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THE FIRST thing I normally do when I visit Kuala Lumpur, is to don my snorkelling gear. Then I head to my favourite curry shop and dive into the mutton masala, marvelling at juicy chunks of tandoori chicken and vast streaming strands of laksa noodles waving sinuously in a red chilli soup that packs enough punch to land a man on the moon. The only reason there are no Malaysians on the moon is that people are entirely preoccupied with a) finding metered taxis, an endangered species especially when it rains, and b) finding anything, when neighbouring Indonesia spontaneously combusts as farmers burn the rainforests, creating a dense smoke haze that engulfs much of hapless Malaysia's west coast. Someone please toss a bucket of water on Sumatra and lock up the matches.
Kuala Lumpur shopping presents mind-boggling options and stuff so cheap you'd expect EVERYONE to be here. Yet Kuala Lumpur business hotels remain surprisingly seasonal and regular discounts of 30-40 percent or more are perennially on offer. With an inviting exchange rate (US$1=RM3.64) and five-star walk-in rates of RM300-RM400, there's no better time to visit.
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| Mandarin and Twin Towers/ photo: Verghese |
Four-star KL hotels are even more attractively priced and some offer a rather good room product. In which other major capital, barring Mogadishu, can you stay at a slick international property for just US$100 or less? Forget rack rates and corporate rates. Just ask for a “promo rate” and walk into the biggest hotel bargain east of the Suez.
Kuala Lumpur is a bopping town with something approaching a sidewalk cafe culture, this despite the heat, the rain and exhaust fumes. At Bukit Bintang "sheesha" hubble-bubble stalls have proliferated offering flavoured puffs, Lebanese tidbits and chill-out music. The heat can be beat with the giant cooling fans that spray a fog of wet mist over diners. Have yourself photographed with a boa constrictor around your neck and marvel at cards handed out that say "For your pleasure, please call Addie..." Addie offered me a card every evening. I never had time to call.
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Kuala Lumpur shopping is diverse,
vigorously showcased in the annual Mega
Sales, hotels and hospitality
are world class, transport is plentiful and food and nightlife teeming
in downtown and newer suburban locations. June features a countrywide
dance and culture extravaganza called Citrawarna, or “Colours
of Malaysia”. What more could you want? Well, a few more cabs
perhaps… Welcome to Malaysia,
“Truly Asia”, as the catchy slogan goes. This is
a country in rapid transition that has managed to combine funk and
fervour, class and crass, technology and tradition, religion, romance
and royalty, with aplomb. It is a heady
cocktail, the results often unexpected. More for visitors at the Ministry of Tourism website.
The Airport, and getting around the city by cab or train
Kuala Lumpur is
a can-do city on the move. Once notorious for its gridlocked traffic,
cars and people move too these days, thanks to some well-planned
elevated motorways and light rail options. New highways snake in from the international airport. The monorail ride from Raja Chulan station (near the Crowne Plaza Mutiara) to KL Sentral is just 15 minutes. Short distances are a steal at just RM1.20. Taxis are plentiful, in theory, but are impossible to find when it rains and meters are rarely used.
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| Traders Hotel SkyBar/ photo: hotel |
Cabbies figure the cost of the petrol expended in traffic jams far outweighs the meter fare and prefer, instead, to duck into the nearest coffee shop for a break. It tends to rain early and mid-afternoon. You might wish to hire a taxi by the hour (RM30 for a small taxi, and RM60 for a comfy premier taxi) to make sure onward transport is available.
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The MAS (www.malaysiaairlines.com.my) regional-route
Airbus 330s are surprisingly roomy with decent pitch (which is legroom,
as measured in the space between rows). Ask for bulkhead rows 11
or 29 for a really good stretch. The configuration is 2-4-2 so there
are just two seats on the window side.
Kuala Lumpur International
Airport (KLIA) is large, glossy, and hassle-free. Immigration
and customs is quick and getting to town is a breeze on the new KLIA Express. The quick and efficient 28-minute run to KL Sentral Station
every 15 minutes costs RM35, about half of what a local cab will charge. Coupon airport taxis (or limousines, as they are called) charge a fixed RM92.40 from KLIA to Jalan Sultan Ismail. A less fussy regular vehicle will be just RM67.40. A little farther off, a separate, dedicated budget airlines terminal is running too.
A few airlines, including MAS, Cathay Pacific and Royal Brunei, have check-in counters at KL Sentral. If you
wish to dawdle at the airport put on your walking shoes to explore
the factory-size MAS Golden Lounge, said to be the largest in the world at 43,284sq ft. That's a whole lot of lounge.
Kuala Lumpur is a can-do city on the move. People move too these days, thanks to the excellent elevated motorways and monorail...
Kuala Lumpur business hotels, KL Sentral
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| Hilton Kuala Lumpur/ photo: hotel |
Bang next to the KL Sentral station is the chic and contemporary 510-room Hilton Kuala Lumpur. Rooms, starting at a very generous 44sq m, feature 42-inch plasma screen TVs, rain showers, ergonomic seating, Broadband (RM63 for 24 hours), and small swivelling LCD screens in the bathroom so you can stay tuned in to the Beeb or CNN. Ceiling-high sliding glass doors separate the bath from the bed. Rooms have an iron and ironing board.
