Overall rating
Service: ★★★★★
Room: ★★★★★
Location: ★★★★
Food: ★★★★
Price: ★★★★★
Hilton Honor Recognition: ★★★★★
Tips
DoubleTree by Hilton Shah Alam i-City is the latest Hilton hotel properties in Malaysia and second international branded hotel in Shah Alam after Best Western. Nestled within the famous i-City Theme Park, this hotel redefines the accommodation luxury standard in Shah Alam.
Location
DoubleTree by Hilton Shah Alam i-City is located in i-City Finance Avenue which is approximately 35 km from Kuala Lumpur City Centre and 51 km from KLIA. As part of the i-City development, this hotel shares the same building with a residential tower and Maybank Tower. At the time of writing, this hotel can only be accessed by car or bus but the LRT3 project is still under construction which is expected to be fully operating by 2023.
Check in & lobby area
Check in was breeze even though there were hiccups. I was notified that my room was upgraded to King Deluxe Room (facing the Ferris wheel) due to my Diamond status but it was not reflected on their system during check in. However, the issue was quickly resolved, thanks to the manager on duty. On top of that, my friend and I were given two signatures welcome cookies & a voucher for evening cocktail in the Axis Lounge upon check in (as part of our Diamond member benefits) which again was another hiccup made by the receptionist. I asked the receptionist for another voucher since there was 2 registered guests in the booking and she did not know that she needs to issue another voucher for the second guest. Again, this was quickly resolved by the manager on duty. I'm not sure if the staffs were not properly trained but considering it is a new hotel, I would say it was not a big issue.
Lets take a moment to appreciate the amazing decor in the lobby. The moment you enter the lobby, you will be greeted with amazing sculptures and chandeliers but the chandeliers are obviously the show stopper in the lobby. Among all other Hilton hotels in Malaysia, I can easily tell that this hotel has the best lobby decor. It feels exclusive, luxury and spacious!
While waiting for check in or taking selfies with the amazing decor in the lobby, you might want to pay a visit to their Axis Lounge or The Koffee (grab n go). For Hilton Honors Diamond members, you are entitled for a complimentary evening cocktail in Axis Lounge (besides the lobby) for up to 2 registered guests. This is a welcoming gestures to appreciate their loyal Diamond members since this hotel does not have an Executive Lounge.
Room
We booked a King Guest Room but was upgraded to King Deluxe Room. The hotel wanted to upgrade us to King Deluxe Suite (since Diamond members are entitled for complimentary room upgrade up to suites) but it was fully booked during our stay. If you are wondering what is the difference between King Guest Room and King Deluxe Room, it is the view. King Deluxe Room faces the i-City Theme Park which looks amazingly colourful at night. Since this is a brand new hotel, you would expect the furniture and amenities to be brand new.
Although the concept might be similar to other doubletree hotels in Malaysia, but it is worth to highlight the features that you will not find them in other doubletree hotels in Malaysia. The first one is obviously the strip lights behind the bed. We loved these lighting & they made the room looks modern and sophisticated! The second highlight of this room would be the electronic control for curtains. Yes, you read it right! You can now control your day/night curtains from your bed. There were 2 switches labelled "day curtain" and "night curtain" by the bed and you can simply press them to draw the curtains.
The bathroom has the typical DoubleTree design to it. You would expect to have a bidet, shower cubicle with see through glass, and a sink. However, we were surprised to see that the are using Acca Kappa toiletries instead of Crabtree & Everlyn. Normally Hilton Hotels will use Crabtree as their standard toiletries but this hotel is an exception. From our experience, we would say that we love Acca Kappa toiletries way more than Crabtree! Not to say that Crabtree wasn't good but Acca Kappa was definitely one of the best toiletries we ever tried in any hotels in Malaysia!
Food
All Diamond and Gold Hilton Honors members are entitled for complimentary breakfast in Makan Kitchen. The restaurant was spacious with two separate private rooms for events. The breakfast buffet spread was great with different selection from Asian, western, healthy section, pastry & dessert, Chinese, Indian as well as egg counter. The breakfast system here is slightly different with other Hilton hotels in Malaysia. Once you are assigned to a table, you will be given the table number. You might wondering why you need to know your table number right? Well, it is basically useful when you are ordering anything from the egg counter. To avoid congestion in the egg counter section, the waiters will send your orders to your table and that is the main reason why you will need to know your table number.
We went down to have our breakfast at 7:30 am which was ideal since the restaurant was not crowded during this period. However, the restaurant became crowded starting 8:30 am onwards so you may want to plan your breakfast time properly.
Facilities
All main facilities are located at level 5 and 5M. You will find infinity pool and games room at level 5 while Eforea Spa, Fitness Centre and Steam Room at level 5M.
The pool offers unobstructed view of Shah Alam, Klang and federal highway. For kids, there is a pool for kids located at the left side of the main pool area.
Game room was on the other side of the hotel where you can find basic amenities to keep your kids entertained! There was two separate room in the game room for kids to play while the main area in the game room is equipped with a snooker table.
To all gym freaks, you may want to pay a visit to their fitness centre. What is so special about their fitness centre? You are provided with complimentary headphone during workouts!
Overall, we really enjoyed our stay here and will definitely come back again! If you are planning to stay here, I would suggest you to make your reservation early as this hotel is fully occupied during weekends!
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