Editor Pick
The Hilton for Lumpy Koalas
- September 26, 2009
- Rated 5 of 5 by
koshkha from Northampton, United Kingdom
I spent one night at the Hilton in Kuala Lumpur in December 2004 but one night was enough to make me want to sell my house and all my possessions and go and live at this fantastic hotel. One night was enough for Hilton's Asia-region 'flagship' hotel to burn itself into my mind when many other hotels had long been pushed aside in my goldfish-like memory.
My visit was at the end of the first week of a three-week business trip. One week into a trip like that with another two weeks still to go, hot and sweaty, very alien environments, not to mention the hard-drinking boss and colleagues with whom I was travelling, I was starting to get a tad 'jaded'. This hotel put a spring back in my step.
At the time I visited, this hotel had only been open for a short time and they were still offering special opening offer prices and we paid about £55 per night.
~Finding the Hilton~
If you haven't been to KL before - or haven't been since they opened the new airport - the first shock you will get is how far the airport is from the city. The new KL airport is 60-70 km from the city. The Hilton is located directly on top of the Sentral Station (that's how they spell it, it's not a typo), so you can get to or from the airport in just 28 minutes. In ten minutes using the same train service you can get to KLCC - a popular city centre shopping arcade which is next door to the Petronas .
Above the Sentral station are two hotels - the Hilton and I think the Le Meridien but don't quote me on that. When you arrive by car, you pull up under cover beside a large metal sculpture in the middle of a fountain. The hotel overlooks the Lake Gardens and is near to the National Museum. I've not been to either so can't tell you whether that's a good thing or not!
~The Lobby~
Hilton really went to town when they built this hote. There's a high ceilinged atrium with lots to look at like original paintings and sculptures throughout the hotel. The lobby merges into a large downstairs bar and there are shops and other facilities at this level. I can't say too much about the check in process as a couple of the people in our party had high level loyalty cards and so blagged us all a check in on the executive floor and we skipped the general check-in.
~My Room ~
I walked in and found that, without doubt, I had died and gone to 'Elle Deco' heaven. If you have ever read that magazine you'll know what I mean - lots of light wood, lots of glass and loads of technology to boggle your mind. Functional minimalism - lots of hidden cupboards and multi-functional furnishings. I'm a maximalist of the worst type so I love to experience the minimalist dream before I head home to my clutter.
To put in context the sheer wonder of these rooms, of the six of us who checked in together, only one (my thirsty ex-boss) actually made it to the bar at our allotted time. The rest of us were all too busy playing in our rooms and just couldn't tear ourselves away for something as unexciting as lots of booze and dinner.
~So what makes these rooms so special? ~
Somebody really sat down and thought about everything you could want in a room and then added some extras. The room is large with floor to ceiling windows and, to make sure you really enjoy the view, there's a sofa to recline on in front of the window so you can lie back and soak it up. The bed is wide and firm - just the way it should be - and at the perfect angle for watching the 42" plasma screen TV. And if you can't find anything on the multitude of TV stations, you can play computer games.
There's a glass-topped desk with lots of gizmos so you can link your computer to the net and check your mail. Not for me, I was too busy having fun and exploring. Tucked in one of the cupboards in the bathroom were three boxes of goodies. Hilton calls them 'lifestyle' boxes and they contain everything you might need in three themed containers.
The first box is 'Business' - it's got staplers, pens and pencils, post-its and all those bits and bobs.
The second is the 'Relaxation' box - it has extra nice toiletries you can use in your room. And the clever thing is if you USE them whilst you are there, you won't have to pay. But if you take them with you, you will be charged. That baffled my mind and I ended up leaving them just were they were thinking 'what if they think I've taken them? Do I have to leave all the empties on show? Or should I wander down and show them how lovely my skin is looking?
The third box is 'entertainment' and contained puzzles and games and a set of juggling balls. There was a book of short stories in there too.
Now there were also some extras you could get 'on demand' by calling housekeeping. These included office equipment, a super-dooper coffee machine and, get this, a bowl of goldfish. Now then, I've stayed in hotels where the concierge would send friendly ladies to your room (not something I'm in the market for obviously) but never a bowl of goldfish. What a cool idea. I assume you are expected to return the same number the next day - they aren't for snacking on.
~The Bathroom~
If you are the type who likes to change into your Winceyette nightdress in the bathroom or under cover of darkness then you are going to freak about the open plan bathroom. There are glass walls between the bath and the bedroom. They didn't go the whole hog though - don't worry, the toilet does have a door and you can't watch what's going on. The bath has a whirlpool and there's a fabulously powerful rainshower called and the toiletries are yummy and smell fantastic.
~What else?~
Everything you could possibly need is tucked in this room somewhere - a safe, a trouser press, an iron and ironing board, an alarm clock , a minibar and a hair dryer.
~The Gym~
It was a tough call but I dragged myself away to burn up some calories before putting them straight back again in the bar. The gym was gorgeous. Row after row of treadmills, bikes and steppers all looking out over the pool. Friendly staff hovering to push your buttons and explain anything that wasn't obvious. A very nice experience and even at peak pre-dinner time, there were plenty of machines to go round. I nearly forgot to mention the pool. I didn't use it but it was a joy just to look at. On a boardwalk setting it's a free-form pool with landscaped islands. The total length is 120 meters.