In-room you'll find a number of kits like one for kids' entertainment, packing in chess, toy cars, Leggo, Enid Blyton books and more. The Hilton lays claim as well to the country's largest freeform swimming pool. This is a long snaking 600m affair that wraps around one side of the eight-floor podium and is shared - along with the spa - by the adjoining Le Meridien (same owner, different management). There are 10 restaurants and bars - including the popular Zeta Bar - a two-storey fitness centre and a 1,220sq m "pillarless" ballroom. The Hilton lobby is busy, spacious, soaring, light-filled and airy. Streetside cafeteria meets space-age lounge under the watchful gaze of large artistic renditions. The ringing echoes of conversation can be distracting for some but the ensemble creates a convivial, friendly atmosphere.
Joined at the hip, so to speak, is the futuristic, but quieter, 35-storey twin, Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur, with panoramic views, fast Broadband access, and extensive conference and meeting facilities. This is a sober version of the Hilton, with Moorish eccentricities, marbled floors with geometric inlays, and spacious rooms with muted colours. There is a Broadband port at the work table and a laptop charging socket in the safe. The Al Nafourah Middle Eastern restaurant is the hotel's prime culinary weapon and it emulates a desert oasis from its archways and silk to the tempting menus. All rooms have Broadband access for a fee.
Kuala Lumpur business hotels downtown
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| Sheraton Imperial KL / photo: hotel |
The new look and renamed Sheraton Imperial Kuala Lumpur Hotel (formerly Hotel Imperial, The Luxury Collection, Kuala Lumpur) has gone through some major top-to-toe upgrades with a brisk new product offering 385 rooms including 27 Executive suites, two Ambassador suites and a palatial Imperial Suite. The Sheraton brand name is back, reassuringly, and taxi drivers and regular punters will beam as they have always referred to the property as the Sheraton Imperial despite several stop-and-start name changes. Everything gleams from the sparkling lobby to the new rooms. Staff are attentive and quick. Expect 44sq m rooms with bathtub and separate shower, walk-in closet, 40-inch LCD TV that anchors your audio-visual work and play, and a Sony DVD player.
Pick from a Twin Towers View Executive Room, a Club Room with business-floor amenities and 24-hour butler, an Executive Suite, or the humungous two-bedroom 336sq m Imperial Suite where there's room to swing a horse by the tail, and more. While the restaurants have all come alive with a contemporary design and fresh purpose there is muted emphasis on after-hours revelry, partly on account of the hotel's excellent location amidst a popular nightlife hub along "Heritage Row", a good enough reason to visit this fine business property.
Still, for fine dining there's few better choices than the Tuscany-inspired Villa Danieli for home-style Italian. The hotel, now carrying the much prized "Luxury Collection" tag, is a crisp businessman's retreat with inroom Broadband. Enjoy the airy four-storey atrium lobby, the sunny swimming pool, or the hushed interiors of the Mandara Spa. This hotel is a good pick for conventioneers too. It is by a long chalk among the best Kuala Lumpur business hotels, and not just in the vicinity. Service is always on the ball with staff leaping up to assist any unattended guests.
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| Shangri-La Horizon Club Deluxe/ photo: hotel |
Jalan Sultan Ismail is KL’s main drag and the city’s top hostelries are
arrayed along it (or off it) like starving barracudas waiting to
pounce. Prices are extraordinarily flexible. Walk in and you will
be mauled by beaming receptionists all happy to quote their best current promo rate.
The mature Shangri-La at one end of Jalan Sultan Ismail has had a lavish makeover, top to bottom, with new exterior cladding. Rooms continue to be refurbished. The lobby gleams with
black marble, dramatic uplights and a green cut-glass centrepiece.
It is spacious, completely over the top, and of course, very much
the place to see and be seen. If you care to pay the rack rate, you are entitled to complimentary
airport limousine transfers, complimentary laundry and dry-cleaning,
breakfast and free Broadband Internet access.
In-room expect flat-screen TVs, while the comfy Horizon Club for business travellers on the go offers personalised check-in, complimentary breakfast, a separate wide-screen television room and, yes, a smoking area. The business centre has five Internet stations with Broadband. To soothe the eyes, the hotel offers lush gardens. Service is brisk, intuitive and quick at this re-energised venue. The Shangri-La is among the top Kuala Lumpur business hotels. Best of all is the steady stream of premier taxis so business travellers are rarely stranded, and a monorail station is close by. The train is a useful option as traffic is intense at peak hour along Jalan Sultan Ismail.
Right across the
road is the steadily upgrading Concorde Hotel, a staple
four-star that gets its share of saucy nighttime revellers spilling over from the Hard Rock Cafe as well as neighbouring Jalan P Ramlee. Business travellers should opt for the Premier Executive rooms which are functional and comfortable. There is a small work table, VCD player, an iron and ironing board, a set of three-pin square plugs and a deep European socket, near the table, and a sensibly large clock.
