Being a Penangite, I used to work at the gift shop at the observation deck at the Komtar Tower when I just finished schooling and it was a cool job since it was on one of the highest floors back then, and have not been back to the tower for many years now…

The Komtar Tower is the tallest skyscraper in Penang and at 249 metres high, it’s the 6th highest building in Malaysia but over the years it became boring and even the retail outlets turned dull, and even I did not find much to go to Komtar for…

A few years ago, the Only World Group Holdings Bhd (OWG) somehow took over the top part of Komtar, built 3 more floors and revitalized the shopping destination with The Top Penang…

The Top Penang houses the largest indoor theme park in Penang with a variety of attractions to suit everyone, along with a wide variety of food outlets and retail outlets too…

Since yours truly was in the Northern part of Peninsula Malaysia and it was also the eve of my birthday, it was only apt that we visited Penang, and we decided to head to The Top Penang..

We arrived at the Top, and were disappointed as one of the top attraction there, The Gravityz, the highest  Ropes Courses in Malaysia was closed for maintenance…

So instead we headed to Top Boutique Aquarium upon a friend’s suggestion.. And to be honest, I was like duh… Another small aquarium? Not to be a braggart, I have been to several of the biggest aquariums and most of them has been just as I expect, except one or two aquariums with beluga whales, dolphins…

But don’t let appearances fool you. Just upon stepping into the Top Boutique Aquarium, I was wowed… This was certainly a very interesting aquarium with about 100 tanks and a similar number of fish species from Southeast Asia, South America and Africa… While there aren’t much surprise as to the variety of fishes that you can find here, I have to admit I really love the exhibits…

It is surely unique and different… Upon entrance you find yourself in a Penang-themed corridor with all the fish tanks here decorated, with iconic Penang tools and homeware. For example, you will see fishes inside the shophouse windows, as well as interesting aquarium exhibits with fishes swimming around dim sum baskets, food tiffins, an old sewing machine….

The rest of the aquarium is dim with interesting sections with bioluminescent fishes in a dark UV lighting, and other decorations that give it a feel of something between a kampung, a cave etc…

Among the fish on display, you can see albino knife fish, many species of barbs, red finned cigar sharks, and bigger fish like arowana, kelah fish, jade perch, arapaima and the huge pirarucu as well as bamboo sharks you can pet…

They even have mermaid and pirates on weekends I think to entertain the kiddies…

Then we decided to be kiddies and enter the Jurassic Research Center…

You are welcomed into this pretty cool education center after a briefing by Professor Harith Iskander (ehh, when did he become a Prof…?!)

This place is pretty realistic and even as an adult, I was almost believing everything they were saying..  It was fascinating as you can actually see how the dinosaur egg is hatching and pet the baby dinosaur.. Be careful of its snapping jaws though, you don’t want to lose a finger or two, right…? and also experience the inhabited lifestyle

There are 2 sections here in this place which are the Dinosaur Lab and the Jurassic Park..

The dinosaurs are all made to move with realistic sounds in this well-choreographed theme park…and we had a lot of fun here…

It’s essentially a walk around several rooms and open spaces where the history and habits of dinosaurs are explained and reproduced for the joy of kids and adults..

The third place we went to was the Magic Mirrormaze…

My friends and I entered this maze full of mirrors… Zol confidently said it was a walk in the park and so we followed him… We walked while keeping an arm outstretched in front of our face to avoid bumping into a wall you didn’t realize was actually there and got to the centre to be confused by a dead end..  Then walk all the way back the way we came in to find ourselves at the entrance again..

Only the 2nd attempt was successful and we got out of the maze giggling and laughing….

We then headed to The Window at The Top which was located on the 65th floor of the Komtar tower….

The moment we step out of the elevator, we were directed by the staff into a room to watch the introductory video of Komtar, blah, blah, blah (how it was renovated and built by OWG – sorry but I am one of those who don’t really care much about introductory videos or manuals)… the video ended and Ohmaigerdddd….. WOW !!

The panel where the video was played slide open to an indoor viewing platform observatory deck where you can look out at the city through big floor-to-ceiling windows from inside the building…we were fascinated and wowed by the amazing view before us…

From there we headed to another lift to take us to the 68th floor and the Coco Cabana restaurant..

We settled down for their signature English  Tea Time set for 2 (RM98) , some snacks – BBQ chicken wings (RM22), Seafood Basket (RM48), Nachos (RM22) and Pizza…. And yeah, of course, drinks…

The food was pretty good and I loved their wide selection of pastries for the English Tea Time set including scones, cream puffs, egg sandwiches and hors d’oeuvres such as smoked salmon served in pretty bone china floral tea set with Dilmah tea..

The food is all yummy and tasty and I really love it loads.. And tadaaahh… I got my very first slice birthday cake here too…

While waiting for the food, we headed out to the Rainbow Skywalk.. And we’re wowed again by the view…. Since Penang is an island.. You can see the city, the beaches and the Straits of Melaka and even Butterworth..

The Rainbow Skywalk is a transparent glass ledge jutting out from the side of the building’s rooftop, where you can walk out over the city and look down at the streets, cars and lights of George Town quite literally beneath your feet.

It is the place to take beautiful photos of yourself, your friends, family and also enjoy a spectacular view of Penang after getting over your vertigo… You are required to put shoe covers on your shoes to protect the glass floor from any scratches..

It is definitely a thrilling experiencing the open-air Skywalk and look down via the transparent glass floor 249 metres above the ground….

Don’t worry, the area is pretty safe for the little ones, and it is just so worth it as it gives a full 360-degree view of the whole island…

Over all, I was really impressed and we had an amazing fun time here at the Top Penang.. And can’t wait to come back to check out the other attractions, restaurants and also the Gravityz, on our next trip back to Penang..

The recommended way to see everything that The Top Penang offers in Komtar is to get a Fun Pass which allows multiple entries to every attraction except the Augmented Reality Virtual, The Gravityz, Formula One & TOP Capsule. It costs RM78 for MyKad Malaysian holders and RM99 for all other adults, and RM48 for Malaysian children/RM58 for foreign children.

If you just want to visit the Rainbow Skywalk, it costs RM48 for Malaysians and RM68 for foreigners. Malaysian children pay RM28 and foreign children RM48.

Address – The Top Penang
1, Jalan Penang,
10000 George Town
Penang, Malaysia
Tel – 04-262 3800
Website – thetop.com.my