The Frame Guesthouse Review
The Frame guesthouse is one of the better hostels you will find in Southeast Asia. Arguably the best option for those in Penang, but definitely not the only hostel worth looking at.
Take a look at the video below for a quick rundown of the hostel. If that’s not your style, I will break down The Frame Guesthouse review in this post into smaller sections just below the video, so read on for more.
*Disclaimer
Affiliate links may be present on this page. These are links to websites such as Amazon, where if you decide to purchase something, then they will offer me a tiny commission. This comes at no extra cost to you and is just a way for me to try and support myself and the blog. I only link to the best of the best with careful consideration, thank you.
The Frame Guesthouse Review Video
Here is a quick visual tour through The Frame Guesthouse, you will get a good idea of the layout of the hostel as well as its location.
The Frame Guesthouse Review Sections
Let’s break this down into smaller sections that you can navigate to using the table of contents at the top of the page.
These are just a few of the main things to consider when choosing a hostel, everyone has different priorities so some may matter less than others to you.
Location
The Frame Guesthouse is located on Chulia street in Georgetown, which is the capital of Penang. To read more about why this is a good location, head to my Penang travel guide.
Security
Security at the hostel is very good, with the doors being locked at night time and a staff member being on standby to open the doors for those who wish to get back late.
This also applies to those who want to leave early for a sunrise, you may need to wake the staff member up to open up the front of the hostel.
The Frame Guesthouse will allow you to park scooters inside, off the street, both during the day and throughout the night.
Of course, lockers are also provided as we will see below.
Storage
Storage in the bedrooms is very impressive. As you will see in the image below, I was able to store my Shimoda Action x50 (affiliate) in the locker, thus keeping safe all of my camera gear!
In addition to this, there is substantial room above the pillows on the beds for you to keep phones and wallets and other things you might want quick access to.
Bathrooms & Provisions
The bathrooms at The Frame Guesthouse are very large, with big vanity mirrors, plenty of space to wash up or brush your teeth, and the toilets and showers are kept to their separate cubicles (as they should be).
Soap is provided, as is body wash and shampoo in case you didn’t want to use your own.
The water pressure is great and there is plenty of room to air dry towels or clothes.
Bedrooms
The Bedrooms are always clean, the airconditioning is strong, as is the wifi.
Bed Comfort
Surprisingly the beds are really comfortable, which is sometimes hard to find when travelling Southeast Asia.
Food and Drink
Breakfast
Breakfast is provided between 08:00 and 12:00. This is a lot longer than most places and the food is good for a free breakfast.
There is toast, with numerous jams and toppings, and then also a selection of cereals.
Drink
Water is free, there is a refill station that you can access whenever you like.
Coffee and tea is also free at any hour of the day, it’s quite basic stuff but it gets the job done. The kitchen is large and cleaning is kept on top of.
Other Stuff
Towels
Provided for free.
Wifi
Wifi is free and worked in the bedrooms as well as the common rooms.
Air Conditioning
Air conditioning is good and on throughout the day. Penang is hot, so this is important.
Noise Levels
Unfortunately my room was against Chulia street, which meant there was a mosque across the road that played prayers over a speaker system early on in th emorning. Very annoying.
Guests / Staff
I had no issues with guests during my stay.
It was sometimes annoying trying to leave the hostel early in the morning, as you need to wake the night shift staff to open the roller door.
The Frame Guesthouse Review Negatives
Unfortunately the hostel is not perfect, but this is hardly the fault of the hostel.
Sitauted across the road is the beautiful, but annoyingly noisy Kapitan Keling Mosque. They insist on playing prayers over speakers early in the morning and it grows tiresome.
However I never found it detracted from the overall enjoyability and high quality of the hostel. If you’re lucky to not have the rooms on Chulia street then this may not even be an issue.
Summary
The Frame Guesthouse is a great hostel that falls just shy of being perfect. The location is good, the people that stay there appeared friendly, the staff were helpful and it has good security.
Overall I would rate the hostel a 9/10.
Click here to see what fun things there are to do in Penang!
