We monitored different hotels and their overnight rates for a few months, before making a decision and booking the Hilton Kuala Lumpur for one night. One of our thoughts was that we didn't want to have a full blown KL experience after a long flight, so we had to make our mind up, if we wanted to stay at the airport or take the KLIA Ekspress into KL and stay at the Le Meridien or Hilton. In the end we decided to take the train to KL Sentral and walk the short distance to the Hilton.
We also deliberated fairly long which room type to take. We booked an Executive Room Plus with Lake Garden view.
As mentioned we took the KLIA Ekspress, a fast train, to KL Sentral. The journey takes 28 minutes. Two Return tickets cost 140 MYR (ca. 32.40 Euro or 43.80 USD). They are valid three months from the time of issue. At the central train station we followed the signs for the Hilton and Le Meridien. The hotels are located in twin towers opposite KL Sentral. We left the train station and crossed the street at the traffic lights. At the ground level of the buildings is a parking lot; an elevator leads up to both hotel entrances on the same level. Keeping to the left led us to the Hilton. If we had turned right it would have brought us to the Le Meridien. In 2009 we had a night at the Le Meridien and now in 2013 at the Hilton.
We were impressed by the large, airy lobby and floor to ceiling windows over the Lake Gardens.
Cafe Oro, the Lounge, Vasco's and the Chambers Bar & Grill are on one side, the concierge and reception at the other side.
The lobby was nature inspired, contemporary and for example the barrier between the reception area and Vasco's was looking like huge trees.
Cafe Oro and the Lounge were understated. The cakes and chocolates were presented like jewelry. All was very beautiful and up to a high standard.
There are also Graze, Chynna (Cantonese), The Board Walk (poolside bar) and
Iketery (modern Japanese).
For relaxation guests can enjoy the fitness center, swimming pool and spa. Massages start from 250 MYR (ca. 57.85 Euro or 78.10 USD).
We arrived at around 09.00 hours. We were advised our room wasn't ready. If we preferred we could have another one with city view. Even if this would have been an upgrade we choose to wait and were sent up to the executive club lounge. After an hour we were handed our room keys.
Our room was on one of the highest floors. It was contemporary and large; mostly kept in brown, black and grey shades.
There was Malaysian artwork, wooden floors and a carpet, a huge bed, large TV, DVD player, a chaise lounge, a luggage rack, a large wardrobe, big writing desk and floor to ceiling windows.
The TV offered international and regional channels including CNN and Bloomberg. There was also a mini bar stocked with Sunraysia juices, Asahi or Carlsberg beer and Tau water. Prices ranged from 26 to 34 MYR (ca. 6.05 Euro to 7.40 Euro or ca. 8.15 USD to 10 USD).
The tea and coffee facilities were Nescafe and Hausbrandt from Italy and Ronnefeldt.
The bathroom was large with separate shower and bathtub. Both toilet and the bathtub were from Toto. Until then we associated the company with toilets only, so it was a bit of a surprise for us. The toilet had a bidet function.
The mirror had an integrated TV, but individual channel control wasn't possible. The person in the bathroom has to watch what the person in the bedroom chooses. In November 2010 we had also such a TV set-up experienced at the Grand Hyatt Tokyo.
There was also a weighing scale and Peter Thomas Roth amenities.
Unfortunately we couldn't use our balcony, because the door was locked.
The bed was very comfortable and allowed a good rest.
The wardrobe light wouldn't switch off, when closing the door and I thought this was going to cause problems, but that wasn't any issue. During the night my better half had to get up and use the toilet. Since the bathroom door was made of glass it let the full light into the bed room and woke me up as well.
The black out curtains were very good, making the room completely dark.
The rain shower had strong water pressure and the bath tub was comfortable too, allowing great views over the Lake Gardens, like the floor to ceiling windows did as well.
As Hilton Honors Gold members we received blackberries, apples and salted peanuts as a welcome gift.
In room dining is available 24 hours and offers a wide range of Malay, Chinese and Western dishes. Prices range from 19 MYR to 68 MYR (ca. 4.40 Euro to 15.75 Euro or ca. 5.95 USD to 21.25 USD).
Turn down was also automatically provided and delivered free water bottles.
Being tired after the long flight we went to nap for a few hours as soon as our room was ready.
Afterwards we ventured out to explore the area a bit.
Before we knew it was already evening and time for the happy hour at the executive club lounge.
The executive club lounge is located on the 33rd floor and offers stunning views over the city and the Lake Gardens. It is divided into two parts - a restaurant and a lounge set up. There is also a small library with books and magazines.
During the happy hour alcohol and food was served. There was wine, whiskey, rum, vodka and gin. Of course there were also non alcoholic beverages. The buffet was large and had western and eastern delights. It was enough to cover dinner. There were for example small sandwiches, sushi, cold cuts, Chicken Kong Po and short ribs.
The next morning we headed again for the executive club lounge for breakfast. There was a wide choice available, including Beef Rendang, noodles with ground chicken, dim sum, sausages, tomatoes, salad, mushrooms, cakes, yogurt, donuts and much more. Eggs were made to order at the egg station.
Every member of staff was friendly and efficient. They were also unobtrusive, but there when needed.
When it was time to check out, the electricity was suddenly gone and we were trapped on the floor, because we couldn't use the elevators and were unable to access our room again, since it was working via electric key. Thank goodness the black out lasted only a few minutes, but it had started to get uncomfortable hot since the air conditioning had stopped working when the electricity was gone.
When the elevators were working, we made our way down to reception. It seemed the hotels own generator had kicked in. Check out was fast and painless.
Unfortunately electricity hadn't been restored in the whole building and before waiting ages until the lift was working again, we decided to walk the stairs down. We were accompanied by a member of staff with a torch. Safely on the ground floor we crossed the street, ready for our next adventure: using the public transport and checking in at the DoubleTree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur.
