Check In

Arrived from KLIA using one of the airport taxis. MYR84 and 1 hour with no major traffic. Cars have to go through a security point with the trunk inspected. Curbside, bellmen promptly came and were already taking our bags before we were fully out. We went to reception where after checking our name, the attendant escorted us to the Horizon Club lounge for check in which was completed swiftly. Our pre-arranged requests had been granted and organised. 

Location

The Shangri La is in the midst of KL's Golden Triangle. You are within walking distance of most major malls and Golden Triangle landmarks (Petronas towers, KLCC, parks, etc) even though KL is not much of a walking city. There is a free shuttle to many of those too running every 1h30 or so as well as an early morning weekday shuttle to major banks. The shuttles are drop off only. People come to KL for various reasons. Somehow, many have a fascination for the Petronas towers in which case you might be better off staying at the Traders hotel (also Shangri La group) or at the MO, but for us, the Shangri La location was great.

Room

We booked a "Premier Selection Suite" directly on the SL website, which run a 3rd night free promotion making for an excellent deal. As with all SL properties (as far as I know) all suites also give access to the Horizon Club. Premier selection suites come in two different shapes - either some fairly large standard shaped suites (as in the equivalent of two joined large rooms) including a full bathroom and a large walk in wardrobe, or round shaped corner suites which do not have the walk in wardrobe but has a separate toilet and sink as well as a separate desk area. We were first given a regular shaped suite which was quite large, but after viewing one of the corner ones asked to move to one because we liked the impression of panoramic views afforded by the round windows (despite being on a lower floor) and preferred the second separate toilet by the living room to the wardrobe. It really is a question of taste however.

Our first suite overlooked a park and the telecom tower (though even on the 26th floor, you really only see its "stem"). The second overlooked to urban landscape and one of the Petronas towers (from the side) which is nicely lit at night. 

Suite equipment fairly standard: on the living room side, a sofa and two armchairs, nespresso coffee maker, mini bar, etc. Marble bathroom with separate bathtub and shower, two sinks, Malaysian "eco" toilet (ie with jet) and in bathroom tv. As always with SL property, desks are well equiped with full stationary set (stapler, scissors, highlighter, etc) and even a printer in the first suite (not in the second). The hotel also lands you a mobile phone for during your stay. 

By any standard, the suite was very nice, but I'll admit that I did not have any wow factor with it. Nothing wrong at all, but nothing that distinctive apart from the round windows. 

Service

Service was generally good but a bit inconsistent when it comes to details. The first room had a batik which we like. The second did not. When I call to ask for one, I was told that they do not provide any. I had also forgotten my deodorant and called for one too but again, the operator said that they did not have any. 

The Horizon Club is very large but still very pleasant (see dining section for food offerings) and personnel remembered us throughout the stay.

Swimming pool is quite small if you most like to swim but pleasant if you mostly want to get refreshed with plenty of loungers around. One thing I did not like is that on day 2, some people came to "reserve" some of the nicer honeymoon mattresses early on, disappeared for ages, and nobody moved their towels. I much prefer the policy of the SL's sister property in Penang/Rasa Sayang where they enforce a one hour time limit where people leave the pool. In this case, the mattresses were "occupied but unoccupied" for hours on end including at times when the pool was quite busy. 

Dining

The Horizon Club includes three food services - breakfast (which you can also have at the Lemon Tree downstairs instead) from 6.30-10.30, afternoon tea from 15.00-17.00, and cocktails from 17.00-19.00 as well as all day soft drinks, tea and coffee. 

On the whole, by Shangri La standards, I'd describe the offerings as "quite good". This is nowhere near what you get at Shangri La Tokyo and is weaker than their offerings at - say, SL Sydney, SL Singapore at the Garden wing or SL Rasa Sayang but still decent. The breakfast was actually really enjoyable with two freshly squeezed juices a choice of a la carte dishes (all egg-based though) including a nice signature beef rendang omelette, and a fairly extensive mostly Western buffet. If wanting an Asian breakfast, the Lemon Tree downstairs is a much better choice with large Chinese, Indian, and Malay corner as well as smaller Japanese and Middle Eastern ones, extensive choice of other food including an ice cream counter. However, the quality of the juices was lower and I found the place a bit of a zoo.

The afternoon tea is wholly uninteresting - three types of sandwiches, scones (served with whipped cream rather than clotted cream as often in the region and I still don't think it works!) and limited cakes selection. 

The cocktail window is nice with a short classic cocktail menu (Singapore Sling, Margarita, Mojito, Long Island Iced tea etc) wines (average), beers, salads, three types of hot and three types of cold foods changing daily, cheese board (limited, but then one does not go to Malaysia for cheese), fruit salad, and a very large choice of miniature cakes and desserts (arguably the nicest part). 

There are several restaurants - apart from the "main" Lemon tree and Western fine dining which we did not try, a Japanese and a Chinese restaurants. We ate once at Shang Place (the Chinese option) which was very good despite the fact that it was not a specifically identifiable regional cuisine. It included a number of original dishes (think panseared foie gras with black vinegar and stuffed scallop) as well as multiple luxury ingredient sections (bird's nest, various types of abalone, sea cucumber, etc) and traditional Peking Duck. We also had room service one night which was good.

Overall

This is a very good luxury hotel and in a competitive KL luxury scene, it came at a very affordable rate for a large and very comfortable suite. It is by no means super-luxury and in fact does not really have much that would make it distinctive, but then it is not clear that any of the KL properties that I have used to date do either (I have not tried the new FS but somewhat doubt that it has either). As it stands, it is a very solid choice, and a bit of thinking on what could make it memorable could go a long way in taking the hotel to a whole different level.