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| Concorde Premier Terrace/ photo: hotel |
Expect a flat-screen TV and an inviting bathroom with separate tub and shower. The small safe will not hold a laptop. Premier Executive rooms are spacious with leather reclining chairs, generous toilets, and a flat-screen TV with DVD player. Twenty-five newer Classic Suites on the eighth and ninth floors offer a cocooned, spacious, and mod environment, minimalist, with faux-European flourishes including bright red high-back chairs in the lift lobby and black and white wall tile cameos. Rooms offer earth tone carpets, soft leather headboards, a plump bed with bursts of pink cushions, a large glassed-in balcony/alcove welcoming of light and sun where you can settle down for a good read. The in-room safe is flat and large enough to house any laptop you care to throw at it, the toilet is mod, and olive floral wallpaper completes the "classic" mix. Premier rooms and above come with free Broadband via WiFi.
For those less fussy, standard rooms are a steal. At the end of the day, the Relaxa Health
Centre will bring a happy flush to the most hardboiled executive
cheek. The same group also runs the Concorde Inn Kuala Lumpur International Airport and the Concorde Hotel Shah Alam. Come evening and the Concorde KL lobby is rocking with loud music and drinks being bought by the gallon at the Crossroads bar. And do check out the excellent Xin Cuisine Chinese restaurant for interesting dim sum.
The once popular and stately, if graciously ageing, Regent has metamorphosed into the spit-and-polish Grand Millennium Kuala Lumpur. The lobby gleams with black marble and ample gold trim just in case you missed the point. The property is on Jalan Bukit Bintang
where you’ll find a rash of lively eateries, bars and shopping
malls. Staff are perky and attentive to guest needs and the place has a spring in its step as expected of a newcomer. This more than compensates for the unremarkable exterior. The 468-room hotel offers Broadband at RM60 per day.
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| Grand Millennium/ photo: hotel |
Spacious 40sq m rooms feature muted pastel colours and floor-to-ceiling windows that are welcoming of light. Expect a small in-room safe and a 32-inch flatscreen LCD TV with all the usual satellite goodies. Studio Suites weigh in at 55sq m while the Executive Suites are a generous 80sq m. While this is among the better Kuala Lumpur business hotels on the block, with 15,000sq ft of meeting space to boot, the property caters for kids too with baby-sitting services, cots and more. Keep an eye on this as a Kuala Lumpur conference hotels choice for corporate meetings and mid-size gatherings.
Just across the road is the very corporate The Westin Kuala Lumpur with its trademark "Heavenly Bed" and the popular streetside Qba Latino grill and wine bar. Pasta by the yard comes delicately spiced at Prego. The Westin has 443 rooms and an Executive Residences section as well. The 42sq m Deluxe Rooms offer views either side of the city, or the trademark Twin Towers. WestinWORKOUT Rooms serve up in-room fitness options ranging from dumbells, and cycle or treadmill, to yoga mats and assorted fitness paraphernalia. Expect Broadband, a workstation, inroom safe, CD/DVD player, hair-drier, and work amenities. After-hours work up some sweat at the Westin Workout Gym. Later slough off the sweat with the invigorating force of - well, what else? - a "Heavenly Shower". The Westin is a well located Kuala Lumpur business hotel - with large Executive Residences for longstay visitors - but also keeps an eye out for the guests of tomorrow. Kids from three years and up can park at the Westin Kids Club where a slew of heavenly activities await. The marble and pale pine lobby is unusually compact but light and airy with an intimate feel to it, the entire ensemble set off by bright mood lighting.
The newish Piccolo Hotel, a clean and white mid-rise is a smart and affordable boutique hotel with a great location...
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| JW Marriott/ photo: hotel |
The JW
Marriott Hotel is a central Kuala Lumpur business hotel choice though it makes an excellent leisure pitstop too, based as it is, cheek-by-jowl with
some of the best shopping in town, including the immensely popular Starhill complex. Swank Dior and Louis Vuitton stores are right next to the hotel's lobby. Floors 27-29 have been converted into luxury
suites (including a two-bedroom category) with soaring double-height
ceilings.
Broadband is available free in all 561 rooms. Deluxe rooms have satellite TV, extraordinarily comfy beds, a smart work desk with a three-pin (square) plug point (and Broadband cable). There is a large box safe that can accommodate a 15-inch laptop. The toilet is roomy with separate bathtub and rainshower cubicle. Expect coffee and tea making equipment, and a hair dryer. Laptop boffins will be pleased to note that there is WiFi in public areas. Also check out the Starhill Spa with its arsenal of wraps, scrubs and aromatic oils. There's a plunge pool, massage, and a steam room. Alternatively, sweat it out at the Fitness Centre. The JW Marriott KL has more dining options than you can shake a stick at but standouts are Shanghai, for unbowdlerised Chinese, and the open-kitchen Shook! restaurant.
The neighbouring and new Piccolo Hotel, a clean, white mid-rise, is positioned as a Kuala Lumpur boutique hotel with just 168 rooms and a splendid shopping-epicentre location. Rooms feature stylish flourishes, dollops of bright art, pastel colours, 32-inch flat-screen TV, iron and ironing board, in-room safe, and separate shower (with bidet). After taking in all that lively art and perhaps wine, cigar and excellent Italian at the signature Ristorante L'Opera, unwind at the Morino Kaze Aromatherapy Spa. This is a smart and afforable hotel offering good value in Kuala Lumpur with a central location.
