Tropical Spice Garden
Tropical Spice Garden
4.5
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Monday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
About
Asia's Hidden Eden! Timeless and enchanting, Tropical Spice Garden is an eco-attraction tucked within a natural valley fronting the Straits of Malacca. The showcase garden houses over 500 species of herb, spice and tropical plants. Explore and discover the fabulous diversity of nature as you through trails and pathways that meander through undulating hills, jungles terraces and natural streams. Garden Audio Tours available in 7 Languages: English, Chinese, Malay, Arabic, Japanese, German & French. Alternatively, you may take the Live Guided Tour that starts at 9am, 11am, and 1.30pm. The trails are slightly inclined so do wear comfortable walking shoes - unfortunately wheelchairs & strollers are not recommended.
Suggested duration
1-2 hours
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Tours & experiences
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What is Travellers’ Choice?
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See what other travellers are saying
  • redeyeblues
    Edinburgh, United Kingdom1,309 contributions
    Wear long sleeves! Bug bites! Jungle Walk closed
    31 RM per person which includes the multilingual audio guide, a bit pricey for what it is but pleasant nevertheless... Took under an hour to walk through if you really take your time as it's not very big. Beautiful and lush with slides for kids but lots of mosquitoes despite the bug spray they provided. A part with additional trails called 'Jungle Walk' was closed. Nice public beach directly opposite the entrance with a couple of casual beachside restaurants.
    Visited February 2020
    Travelled as a couple
    Written 9 February 2020
  • Suratrichard
    Surat Thani, Thailand1,580 contributions
    Wonderful attraction
    We had visited the tropical spice garden on two previous occasions and didn’t hesitate to arrange a third visit. It’s a truly wonderful place where you can join a guided tour or just wander around yourselves. If you are a lover of plants and trees, then this garden must be visited. Admission is not expensive and it’s cost 48 ringgits for two adults. Do not refuse the insect repellent which is free and absolutely necessary! A helpful map of the garden is provided with numbered areas of interest. Take your time…look up and down and make sure camera/phone batteries are fully charged! There are some unusual flowering plants many of which have culinary or medicinal uses. There’s even an area showcasing poisonous plants. There are a few steps which could affect anyone with mobility issues but these can be avoided. Unfortunately, a few days before we visited, a storm brought down an extremely large tree which destroyed an area of the garden containing a large swing. Given the name of the garden, it’s not surprising that there’s a large collection of spice plants and the collected spices themselves. On the way out of the garden, there’s a very good gift shop selling spices and gifts. This is one of our favourite places in Penang and is well worth a visit. Highly recommended
    Visited April 2023
    Written 8 April 2023
  • Roving626597
    Ben Tre, Vietnam7 contributions
    A great morning trip
    We had a combined tour of the garden and a cooking experience. The Spice Garden is a lovely shady oasis of secondary forest and easy to walk around, Our tour guide Beatrix was very knowledgeable and introduced us to some different ways of looking at our health options ( over 60s) Learning about spices unfamiliar to Europeans was interesting and informative. Similarly our cooking experience with Faten and her able supporters was a wonderful experience . She was able to put the whole class at ease and let them enjoy cooking a complete lunch. Recipe card included too. We ate together outside and enjoyed the company of fellow travellers who like to try new experiences with experts.
    Visited February 2023
    Written 25 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
Popular mentions

4.5
1,406 reviews
Excellent
717
Very good
468
Average
164
Poor
34
Terrible
23

Neil
United Kingdom1 contribution
Sep 2023 • Couples
A wonderful experience and incredible gardens. All the staff there are very helpful and friendly.
We did the cookery class at a reasonable cost but well worth every penny. Several people were at hand throughout the experience and you couldn't go wrong. If you like spices and spice cooking this is one for you. Even amateurs (like myself) come away knowing you've achieved something.
The gardens themselves are beautiful with wonderful hints of fragrance as you walk round.
A truly magical experience and worth a visit. Access around the garden is quite steep at times, with steps so less able bodied people might struggle.
Written 8 September 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Sunita W
6 contributions
Jul 2023
We signed up for a cooking class at this beautiful place and are so glad we did! The lush garden and the beautifully maintained plants contained within are a tribute to centuries of local history - medicinal lore, cooking traditions carefully passed down through generations, and rituals that define Penang's rich culture as a spice port. James was our guide and he was excellent: funny, wise and enthusiastic about sharing his knowledge. After an hour-long tour, we began the cooking class with Chef Jamie and her two assistants. Each of the nine stations available had been beautifully set up with our ingredients and cooking equipment. Chef Jamie walked us through each step, answered questions patiently and explained rich and intricate recipes so clearly that even a non cook could be inspired to cook with confidence. Later, the nine people who had attended the cooking class ate the fruits of our labour together, bound by a delicious meal and the realization that we had shared a truly magical experience together.
Written 21 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Claire G
9 contributions
Jun 2023
Spent a couple of hours wandering around late one afternoon, did not join a tour but enjoyed reading the information points. Really lovely gardens with lots of inviting flora, we found it interesting to see the plants where so many of our cupboard spices come from. It's a very tranquil patch of lush greenery, with the added benefit of seeing (placid) monkeys and skinks when we were there. The gift shop is worth a visit for their home-grown spices, blends and aromatherapy oils.
Written 4 July 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Loreta Elizabeth
7 contributions
May 2023 • Couples
We loved our visit to the spice garden. Very informative and a beautiful setting with lots of wonderful plants. We also saw the resident dusty leaf monkeys which were absolutely adorable and a snake!
Written 26 May 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

