Penang International Airport (PEN) — Airport Guide 2026

✈️ The Airport in 2026

PEN (ICAO WMKP) is a single-terminal airport in Bayan Lepas that has been operating over capacity for long enough that a RM 1.55 billion expansion is now mid-construction. Aircraft stands increase from 16 to 28; annual capacity doubles from 6.5 to 12 million passengers. As of early 2026 the enabling works are nearly complete and the apron construction is well advanced. The new terminal is expected to be operational around 2027, full completion targeted for mid-2028. Expect hoardings and some temporary arrangements while in transit.

The carrier base is AirAsia-dominant, with Malaysia Airlines and the turboprop Firefly running their own mini-hubs. Regional international traffic covers Singapore (Scoot), Hong Kong, the Gulf and China. There is no rail connection to the airport — Penang’s planned LRT, the Mutiara Line, is under construction but years away from serving PEN.

🛂 Border, Visa & the MDAC

Citizens of the US, UK, EU, Canada, Australia and New Zealand enter Malaysia visa-free for 90 days. That stamp is not issued until you’ve completed the Malaysia Digital Arrival Card (MDAC) — a free mandatory pre-arrival registration that replaced the paper landing card. File it at the official portal (imigresen-online.imi.gov.my/mdac) within three calendar days before your arrival; the system does not accept submissions earlier than the three-day window. Cost: RM 0.

Exemptions are narrow: Singaporean citizens, Malaysian permanent residents and diplomatic-passport holders only. The MDAC is not a visa and doesn’t replace one for nationalities that require a visa to enter Malaysia.

Malaysia entry requirements at a glance — 2026

Immigration officers at PEN expect the MDAC confirmation. File it one or two days before departure — not at the airport, not on the plane.

🚌 Getting to George Town

🚌 Rapid Penang Bus 401E

Routes 401E, 401 and 102 run from PEN into George Town, ending around the KOMTAR terminal and the Weld Quay jetties via Sungai Nibong and Little India. The fare is RM 2.70, paid exact on board — no change is given, and neither the driver nor the fare box accommodates larger notes. Buses run roughly 05:30–23:00, every 23–35 minutes; the trip is 45 minutes to an hour depending on traffic. Contactless transit cards work. It’s the cheapest option and drops you at the edge of the heritage zone, but it’s slow with luggage.

🚗 Grab

E-hailing via Grab is the easy default for anyone with bags, a group, or an arrival outside bus hours. A clearly marked pickup point sits in the arrivals area; the app shows a fixed price before you confirm. Journey time: 25–40 minutes to George Town depending on traffic. Metered taxis operate at PEN but Grab shows the price upfront and is generally cheaper — no haggling required.

On money: the airport exchange counters give poor rates. Cards and Grab cover most of George Town, but carry small ringgit notes — hawker stalls, the bus, and street food stalls expect cash and exact change.

🛋️ Lounges

PEN’s main lounge is the Plaza Premium, with two branches. The international-departures branch is on the mezzanine floor near Gate A3; the domestic-departures branch is at Level 2 near Gate A1A. Both offer a hot-and-cold buffet, drinks, Wi-Fi and showers. The lounge serves business-class passengers from several airlines — Malaysia Airlines, China Airlines, Qatar and others — alongside walk-in guests.

The terminal’s cafés and food court are a reasonable fallback for a short connection.

🍜 Penang Food — What to Eat

Penang is, by settled consensus, Malaysia’s street-food capital. The reason people route layovers through George Town when they could fly direct is the hawker stalls.

Char kway teow — flat rice noodles stir-fried over fierce heat with prawns, egg, Chinese sausage and bean sprouts. The smoky wok hei is the point; the Chulia Street night stalls and the New Lane and Gurney Drive hawker centres are standard reference points. Paid in cash, RM 6–10 typical.

Assam laksa — tangy tamarind-and-mackerel noodle soup topped with cucumber, pineapple, mint and shrimp paste. Penang’s assam laksa was gazetted as a heritage item in 2026.

Nasi kandar — steamed rice piled with several curries, doused in blended gravies, a Penang-Indian-Muslim institution with lunch queues that form before noon.

Hokkien (prawn) mee — thick yellow noodles in a deep prawn-shell broth.

Cendol — shaved ice with coconut milk, palm sugar and green rice-flour jelly; the dessert served at stalls across the hawker centres.

Everything above is hawker-stall format — open-air, cash, ordered at the counter. The airport food court holds you adequately for a short connection; it is not the reason to come to Penang.

💡 George Town on a Layover

George Town has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2008. Its inscribed old core — walkable from the Weld Quay jetties north to Armenian Street — concentrates most of what a layover visit can cover.

The street art trail. After the 2008 UNESCO listing, the city commissioned murals. Lithuanian artist Ernest Zacharevic’s 2012 works — including “Kids on a Bicycle” on Armenian Street — sparked a city-wide trail of paintings and wrought-iron caricature pieces. Armenian Street and Lebuh Pantai are the densest zones.

The Clan Jetties. Century-old stilt villages on Weld Quay where Chinese clan communities built homes over the water. Chew Jetty is the most visited and walkable, a few minutes from the KOMTAR bus stop.

Heritage core. The Khoo Kongsi clan house, the Cheong Fatt Tze (Blue) Mansion, Chinese temples and mosques — all within the inscribed zone and reachable on foot from the jetties.

Kek Lok Si and Penang Hill. Further out at Air Itam, west of the city centre: the large Kek Lok Si Buddhist temple with its Guan Yin bronze, below Penang Hill reached by funicular railway. These are a different trip from the heritage core — add significant extra travel time.

Two traps worth naming: paying any third-party site for the MDAC (it costs RM 0 at imi.gov.my), and changing money at the airport counters instead of an ATM in arrivals or simply paying by card in the city.

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

📊 At a glance — PEN 2026