We wish our city had such a cool park as this. Penang Municipal Park is not only free to enter, but huge. It goes by other names too, such as the Youth Park and City Park.
There are a lot of facilities. And while some are dated and look like they haven’t been used as much as they should have, others are getting an upgrade.
But before you make your way to this park, read this first!
Where Is The Youth Park?
Youth Park is in an established neighbourhood with stately homes. Big trees obscure the entrance to the park which is a lot bigger than it looks.
From George Town, it’ll take you about 13 minutes to drive here (with normal traffic). The park is not far from the Penang Botanic Gardens.
Highlights
A hiking trail (to several hilltop stations and eventually Penang Hill) begins close to the entrance of the park, and we saw many regulars going for it on the weekday that we visited.
The trees here are large and monkeys (and monitor lizards) are a common sight in this park.
There is a large football field – we saw people training by running the whole perimeter of the field. And opposite this field, is a bike rack and various work-out equipment.
A lush garden with rubber tapping pots for decoration takes up one small corner of the park.
Walking deeper into the park, we realized that this is a very kid-friendly park as there is a large playground with many jungle gyms and swings.
And further away, is an obstacle course that looks like a bit intimidating (to us who just have normal fitness). But the rope wall looks like a lot of fun if you’re just fooling around.
The highlight of this city park is a recreational splash pool that both kids and adults can enjoy for free. The pool is not deep enough to do laps or dives, it’s just for play.
We saw another pool with a big manmade waterfall, but it looks like it has not been used for a very long time. And has likely being abandoned.
There’s also an arena of sorts (might be a rollerblading park) that looks underused too. But they are making a new skate park close to the center of the park.
Related: More Activities To Do In Penang With Kids
Facilities
There are changing facilities close by the pool.
If you get hungry, there is a small cafeteria that is not far from the recreational pool.
Besides these, we saw a surau (prayer rooms) and toilets.
You have to look out carefully for the waste bins but there are large ones around the park.
Because of the undulating nature of the park terrain, this might be an inconvenient place to push a stroller or wheelchair.
How Does The Youth Park Differ From The Penang Botanic Gardens?
- There is a recreational pool at the Youth Park
- There are no formal gardens, greenhouses, herb, or succulent gardens in the Youth Park
- A lot more activities can be done at the Youth Park – including advanced skating
- Penang Botanic Gardens is more suitable for sightseeing visitors
Things To Note
- No dogs allowed
- Smoking is prohibited
- Don’t leave your belongings unattended – monkeys will go through them
- All facilities are free for visitors to use
- Very crowded on weekends and evenings and it will be hard to find parking at these times
- Expect mosquitoes
- Park is quite shady thanks to the presence of many trees
Conclusion
We highly recommend a visit to the Youth Park even if you don’t have kids. It’s good for a leisurely stroll in the morning or evening.
But you really should bring your family here if you have hours to spare. Because this park is free to enter. Moreover, it has a lot of facilities, and they are well-maintained and free to use.
Youth Park offers a lot of space for recreational outdoor activities. It doesn’t not have a variety of decorative gardens. So, if exercise is not your main priority (i.e., you want to take more photos), then the Penang Botanic Gardens might interest you more.
