Call 1- Time - 1.30am. An exasperated woman calls butler service
‘My DSL is not working, can you do something about it.’
The business centre is unlocked, the computers are turned on, and refreshments are brought in.
Call 2 - Time - Close to midnight. A hungry child decides she wants to simulate a slice of life as is in her Enid Blyton books
‘I’m starving, can I have some cookies and milk?’
A whispered conversation ensues. 15 minutes later a sleepy-eyed mother opens the door to find a smiling butler bearing a tray loaded with spring rolls (!), brownies drenched with chocolate sauce, several scoops of ice cream and a tall glass of cold milk.
Call 3 - Time - Minutes before the family is about to leave for the airport. A frantic teen remembers he had been given the responsibility of packing a 7kg opium weight.
‘Help please; I need my mother’s shopping packed. I’m leaving in a few mins and she will kill me if she finds this stupid thing is not ready.’
The job is done in less than 10 minutes, and beautifully too.
Thank god for the Ritz – the staff are trained to pamper all guests from the frazzled business traveller who wants everything, and wants it 10 minutes ago, to the most demanding child.
KL abounds with luxury hotels, but the Ritz-Carlton stands out for its 'indulgent luxury, sumptuous surroundings and legendary service.'
I’ve stayed at the Ritz-Carlton, KL, in rooms ranging from their ‘standard’ to their ‘premier suite’ and have found that regardless of their classification, all the rooms are excellent and that the staff service rocks!
This hotel is not large, but thankfully this is one time when size doesn’t matter, as the staff, the ambience and amenities more than make up for it.
Rooms are large by modern hotel standards, and have an air of discreet luxury about them. The standard rooms have ample space for furniture you can lounge about in, and you could comfortably host a Roman orgy in their suites if you so wanted.
In addition to the usual complimentary fruit baskets and chocolates on the bedside table, the rooms have complimentary DSL service too.
I love their bathrooms – large expanses of marble with unending supplies of thick fluffy towels. They give you all the toiletries you can think of, including fragrant bath crystals, and will even send someone up to draw up an aroma bath for you if you ask.
The hotel offers a complimentary laundry service. You have to make use of this, just to see how your tattered travel clothes are returned to you. Underwear and other smalls are folded in crisp white linen and brought up in a wicker basket. The other clothes are neatly pressed and put on hangers in the wardrobe.
The pool is tiny, but more than adequate for children to splash about in without getting in the way of fitness enthusiasts doing their daily laps.
When you stay in the executive rooms, you are given access, again complimentary, to the RC lounge on the 19th floor. There is 24 hours Wi-fi service here, and you can enjoy as much snacks and drinks as you want.
The buffet breakfast (do I have to say it is complimentary?) is not as extensive as one would expect in a hotel of this standard, but is definitely not to be sneezed at – forget the hot, made to order waffles and maple syrup, and light as a cloud omelets; try their duck conjee and 100 year eggs.
A helpful waiter even entertained me with stories of how this was traditionally prepared by soaking eggs in horse’s urine. I had fun repeating the story to my children after they had eaten the dish, deliberately forgetting to tell them that the recipe was slightly modified to suit modern tastes.
The Ritz is connected to the glitzy Star Hill shopping centre by a walkway, and from there the other more affordable shopping malls just a short stroll away. When you return with your shopping bags, the staff is quick to greet you (by your name), to take the bags from you and whisk them away to your room.
The only thing missing is a view – the hotel is surrounded by other high-rise buildings and construction, but then there is so much to do in KL that one doesn’t really spend too much time standing at one’s hotel window staring out, so it doesn’t matter.
The hotel has an ultra luxury (read wildly expensive) spa attached to it. The prices so frightened me that I didn’t even go near the place. There is also a very nice gym for those who want to sweat out the calories added on at the absolutely fabulous eating joints and hawkers stalls close by.
All this pampering is available to you for USD 68 upwards a night.
Would I come back here? Definitely.
If you stay at a Ritz-Carlton hotel once, it will spoil you for anything else.
( For more information on KL itself, do read Diver's article)
