We visited The TOP Penang on Day 1 of our recent trip to the Malaysian island.
We purchased the tickets via Pelago, a travel experience platform by Singapore Airlines. Chose the Rainbow Skywalker + Jurassic Research Centre + Penang Boutique Aquarium Tickets for S$19.15 which is cheaper than the walk-in rate of RM88. By using Pelago, we earned Krisflyer miles from the purchase too. Current earn rate is 3 Krisflyer miles to S$1 spent. Stack with credit card rewards to earn more from the purchase 🙂
Spending our Christmas Day at The TOP Penang.
We started off the visit with a late lunch at Umi Restaurant, which serves traditional local Malay cuisine.
The food and portion were pretty decent. Our choices of mains were tom yam bee hoon soup, nasi goreng, mee goreng and chicken chop with fries.
The 3 main attractions we visited within the TOP Penang were Penang Boutique Aquarium, Jurassic Research Centre and the Observatory Deck. Due to time constraint, we did not explore the other attractions. The Magic Carousel and other rides were closed at the time of our visit.
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Penang Boutique Aquarium is pretty well designed, but personally thought their collection is a bit lacking in the wow factor, as the exhibits are mostly pretty commonly seen freshwater fish.
One of the exhibits that caught our eye – blue lobster, a rare crustacean which is solitary and nocturnal. In the daytime, they hide in small caves and crevices in reefs or under coral at depths of up to 15 metres. They can weigh up to 950g and measure up to 40cm.
The most interesting section to me is the luminous fish exhibit. A few tanks of Glofish tetras in a darkened room.
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Jurassic Research Centre tells of a story whereby a genius researcher managed to create ‘live’ dinosaurs in the centre and visitors get to see them. There are fixed timings which they bring groups of visitors in batch by batch so you can’t walk inside freely. The idea is good but it’s a pity the replicas and the place ain’t really well maintained. We didn’t get to see much of the information panels and displays as we were hurried along by our guide, and we can’t let the others wait too. Guess we are also spoilt by the quality in Fukui Dinosaur Museums and the Australian museums we visited.
The outdoor exhibit area.
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The experience at Jurassic Research Centre and Penang Boutique Aquarium was kind of underwhelming, but the Observatory Deck was totally worth the visit and time spent in snaking queue for the elevator that brought us up.
Standing on the glass walkway at Level 65 and watched the world go by below.
The Rainbow Skywalk at Level 68 looks to be fun, but I have acrophobia (afraid of heights) so being timid I did not go onto that glass walkway that is 248 metres above sea level.
Besides Rainbow Skywalk, Top View restaurant and lounge is also on the same level. If you wish to dine at Top View Restaurant, it is recommended to book ahead. I tried booking on my arrival and was unsuccessful.
The view of Georgetown at sunset.
