Sunday 21 February 2010

Borburdor

Staying at the Hotel Boroburdur was a nice and pleasant experience, but like I was told it was a good looking place but as soon as you started to look you could see things were broken or did not work as well as perhaps they should.
Located near the Monas and Gambir railway station, Hotel Borobudur has a reputation as the safest hotel in Jakarta in relation to terrorist attacks. This is probably down to the fact that there is tighter security to get in than the airport but once you are in then it is pretty easy to wander around the whole place unmolested or questioned as no one likes to question a western person as they might be important.
The hotel is plush and a 4 star place and could 5 star but I think it would need to be even more luxurious than it is now. Standard rooms start at $100 dollars and go up.
There are many and I mean many staff available the service is pretty good. However I would say the staff are nervous of westerners and also Asians a like and so are a little coy and quiet.
I stayed there for a conference and the rooms were good and the facilities were great. The additional service of constant coffee, water and snacks and food was amazing.
The room I was in was a twin and it had 2 good sized twin beds, a very good ac, the fridge was locked (maybe they know of my reputation) and the usual slippers and robes were available.
The bathroom was neat and not too small and there was a bath tub with shower curtain and a big flat shower head. Sadly I am taller than the shower so I had to bend down to wash.
The soap and things cam in little dispensers shaped like the hotels name, the bells champbers at Boroburdur.
But i felt they looked more sexual and so commented on that.
There was 2 bottles of drinking water provided and after that you had to pay for extra. A pot of tea was 50000 or $5.
So I liked the room. I liked the hotel it is long and tall and huge with lots of conference areas and meetings.
Dripping fans in the Cafe Bogor was not great and slow to refill breakfast items also not great but the food was overall great.

The grounds were big and there was a pool and it looked good. It was raining while we were there and really never had the time.
There is a great big model of the Boroburdur temple in the grounds as well.

I would like to stay there again I think as it could be a good place to chill out over a weekend, it is right in the middle of the city and there are always taxis avaiable. The rooms are very comfortable and the service as I have already mentioned was very good.

By far this is the nicest hotel I have stayed in in Indonesia and one of the best I have been in through out the world (Twin Towers Bangkok, Millenium New York, Somewhere is Cardiff and a  lovely coutnry Estate just outside Bath) and so that is good.

My last thought, floor 7 where I stayed has a corridor that just screams 'the shining'...."Come and play with us. Come and play with us. Forever... and ever... and ever"