Well situated on Jalan Pinang and a stone’s throw away from the world famous Petronas Twin Towers as well as the luxurious Suria KLCC shopping mall and the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre adjacent - you could not ask for a better location in the heart of Kuala Lumpur which also provides a multitude of dining and entertainment activities that caters for both the leisure and business traveller. The Ascott Kuala Lumpur entrance is imposing, but not huge, planted with lush foliage that provides a greenery backdrop to the inner lobby space and a small half circular driveway that will quickly have you in the compact lobby, which provides a very pleasing residential ambience with a cathedral height ceiling and floor to ceiling windows on two sides, flooding the lobby with natural light and affording views of KLCC district just across the road.
Grey marble flooring is anchored with a colourful circular rug in the centre with two large circular sofas on each side and a large ottoman directly underneath the eye-catching lighting feature adorned with butterflies representing traditional fish cages. Next to the lobby entrance is an extremely tall modular shelving unity displaying decorative objects to give a residential feel and more chairs and sofas in front of this to rest the tired feet of guests while waiting.
The whole interior of marble and glass is softened by the addition of colourful potted orchid displays. On the far side of the lobby is an outdoor water feature facing into the lobby and the street with tortoise, Mandarin ducks and Koi swimming freely in the pond freely.
The unique selling point for Ascott aparthotel is a hybrid type of accommodation style of living which is the mix of studio, one, two and three bedroom apartments that cater for couples and families of all sizes. Each room type comes with a fully equipped kitchen for self catering and definitely attracts long term stays with this urban concept alongside hotel services like front-desk check-ins and housekeeping. A convenience store located adjacent to the lobby also makes for such an easy last minute snack stop.
We arrived at the low design reception for check-in with team members seated to greet guests and we were met by Maisarah, although no welcome proffered. It was an extremely slow and disappointing start as our reservation can’t be found until we identified to her with the accurate reservation details and then magically it appeared. Passports were then given to her for further check-in formailty and strange questions were asked to confirm for our nationality which was rather peculiar and pointless. Putting this aside, we were then informed that we had been upgraded to a two bedroom apartment which was a nice gesture to please. Porter service was offered but we were travelling light and eschewed the offer and we headed up in the elevator to our two bedroom apartment on the 27th floor.
#Room 2707 - The space was enormous which definitely exceeded our expectations for just the two of us. The apartment layout consists of a fully equipped kitchen immediately on the left and a guest toilet across the kitchen hallway onto the right as you enter.
The bright and modern kitchen is larger than some normal apartments and had everything you could possibly need to fully cater for yourselves, including all the necessary appliances, cutlery, cooking pots, utensils, chinaware and glassware, as well as a Nespresso coffee capsule machine with sufficient supply of coffee and tea bags variety, a built-in water filter for drinking water which was good to see to reduce plastic bottled water supply for a thoughtful eco-friendly approach.
The first visual impact as you enter the apartment is the living/dining room combined, it is enormous and claustrophobic doesn’t apply here. With a 6 seater solid wooden dining table and elegant upholstered chairs, a black wooden buffet unit on the back wall with a mirror above on one side, it is more than comfortable and sufficient of storage space allowed.
Another living room feature comes with a large 3 seater upholstered sofa, arm chair and sturdy coffee table on a large blue colour accent floor rug facing the wall mounted television on the other side.
The two bedrooms are at each end of the apartment – one king and one twin - each with its own ensuite bathroom. Off the living room side is the master bedroom and ensuite bathroom which in itself is double the size of most standard hotel rooms and truly epitomized the luxury of space. The centrepiece is a very large king bed in white linens on a carpeted floor with grey, blue and beige colours.
The bedhead, bedside tables, wardrobes and TV wall unit are all finished in a very dark stained wood with attractive diagonal accents. Above the bed is a long rectangular modern artwork referencing all the colours in the apartment furnishings and added that pop of bright colour against a beige wallpaper.
Further to the other end features a work desk/make-up table with mirror was positioned by the window with an armchair and a large window to give quite a view of KLCC Park and surrounding skyscrapers.
The ensuite master bathroom may look dated but has some pretty good and pratical features: a classic large walk-in shower with two spray high pressure options, a sizable toilet, built in bathtub and a double vanity in that older brown marble colour that was a bit drab but everything was well maintained.
Premium quality bathroom amenities from Arpelles were well replenished each day to give that elevated spa shower experience.
Off the dining room side of the apartment was the second bedroom with twin beds and ensuite bathroom mirroring all the same design scheme as the master bedroom and bathroom, but slightly smaller in scale.
