This was my choice of hotel for an impromptu trip booked only 1 week proper, somewhat incentivized by the current Bonvoy promotion of double elite nights. It was the second cheapest property in Kuala Lumpur so I decided to go for it – was excited to experience a new neighborhood too!

Address – 25 Jalan Kamunting, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 50300. Website.

Contact – Tel: +60 3-2038 0000. Email: enquiry@stripeskl.com.

Location – Located in the Chow Kit neighbourhood, this property can feel a little off the beaten track but I believe the YTL origin + current Bonvoy branding helps its visibility. There are a cluster of hipster cafes and popular local eats in its immediate vicinity, Medan Tuanku Monorail Station about 5mins walk away, and Quill City Mall opposite the station (very sparsely tenanted but it has a supermarket and a couple of eats at least).

Price – MYR285++ per night booked for a Deluxe King under the Member Rate, Prepay Non-refundable, which is more than a decent price considering I get double elite nights, free breakfast and light snacks + drinks as an elite.

Check In – I had a really crappy journey from Singapore and it was 11pm by the time I got to the hotel – I was tired, feeling yuckish, and generally crappy. Thankfully check in was quick with all formalities sorted, including being informed that I had been upgraded to their Executive Studio. Yays!

I was also given a choice of welcome amenity which I thought was a generous touch:

Room – My Executive Studio (45SqM), 1604, was super spacious and I really appreciate having all that space even though I was solo. More importantly, the entire space was quite clean and the carpeted floors do not feel yucky at all.

The door opens up to a spacious walkway before you see the blockish layout of the main room, with the wardrobe (with the usual necessities) and luggage platform to your left.

To the right is a generous bathroom and a large bathtub equippd with bath salts, a separate standing shower space, and an open concept toilet (ie no multi tasking if you are sharing the room with someone). Toiletries are Mangosteen branded and are all fruit scented (watermelon, pomelo etc) which smelt just a tad too sweet for me.

The wash basin is designed to be out of the bathroom area so do note that you have to walk out to wash your hands. Amenities here are limited to the basics but there’s a sign to indicate you can request for items if need be although I never tried.

The main bedroom is super spacious!

There is a non-smart TV on a console on which sits your coffee machine and cupwares (is that an actual word?), a lounge chair + coffee table, and a sofa bed which leads onto a work desk of sorts where the in-room phone sits.

The safe and fridge is hidden in one corner of the room behind a mirrored panel:

The bed is a large comfy firm (I like!) king bed flanked by 2 bedside tables

For those who care, there is no Usb charging ports anywhere in the room, so either bring your 3-pin or try finding one at the TV (ha!). My choice of welcome amenity was also brought to my room soon after even though it was nearly midnight by then.

Breakfast – Served at Brasserie 25 from 6:30am-10:30am, the only actual restaurant on-site (not counting the rooftop bar). The space is actually quite pretty with cosy booth seats if you prefer.

The buffet spread is sadly of rather unfortunate quality which saw soft peanuts and ikan bilis, cold rendang, cold sausages cold ham – you get the idea. The saving grace for me was the egg station, yoghurt, and fresh fruits.

Elite Hours – Bonvoy Plats and above get to enjoy a special elite hour in lieu of an Executive Lounge from 5pm-7pm daily at the Man Tou Bar located at the rooftop. It is actually a nice alfresco spot but could require discretion when it gets too hot or during heavy rain.

During the 2-hours, wines, beers, sparkling water, juices are free flow serve with a set of 2 snacks which rotate daily. During my two evenings, I saw fried chicken, onion rings, calamari rings, and fries. The bar was booked for a private event on one evening and guests were able to enjoy the same benefits at Brasserie 25; staff were also flexible enough to allow me to have 2 servings of calamari as I do not take fries.

Facilities – Both the Fitness Centre (open 24hrs) and the Swimming Pool (open 7am-7pm) are located on the rooftop level – and I can see why the pool is so popular because it is really quite a scenic spot for IGs and stuff.

The Fitness Centre is functional – nothing fancy.

Service – I actually thought service at the property was not bad with the front desk team all smiley politeness. The only snafu happened when I was trying to settle my Malaysian tourism tax of MYR10 per night with my Bonvoy Brilliant card and paywave or manually entering the cc details simply did not work – the staff also could not explain why.

Eats around the hotel – just sharing some great local eats literally 10-15 steps away from the hotel:

Yut Kee Restaurant
1, Jalan Kamunting, Chow Kit, 50300 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan.
Operating Hours: From 7:30 to 15:00 (Closed on Mondays).

For traditional Hainanese fare and to-die-for butter cake and kaya cake. If you love sio bak, come early before 11am to try theirs before they are sold out. Boo to my failed attempt SOB. Ended up having their also-popular pork chop but I thought it was only so-so.

Woo Pin 45 Kamunting
Address: 45, Jalan Kamunting, Chow Kit, 50300 Kuala Lumpur
Hours: 7.30am-4pm (Closed on Sundays)

For soupy goodness and fish soup – and their marvelous freshly baked Portuguese egg tart (the oven is literally beside the counter).

Check Out – Dropped off my keys at the front desk as I needed to catch an early flight. But do take note that the roads leading to the hotel is closed on every Sunday 6am-9am for some car-free initiative so cars will NOT be able to get to you during this timing which can be especially of concern if you have a flight to catch. It took me 1.5 hours from hotel to airport by walking 5mins to the monorail station –> taking 5 stops to KL Sentral station –> taking the KLIAexpress to KLIA2. So plan accordingly!

I do think the hotel should also have a notice about this weekly occurrence on their website or at least the front desk – I only knew after reading my welcome letter in detail but for sure some guests wouldn’t.

In Summary,

Stil quite happy with my stay – great room, great elite benefits and superb value in my books!