People who regularly visit Penang Botanic Gardens (Taman Kebun Bunga) should come across a yellow structure next to the hawkers complex. This is Bee Gallery Penang, a popular tourist attraction which centers on beekeeping. At the entrance, anthropomorphic honey bees welcome visitors as they enter the beehive-like building.
Bee Gallery is the largest bee museum in Penang. It operates under the same management as Little Village on Penang Hill. The objective of Bee Gallery is to disseminate knowledge on beekeeping, honey and other bee-related products. Unlike most tourist attractions in Penang, Bee Gallery does not charge any admission fee.
Inside Bee Gallery, interpretive displays along the winding passageway provide interesting facts about bees, honey and everything else in between. With its many interactive exhibits, Bee Gallery is suitable for children and adults. In fact, Bee Gallery is the ideal destination for schools to organize field trips due to the museum’s educational value.
Next to the entrance of Bee Gallery, there are actual beehives that visitors can examine closely. Each beehive, known as Langstroth hive, hosts a colony of Italian bees (Apis mellifera ligustica) led by its queen. Italian bees are the most widely distributed subspecies due to their resilience to different climates. They have distinctive yellow and black stripes at their abdomens.
Meanwhile, stingless bees are black in color and are native to the tropics. They build their nests inside tree trunks and use propolis (bee glue) to construct the entrances. Unlike honey bees, stingless bees are usually “domesticated” by harvesting their entire nests from the wild. Although stingless bees produce honey, they are not as commercialized as their European cousins.
Bees produce honey from nectar that they extract from flowers. The taste of honey depends on the plants that the bees harvest from. For instance, bees that gather nectar in fruit plantations will produce honey that has fruity sweetness. Bee Gallery is located next to Penang Hill, so there are plenty of food sources for the bees.
At Bee Gallery, visitors are given live demonstrations so that they understand all aspects of beekeeping and bee-derived products. For example, visitors are shown ways to distinguish genuine honey from imitations. As Bee Gallery receives visitors from many nationalities, the staff is proficient in many languages including Arabic.
Most people naturally associate honey with bees, but there are more products that these insects have to offer. In addition to pure honey, Bee Gallery also retails raw honey, royal jelly, bee pollen, bee venom, bee pupae, propolis and beeswax. Besides catering to walk-in visitors, Bee Gallery also has an Internet platform to take online orders.
Last but not least, Bee Gallery also sells a number of specialty products that serve as excellent souvenirs and gifts. Agarwood is one such product. It is produced from the wood of aquilaria trees, which is found only in Southeast Asia. The aromatic oil that is extracted from agarwood is often used as perfume.
In consideration of its contribution to the agriculture and tourism sectors, Bee Gallery Penang has received endorsement from the Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-based Industry (MOA), Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) and Penang State Government. Its products are certified halal by the Department of Islamic Advancement of Malaysia (JAKIM). As for aspiring entrepreneurs who would like to join the beekeeping business, Bee Gallery also provides technical consultancy and customized training programs.
Name: Bee Gallery Penang
Address: Lot-1B, Annex A, Jalan Kebun Bunga, 10350 George Town, Pulau Pinang
Contact: 04-226-9689
Business hours: 9:00am-7:00pm
Website: http://beegallery.com.my
Coordinates: 5.43500 N, 100.29427 E
Directions: From Hotel Waterwall, drive along Jalan Kebun Bunga towards Penang Botanic Gardens. Bee Gallery is located approximately 800 meters down the road. There are parking spaces in front of the attraction.