Penang’s Tropical Spice Garden is Asia’s Hidden Eden… Spreading over 8 acres of land, you can find some 500 species of flora and fauna here in this beautiful seco dary forest paradise…

This is the place to spend a lovely afternoon with your best buddies or your family members…

This amazing nature conservation complex features three garden trails that take you on 20-45 minute journeys past stream crossings, waterfalls and structures made of recycled predominantly natural and recycled building materials salvaged from pre-war shop houses or sourced from local antique stores…

This is my second time here and I find myself just as intrigued and amazed as I was the first time I visit the Tropical Spice Garden…

The Tropical Spice Garden is situated on the hillside near the little fishing village/town of Teluk Bahang…

You can find plenty of spices, tropical vegetation and medicinal plants…. The garden is situated on a hill but the little trek or your strolling around the garden is not or will not be strenous unless you are running…

Before entering the Tropical Spice Garden, you will be given some natural. Insect repellent to apply on yourself to give you some protection against pesky mosquitoes…

Your little trip begins at the Water Garden…. This tranquil place has a beautiful and massive pond with floating lilies, reeds and lotuses… And it is just such an instaworthy place for your photos…

From there we headed to the Heart of the Garden where you can find a giant swing…. This is of course, another beautiful and lovely place to relax and take photographs..

Then there is the Spice Globe and Spice Terraces where you will get to learn fascinating stories behind some of the most well-known spices, including nutmeg and tiny clove. Take your time to know about the journeys of the early traders, Penang’s history and contribution to the spice trade!!!!

We had a short tour around the garden this visit as we also had cooking classes at the Tropical Spice Garden Cooking School, the first of its kind in Penang…. So we hurried to our little kitchen classroom tucked away in a little bungalow at the secluded corner of the garden, surrounded by lush forest and just a glimpse of the lovely Andaman Sea…

The kitchen classroom was fitted with individual, purpose-built workstations, this allows for a memorable hands-on cooking experience…

The Tropical Spice Garden Cooking School gives visitors a chance to prepare their own lunch under the guidance of experienced and professional chefs – each specialising in a variety of Malaysian cuisines… We were given a chance to prepare some Gulai Daging Daun Kesum and Acar under Chef Jamie Afzan…

This is an opportunity to prepare your own lunch from scratch, using traditional mortars and pestles to grind fresh spices and herbs like lemongrass, ginger, curry leaves, garlic and shallots — all harvested straight from the garden! And the best part is that you get to customise it just how you want it to taste like… Sweet, spicy, salty, bland etc…

Many tears were shed… Well, especially with those who actually tried cooking for the first time especially when chopping onions or pounding the onions and spices using the pestle and mortar…

But it was truly an amazing experience, even for my friends who were trying their hands on cooking for the first time…

Afterward, we then took our lunch out to the patio to enjoy…

The cooking class was conducted in a relaxed and laid back in manner, and you don’t have to worry about doing the washing up later on…

Having earned the Malaysia Book of Records for the first tropical climate spice garden, a trip to Tropical Spice Garden is not to be missed when in Penang.

By Bus –

Rapid 101 (Weld Quay – Teluk Bahang)

Rapid 102 (Penang International Airport – Teluk Bahang)

Hop On Hop Off – Beach Route Stop No.19

 

For more details and ticketing, please contact Tropical Spice Garden or check out the website…

Email –
info@tropicalspicegarden.com

Website –
http://tropicalspicegarden.com/

Address –
Lot 595 Mukim 2, Jalan Teluk Bahang, Teluk Bahang, 11050 George Town, Pulau Pinang, Malaysia

This little heritage and family trip was organised by Tourism Malaysia Northern Region and Tourism Malaysia as part of the Family Fun and Heritage trip to Ipoh, Taiping and Penang… My humble thanks for allowing me the honour of participating in this wonderful trip…