Pulau Pinang | Penang Tourism & Travel Guide | Georgetown UNESCO World Heritage City | Penang Hotel Resort | Penang Food Paradise

Address: Lone Crag Villa, Lot 595 Mukim 2, Jalan Teluk Bahang, 11100 Pulau Pinang.

Admission fee: (Valid as at March 2011)

Adult: RM14
Child: RM8 (Free for children under 4 years old)
Familiy package: RM35 (Inclusive two adults and up to three children under 13 years old.)

Guided tour

Adult: RM22
Child: RM8 (Free for children under 4 years old)
Familiy package: RM55 (Inclusive two adults and up to three children under 13 years old.)

Opening hours: 9am to 6 pm daily. Last admission at 5.30 pm.

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Tropical Spice Garden in Teluk Bahang, Penang, which houses over 500 varieties of exotic and endemic tropical flora from Malaysia and all over the world in over eight acres of secondary jungle and natural valley fronting the Andaman sea.

The garden was opened to public on 2003 after one and a half painstaking years of landscaping work on an overgrown rubber plantation by Lim In Chong, Frederick Walker, etc. funded by David and Rebecca Wilkinson of Bertam Consolidated Rubber Co. Ltd. Many of the existing rubber trees were left undisturbed, to provide shelter to visitors and also to smaller inhabitants. The challenge of the design team is to keep ecological impact to minimal and maintain its original topography for a natural feel.

This eco-tourism themed park has been awarded with several distinguished awards such as Gold award under the Laman Floral Garden Award and Merit Award under Tourism Malaysia ‘Best Man-Made’ tourism attraction 2005/06.

It was used as the shooting scene for an episode of Amazing Race in Asia. Look out for the giant swing! (also in the photo gallery.)

The Garden, endorsed by the Penang State Government, is aimed at creating awareness of the natural environment and the importance of plants through conservation, education and research programs.

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Once you enter the main gate, you will see a pond on the right of the ticket booth and two giant water lily plants (Victoria Amazinica) in the middle which draw the immediate attention of most visitors.

Water Lily, Victoria Amazinica.

It’s believed the tropical Spice Garden is the first public accessible park on the Island (or may be Malaysia) to have such giant water lily from South America. The size of the pad is not yet fully growth to its max size which could reach up to 2.1m or more. The space in the pond is another constraint factor for the actual pad size limit. The plant flowers non-stop all year round and its flower blossoms as white and turns pink by the next day.

Photo courtesy of Tropical Spice Garden.

The varying sections of this lush green garden can be explored by following any of the three undulating landscaped trails that begin at the main gate and lead to 11 distinct garden rooms.

• Spice Trail
View over 100 varieties of tropical spices and herbs used as flavourings, medicines, dyes and perfumes. Get hands-on experience of grinding spices, and retrace the historical spice trade routes on the “Spices of the World” globe installation painted by local artist, Rebecca Duckett.

• Ornamental Trail
In the heart of the valley is a collection of exotic flora chosen for their structural forms (palms), ornamental foliages (ferns, crotons) or stunning flowers (gingers). Mature and endemic palms are planted to provide a frame for the trail.

• Jungle Trail
This is a shady elevated pathway that meanders through the jungle and overlooks the stream, showcasing ferns, wild orchids, understorey palms and other significant jungle flora, some of which are major commercial crops (palm oil, rubber) or are used by the Orang Asli (indigenous Malaysian)

Legend: Orange markings in the plan.

Garden Rooms

1.Water Garden – marginal and aquatic plants.
2.Cycad Room – palm-like plants up to 280 million years old.
3.Banana/Heliconia Bank – plants with large leaves and colourful flower bracts.
4.Spice Terraces – plants valued for medicinal and culinary uses.
5.Bamboo Garden – clump-forming plants.
6.Ginger Walk – plants with stunningly beautiful flowers.
7.Sugar Terrace – sugar-producing palm trees.
8.Ornamental Valley – flowering plants, trees, shrubs and herbs.
9.Croton Wall – plants with attractive foliage and inconspicuous flowers.
10.Fern Walk – non-flowering plants with spores up to 400 million years old
11.Jungle Trail – tropical rainforest plants

The easy way to wander these trails is getting a brochure from the Tropical Spice Garden.

The present Spice Museum will be converted to cooking school, but all exhibits will be displayed in the different locations of the garden.

After the trails exploration, visitors can stop by at the gift shop to buy sovereign, fragrance, herb and spice spa products. These products are Tropical Spice Garden branded products sourced from local manufacturers.

Citronella Home Fragrance.

The Tree Monkey Restaurant next to the gift shop is a perfect retreat to re-energize your tired and fatigued body after your shopping. It offers pork-free menu mainly varieties from North-Eastern Thai and also include a mixture of Asian and Western cuisines.

The Restaurant is perched on the hill of Tropical Spice Garden with a panoramic view over the Andaman Sea. Imagine having a romantic dinner engulfed by an evening sunset under a tranquil secondary jungle.

The Tree Monkey Restaurant

The restaurant is opened from 9am till 12 midnight daily. No admission fee to enter the restaurant which has separate entry leading to the restaurant.

Other Services:

- Wedding ceremony package in the garden.

- Nyonya cuisine cooking class.

- Teambuilding coaching.

How to get there?

Rapid Penang Bus: No.102 directly from Airport and No.101 from Weld Quay, George Town via Batu Feringghi and Teluk Bahang.

Location map:

GPS Coordinates: 5.46352N, 100.229087E Show on map

Photo gallery:

[Footnote: The writer wishes to thank Tropical Spice Garden, especially Danny Tan for facilitating his field site visit.]

Posted by admin on March 31, 2011 under Nature.