Arriving back at the end of each day from outside was a joy and even though the space was way beyond our needs, we enjoyed being able to spread ourselves out and not feel constricted, not to mention the city skyline vista is right in front of you when the curtain is drawn behind those large floor to ceiling solid noise reduction windows. We were happy campers!
The wellness centre located on the 22nd floor is the oasis in this aparthotel, featuring an outsourced spa adjacent to the well equipped fitness centre.
The highlight of this outdoor garden space is the attractive large outdoor pool deck including a 25m main pool, a separate children’s/wading pool and an infinity jaccuzzi at the other end of this almost rooftop space that offers you an amazing and different vista of the city skyline from different vantage points while you unwind in the waterjet whirlpool.
A total urban solitude moment to indulge and soak in the entire panoramic city view when it is less busy. It is also the perfect corner to enjoy the sun setting in between the skyscrapers by degrees which is simply mesmerizing.
The well maintained pool desk was not short of sun loungers, with tables and chairs well positioned around some shaded sections and plenty of potted palms to soften the space. The hanging egg basket chairs added a certain design flair along one side of the pool deck and then there is an upper sundeck section next to the jaccuzzi for peace and quiet and a BBQ area to boot.
The views from the pool deck are quite spectacular with partial twin tower view, overlooking KLCC Park and surrounding environs at one end and the KL Tower view at the other end. It is also incredibly spacious and well laid out and never seemed to be terribly busy even though the weather was very amenable.
Additionally, there is a guest laundrette which is always handy and a Sky Lounge for long stay VIP guests to use for work and business purposes as well as entertainment.
Breakfast is located on the ground level in TATTO, which is also an outsourced Italian restaurant on the hotel driveway across the lobby entrance and it gives a proper dining ambience with an airy feel due to high ceilings and windows looking out to the busy street.
The restaurant set-up was very elegant with clothed white tables and then a white square paper on top to create a more informal setting. Dining chairs were upholstered with a curved back and were super comfortable and made for a wonderful experience that encouraged us to linger.
Yanti - the friendly and very engaging Restaurant Manager looked after us each morning and ensured all guests enjoyed the home-feel breakfast. Very welcoming!
It is quite a sizeable breakfast in layout from its presentation delivery all areas were well considered. A good selection of fruits, cold cuts, vegetables, cheeses, yoghurts and cereals at the first station. Hot dishes such as Ayam Masak Merah, Fried Rice, Mee Mamak as well as the national dish of Malaysia - Nasi Lemak. Sausages, hummus, kuih-muih (a local assorted Malay delicacies) , breads and pastries at the second station, a simple yet heart warming congee station at the end end and an egg station cooked to order. Lastly, juices, tea and coffee are self service to your own preference.
The variety of the food selection was quite tasty especially the local delights which were our daily highlight with authenticity in flavour and a very enjoyable start to our day. We particularly enjoyed the Chicken Masak Merah, Mee Mamak and Fish Congee. There was also a good daily rotation, so quite a few different dishes were presented everyday.
Breakfast was a surprise in such a positive way as outsourced food and beverage can be challenging at the best of times, but TATTO lived up to our hopes and earned everyone admiration for its quality of food and service.
The location is perfect and the size and layout of the apartment could not be beaten. The self-catering angle is the unique selling point for long stay guests. While service at reception was a bit hit and miss as some of the front desk staff do not deliver service as a hotel service standard to be expected, greetings were not extended and lacking that warmth and mainly in that mind-my-own-business mood with very minimal initiation to offer assistance to guests.
Housekeeping did not offer a seamless standard for room cleaning – the bathrobe was not hung back in the wardrobe; a bed throw pillow was not placed back where it belonged; a new box of tissues was just left haphazardly on the vanity bench; an unused umbrella we left on the dining table and food stains were spotted below the dinning table during our stay and was still there upon checkout. Despite some shortcomings, Ascott Kuala Lumpur still has its niche and you would be hard pressed to find more spacious and well fitted out lodgings than this urban aparthotel along with some well featured amenities. The exceptional location with views to match served as a paragon for an extended stay with the luxury of space which is an essential need for your family holiday or work trip.
Tried & Tested:
Service: 3.5/5
Location: 5/5
Amenities: 4/5
Experience: 4/5
Houesekeeping: 2.5/5
Design & Decor: 3.5/5
Food & Beverage: 4/5
Value For Money: 4/5
Reviews are based on actual day of visit and experience. mylifestylenews reserves the right of final decision in case of any disputes. All images are photographed by mylifestylenews team without any photoshop enhancement and are the property owned by mylifestylenews unless otherwise stated.
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