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| Classy Ritz-Carlton/ photo: hotel |
The Ritz-Carlton is a small, boutique affair
with 251 rooms (including 30 suites) and classic lines. No soaring lobbies, just an intimate
reception area and earth tones. The rooms feature light pastel
colours that are easy on the eye. Deluxe rooms start at 430 square feet with plush dive-in beds, workstation with iPod dock, high definition flatscreen TVs, and Broadband.
The Club Premier Suite weighs in at a roomy 893sq ft with over-size pillows, marble bathrooms with rainforest showers, DVD/CD players, flat-screen TVs and iPod connections. Euro-nuts will enjoy the acres of dark, chiselled wood
and sombre oil paintings with large gilded frames. The speciality
here is the butler-drawn bath, for all rooms. If things get a tad
steamy, remember, the butler did it. The bar is a suitably chaste deep leather seating affair with hushed lighting. At the adjoining The Residences (also from Ritz-Carlton), check out a 1,918sq ft executive suite. An added attraction at this understated Kuala Lumpur business hotel, is its Spa Village where pinstripers can wind down with massage and wellness treatments.
Just opposite is
the 320-room Dorsett Regency Hotel, an unpretentious
but decently equipped place with promo rates that are a bit ambitious. The pricing is a tad aggressive
but negotiate hard. The hotel also runs the Dorsett Regency Service
Apartments a short walk away.
Close by, the Japanese-run Prince Hotel & Residence is
a green reflecting glass twin tower with a shared pool. It is cool,
minimalist and neat. Hotel rooms feature light cherry-wood tones and pastel hues. The
impression is Spartan but the space is functional and comfortable.
A very nice touch are the steam irons and fold-out ironing boards
in all rooms. There are coffee and tea-making facilities and a flat-screen
TV. The inroom safe can store a laptop quite easily. But then, where
will your mother-in-law stay? The hotel’s Deluxe Executive
Rooms feature curving panoramic glass walls with generous views.The second tower houses the apartments.
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| Boutique Piccolo Hotel/ photo: hotel |
The centrally-located Crowne Plaza Mutiara has done a Michael Jackson on the grey, cinder block that was the
former Hilton. Unlike Jackson’s nose, the Crowne Plaza's tasteful rooms are likely to endure and entertain
guests – for the right reasons. The sliding windows
that open from the bathroom onto the bedroom create a sense of space
and romance. There’s
a flat-screen TV and a finger-touch sensor control for most appliances and Broadband access in all rooms. On executive floors enjoy additional benefits like free Broadband, complimentary laundering of two items, breakfast for two and refreshments. The Crowne Plaza took over from the Mutiara and managed a reasonably seamless transition inheriting, among other things, a well-entrenched labour union that has been a thorn in the side of successive managements. This is a well located downtown hotel smack next to a monorail station, a godsend on traffic-plagued mornings. A rear exit via escalators brings guests down to the back street from where the KLCC is a short walk away.
The evergreen 426-room Parkroyal Kuala Lumpur (formerly run by an Australian group) offers friendly
service and a handy central location. The hotel went through a major facelift to emerge in pleasing earth tones with many attractive touches. Deluxe rooms come with a king-size bed (or two queens), laptop-size safe, Broadband, flatscreen TV and a steam iron to get your suit in shape for the next day.
And in the shadows
of the sky-piercing Petronas Twin Towers (when
the sun occasionally emerges from the KL haze) are the humming Mandarin Oriental and the very chic Ascott executive apartments. Both offer easy access to shopping and convention facilities and good standards of service.
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| Mandarin Oriental/ photo: hotel |
The Ascott,
on Jalan Pinang, commands excellent views of the city as well as
of the towers, especially from its 22nd floor Sky Lounge and pool
deck. Hop into the turquoise Jacuzzi and lean dangerously over the
city lights, drink in hand. This is also where the fitness centre
and spa are located. The lobby is small, yet bright, airy and elegant,
offering a real sense of home. The rooms however are enormous, ranging
from 613sq ft for an Executive Studio to 3,143sq ft for the four-bedroom
Royal Penthouse. Cruise wireless Broadband at the
pool deck, the Sky Lounge or lobby. Ask also for The Ascott's “Business
in Style” package which, when available, offers a range of
useful extras including dry-cleaning, Broadband and parking. Ascott offers lots and lots of room smack in the heart of town right next to nightlife, bars and shopping.
Close to the Twin
Towers, parks and fountains, and the busy KLCC shopping and restaurant complex is the Mandarin Oriental Kuala Lumpur.
This is a gleaming building with fine rooms and great views and
the Pacifica Grill & Bar is a trendy haunt. Among the crispest Kuala Lumpur business hotels, it offers
spa facilities, tennis and squash courts and a sunny pool looking
onto lush parklands. Being right next door to some of the best shopping in the city has its pluses. Check for special shopper discounts and specials for inhouse guests. Pick up discounts of five to ten percent purchasing items through the Mandarin Oriental's "Lifestyle" programme, at places like Aigner, Calvin Klein, Armani Exchange, Max Mara, Bally, Versace, Nautica and more.
