Here’s an instance of a hotel that I found to be absolutely lovely, but that I wouldn’t stay at again, because it just isn’t for me.
Booking The Edison George Town Penang
I had about 24 hours in Penang, so I needed a hotel for one night. Based on feedback from readers and my own research, I had narrowed it down to three options:
- The Edison, which is a Small Luxury Hotels of the World property that is affiliated with Hyatt; I liked this option because I could earn Hyatt elite nights, and because World of Hyatt members receive some benefits, like complimentary continental breakfast
- Macalister Mansion, which is a Design Hotels property that is affiliated with Marriott; this property looked the most charming, though readers mentioned it had the worst location of the three options
- Eastern & Oriental, which is independent and is generally regarded as the best hotel in the city; I would have booked this in a heartbeat if it were part of Virtuoso or a similar program, but it isn’t
All hotels were in a similar price range, so in the end I booked The Edison for 680MYR (~164USD). This came most highly recommended from readers, would allow me to earn a Hyatt elite night, and would offer me complimentary breakfast.
Eastern & Oriental Hotel, which I checked out during my time in Penang
Redeeming Hyatt Points At The Edison
Since The Edison is affiliated with World of Hyatt, you could redeem World of Hyatt points here. This is a Category 3 World of Hyatt property, meaning that a free night redemption costs 12,000 points.
I value World of Hyatt points at 1.5 cents each, so I thought paying cash was the better deal here, though others will disagree.
See this post for everything you need to know about earning Hyatt points with credit cards.
The Edison Penang Review
The Edison has a long history. It was built in 1906 as a private mansion, and in the mid-1940s was converted into a hotel. Over time many updates were made to the hotel, and finally in 2014 a comprehensive transformation was started, to turn the hotel into what it is today.
The hotel opened in its current form in mid-2016, after a restoration and renovation. It has a total of only 35 rooms, so is boutique.
As mentioned above, I thought the hotel was beautiful and so charming, but I just wouldn’t stay here again.
The Edison Arrival, Check-In, And Lobby
I took a taxi from Penang Airport to The Edison, which took about 30 minutes, and cost 40MYR (~10USD).
Funny enough there’s a Waldorf Hotel immediately next to The Edison, though I doubt it’s the type of Waldorf you can redeem Hilton Honors points at. 😉
Waldorf Hotel Penang
How cute is The Edison’s exterior?!
The Edison George Town exterior
The Edison George Town entrance
The interior was equally pretty, with reception being just inside the lobby.
The Edison George Town lobby
The associate checking me in was really friendly. Once I was checked in he gave me a quick tour of the hotel, and also explained that the hotel has an all-day lounge that guests have access to, with snacks and soft drinks. There’s also a wine hour there in the evenings, and then it’s where continental breakfast is served.
I was then brought to my room. This is one of those hotels with unnecessarily massive keys — I get if they want to maintain traditional keys and want to put them on the end of something so that people don’t accidentally take them, but this thing was massive.
The Edison Hotel key
The 35 rooms are spread across two floors, all along the center courtyard.
The Edison Hotel courtyard
The Edison Hotel courtyard
The Edison Deluxe Room
I had booked an entry level deluxe room, and that’s exactly what I received. Given the unique design of the building, there are slight variations between many of the rooms, even within the same category.
I was assigned room 105, located immediately next to the reception desk.
The Edison George Town Penang floorplan
It’s not often you’ll find a standard room with double doors, so that was kind of cool.
The Edison George Town deluxe room exterior
The room itself was large, and I loved how it felt updated and spacious while still feeling modern. The tiles, room finishes, etc., were all great.
The room featured a king size bed, then there was a couch near the door, and then there was a desk across from the bed by the TV.
The Edison George Town deluxe room
The Edison George Town deluxe room
The Edison George Town deluxe room
The bed was on the firm side for my preferences, though I liked the pillows, which were large and soft.
The Edison George Town deluxe room
The room did feel a bit sparsely furnished, as you can see in the below picture. For example, it totally seems like they should have put a small dining table with two chairs in the corner, as it’s otherwise just an empty space (then again, there’s nothing to dine on in the hotel, so maybe not?).
The Edison George Town deluxe room
At the far end of the room was the bathroom, which had a sink, a small closet, and then the toilet and walk-in shower next to one another. This was separated from the rest of the room by a curtain.
The Edison George Town bathroom
The Edison George Town shower & toilet
Toiletries were all from Appelles.
The Edison George Town toiletries
Wifi in the room (and throughout the hotel) was free, and was fast enough.
I do have two (somewhat) significant complaints about the room.
First of all there’s the lack of views. The room just had frosted windows, as the pool was on the other side of it. That wasn’t a huge deal, though having a room without any views outside isn’t ideal.
Furthermore, the room had bad noise insulation. Personally it didn’t bother me too much since I’m someone who likes background noise, but if you’re more sensitive to that, I’d request a room further from the pool and the front desk.
I could hear kids playing in the pool, and I could hear most things going on at reception.
