Monkey Beach

Monkey Beach is probably one of the best examples for the problems the COVID pandemic caused for the local tourism industry. And I hope I can correct the record a bit, as this beach is probably one of the best on Penang island. My partner and I decided to hike to monkey beach thinking it would be a nice and easy trip of about 90 Minutes. The first leg of the journey towards the university research center is indeed that, although one has to watch out for some broken stairs here and there. What the guard at the entrance failed to tell us however, was that on the second part of the journey, the path had not been maintained (see pictures below). This meant we had to search for the old trail because there was no indication where it had been previously, until we found the ruins of the old concrete path. From the beach with the research station, there are no further indicators until you are well into the jungle, so if you decide to hike there, be advised you are in for an adventure, that not everyone is cut out for (I certainly wasn't). We took about 3 hours from the entrance to the beach for a trail that would usually take 90 Minutes if it had been maintained. The delapifated state of the trail also means, one has to be very careful not to get hurt as there are broken steel pipes, crumbling concrete and rotting wood everywhere. If one loves adventures, and is well prepared (mentally and physically) the hike is a lot of fun nonetheless, with great chances to see the local wildlife. The beach itself is only a husk of its former glory, but the people do their best to re-build it and provide some basic refreshments and food. It's a pleasant place, with nice people and when we were there the beach was as clean as can be expected from a beach which borders the straits of Malacca. On the way back we decided to take the speed boat, which was a fun and very fast ride, although not inexpensive. Overall, a nice day trip although the hike is not recommended if you are planning to go onwards to other places in the national park. In which case the speed boat to monkey beach and a hike onwards might be the better choice.

Don’t waste time, just enjoy the food in George Town. The jetty (from nature reserve park) is very run down and poorly maintained. Dangerous spot, local authorities to keep check. Many steel structures having serious corrosion and I think it’s just a time-bomb!!!

For hiking - YES, for beach - NO. It's a nice hike in the jungle along the coast, but the actual beach is not good at all. You have a couple of cafes there. The prices are Okey. I would recommend to use a "student" entrance(20 my), because for foreigners it is 50 MY

A nice beach ruined by tourists. This is a fantastic location with beautiful white sands and a backdrop of lush jungle. With all the huts selling food and drink, this place has become full of garbage. Litter and plastic everywhere washed up and floating around the sea. Only made worse by the local habitat (monkeys) eating and harming them self’s with all the left over food waste and plastic. With no roads to mainland it is our duty as tourists visiting to take all rubbish home with us. It’s selfish to by a beer from the beach and leave the tin there… take it back with you! Weather you’re bringing you’re own food or eating the food from the beach venders, TAKE YOUR RUBBISH HOME! Even if that plastic bottle rolling down the sand isn’t yours, take it home. It’s our jobs as humans to look after the environment and the nature that surrounds us. Do the right thing, even when nobody is watching!

New experience encountering monkeys as they were invasive. Feel bad, not much energy to climb up to the lighthouse tho. A bit strange to see young Europeans operating small snack/drink shops. Got chance to shoot a white-bellied sea eagle snatching a fish.

Since the pandemic and park entrance fee, it is like a new beach. Clean and quiet with some very relaxing beach bar shacks with snacks and drinks. We went during the morning and practically had the beach to ourselves, and no rubbish was in sight. Highly recommend.

If you’ve ever wanted to experience what it was like to be stranded on a desert island then this is the place for you. Unless you camp, there’s not a whole lot to do here. There are some eating/drinking establishments, and yes, there are monkeys. The coast was easy to walk in and the sand bar goes out pretty far. Yes, the dock you must walk across to access the boat is really sketchy, but if this overweight dad can make it safely across, then so can you.

It’s very fantastic place. If you wanna go there, you can take a boat from Batu Ferenghi beach. It will take around 30 min to go there. And cost you around 150 and you can go up to 6 or 8 people in a boat. You can play with monkeys 😂. If you bring boll, you can also play there. The surface of this beach is awesome. Natural beauty around this amazing beach is beyond imagination and words can’t describe it. The boatman will wait there until you finish. But don’t forget to bring some foods as there’s no shops and whatsoever. You also need to be careful of your belongings because monkeys 🐒 might take and run away. Hope it gives your some overview of this beach. Have fun !!!