The top seven floors of the hotel house the Mandarin Oriental Club's 148 spacious rooms with stunning views and thoughtful executive amenities like complimentary dry-cleaning and Wireless Broadband. Opt for city views or park views, either way, there's open vistas galore. In the spacious Club Suites, expect a classic living room with DVD/CD player and a handy fax to keep your work humming. Find a well equipped kitchenette and a huge marble bathroom boasting double-head showers, sauna and whirlpool and TV. This hotel fares well on our Kuala Lumpur business hotels review.
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| Traders Hotel view/ photo: hotel |
A newer addition to the KLCC skyline is the smart 571-room Traders Hotel Kuala Lumpur (by Shangri-La hotels). This gleaming mod property is not just smart on looks, it is smart inside, packed with bright splashes of colour, modern art, and mood lighting. Groups check-in on the first floor where a Wireless reception can be set up whenever necessary. This gets the crowds away from the normal check-in area on Level 5. This level also houses the cafe, GOBO Chit-Chat Meet and Eat - quite a mouthful but then, it does serve an extensive buffet.
On Level 6 is the cosy lounge with wraparound views of the Twin Towers. Broadband Internet has to be paid for in-room but WiFi is free on Club Floors and in the Club Lounge. The business centre offers Internet access as well as a funky game station complete with steering wheels for avid racers. Bathrooms are well lit with bathtub, shower and a weighing scale. No rubber ducks here, just a lollipop which works well for him and her.
Expect chic minimalist and mod rooms in earthy pastels, an interactive LCD TV, a low sink-in chair, iron and ironing board, a laptop-size safe, and a work desk with three easy-to-access plug points (3-pin square). Space is well used and everywhere there are cinematic views across the city, or the park (beyond which, the Twin Towers gleam). The rooftop Health Club & Spa offers breathtaking views and breathless fitness regimens for all sizes and tastes. Up here, by the long alfresco pool, the SkyBar is a chic after hours rendezvous with breezy snuggeries and great views. The downtown KLCC location is a useful asset. This places Traders Hotel right next to the city’s green “lungs” and jogging track, shopping, and offices. Transport options are plentiful.
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| Renaisance pool / photo: Verghese |
In the same vicinity, the newish Impiana group flagship, the Impiana KLCC Hotel & Spa is a 335-room business hotel with a good location for leisure trippers. The four-star hotel offers all-day dining and a brisk business centre. While the exterior is a drab cinderblock inherited from the Holiday Inn, in-room expect a hair-drier, high-speed Internet access, an electronic safe, iron and ironing board and satellite TV. Close by is the intriguingly named Novotel Hydro Majestic Kuala Lumpur, close to the KLCC, with 291 rooms, an executive floor, a fitness centre, spa and pool.
The Renaissance
Kuala Lumpur Hotel offers good facilities for business travellers and leisure
trippers. The New World wing at the Renaissance offers a different fare structure. The New World wing is cheaper and contemporary with a younger flavour while the Renaissance wing is more conservative, appealing to business travellers. Both wings share an Olympic-size pool with sunning deck and plenty of green. Work up more sweat at the well-stocked gymnasium or on the all-weather tennis courts. A spacious Grand Ballroom - easily accessed from either wing - offers a plush and modern venue for banquets, conferences and conventions. In the basement here is a prime gentleman's distraction - the Club de Macau.
The Traders SkyBar is the place to chill out of an evening, take in a sunset and enjoy bespoke cocktails with stunning views...
The centrally-located Hotel Istana sports black marble, geometric lines and beaded
chandeliers giving the distinct impression of a Middle East locale.
The property would have done well in Dubai circa 1970, but modern KL has been a lot more competitive. Still, a raft of substantial upgrades at this old address, including the Malay-style Sompoton Spa, a broad range of refurbished dining outlets, smart accommodation, and extensive meetings facilities have brightened things considerably.
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| Hotel Istana's new look/ photo: hotel |
The Suites feature wooden cupboards painted white, silk earth-tone bed runner, complimentary Broadband, DVD player, a somewhat out-of-place bulky TV, iron and ironing board, and a positively giant in-room safe. You can park a lot more than just your computer in this. There's two three-pin square plug sockets for executive travellers or those with a load of gadgets to recharge.
WiFi is free in public areas though regular rooms will attract a charge for Internet access. A singular feature of this elderly, yet rejuvenated, hotel is its huge rooms. There is space everywhere you turn. The brand is making up for lost time - and there is work to be done for sure - but the Hotel Istana is back in the fray with a terrific central location.
On Jalan Ampang’s “embassy row”
and a short walk from the KLCC is the conventions-driven Crown
Princess Hotel. While billed as a five-star, the place is not quite up to snuff with unpredictable service standards.
Not far away, the erstwhile Radisson, now simply, Hotel Maya, has graduated from a package-tourist haunt to an exceedingly pleasant boutique hotel aimed at individual travellers, corporates and discriminating leisure trippers. Wander in from the main road and you might be excused for thinking you've barged into Lord of the Rings IV. The restaurant ensemble here is all magic waterways, crystal rocks with twinkling lights and a black corkscrew staircase that twirls up to the second floor lobby. Yes, the taxis can go up too. Bamboo screens line an alluring dark tile pool looking onto a bright splash of greenery while hydro jets massage away the day's aches. The Hotel Maya is fully WiFi enabled and it's FREE. In-room
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| Hotel Maya studio / photo: hotel |
Broadband access is free too. Rooms are chic with wooden parquet floors, dark wood, straight lines, and a distinctly contemporary Zen feel with splashes of colour. The large bathroom with a sit-down stool to enjoy the rainforest shower, has a full-height glass wall so you can watch TV while you bathe.
