Pangkor Laut Resort, MalaysiaPangkor Laut is a beautiful island located off the coast of Malaysia, in the Straits of Malacca. It can only be reached by boat (or helicopter). The jetty at Lumut is a couple of hours drive from both Penang and Kuala Lumpur. The resort is designed so you need never step off the island with numerous dining outlets, a fantastic spa and various activities.
On arrival at Lumut Jetty, we were greeted by a number of smiling staff and invited to wait inside a newly built terminal - a cool, comfortable room with plenty of space. Here, we were served a refreshing drink and a cold towel and informed we could take the earlier boat as we arrived over an hour earlier than expected. This was a great introduction to the hotel, but unfortunately the welcome at the island was less than we expected (nothing like at Park Hyatt Maldives for example). We arrived on a boat with one other couple and as we stepped off onto the jetty, both men were greeted by name (photos are taken in Lumut). However, our greeter then proceeded to accompany the other couple to reception, talking to them about the resort whilst ignoring us completely. After following them to the reception area, we were greeted by the reservations manager and driven to our villa (by SUV) for check-in with a hostess. Here, the service level was set for the rest of our stay. As we had bought the Hotel's "Treasured Moments Package" I had previously sent numerous emails detailing times we would like to book spa treatments and making dining reservations. However, the resort had no record of these, and we were informed that the restaurant we had wanted to eat in on 2 out of 3 nights was closed. It then took almost 2 hours for us to be informed of the hotel's solution - we were offered a complimentary upgrade to a private dining evening on the beach. Throughout our stay, staff were friendly and tried hard but there were so many little glitches it did detract from our enjoyment. Overall the service was patchy and not what we expect for a 5* hotel.
The package we booked included daily breakfast, lunch and dinner - we were pleasantly surprised that a free choice from the menu was included. On our first evening we ate dinner in Fisherman's Cove which offered fantastic sea-food and great service. However, breakfast the next day at Feast Village was appalling - poor quality and little information. Despite telling the resort in writing before arrival and in person at check-in that we are allergic to anything from a cow, we were incorrectly told that the bacon was pork when in fact it was beef - cue an anxious few hours of feeling unwell and not knowing whether the small amount eaten would trigger a response requiring adrenaline.
Later, we were served a picnic which was really good - smoked salmon salad, two snacks (we chose Thai fish cakes and lamb curry puffs), cheese served with dried fruit (surprisingly the hotel had Roquefort) 3 fruit options (large servings of grapes, tropical fruits, pear and strawberries) and a bottle of wine. Other lunch options included Chapman's Bar and Royal Bay Beach Club, where the food was ok but nothing more. During our romantic dinner on the beach, the lack of communication at the hotel showed again when we were offered a menu with dairy or beef in every course. Luckily, the waiter thought on his feet and, together with kitchen, managed to come up with a menu we could eat. However, the service was punctuated with long waits as everything had to be prepared from scratch. Overall Impression |
Spa VillaAfter booking through a Virtuoso travel agent, we were pleased that the hotel agreed to upgrade our stay prior to arrival instead of subject to availability. We chose to stay in a spa villa as these are in a quieter area of the resort where no under-16s are allowed. After walking right to the end of the boardwalk, we were shown into our over-water villa. The room was a reasonable size (although definitely a room not a suite), with an adequate bedroom, outdoor balcony with sun loungers and a reasonably sized bathroom with large bath. A lovely touch was the elephant made out of towels (like origami) and the pillow on the bed wishing us a happy anniversary. We were pleased how private our villa felt, but it was in need of a refurb (mildew on the ceiling, badly scuffed floor, windows that didn't close securely etc) and house-keeping was not as thorough as we would like - for example, there were shopping bags from a previous guest (still had the tags showing name and room number attached) stuffed into a draw and one night, there was either a mouse or bat dropping in the bed. At night, turn-down service left an incense cone and a plug-in mosquito repellant, which was welcome, although surely a more efficient way of preventing bites would be to have doors that didn't leave half an inch gap at the bottom and between pairs of doors. We have come to expect certain conveniences from hotels and it's always a shock when these are not present. The rooms do not have a wired or wireless internet connection. After 24 hours on the island, the naturalist informed us that we could rent a 4G hotspot from reception ($15 per day) and the whole island is covered by 4G, but there is no information about this in the hotel guide. In addition, there was no hair conditioner provided in the bathroom, and we had problems with hot water - part of our package was a romantic bath which we asked to have ready for 9 pm. At 8:45, the bath was run but was stone cold and there wasn't enough hot water to change the temperature above tepid. One other problem was that the package advertised champagne as included with the bath but we were given a bottle of prosecco.
