Country Malaysia Time zone MST (UTC+8) Area 151.7 km² Local time Wednesday 12:08 AM Number of airports 1 | State Penang Elevation 3.99 m Area code +604 | |
 | ||
District Southwest Penang Island Weather 27°C, Wind W at 3 km/h, 80% Humidity | ||
Travel malaysia penang snake temple
Bayan Lepas is a town near the southeastern tip of Penang Island in Malaysia. Established as an agricultural village in the 19th century, it is now home to the Penang International Airport and a major industrial centre in Penang. Several multinational electronic and engineering firms have set up factories and assembly plants within the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone, including Bosch, Motorola, Dell, Intel and Hewlett-Packard.
Map of Bayan Lepas, Penang, Malaysia
According to urban legend, the town was founded in the late 19th century by a family from Sumatra whose pet parakeet escaped. The Penang International Airport was opened in 1935, the first civilian airport to be built in British Malaya. For much of the town's history, it was an agricultural area, with rice farming a major source of income. It was only in the 1970s, with the creation of the Free Industrial Zone, when Bayan Lepas began to develop.
Bayan Lepas proper is surrounded by newer residential townships such as Bayan Baru and Bukit Jambul to the north, and Batu Maung to the southeast. As a result of the outgrowth of residential developments north from Bayan Lepas and south from George Town, the entire eastern seaboard of Penang Island has been urbanised. Bayan Lepas is well-connected to George Town to the north and to Balik Pulau to the west by road. The Second Penang Bridge also links Bayan Lepas with mainland Peninsular Malaysia.
Some of the major tourist attractions in Bayan Lepas include the famous Snake Temple and the Penang War Museum. In addition, Queensbay Mall is the largest shopping mall in Penang in terms of size.
Penang bayan lepas putra marine condominium
History
It was said that Bayan Lepas was named after a wealthy Sumatran family who founded the town in the late 19th century. Upon coming ashore, their pet parakeet escaped, hence the name Bayan Lepas, which meant 'escaped parakeet' in Malay.
In 1935, the Bayan Lepas Airport was opened by the Straits Settlements authorities. It was the first civilian airport ever built within British Malaya. The airport was expanded and upgraded into the Penang International Airport in 1979.
The British also built a fortification at nearby Batu Maung to defend Penang Island and the RAF Butterworth Air Base on the mainland against amphibious invasion. However, the fort was abandoned ahead of the advancing Imperial Japanese Army during World War II.
Until the 1970s, Bayan Lepas was a relatively rural village, where rice farming was the main economic activity. It once served as the 'rice bowl' of Penang. In the 1970s, the then Chief Minister of Penang, Lim Chong Eu, opened the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone to alleviate an economic crisis and growing unemployment that plagued Penang at the time. Pioneer tax status was granted to multinational firms seeking to establish factories and assembly plants in Bayan Lepas. Complemented by low-cost labour, the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone managed to pull Penang out from its economic slump and grew to become the Silicon Valley of the East.
The industrialisation of Bayan Lepas in the 1970s also resulted in the rapid development of the town in the following decades, as residential townships like Bayan Baru were built and expanded around Bayan Lepas. This has led to the urbanisation of the entire eastern coast of Penang Island, as residential developments emanating north from Bayan Lepas merged with the suburbs of George Town, such as Gelugor. Further development was spurred on by the completion of the Penang Bridge and the Second Penang Bridge.
Manufacturing
Since its inception in the 1970s, the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone has grown to become the 'Silicon Valley of the East'. Motorola became one of the first multinational firms to set up a factory in Bayan Lepas, followed by several other firms, such as Intel, AMD, Osram, Hewlett Packard, Bosch, Hitachi and Clarion.
Due to the presence of various multinational firms in Bayan Lepas, the town has received enormous amounts of foreign direct investment (FDI). As of 2015, Penang attracted nearly RM4.5 billion worth of FDI, the largest amount in Malaysia, with the manufacturing sector contributing significantly. In addition, the Free Industrial Zone has helped propel the manufacturing sector to become one of the mainstays of Penang's economy, generating as much as 47.4% of Penang's total GDP in 2015.
Tourist Attractions
The Snake Temple is said to be the only Chinese temple in the world to be inhabited by snakes. Built in the 1850s, it has attracted species of pit vipers, which are believed to be rendered harmless by the incense. The temple is also a focal point of the annual Chinese New Year celebrations, during which a flame-watching ceremony is held to predict the fortunes of the following 12 months.
The Penang War Museum is actually located at Batu Maung near the southeastern tip of Penang Island. This former fort was converted into a museum in 2002 and features military installations, such as bunkers, tunnels and machine-gun emplacements, as built by the British Army in the 1930s.
Queensbay Mall, located nearer to the Penang Bridge to the north, is the largest shopping mall in Penang, and consists of several well-known international brands and bookstores, as well as various entertainment options.
Neighbourhoods
Within the vicinity of Bayan Lepas are these residential townships and villages.
Education
In addition to national, Chinese and Islamic schools throughout Bayan Lepas, the Straits International School has been established within Bayan Lepas to cater for both expatriates and locals.
Health Care
Air
The Penang International Airport in Bayan Lepas is one of the busiest airports in Malaysia and serves as the major airport within the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia. Completed in 1935 when Penang was part of the British crown colony of the Straits Settlements, it is also the oldest civilian airport in the nation.
The airport's proximity to the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone allows for the easy transportation of goods to and from the factories in Bayan Lepas. Furthermore, it connects Penang and the surrounding region with several major regional cities, including Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Bangkok, Jakarta, Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Taipei, Ho Chi Minh City and Yangon.
Land
Bayan Lepas is conveniently connected to mainland Peninsular Malaysia via the Second Penang Bridge, which links Batu Maung on Penang Island with Batu Kawan in Seberang Perai. Residents in Bayan Lepas also have the option of using the shorter Penang Bridge further north to get to Butterworth.
Bayan Lepas is also connected to the capital city, George Town, to the north via the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway, and to Balik Pulau via Federal Route 6.