There's a DVD player. Bring your own discs or borrow some from the library. The funky work desk at Hotel Maya is mounted on rollers so you can slide it back and forth to maximise space. Executive travellers will be pleased to note the inroom safe can easily handle a 15-inch screen laptop and it comes with a recharging electrical socket. Look out for the dedicated inhouse spa. In the suites, the minibar is replenished daily - and charged to the house. Drink up. It's free. This reborn property is a great Kuala Lumpur leisure or business hotel choice with panoramic views of KL Tower and the Petronas Twin Towers. While it has a fair number of rooms and an undistinguished exterior it justifiably strives to be seen as one of the best Kuala Lumpur boutique hotels.
The centrally positioned Berjaya Times Square Hotel & Convention Center on Jalan Imbi offers over 610 furnished suites with Internet access in several rooms, separate living and dining area, and laptop-size safe. There are seven suite styles ranging from the 51sq m Studio Suite to the 99sq m two-bedroom Brooklyn Suite. With a lavish 29,000sq ft of meeting space, the Berjaya is well positioned to offer a range of conferencing choices with seven function rooms and a pillar-free Manhattan Ballroom that can hold up to 2,000 persons cocktail style. Meeting planners can consider this venue as a Kuala Lumpur conference hotel for mid-size groups or small corporate meetings. The plus is, of course, the access to shopping and other activities for tag-along spouses and kids.
In the heart of the old part of town, the Swiss-Garden Hotel is a reasonably comfortable retreat with a spa and consistently decent service. Nearby is the Impiana. Unfortunately, both of these suffer from serious traffic congestion, and not only at peak hours, due to the proximity of a major bus terminus.
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Carcosa Seri Negara charm/ photo: hotel |
Heritage hotels and golf resorts in KL
Of course, if you
really want to pummel the wallet and enjoy a manor-home experience,
there’s just one choice, the Carcosa Seri Negara,
comprising two very elegant Victorian retreats in a lush garden
setting. This estate was originally built in 1904 as the official residence of the then British representative. High teas, coffee in the gardens, strolls, croquet and
generally a very pukka experience. Junior suites start at 76sq m and bathrooms are both stately and spacious. Carcosa is now managed by the Singapore-based General Hotels Management, or GHM. Expect grand service, grand vistas and a grand bill - not that you'll mind. This is a particularly special experience. Also available are a pool, jogging
track, floodlit tennis courts and gym. (The Carcosa Seri Negara features in our exclusive Top Asian Hotels Collection, featuring the best Asian hotels, resorts and spas in a printable A4 page with stunning visuals.)
GHM also manages The Saujana Kuala Lumpur, a 40-minute drive from Kuala Lumpur International Airport and within striking distance of town. The resort hotel features 386 swish rooms and suites in an elegant lowrise development. Facilities include a spa, jogging track and golf. The rooms have Broadband access.
Now, The Saujana returns with its pampering "resort within a resort" The Club at The Saujana, a top-drawer escape set in 160 hectares of lush gardens with 105 rooms and two championship golf courses at its doorstep. The Executive Club Rooms, Terrace Studios and Suites feature minimalist interiors with Burmese teak, parquet flooring, and elegant dark-wood tones set off by burgundy throw cushions. Guests at the Club can enjoy a 39m swimming pool and a spacious Spa Suite as well as the seven restaurants at the main hotel. The Club at The Saujana is positioned as a Kuala Lumpur boutique hotel choice with a resort feel accentuated by its proximity to The Saujana Golf & Country Club.
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| The Club at The Saujana/ photo: hotel |
Suburban Kuala Lumpur conference hotels, family resorts
Another
plush though somewhat out-of-the-way option is the sumptuous Palace
of the Golden Horses which is an interesting convention
or golf location. Both Palace and the neighbouring family friendly Mines Beach Resort offers
good value rates on weekends and are right next to the Selangor Turf Club where the races are held. Palace of the Golden Horses is stately and extraordinarily plush - or obscenely ornate in a sort of Chinese Rococco style - depending on your point of view. There is marble with intricate inlay everywhere and imposingly huge bronze sculptures of horses adorn the entrance, lobby, lagoon and cafe. With all its flourishes, Moorish design and copper-green cuppolas - that spring to life when the lights come on after dark - the place offers much ambience and style. Service is friendly. The food needs to be brought up a notch or two. If you're here with the family, it's likely you'll be swinging out on the adjacent championship golf course (if you booked a suite). This is a membership course. Palace is favoured by the government for official functions and is a good Kuala Lumpur conference hotel choice. Both Palace and Mines are child friendly hotels and cater for the younger set.