Would we stay here again? Yes, we would for longer than just one night, though, and we wished that the glass door could be replaced.
©2013
We also deliberated fairly long which room type to take. We booked an Executive Room Plus with Lake Garden view.
As mentioned we took the KLIA Ekspress, a fast train, to KL Sentral. The journey takes 28 minutes. Two Return tickets cost 140 MYR (ca. 32.40 Euro or 43.80 USD). They are valid three months from the time of issue. At the central train station we followed the signs for the Hilton and Le Meridien. The hotels are located in twin towers opposite KL Sentral. We left the train station and crossed the street at the traffic lights. At the ground level of the buildings is a parking lot; an elevator leads up to both hotel entrances on the same level. Keeping to the left led us to the Hilton. If we had turned right it would have brought us to the Le Meridien. In 2009 we had a night at the Le Meridien and now in 2013 at the Hilton.
We were impressed by the large, airy lobby and floor to ceiling windows over the Lake Gardens.
Cafe Oro, the Lounge, Vasco's and the Chambers Bar & Grill are on one side, the concierge and reception at the other side.
The lobby was nature inspired, contemporary and for example the barrier between the reception area and Vasco's was looking like huge trees.
Cafe Oro and the Lounge were understated. The cakes and chocolates were presented like jewelry. All was very beautiful and up to a high standard.
There are also Graze, Chynna (Cantonese), The Board Walk (poolside bar) and
Iketery (modern Japanese).
For relaxation guests can enjoy the fitness center, swimming pool and spa. Massages start from 250 MYR (ca. 57.85 Euro or 78.10 USD).
We arrived at around 09.00 hours. We were advised our room wasn't ready. If we preferred we could have another one with city view. Even if this would have been an upgrade we choose to wait and were sent up to the executive club lounge. After an hour we were handed our room keys.
Our room was on one of the highest floors. It was contemporary and large; mostly kept in brown, black and grey shades.
There was Malaysian artwork, wooden floors and a carpet, a huge bed, large TV, DVD player, a chaise lounge, a luggage rack, a large wardrobe, big writing desk and floor to ceiling windows.
The TV offered international and regional channels including CNN and Bloomberg. There was also a mini bar stocked with Sunraysia juices, Asahi or Carlsberg beer and Tau water. Prices ranged from 26 to 34 MYR (ca. 6.05 Euro to 7.40 Euro or ca. 8.15 USD to 10 USD).
The tea and coffee facilities were Nescafe and Hausbrandt from Italy and Ronnefeldt.
The bathroom was large with separate shower and bathtub. Both toilet and the bathtub were from Toto. Until then we associated the company with toilets only, so it was a bit of a surprise for us. The toilet had a bidet function.
The mirror had an integrated TV, but individual channel control wasn't possible. The person in the bathroom has to watch what the person in the bedroom chooses. In November 2010 we had also such a TV set-up experienced at the Grand Hyatt Tokyo.
There was also a weighing scale and Peter Thomas Roth amenities.
Unfortunately we couldn't use our balcony, because the door was locked.
The bed was very comfortable and allowed a good rest.
The wardrobe light wouldn't switch off, when closing the door and I thought this was going to cause problems, but that wasn't any issue. During the night my better half had to get up and use the toilet. Since the bathroom door was made of glass it let the full light into the bed room and woke me up as well.
The black out curtains were very good, making the room completely dark.
The rain shower had strong water pressure and the bath tub was comfortable too, allowing great views over the Lake Gardens, like the floor to ceiling windows did as well.
As Hilton Honors Gold members we received blackberries, apples and salted peanuts as a welcome gift.
In room dining is available 24 hours and offers a wide range of Malay, Chinese and Western dishes. Prices range from 19 MYR to 68 MYR (ca. 4.40 Euro to 15.75 Euro or ca. 5.95 USD to 21.25 USD).
Turn down was also automatically provided and delivered free water bottles.
Being tired after the long flight we went to nap for a few hours as soon as our room was ready.
Afterwards we ventured out to explore the area a bit.
Before we knew it was already evening and time for the happy hour at the executive club lounge.
The executive club lounge is located on the 33rd floor and offers stunning views over the city and the Lake Gardens. It is divided into two parts - a restaurant and a lounge set up. There is also a small library with books and magazines.
During the happy hour alcohol and food was served. There was wine, whiskey, rum, vodka and gin. Of course there were also non alcoholic beverages. The buffet was large and had western and eastern delights. It was enough to cover dinner. There were for example small sandwiches, sushi, cold cuts, Chicken Kong Po and short ribs.
The next morning we headed again for the executive club lounge for breakfast. There was a wide choice available, including Beef Rendang, noodles with ground chicken, dim sum, sausages, tomatoes, salad, mushrooms, cakes, yogurt, donuts and much more. Eggs were made to order at the egg station.
Every member of staff was friendly and efficient. They were also unobtrusive, but there when needed.
When it was time to check out, the electricity was suddenly gone and we were trapped on the floor, because we couldn't use the elevators and were unable to access our room again, since it was working via electric key. Thank goodness the black out lasted only a few minutes, but it had started to get uncomfortable hot since the air conditioning had stopped working when the electricity was gone.
When the elevators were working, we made our way down to reception. It seemed the hotels own generator had kicked in. Check out was fast and painless.
Unfortunately electricity hadn't been restored in the whole building and before waiting ages until the lift was working again, we decided to walk the stairs down. We were accompanied by a member of staff with a torch. Safely on the ground floor we crossed the street, ready for our next adventure: using the public transport and checking in at the DoubleTree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur.
Would we stay here again? Yes, we would for longer than just one night, though, and we wished that the glass door could be replaced.
©2013
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