Clove Hall feels less like a hotel and more like the private home of a fabulously wealthy and cultured friend. It’s a place in which it is impossible not to relax. Everything about it is laid-back and beautiful, and no detail too small to have been given thought. Carefully chosen antiques and sepia photographs against light white walls give an impression of understated luxury and are perfectly fitting with the building’s history.

Despite Penang’s UNESCO protection, too many of the old buildings outside the central area are falling derelict, so it was a pleasure to see one which had been so lovingly restored. The owner has a history of renovating old buildings to their former splendour, another of his projects being the celebrated Galle Fort Hotel in Sri Lanka.

Clove Hall is still newly opened and feels like a bit of a secret, but I don’t think it will be long before the travel and design magazine editors take note and its popularity grows - go now!

www.clovehall.com/
11, Clove Hall Road, 10050 Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia
Tel :+604-229 0818

Google map: tinyurl.com/35j2b99

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This place is so good! Cheap hawker style stalls, dishes from all over Malaysia, and also some Thai. The atmosphere is buzzing and informal, and its open-air location is particularly interesting during a tropical downpour! About 10 minutes' walk from the Eastern & Oriental hotel - if you are saving your pennies for a drink or two in its colonial splendour - this is the place to go for tasty cheap eats!

Lebuh Leith, Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia.
www.malaysiasite.nl/redgardeneng.htm
tinyurl.com/36g2des

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Stay at the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion if you like quaintness and history, stay at the g Hotel if you prefer hip and contemporary lodging.

Also, tour the Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion, eat at the Gurney Drive food stalls and sample everything.

Don't try to take out illegal CDs or DVDs. Read The Star. Visit Kek Lok Si temple. Take the cable car, but arrive early: the lines are awful. Walk the canopy walk. Buy a Makansutra food guide. Indulge in a MacWaffle at Red Garden.

Trip report, with photos, at www.travelmusings.net

Trip report, with photos, at www.travelmusings.net

Cheong Fatt Tze Mansion:
www.cheongfatttzemansion.com/

g Hotel: www.ghotel.com.my/

Makansutra: www.makansutra.com/index.php

Travelmusings: www.travelmusings.net

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It's the only surviving Chinese mansion house outside of china. It is a great little boutique hotel for those fed up with the homogenous hotels of Asia. It is full of character, charm and a sense of grandure. Do check out the website and I am sure you'll agree!

www.cheongfatttzemansion.com/3about-01.htm

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