Other Kuala Lumpur hotel choices, Airport hotels
Other Kuala Lumpur hotel choices include
the Hotel Equatorial on Jalan Sultan Ismail which boasts the stylish Flo bar in the lobby, the pleasant and businesslike Hotel Nikko with a gleaming lobby and some shopping distractions, Federal, Corus Hotel, and the Holiday Villa Subang at the airport. The Pan Pacific Kuala Lumpur International Airport is a convenient business traveller pit-stop should you not wish to do the one-hour cab ride early morning. It is linked to the airport by an air bridge and offers 403 rooms and 38 suites all with Broadband. Taking the place of the former Pan Pacific near the Putra World Trade Centre is the Seri Pacific Hotel run by Best Western under its Premier label. Another option is the MiCasa All Suite Hotel close by the Twin Towers where rates are attractive.
Kuala Lumpur budget hotels
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| Functional Tune Hotel room/ photo: hotel |
At No. 316 Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman (at the intersection with Jln Sultan Ismail) is the ebullient no-frills hotel Tune Hotels very much an AirAsia clone with much the same focus on high energy and Internet sales. And so it advertises, "Get a five-star sleeping experience at a 1-star price". Incredibly, rooms here start at just US$3 and up. You'll get a decent room and good showers. Tune Hotels plans setting up other limited service hotels in central locations close to shopping and dining with prices of under RM100 a night. With its signature blazing red exterior the hotel is hard to miss, more a Virgin Megastore than a dull hostelry. Indeed, the hotel insists your stay will be anything but dull. And yes, you do have laundry service, Internet stations, and a trendy cafe. This is a smart and useful downtown Kuala Lumpur budget hotel address. And if you're looking for a cheap hotel in KL, it doesn't get any cheaper than this. Yes, it's cheerful too.
Across the road from the Hotel Istana, the small and wonderfully seedy Lodge Hotel has returned as the Lodge Paradize Hotel, its poolside 24-hour coffee shop doing roaring business. There's the smart streetside Paradisso restaurant and tapas bar and, best of all, incredible rates starting at RM35 for bed and breakfast. This is a cheap Kuala Lumpur budget hotel worth checking out if you are not too discriminating in your tastes and require a central location in the heart of town right next to a monorail station.
At the other end of the scale, if you must conserve your ringgit, a good hunting ground is the area between the Istana hotel side street and Jalan Alor. Pop into the basic but "boutique-style" Eight with its pastels and simple lines where a room will set you back just over RM95 (double). The rooms are air-conditioned and look out onto the street and there's Internet in the lounge. None of that dark dingy grime that you usually find in budget establishments. The bathrooms have showers using solar-heated water. Or head a notch downscale to Rainforest Bed & Breakfast where around RM80 will get you a room . There is aircon, some rooms have TV and the rate includes breakfast. Not all rooms have attached bathrooms.
Petaling Jaya hotel choices
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Berjaya Times Square suite/ photo: hotel |
In the suburb of Petaling Jaya at the Phileo Damansara office complex is the very competent and useful Eastin Hotel. You can bag a room here for a song. Weekend rates are even better with breakfast for two. There's a good dim sum Chinese restaurant. Phileo is a bit out of the way and it's unlikely you'd stay here unless you had business in the vicinity. Eastin is a good suburbia choice.
A more recent five-star offering is the One World Hotel (a member of WORLDHOTELS) also in Petaling Jaya. This 438-room hotel sports contemporary décor, satellite TV, WiFi and Broadband and an in-room safe. It is close to the Utama Shopping Centre. For leisure travellers facilities include a fitness centre, four tennis courts, a pool and a spa. The 3,200sq m Grand Ballroom is a useful venue for conferencing.
Nightlife in Kuala Lumpur, dining, bars
For a bird’s-eye view of the city, shimmy up to the observation deck of the 421m Menara KL (tel: 2085448, open 9am-10pm). Tickets for foreign visitors are priced RM15 (adults), and RM9 (children). The Menara also houses a restaurant and the Mega View Banquet Deck that lays claim to being the “highest” banquet facility in KL. Now you know.
For a cheap and cheerful Kuala Lumpur hotel, you can't beat the US$3 no-frills Tune Hotels and its Virgin-red exterior...
A happening place is the basement of the new Starhill mall near the Marriott, crammed with eateries from around the world. Head to Sentidos Tapas (tel: 2145-3385) for interesting nibbles (though the Sangria is doubtful), Shook (tel: 2719-8535) with an open-plan layout and several offerings, or Tarbush Restaurant (tel: 2144-6393) for Lebanese food. These are theme restaurants with decor to match. Also try My Thai (by silk house Jim Thompson), Vansh for Indian, and Koryo-Won for Korean.
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| Park Royal/ photo: hotel |
Nightlife and dining
options have really taken off. Bangsar continues to dominate the
evening scene with the La Bodega Lounge (tel: 2287-3808)
leading the charge. Upstairs is cosy if a touch smoky. The latest strip in this area is One Bangsar, a side road heading up a low rise and lined with bungalow-restaurants offering everything from Thai (Montient), and Italian (Vincenzo), to Indian (Sagar). Vincenzo (tel: 2287-1686) at the quieter end of the strip is a nice white villa with brick walls and a small garden where a meal for two will cost not much more than RM120.