Monkey Beach is probably one of the best examples for the problems the COVID pandemic caused for the local tourism industry. And I hope I can correct the record a bit, as this beach is probably one of the best on Penang island. My partner and I decided to hike to monkey beach thinking it would be a nice and easy trip of about 90 Minutes. The first leg of the journey towards the university research center is indeed that, although one has to watch out for some broken stairs here and there. What the guard at the entrance failed to tell us however, was that on the second part of the journey, the path had not been maintained (see pictures below). This meant we had to search for the old trail because there was no indication where it had been previously, until we found the ruins of the old concrete path. From the beach with the research station, there are no further indicators until you are well into the jungle, so if you decide to hike there, be advised you are in for an adventure, that not everyone is cut out for (I certainly wasn't). We took about 3 hours from the entrance to the beach for a trail that would usually take 90 Minutes if it had been maintained. The delapifated state of the trail also means, one has to be very careful not to get hurt as there are broken steel pipes, crumbling concrete and rotting wood everywhere. If one loves adventures, and is well prepared (mentally and physically) the hike is a lot of fun nonetheless, with great chances to see the local wildlife. The beach itself is only a husk of its former glory, but the people do their best to re-build it and provide some basic refreshments and food. It's a pleasant place, with nice people and when we were there the beach was as clean as can be expected from a beach which borders the straits of Malacca. On the way back we decided to take the speed boat, which was a fun and very fast ride, although not inexpensive. Overall, a nice day trip although the hike is not recommended if you are planning to go onwards to other places in the national park. In which case the speed boat to monkey beach and a hike onwards might be the better choice.

Don’t waste time, just enjoy the food in George Town. The jetty (from nature reserve park) is very run down and poorly maintained. Dangerous spot, local authorities to keep check. Many steel structures having serious corrosion and I think it’s just a time-bomb!!!

For hiking - YES, for beach - NO. It's a nice hike in the jungle along the coast, but the actual beach is not good at all. You have a couple of cafes there. The prices are Okey. I would recommend to use a "student" entrance(20 my), because for foreigners it is 50 MY

A nice beach ruined by tourists. This is a fantastic location with beautiful white sands and a backdrop of lush jungle. With all the huts selling food and drink, this place has become full of garbage. Litter and plastic everywhere washed up and floating around the sea. Only made worse by the local habitat (monkeys) eating and harming them self’s with all the left over food waste and plastic. With no roads to mainland it is our duty as tourists visiting to take all rubbish home with us. It’s selfish to by a beer from the beach and leave the tin there… take it back with you! Weather you’re bringing you’re own food or eating the food from the beach venders, TAKE YOUR RUBBISH HOME! Even if that plastic bottle rolling down the sand isn’t yours, take it home. It’s our jobs as humans to look after the environment and the nature that surrounds us. Do the right thing, even when nobody is watching!

New experience encountering monkeys as they were invasive. Feel bad, not much energy to climb up to the lighthouse tho. A bit strange to see young Europeans operating small snack/drink shops. Got chance to shoot a white-bellied sea eagle snatching a fish.

Since the pandemic and park entrance fee, it is like a new beach. Clean and quiet with some very relaxing beach bar shacks with snacks and drinks. We went during the morning and practically had the beach to ourselves, and no rubbish was in sight. Highly recommend.

If you’ve ever wanted to experience what it was like to be stranded on a desert island then this is the place for you. Unless you camp, there’s not a whole lot to do here. There are some eating/drinking establishments, and yes, there are monkeys. The coast was easy to walk in and the sand bar goes out pretty far. Yes, the dock you must walk across to access the boat is really sketchy, but if this overweight dad can make it safely across, then so can you.

It’s very fantastic place. If you wanna go there, you can take a boat from Batu Ferenghi beach. It will take around 30 min to go there. And cost you around 150 and you can go up to 6 or 8 people in a boat. You can play with monkeys 😂. If you bring boll, you can also play there. The surface of this beach is awesome. Natural beauty around this amazing beach is beyond imagination and words can’t describe it. The boatman will wait there until you finish. But don’t forget to bring some foods as there’s no shops and whatsoever. You also need to be careful of your belongings because monkeys 🐒 might take and run away. Hope it gives your some overview of this beach. Have fun !!!