a heady mix of cumin, ginger and blaring Bollywood tunes topped off with temples aplenty. George Town tour guides can also reveal bohemian art areas laced with street murals, the salt-washed Clan Jetties where timber homes poke over a murky ocean, and grand colonial districts with Anglo mansions aplenty. Everyone loves the panoramic view that unfolds around the Sky Walk as well, and in the dry season, the beaches that fringe the shores by Batu Ferringhi are a hubbub of sunbathers.