HotelChatter

Room Reaction

We were probably already a little emotionally exhausted when we arrived, thanks to a 13 hour entertainment-free flight, and a taxi driver who’d never heard of the hotel, so we’ll temper this, but the room was a disappointment. The Tune experience is billed as “a five star sleeping experience at one star prices” so we were expecting something simple but chic.

What we got was a bit tired-looking decor - the feature wall was scuffed in the bedroom and the fan was a bit too wonky for our liking (we turned it off on the last night, convinced it was going to fall and rip us to sheds), while in the bathroom, some paint was peeling, the shower had a bit of ingrained grime, and the toilet roll holder was half hanging off the wall. The walls are covered with ads – for shuttle services, McDonalds and the like.

What we liked

The price – even though the extras ramped it up, it was still cheaper than what we’d expected from KL. And the “pay what you want for” approach is a good one – even though we took all the extras they threw at us, some people will always be able to do without wifi and others will always take their own towel around with them.

There’s no restaurant here, but there’s a Papa John’s (Malaysian fast food), Subway and a shop, which did us just fine. There’s a security guard on the door 24/7, which made us feel extremely safe. Oh, and the shower was fantastic, the pull-out desk a good idea for such weeny rooms, and the room was cleaned properly every day.

What we didn’t like

What was it that drove us to distraction? The tiny room – despite us shelling out for a double to get extra work space? The paper-thin walls, that kept us up all night with people walking, talking and the lift pinging like an overactive microwave? The slightly grubby-looking bathroom? Or was the straw that broke the camel’s back this view from our tiny window?

The location isn’t good either – although KL’s spread-outness means you’ll need to cab it or hop on the monorail pretty much wherever you stay, the Tune is on the border with Chow Kit, which is one of the more unsavoury areas of town. Everyone we spoke to insisted we got taxis at night, even if it was from just two blocks away. They’re cheap and plentiful, though, so that’s not a massive issue.

Staff range from fine to friendly, though don’t expect an all-singing, all-dancing concierge – we asked about reserving a restaurant and were promptly handed the number and shown to the payphone.

One thing that didn’t matter to us, given that we were staying on our own, but the bathroom “door” is made of painted glass, and a bit scanty. It will probably make you on more intimate terms with your roommate than you were before.

Lastly, avoid rooms that overlook the main roads – the hotel’s on a corner between two of KL’s major thoroughfares – and steer clear of the first floor, that’s just a mezzanine over the (noisy) reception area. Even depressing internal windows are better than that.

Bottom line

The Tune is a good example of why overselling is bad. If it billed itself as a slightly posher version of a dirt cheap hotel, we would have been pleasantly surprised, but calling itself a cheap five star is just silly. Expect what you pay for, take some earplugs count in extra taxi money, and book a double, even if you’re on your own - and you’ll be fine. Just promise us not to stay too long in there. Those internal windows will play havoc with jet lag.