ActivitiesPangkor Laut offers a number of activities that you would expect from a resort location including water sports, sunset cruises and trips to the nearby island Pangkor. Emerald Beach, on the opposite side of the island to the main resort, is a crescent-shaped sandy beach with beautiful clear calm water. So far, so normal.
A more unusual aspect is the presence of virgin rainforest, parts of which are untouched by human influence for several hundred years. We enjoyed a trek through the jungle with the hotel's resident naturalist, who identified vipers, fire ants, a large venomous spider and wild boar trails. This walk was very interesting but did make us very cautious when walking around the resort, especially at night. Perhaps the best part of the hotel is the spa village (click for separate review). The hotel also has 2 swimming pools, tennis courts and a gym. A nice place to while away the afternoon is the library near reception (the only part of the hotel with free wifi) which offers day beds, loungers and a few computers for guest use. However, if you are used to high-speed wi-fi prepare to be disappointed - the hotel's system is entirely inadequate and you will be competing for signal with hoards of Malaysian teenagers who live for the internet and use their smart phones continuously. Even using Twitter was difficult and uploading photos to our website was impossible. |
Oh dear, oh dear. Pangkor Laut could be amazing. Instead it is irritating in so many ways. The pre-arrival is absolutely atrocious for a hotel/resort with 5* pretensions. Don't expect responses to e-mails. Don't expect any special needs to be recognised. Restaurants may be closed capriciously without warning. Excursions booked and paid for in advance may be cancelled without compensation. Don't come here if you need to work on-line while away from base. Oh, and don't get bitten by a snake because the nearest anti-venom is a helicopter ride away at a naval base some way down the coast. By the time you get it you will lose at least a limb if not your life. There are 5 species of venomous snake on the island by the way. Forget breakfast, the restaurant is motorway service station standard. The beaches are festooned with litter, and a trawler will pass within 50 meters of your open window if you attempt to enjoy that romantic sea-view bathroom. You might notice that your view is impeded by an ugly new oil terminal under construction across the Straits.
On the plus side, the Spa Village is a truly great spa with wonderful facilities and excellent therapy staff. The wildlife is charming and you don't have to go out of your way to see some amazing tropical species. The cuisine at Fisherman's Cove is excellent, the private dining equally so. Straits restaurant is probably even better, when it's open.
The GM talks a good talk about personalised service but in practice there is a lamentable lack of consistency when it comes to details. My advice is don't come to Pangkor Laut untll you read some reviews that tell you it has improved, a lot. There are wonky boards on the boardwalk, windows that don't close properly, virtually no internet (unless you pay for YTL's Hotspot at $15 a day - YTL is the hotel owner BTW). Can it earn it's once vaunted reputation? We would like to think so. In the meantime, go to The Barai for a Spa Villa with fabulous butlered service, or The Maldives for a romantic escape.
On the plus side, the Spa Village is a truly great spa with wonderful facilities and excellent therapy staff. The wildlife is charming and you don't have to go out of your way to see some amazing tropical species. The cuisine at Fisherman's Cove is excellent, the private dining equally so. Straits restaurant is probably even better, when it's open.
The GM talks a good talk about personalised service but in practice there is a lamentable lack of consistency when it comes to details. My advice is don't come to Pangkor Laut untll you read some reviews that tell you it has improved, a lot. There are wonky boards on the boardwalk, windows that don't close properly, virtually no internet (unless you pay for YTL's Hotspot at $15 a day - YTL is the hotel owner BTW). Can it earn it's once vaunted reputation? We would like to think so. In the meantime, go to The Barai for a Spa Villa with fabulous butlered service, or The Maldives for a romantic escape.