Our flight left Jakarta at night and we arrived in Kuala Lumpur at 9:55 p.m. on October 3rd. We passed immigration, took our bags and got in a taxi to our hotel, Ritz Carlton Kuala Lumpur. We arrived just before midnight ready to check-in. As it was my birthday (October 4) they upgraded us to a suite.
My boyfriend coordinated with Ronnie (famous in Trip Advisor reviews) to bring me a surprise to the room. Of course, after traveling, the first thing you want to do is take a bath. I love tubs and the hotel had a huge one with bath salts. But as my boyfriend knew what was coming, he kept making up a thousand excuses to delay my bath.
Years ago I started the habit of traveling for my birthday. Living in a world that never stops, being able to disconnect for a day is a luxury and that is what I like to do in my day. This last year it was my turn right after the trip to Indonesia and I decided to go to Malaysia, since I was close and did not know the country.
Excellent butler service at the Ritz Carlton Kuala Lumpur
Finally there was knock on the door and two butlers from the hotel arrive with two glasses of Champagne with raspberries and a cake that was a raspberry tart with a candle. They entered singing happy birthday, which was a very good surprise.
The next day they brought me sweets again, this time a chocolate cake that said “happy birthday” and a lion-shaped chocolate like the logo of the Ritz Carlton chain. Butlers Din and May wrote me a note wishing me a happy day. The hotel has its own pastries and they make delicious sweets. Every night they brought us cookies or brownies with a note.
The rooms are quite spacious, with a modern and classic look at the same time. The hotel was recently refurbished (March 2016), as it needed to compete with other hotels in the area. Hotel reviews improved after remodeling. I think that the only two things that still need to improve are the Internet (it was not very fast) and noise (a lot of construction).
Every morning we made coffee in the room, since it had a machine with capsules. There was also tea and bottles of water. These details are much appreciated, although you could ask for anything you wanted with room service.
The bathroom was lined with pure white marble, very luxurious. Apart from the famous tub, there was also a shower with those rain-style shower heads. They had bathrobes that we used when we lay down to watch TV.
A hotel with all the amenities
“The library” which really is a lounge, was where we spent most of our time at Ritz Carlton Kuala Lumpur. They had gigantic gray chairs perfect for couples. In the afternoons, a band played live music. You could ask for songs. One night returning to the hotel, a man notices my boyfriend’s cap, and we started talking. They were on business in Kuala Lumpur and invited us to sit with them. It seems that they liked us because when we tried to pay our bill, it was already canceled.
This hotel is one of the most luxurious in the city and they really have first class security. You could see all these Arab magnates with their escorts. Their wives waiting in the lobby dressed in designer handbags, shoes and jewelry (which is all you could see).
Although the hotel has two restaurants, we only ate in our room since we wanted to relax after so many intense days in Indonesia. We only had breakfast at the hotel once, since one day we woke up super late and the other went on a tour to Cameron Highlands. The breakfast was huge, with multiple stations for you to pick whatever you want. We decided to try a little of everything, including Chinese breakfast, fruits, breads and eggs.
As we went to Bali before, we didn’t go to the spa, but the reviews were very good.
Central location in the modern part
The Ritz Carlton Kuala Lumpur Hotel is located in Jalan Imbi which is the new part of the city that was founded in 1857 by 87 Chinese miners. Today, Kuala Lumpur has more than a million and a half inhabitants. This city provides a contrast of the new and the old, including British colonial era buildings and temples built over 100 years ago, such as the Kuan Ti temple and the Sri Mahamariamman temple.
From this hotel in Kuala Lumpur You can walk to Bintang Walk which is a street full of shopping centers and stores that range from H&M to Gucci and Louis Vuitton. We decided to enter Pavilion Mall and we were surprised at how big and modern it was. In Asia it is common for locals to want to take pictures with you, just like if you were a celebrity. It happened to us several times in the mall.
In Panama, it is very popular to eat Chinese breakfast, so we went to Din Tai Fung Pavilion, a franchise that has earned a Michelin star. We were the only non-Asians, so that was a good sign. A glass box allows you to see the cooks while they prepare what you order. We ordered too many dishes, since everything was delicious.
It is quite easy to tour the city from the Ritz Carlton Hotel Kuala Lumpur. You can take a taxi or Uber (they are slow to arrive) to visit all the sites. In addition, there is metro and bus. Transportation is quite cheap and although there was some traffic, the sites could be reached quickly.
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