Most hotels provide hotel shuttle service at a fee. If you are arriving Penang by air, it would then be convenient to hire a hotel shuttle. Traders Hotel's shuttle service provider Metro Limousine offers transfers from a minimum of RM60. They can be reached via phone 006-04 881 1798, or you can make a request upon room reservation with the hotel.
To move around Penang Island with ease, it is perhaps handy to hire a car or motorcycle and drive around. If you are not confident on driving, it might be a good idea to hire a cab service.
One thing to bear in mind if you are renting to drive around is to avoid rush hour as the small roads can get pretty congested as Penang is afterall a small island. The driving can get pretty challenging with many motorcyclists fighting for road space as well as cars.
For car rental, you can check the below few options:
Taxis are a handy way to get yourself around the island, one good practice before hopping on a taxi is to establish the journey rate with the driver. If you have touched down at the airport, before hailing a taxi to head off to your hotel it is necessary to purchase a taxi coupon from the Taxi Counter.
It is reported that there is a free city shuttle bus handy for tourists. There is apparently 2 bus routes:
You could hop on the shuttle from Weld Quay which then will head towards Komtar, stay on the shuttle which will then return to the end point at Weld Quay.
Trishaw rides are a fun alternative method of getting around Georgetown city centre. An age old transport mode, it is slowly depleting. Since it is a human powered vehicle, it goes fairly slow, providing the passenger an interesting visual and travelling experience. Do check the price before hopping on the trishaws because fares vary depending on the trishaw pedalers.
There are a few public bus services that ply routes from North to the South and to the West side of the island. Travelling on the public buses can be rather frustrating as the operation is known to be unsystematic and mostly unrealiable. The main bus terminal is located in Komtar.