By bus the journey from Penang to Kota Bharu is scheduled to take 7 hours 10 minutes.
Bus Times from Penang to Kota Bharu
There are currently 19 bus services a day from Penang to Kota Bharu available to book online.
| Penang | Kota Bharu | Ticket | Company |
| 08:30 | 15:40 | 68 RM | Ekspres Mutiara |
| 09:00 | 16:10 | 68 RM | Queen Express |
| 09:00 | 16:10 | 68 RM | Ekspres Mutiara |
| 09:00 | 16:10 | 68 RM | Ekspres Perdana |
| 09:30 | 16:40 | 62 RM | Queen Express |
| 09:45 | 16:55 | 62 RM | Ekspres Mutiara |
| 10:00 | 17:10 | 63 RM | Ekspres Perdana |
| 13:00 | 20:10 | 68 RM | Queen Express |
| 13:30 | 20:40 | 62 RM | Queen Express |
| 20:30 | 03:40 | 68 RM | Ekspres Mutiara |
| 20:30 | 03:40 | 68 RM | Ekspres Perdana |
| 21:00 | 04:10 | 68 RM | Queen Express |
| 21:00 | 04:10 | 68 RM | Ekspres Mutiara |
| 21:00 | 04:10 | 68 RM | Ekspres Perdana |
| 21:30 | 04:40 | 62 RM | Queen Express |
| 21:45 | 04:55 | 62 RM | Ekspres Mutiara |
| 22:00 | 05:10 | 63 RM | Ekspres Perdana |
| 23:00 | 06:10 | 68 RM | Queen Express |
| 23:30 | 06:40 | 62 RM | Queen Express |
Buy Tickets from Penang to Kota Bharu
Use the Search Box below to buy your tickets from Penang to Kota Bharu.
You can travel by bus from Penang to Kota Bharu. The distance by road from Penang Sentral Bus Station (near Penang island) to Kota Bharu is 323 km. Alternatively, you can fly from Penang to Kota Bharu. From Kota Bharu you can then travel by local bus to the town of Kuala Besut to catch a boat to the Perhentian Islands.
Butterworth Bus Station
Bus services to Kota Bharu depart from Penang Sentral Bus Station. You can get to Penang Sentral Bus Station cheaply and quickly by taking the Rapid Ferry from Georgetown in Penang.
Kota Bharu Bus Station
Most bus services from Penang to Koya Bharu terminate at Kota Bharu Bus Terminal.
Travel to the Perhentian Islands
Speedboat services to the Perhentian Islands depart from the main ferry terminal in Kuala Besut which is 58 km to the south of Kota Bharu. The cheapest way to travel from Kota Bharu to Kuala Besut is to take a Cityliner Bus on route 639 from Kota Bharu to ‘KG. RAJA, BESUT’.
Local Bus to Kuala Besut
Bus services from Kota Bharu to Kuala Besut depart at 08:00, 09:30, 10:30, 13:00, 14:00, 16:00. The journey by bus takes around 1 hour 30 minutes and costs RM6.
Taxi to Kuala Besut
You can travel more quickly by taxi, which will take you direct to the ferry terminal in around 45 minutes. There are fixed prices from taxis and they do not use the meter on this journey. Expect to be asked to pay between RM80 and RM100 for the journey by taxi from Kota Bharu to Kuala Besut.
Great diving off the Perhentian Islands near Kota BharuSpeedboat Services to the Perhentian Islands
There are no public ferry services from Kuala Besut to the Perhentian Islands, only speedboat services which will cost you in the region of RM35 one-way depending upon which speedboat service you use and from whom you buy the ticket. Unfortunately there are people at the ferry port who will try to sell you an over priced ticket. Keep calm and ask in several places before you buy your ticket.
Marine Park Conservation Charge
Before you board the speedboat you need pay a Marine Park Conservation Charge of RM30 at the office at the ferry port in return for which you should receive a ticket for the Marine Park.
Two Islands
There are two different islands which you can go to, Perhentian Besar and Perhentian Cecil, and you need to decide which one you want to go to before you get in the speedboat so you can tell the driver where you want to be dropped off. Perhentian Cecil is the more popular and cheaper of the two islands, although it has no ferry pier so depending upon which beach you want to go to you may need to pay a little extra to get a local boat to take you from the speedboat to the shore.