annemcc2019
Adelaide, Australia9 contributions
May 2023
Fabulous guided tour by James who was incredibly informative, followed by a great cooking class learning about local spice mixes.
Written 6 May 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Suratrichard
Surat Thani, Thailand1,580 contributions
Apr 2023
We had visited the tropical spice garden on two previous occasions and didn’t hesitate to arrange a third visit. It’s a truly wonderful place where you can join a guided tour or just wander around yourselves. If you are a lover of plants and trees, then this garden must be visited. Admission is not expensive and it’s cost 48 ringgits for two adults. Do not refuse the insect repellent which is free and absolutely necessary!
A helpful map of the garden is provided with numbered areas of interest. Take your time…look up and down and make sure camera/phone batteries are fully charged!
There are some unusual flowering plants many of which have culinary or medicinal uses. There’s even an area showcasing poisonous plants.
There are a few steps which could affect anyone with mobility issues but these can be avoided. Unfortunately, a few days before we visited, a storm brought down an extremely large tree which destroyed an area of the garden containing a large swing.
Given the name of the garden, it’s not surprising that there’s a large collection of spice plants and the collected spices themselves.
On the way out of the garden, there’s a very good gift shop selling spices and gifts.
This is one of our favourite places in Penang and is well worth a visit.
Highly recommended
Written 9 April 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Ian A
Penang Island, Malaysia63 contributions
Mar 2023
The Tropical Spice Garden is a pleasant, enchanting, and natural place to visit on the north coast of Penang. It takes about an hour to wander around the various pathways, admiring the sights, sounds and smells of this little oasis. If you like a variety of flora and fauna, for a relatively decent price and you have a spare hour, this is worth a visit.

It might be nice to return at different times of year when the flowers are in bloom, so I'm sure that we will pop back again. The staff are also nice, and happy to point out the resident Pit Viper that hangs around in the tree near to the entrance!!
Written 18 March 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Roving626597
Ben Tre, Vietnam7 contributions
Feb 2023
We had a combined tour of the garden and a cooking experience.
The Spice Garden is a lovely shady oasis of secondary forest and easy to walk around, Our tour guide Beatrix was very knowledgeable and introduced us to some different ways of looking at our health options ( over 60s)
Learning about spices unfamiliar to Europeans was interesting and informative.

Similarly our cooking experience with Faten and her able supporters was a wonderful experience .
She was able to put the whole class at ease and let them enjoy cooking a complete lunch. Recipe card included too.
We ate together outside and enjoyed the company of fellow travellers who like to try new experiences with experts.
Written 25 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

joday013
Western Australia, Australia157 contributions
Feb 2023 • Couples
This is nice place to many of Malaysias plants. If you are lucky you might get to see some duskies. Plenty of flowers to see. You will spend about an hour wandering and taking pictures.
Written 17 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

HungryForMoreMum
Melbourne, Australia201 contributions
Jan 2023 • Family
The staff are good - extra points to the very friendly Brit boy who pointed out some wildlife to us. Gardens are pretty although not overwhelmingly educational. The giant swing was lovely and calm. A good place if you want a break from a resort pool but not must visit
Written 3 February 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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TROPICAL SPICE GARDEN: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about Tropical Spice Garden

Tropical Spice Garden is open:
  • Sun - Sat 9:00 AM - 6:00 PM
Buy tickets in advance on Tripadvisor. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel at least 24 hours before the start date of your tour for a full refund.

We recommend booking Tropical Spice Garden tours ahead of time to secure your spot. If you book with Tripadvisor, you can cancel up to 24 hours before your tour starts for a full refund. See all 10 Tropical Spice Garden tours on Tripadvisor

According to Tripadvisor travellers, these are the best ways to experience Tropical Spice Garden: See all Tropical Spice Garden experiences on Tripadvisor