Penang medical tourism revenue climbs 26.6% to RM1.14 billion in 2025, driving healthcare-anchored property demand

Penang’s medical tourism revenue rose 26.6% year-on-year to RM1.14 billion in 2025, with 527,176 foreign patients treated across 16 private hospitals. The sector now accounts for about 45% of Malaysia’s medical tourism revenue, driving developer interest in hospital-anchored residential and mixed-us

Penang’s medical tourism industry generated RM1.14 billion in revenue in 2025, a 26.6% increase from RM898.07 million a year earlier, as the state’s 16 participating private hospitals treated 527,176 foreign patients, up 25.9% from 418,608 in 2024, according to state government data cited by EdgeProp Malaysia.

The state accounted for about 45% of Malaysia’s total medical tourism revenue of RM3.35 billion in 2025, said Penang tourism and creative economy committee chairman Wong Hon Wai in July. Nationally, medical tourism revenue rose 23.2% to RM3.35 billion from RM2.72 billion in 2024, while international patient arrivals climbed 15.6% to 1.85 million.

Developer interest in healthcare-anchored property is growing. In June 2026, Eastern & Oriental Bhd (E&O) announced via Bursa Malaysia that its subsidiary KCB Holdings Sdn Bhd had signed a joint venture with Cengild Medical Bhd and Skyspring Sdn Bhd to build a 240-bed, RM350 million private hospital on Andaman Island, E&O’s 760-acre reclaimed waterfront township off Penang’s coast. The multidisciplinary facility, slated for completion in the fourth quarter of 2029, will sit in the Gurney Green district. Andaman Island is targeted to accommodate 250,000 residents when its 30-year master plan matures.

Penang’s private hospital capacity has long been anchored by regional catchment needs rather than medical tourism alone. Penang General Hospital, opened in 1854 with over 1,000 beds, is the tertiary referral centre for northern Malaysia. On the mainland, KPJ Penang Specialist Hospital in Bukit Mertajam completed a south wing expansion in 2025, taking capacity to 319 beds. IHH Healthcare’s Pantai Holdings Bhd acquired Island Hospital for RM3.92 billion in 2024, a deal that gave IHH three Penang hospitals with a combined 1,000-plus operational beds. Island Hospital holds a vacant land bank valued at RM223.4 million, with approvals secured for future development under the state’s long-mooted Island Medical City plan.

Hospital proximity is increasingly marketed as a selling point for residential projects. In Bayan Baru, Pantai Hospital Penang’s 190-bed campus, which has committed RM200 million to expand to 307 beds, sits at the centre of a cluster of serviced residences. The Promenade, a 336-unit serviced residence completed in 2016 by the Lion Group and TJ Group, lists its position near Pantai Hospital alongside its retail podium and transport links. PIX 1 Residences, the first phase of Ideal Property Group’s 16-acre Penang International Exchange master plan, advertises itself as within walking distance of the hospital with a planned link bridge to a future LRT station.

Malaysia Healthcare Travel Council (MHTC) vice president of data & analytics Aida Idris said accommodation demand from medical travellers is diversifying beyond hotels. “There is growing demand for serviced apartments and longer-stay accommodation, particularly among patients undergoing multiple treatment cycles, rehabilitation or extended recovery periods,” she said, noting that developers can build in “accessibility, proximity to hospitals, family-friendly facilities and extended-stay amenities”.

Under Malaysia’s 1Q2026 property statistics, Penang island’s high-rise price index stood at 233.2 versus Seberang Perai’s 176.1, while the mainland’s terrace index of 267.1 outpaced the island’s 155.5. Penang’s overall residential price growth in 1Q2026 ran at more than double the national average, according to the National Property Information Centre, even as completed unsold stock topped 32,000 units nationally. Foreign buyers face a state-imposed ownership floor of minimum RM1 million for stratified property and RM3 million for landed homes, plus a 3% state levy on foreign purchases.