~Eating and Drinking~
There are 10 different bars and restaurants in the hotel covering a wide range of cuisines. Just as KL itself is a racial melting pot, the food choices reflect the local diversity. The restaurants include Malaysian, Chinese, Japanese and Western options and there's also a coffee bar and a poolside eatery. As our hosts were Chinese Malays we were taken to Chynna, the Chinese restaurant.
I'm a strict fishitarian - I eat fish and various weird sea creatures but I draw the line at meat. On this occasion I was quite glad. Our hosts went out of their way to show off the local delicacies and fortunately decided that they'd do strict vegetarian for me. What a relief! This meant I missed out on the sea slug, the sea cucumber and of course the goose feet. I wish I'd had a camera to capture the faces of my English colleagues when they received the goose feet.
~Back to my room~
I was practically running back to the elevators to get back to my room for a late night look out over the sky-line through my windows. I watched a bit of TV then I tidied myself up, put on my pjs and spent the next 15 minutes working out how to switch off all the gizmos. In fact I spent the night with one of the lights on because I just couldn't work out how to turn it off. Two other colleagues had the same problem so it wasn't just me being daft.
When I left the next morning it was with a firm impression that I'd just spent the night in a hotel that had somehow rewritten a lot of the rules of normal hotel design and behaviour.
From journal Malaysian Memories
Editor Pick
Home Away from Home
- October 9, 2008
- Rated 5 of 5 by
cchester12 from Frisco, Texas
I have spent over 3 months in this hotel the past 2 years for business. It is one of my favorite hotels in the 22 countries I have been to.
The attention to detail is almost perfect and when it is not, they take care of it. The staff is always friendly and will try their best to accommodate every request made.
The Room
The rooms are a decent size with Flat Screen TV's. Most have a TV in the swivel mirror in the bathroom with speakers in the ceiling so you can keep up when getting ready. The bathrooms are granite with modern fixtures. They have walk in showers with both a rain shower and hand held heads. They have aroma therapy oil burning at bed time that fills the room with a pleasant scent that does not overwhelm you. The beds are low to the ground but of good quality and four pillows.
The Food
Many in hotel restaurants are available for you to choose.
SUDU: International cuisine and local dishes. Located on the lobby floor. Kind of small but has good food and sushi for the casual diner.
SENSES: Australian food. Located on the lobby floor.
CHYNNA: Has Hong Kong cuisine and tea is served with kung fu moves by the Tea Master. He will also let you take pictures with him. This is my favorite of all their restaurants. 2nd floor.
THE NOODLE ROOM: Many varieties of Asian noodles.
IKETERU: Japanese. On the 5th floor.
BOARDWALK: Al-fresco dining poolside with a great view of KL.
VINTAGE BANK: Lobby bar with great food. They have rare scotch, brandy and wines as well as a GREAT humidor. Service can be a bit slow when they get busy. Lobby floor.
CAFFE CINO: Offers pastries, cakes and freshly-grilled gourmet sandwiches. They have little food gifts and fresh breads to take for your meetings. Great coffees.
COSMO: Lounge in the lobby. Has a live band most nights.
ZETA Bar: traditional dance club with live bands and DJ's from around the world. I have never been there. They do show a live feed to the TV in your room starting at 10:00pm in case you need to shake it while working on your presentations.
Next door is the Le Meridian and they allow you to eat at their facilities and charge it to your room. AWESOME. They have a Lebanese restaurant that is to die for complete with belly dancers.
If you get to the Executive lounge, they have bands in the evening with great appetizers for you to enjoy. The view is fantastic as you are 35 floors up.
Extras
They try to cater. For the kids (and big kids) they have XBOX and Playstations available with a lot of games that you can use in the rooms as well as music and DVD's. They will help you get anywhere and have a taxi service that you can charge to the room.
Location
Is perfect. the train station KL Sentral is attached and the monorail is across the street. in 5 - 10 minutes you can be at KLCC (Petronas Towers) 4 MEGA malls, Theatres, Electronic shops and Petaling Street (Chinatown). You can take the KL Xpress train non-stop to the Airport for $35 RM ($10 USD). They have MAS check-in at the train station which is handy if you have a lot of bags to check. They also offer bag wrapping (plastic) so you can keep your belongings. I think it is 3 to 5 USD.
Editor Pick
Hilton Kuala Lumpur
- March 27, 2007
- Rated 5 of 5 by
cjg1 from New York, New York
Upon arrival into KL we jumped in a cab and headed to the hotel. This was about 5am as the bus was faster than we had hoped. And so we arrived before 6am with only a reservation for the coming night.
This was the only portion of the hotel stay I have any complaint on. The man and woman at the front desk were in no way treating me in a manner that reflects my Hilton activity. I am not one to throw the status around but the bottom line is they were not offering me the rooms that were available and wanted me to pay for the upgrade I had already been granted for the coming night. In the end it worked out to where I had to give up the upgrade for the coming night and got a deluxe room at half rate for the remainder of the day. This deluxe room they immediately upgraded to and executive room which made little sense to me. But what an upgrade it was. We were given the single best hotel room I have ever had.
We had the privilege of having one of the two rooms in this hotel with the private sundeck. This sundeck was very large as you can see in the attached pictures and gave excellent unobstructed views of the everything in 180 degree view.
The room itself was a standard executive room with a very comfortable king bed. 40-something inch plasma TV. The bathroom was quite nice as well. With two large sliding doors you could make it all one room with the bedroom or separate. A standalone shower and deep and large tub along with a single sink on a modern stand round out the facilities while the toilet was in a separate offshoot beside the shower.
From journal Weekend to Kuala Lumpur