Another
up and coming area for the younger set is Desa Sri Hartamas, with
the same three-storey shophouse set-up like Bangsar, and numerous watering
holes.
The Hard
Rock (next to Concorde Hotel), Planet Hollywood and Zouk churn out their well-known fare but smaller local establishments
really steal the thunder. Frangipani (tel: 2144-3001)
is an ultra-chic art-deco hideaway on Bukit Bintang with subdued
lighting, square columns, brushed steel walls, maroon drapes, and
an indoor pool with an atrium. Here you can try exotica like “Skinless
leg of organic chicken”… The nosh is terrific and the
menu changes every two months.
Tamarind
Springs (tel: 4256-9300), a bit further out, is spectacular
– enter through a Balinese-style wall and gate down a candle-lit
path to a spread-out thatch-roof bungalow set in lush greenery,
above a golf course, and with its own quick-dip pool. The open-sided
establishment has a wrap-around balcony, ceiling fans, and walls
in a deep salmon hue. The menu is Lao, Cambodian and Vietnamese.
A sister property, Tamarind Hill, is a planter’s
bungalow, closer to town, serving Thai-Vietnamese.
Long-running Rama V does classy Thai and Liquid at
the Central Market (tel: 2026-5039) is a stylish hangout for the
alternative crowd. Lots of biceps here. Jalan P Ramlee is usually
bopping by sundown with sleek bars, sleeker women - many with undisguised commercial intent - and throbbing
danceclubs like The Beach Club (tel: 2161-6666), and Sangria Island (tel: 2170-6666).
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| Heritage Row eatery/ photo: Verghese |
On Jalan Ramlee as well is the new Modesto's-managed string of pub-nosheries led by, of course, Modestos (tel: 2694-6868). Across the road the fast expanding Thai Club has gained a saucy reputation, not just for its short-time inn that now competes for business with established service apartments in the area. Or try the Argentinian Maredo's Steakhouse (tel: 2162-8268) not far from the relocated bar and chow entrant Rum Jungle (tel: 2148-0282) and the relaxed colonial-white padi house (tel: 2143-3840) that serves Chinese, Malaysian and Western on the first floor with a small wraparound balcony.
If you’re
still peckish, roll up your sleeves and stroll across to Jalan
Alor’s hawker stalls or to the 24-hour Estana
Curry House (tel: 2411958) on Jalan Sultan Ismail around
the corner from the Istana Hotel. Estana does terrific tandoori
chicken and a gut-busting meal here will set you back less than
RM10. On a side street nearby Estana also runs the Restoran Nagasari Curry House, a clean banana leaf slop shop with South Indian fare.
Of course, top of the curry league, is the alfresco Raju
Restaurant in Petaling Jaya (Jln Gasing, tel: 7561-361).
You’ll be served on banana leaves. Or try Kayu (tel: 7877-4777) in Petaling Jaya for more of the same. For something more upmarket
and late-at-night, walk along Changkat Bukit Bintang for everything from French to Brazilian. Try Yoko's (tel: 2144-3378) for Japanese, the Deutsches Haus, or head farther up to Jalan Ceylon to bungalow establishments like Bon Ton (nice villa but a tad overpriced) and the cosy Nero Vivo (tel: 2070-3120) that serves excellent Italian in eccentric surrounds with large, eye-catching paintings. Try a wood-fired pizza. And if you have an urge for some Hong Kong-style Chinese in a large efficient establishment, head to the Imbi Palace Restaurant (tel: 2145-4822) where the clatter and menu won't disappoint.
One of the newer and more interesting nightlife areas is a district of converted shophouses called Heritage Row. The bars and restaurants run along Jalan Doraisamy next to the Hotel Imperial (Sheraton). Here you'll find The Loft complex with a funky lounge, Japanese, and Italian at Mezza Notte (tel: 2691-5668). Mezza Notte is run by a French chef with an Italian assistant. The food is, well, a fusion of sorts... and the decor is romantically muted and upscale. Find a purple wall and blend in. There's Indian at That Indian Thing, Indo-Chinese at CoChine (tel: 2697-1180) and dark snuggeries and couches at the brooding, statue-ringed Bar Sa Vanh. If there's time to spare try foot reflexology at Old Cottage (tel: 2698-5168). Restaurants open and close like revolving doors so wander about and have a browse.
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| Again, them Towers/ photo: Verghese |
For late nights
and large wallets there’s always the twinkling lights
of clubs like Bintang Palace or Kelab de
Vegas. Bintang Palace karaoke rooms start at RM200 or more per night and a crooning companion will set you back around RM60 per hour. Drinks and the mandatory fruit platter are extra and a four-hour minimum levy for your lady friend will add some hefty zeroes to the bill. Expect to pay at least RM700 for a quick in and out. At De Vegas the room is RM300 and your companion is a more modest RM50 per hour. Things at these establishments only get moving after 9.30 or 10pm. I weighed things up, said hello to the mamasan, toured some fake-Versailles rooms and decided to head to the Estana Curry House where I had tandoori chicken, fried mutton, daal, biryani rice, curry and a huge bottle of mineral water for just RM17. Now that's what I call a good deal. Now, if only I could have seen what I was eating. Throw some water on Indonesia will ya?
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