The Edison Lounge & Cabanas
The Edison has a complimentary lounge that all guests have access to. This is where continental breakfast is served daily from 7AM until 10:30AM, and then there’s an evening wine hour from 6PM until 7PM.
The lounge is located on the first floor, at the very end of the hall past the courtyard.
The Edison Hotel courtyard
The Edison Hotel lounge exterior
The lounge was a cute space, though it only had three small tables, and then a communal table with 10 seats.
The Edison Hotel lounge interior
The Edison Hotel lounge interior
The Edison Hotel lounge interior
In addition to the interior seating, there’s outdoor seating, which they refer to as the cabanas. There are several dining tables, and while there are fans and shade, keep in mind that it’s incredibly humid in Penang.
The Edison Hotel cabanas
The Edison Hotel cabanas
The Edison Hotel cabanas
There were complimentary snacks available in the lounge all day and night, though mostly just packaged and other junk food, from cookies to candy. There were also instant noodles.
The Edison Hotel lounge snacks
The Edison Hotel lounge snacks
The Edison Hotel lounge snacks
Then there was a fridge with juice, water, soft drinks, and yogurt.
The Edison Hotel complimentary drinks
In the afternoon they had some additional snacks.
The Edison Hotel lounge afternoon snacks
I didn’t make it to the happy hour, though that’s the only time there’s complimentary alcohol.
The Edison Continental Breakfast
The only breakfast option at the hotel is the complimentary continental breakfast offered in the lounge. The selection consisted of cheese, fresh fruit, cereal, pastries, bread, and scrambled eggs.
The Edison Hotel breakfast
The Edison Hotel breakfast
The Edison Hotel breakfast
The Edison Hotel breakfast
This is nice as a complimentary feature for all guests, but it was hardly an impressive breakfast.
The Edison Pool
Just outside the lounge and cabanas is the hotel’s pool. The pool was essentially a narrow lap pool — I’m not much of a pool person to begin with, and this one certainly didn’t tempt me much.
The Edison pool deck
The Edison pool
The Edison’s Lack Of Gym, Spa, And Restaurants
This gets at the crux of my issue with the hotel, and why I wouldn’t return. I thought the property was charming and the staff all friendly and accommodating.
But the hotel completely lacks amenities. The Edison doesn’t have a gym or a spa. Fine, I can get it not having a spa, but I was surprised they didn’t even have a basic gym.
As such, neither of those would prevent me from returning, though.
My real issue is that the hotel doesn’t have any sort of bar or dining outlet. There are the complimentary snacks available in the lounge all day, and there’s the continental breakfast, but there’s not a single option to buy anything to eat or drink at the hotel.
Want to have dinner at a reasonable hour? You’ll have to go somewhere else. What a more extensive breakfast? You’ll have to go somewhere else. Want a glass of wine not from 6-7PM? You’ll have to go somewhere else.
In fairness, I should have known this coming in. I checked the hotel’s website and was confused by their lack of mention of any restaurant, spa, or gym. I figured at least the restaurant part was an oversight, because I don’t think I’ve ever stayed at a hotel that simply won’t sell you anything. Even a limited service hotel sells at least some things.
Of course I should also acknowledge that Penang is a foodie city, and most people probably want to leave the hotel for all their meals. I have a unique schedule when I travel, since I’m still working and trying to maintain at least partly a US schedule.
Presumably this lack of amenities works fine for most guests. This hotel gets amazing reviews online — on TripAdvisor it has five stars and is rated the best hotel in the city. But it’s simply not for me…
Overall Thoughts On Penang
This was my first time in Penang, and I really only had a morning to explore (I desperately needed a nap in the afternoon and then worked most of the night).
Penang, Malaysia
Overall I enjoyed walking around Penang. The variety of architecture was cool to look at, the food was exceptional, and the city has a nice setting right on the water.
Penang, Malaysia
It’s also clear there’s a lot of development happening in the city. Even though the airport is a ways from the city, there’s a huge amount of construction in that area.
All that being said, I’m not sure I’d vacation here in the future based on my visit. I could get coming here if you live in Singapore, but it’s still a relatively sleepy city, and I couldn’t imagine flying halfway around the world to visit it. Then again, I’m not much of a city person nowadays, with few exceptions.
The Edison Penang Bottom Line
The Edison is a charming, historic hotel. I loved the design of the rooms and public areas, and the fact that they have a complimentary lounge for all guests with food and drinks is nice. The staff were also nice across the board.
That being said, I wouldn’t return to this hotel, because I value amenities like a restaurant and gym. Clearly these shortcomings don’t bother others, based on the reviews the hotel gets online, which are borderline perfect (and seem to be legitimate, since there are nearly 800 of them).
If I were to return to Penang I’d probably stay at the Eastern & Oriental, even though it’s the only one of the three properties I was considering where I couldn’t have earned or redeemed any points. The hotel looks charming, it has a good location, and it has several dining options, and a lot more amenities as well.
What do you make of The Edison — does the complimentary lounge make up for the lack of other amenities? Would you consider staying here?
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