In the dazzling modern metropolis of Kuala Lumpur many of us would be tempted to stay in one of the super-sized contemporary business hotels, the 500-rooms-plus palaces that are, to be fair, just about as good as it gets, as long as coziness and intimacy are not chief among your concerns.
At the other end of the scale, however, there’s Carcosa Seri Negara. Rather than a skyscraper in the central business district, here we’re talking about a colonial mansion overlooking the city’s sedate Lake Gardens park. Once the residence of the British colonial governor, today it’s a luxe thirteen-suite lodging, complete with round-the-clock butler service and verandas with views of the manicured lawns and tropical gardens.
Once inside it’s apparent this space could have easily been divided into twice as many rooms. The bedrooms are spacious, the sitting rooms generously sized, and the verandahs are actually useful, a far cry from the inch-deep French balcony you’ll find in many a lesser hotel. Suites are individually designed, all with antique furnishings and vast bright bathrooms.
Small though it may be, Carcosa Seri Negara doesn’t skimp on services. Not one but two restaurants are at your service, as well as a cocktail bar and afternoon tea in the drawing room. And with a butler at your disposal twenty-four hours a day, just about anything the big hotels can offer is within your reach as well.
author watson@mouselink.net, source www.tablethotels.com