Hubby made the arrangements ie accommodation and car rental to drive around town.
This year, we went to SUTERA HARBOUR and stayed at the The Pacific Sutera Hotel
Upon making the hotel reservation online (www.worldhotels.com) along with securing the deposit and receiving confirmation via email, we were all set. Hubby proceeded to call worldhotels via the number provided to us in their email to check if it was possible for us to check-in early upon arrival.
They confirmed that everything was booked and ready for us so we just needed to walk-in and the hotel will make the necessary arrangements.
As our plane touched down at the airport on the day of our trip, hubby called the car rental company to enquire if the car was ready.
It was actually waiting for us outside.
As we got into the car and hubby set up Waze to locate the hotel, he called the hotel to enquire if it was possible for us to have an early check-in.
A bit of drama here.
The hotel couldn't locate our booking number / reference number or even hubby's name!
Imagine us, sitting in our car, ready to drive to the hotel, only to find that no records of our reservation was ever made. :(
I felt like it was a nightmare since we were already in KK.
Hubby was upset but spoke diplomatically with the personnel on how to resolve the issue.
The hotel advised that they would call us back within the next 15 minutes.
Of course, us being anxious, we counted every single minute that passed and as soon as it went beyond 15 minutes, plus or minus, hubby quickly called the hotel again.
The hotel requested us to come to the hotel and will take it from there.
So we drove all the way to the hotel using the trusted Waze. It was a 10-minute drive from the Kota Kinabalu International Airport to Sutera Harbour.
The city centre is just a 10-minute drive from the hotel too and you could either board a taxi or take the shuttle bus which the hotel will gladly arrange for you. Approach the Concierge located just next to the hotel's entrance.
We proceeded to reception who advised us to go to the Club Floor and meet a staff there who would assist us with the reservation.
THE HOTEL LOBBY
Once everything was settled and the lady apologized for the inconvenience, we were served with coffee & juice at the Club Floor Lounge.
The view was just awesome!!!! Breathtaking !!!! Amazing !!!! Beautiful !!!!
We then went to our room (Room 1013) and noticed one thing, we were upgraded to the Junior Suite!
Wow!!! This was SUPER DUPER AWESOME!
We had a dining area, living room and a bedroom with a huge bathroom along with a huge wardrobe and a vanity table.
I had to ask hubby if he had indeed booked us a Junior Suite initially and he confirmed that he hadn't. He only booked us a room on the club floor so had no idea how we ended up in a Junior Suite.
Hubby called the Club Lounge to confirm if the room was correct and they acknowledged.
Super duper lucky us! Wow!
Later in the afternoon, after 4pm, we went back to the Club Floor Lounge to enjoy our afternoon tea.
Seriously, how can one not LOVE this gorgeous view while enjoying the meals and coffee?
I've always LOVED going to Kota Kinabalu and it will always have a special place in my heart :) More so, hubby and I chose KK for our honeymoon so, of course, feeling sentimental here :D
I have a special shout-out to one of their Club Lounge staff too. His name is Hakri :)
He's extremely friendly, constantly has a smile on his face and often checks-in on us, whether we needed more food / drinks, if our meal was OK and built rapport with us too.
Like, really, you could tell that he genuinely wants to serve you and make your stay a pleasant one. What's more interesting is that he had only started working there for a couple of months! Not THAT's impressive!
When I told him that it was our first time at the hotel, he came back not long after with a map (of SUTERA HARBOUR) in hand and explained where we could go to check out places, island hopping, club facilities, location of ATM machines, etc.
Whenever you're staying at the Pacific Sutera Hotel, do look out for this gentleman. :)
This is an excerpt from their Deputy CEO, Gerard Tan, who responded to guests' feedback via tripadvisor.com :
Being just adjacent to The Magellan Sutera Resort and Sutera Harbour Marina, Golf & Country Club, all guests are privileged with cross-signing facilities whereby you will be able to enjoy dining experiences in all 15 F&B outlets and exclusive access to all recreational facilities within Sutera Harbour Resort which includes a 50m Olympic-sized lap pool, 3 free form swimming pools, a 12 lane Brunswick Bowling Alley, a 27-hole Graham Marsh designed championship golf course for both day and night golfing and also the internationally renowned Mandara Spa.
You can walk around the compound as they have a private beach and you can also see boats / ships docked. Picture perfect moments.
Now, I'm not picky and I was even prepared to get any room which was within our budget but the fact that we got an upgrade whilst paying for the same room rate we previously booked, that was certainly BEYOND our expectations!
We definitely enjoyed our stay in KK at the Pacific Sutera Hotel. Felt that time whizzed past us too fast.
Our lil' tot most definitely loved the beach and the bouncing castle they've setup by the pool.
This is one hotel we'll come back to for our family trips in the future!
