I researched a lot on Trip Advisor before I booked this hotel for 14 nights/15 days, let me tell you it was a perfect choice. I will discuss about the hotel, the staff, and the location. I will also discuss where they can improve (and solutions), particularly the day they had a power cut (lift issue), and I was forced to walk 18 floors downs, 18 floors up, and 18 floors down again. After an overnight flight, I reached the hotel at noon. At check-in, I was initially offered a connecting room, which fortunately I was able to change to a better room (smaller, but on a higher floor with great view on the skyscrapers behind the hotel). A special shout out to Mr. Joseph who found me my perfect room. Room was normal size, bedding was amazing good, and the shower/toilet worked great. Fortunately I did not have any noisy neighbours, and given I was far from the lift, I did not hear any foot traffic outside the door. Throughout my 15 days, the cleaning boys always cleaned the room correctly. In many hotels I have been, the magnetic door key usually have issues, but in HIE KL, both my cards did not fail once for 15 days! The hotel itself was always spotlessly clean every day. The lift was fast, I am not sure why people saying it is slow on TripAdvisor. The reception has always been fast and efficient. The guest relations officers were generally well-mannered, and helped in collecting my packages and storing my bags. At night, I also saw the hotel workers teamworking in washing the entrance of the hotel (fantastic!). There is a smoking area on the parking lot, which is 5m from the main road, so it was a safe and quiet space to chill for hotel guests. The security team was also helpful, special shout-out to Mr. Alok. Let’s not forget the laundry on the 2nd floor, very helpful when you stay for long term (price 10MYR for washer and 10MYR for dryer, paid in cash upfront at the reception for the tokens). Location is perfect, on the border of busy Bukit Bintang, which means you are not stuck in a crowd / traffic when you get out of the hotel. 3mins walk to the nearest metro Raja Chulan, and 12mins walk to Pavillon Mall. If you intend to use Grab Car / Taxi a lot, it is a good place, as you will avoid traffic jam, plus the GoKL free bus also drives in front of the hotel. In the building on the left of the hotel, you have a Mc Donald’s (open till 2am), Pop Food, a mini-mart, and a Selections Grocery Store (open till 10pm). On the ground floor of the hotel, at the back, you have 2 high-end restaurants, 1 café and 2 bars. Changkat and Jalan Alor are 15mins walk (you easily beat the constant traffic jam there). On your way to Changkat, you also get 7/11, some mamaks, and some cheaper bars. The hotel itself is in a safe and secure area, and I never had any issue, whether during the day or at night. While you don’t have access to a rooftop, I highly recommend visit the Heli-Lounge, which is 5min walk behind the hotel (entrance with 2 drinks is 100 MYR, and the views at night is crazy). Big taxi from KLIA1 to hotel cost me 110MYR with a coupon taxi, and a Big taxi from the hotel’s concierge to return to KLIA1 cost me 180MYR. On my backpack trip to Singapore, I paid 80 MYR with small Grab Car from the hotel to KLIA2. Problems encountered and solutions offered or I propose: I was initially overcharged when I checked-in due to a booking malfunction, but I was too tired to sort it out. Fortunately after some discussion, it was sorted out, and I got a refund 1 month later. There was a lot of dust on the upper flat surfaces of the room (above the mirror, above the suitcase storage area, above the wardrobe, above the curtains). The cleaning boys were all shorter than me, so I recommend using a ladder to reach these surfaces. Even if I requested the bedding to be changed every day, they only did it 3 times in 14 nights. Thumbs down for this. The air filtration can be tough some days, and you get a sore throat. Other days it was fine. The bathroom easily gets clogged (your feet is in a swimming pool of soap and water). The breakfast is by far the biggest issue at this hotel. They have a limited set for European, Malaysian and Indian taste. Because they try to serve 3 tastes, the quality gets bad for all 3 tastes. Coffee and pastry was always excellent, however the choice of hot food was kind of limited. I wish they had an egg station where we can get omelette. For foreigners reading this, while Nasi Lemak is a must try, be ready to smell fish during your breakfast (hahaha!). And now to the famous power cut/lift issue. One day in the afternoon, I was in my room. There was a power cut. The rooms electricity were still working, but the corridors and lifts were all turned off (except for emergency lightning). The phone lines, Wi-Fi and TV were also cut off. I knew there was an issue and I was personally scared there was a bigger issue like a fire. I walked down the 18 floors, and was informed there was a technical issue with the lifts. I had dinner outside then walked the 18 floors back up. However, I could not rest as I was scared to be stuck on a high floor without communication. So I walked back down to go chill outside. Fortunately when I returned around midnight, the staff service lift was operational (1 lift in 9 lifts). Guests were queuing to go up, and after 10 mins wait, it was finally my turn to go back up. By the next morning, 2 additional lifts were operational, and eventually the issue was resolved. Having walked up and down 54 floors in dark stairs, I am pretty sure I burned a thousand calories (+ leg pain). I wished the hotel offered some form of compensation for this unfortunate misadventure. To wrap up, overall it was a great hotel experience for the price, albeit a few unfortunate incidents. I will be travelling to Kuala Lumpur again next month for business, and HIE KL is definitely at top my list, particularly as an IHG member I want to reach the next milestone. However, I will definitely call first to check if their lifts are working and if they have anything new in the breakfast! …
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.