Hotel of the week: Hotel Majestic, Kuala Lumpur

A YEAR since it reopened, The Hotel Majestic in Kuala Lumpur is celebrating by discounting all suites by 30 per cent.

The Hotel Majestic, Kuala Lumpur

A YEAR since it reopened, The Hotel Majestic in Kuala Lumpur is celebrating by discounting all suites by 30 per cent with rates starting at less than $200.

Situated opposite the old Moorish railway station on the Malaysian capital’s historical mile and built in 1932 as a sort of neo-classical-meets-art deco mash up, this grand dame of Southeast Asian hotels was the centre of the city’s social life in the years leading up to World War II before it was commandeered by the Japanese High Command. In the 1980s the hotel housed the National Art Gallery of Malaysia.
 
Meticulously restored by Malaysian-based YTL Hotels, the five-storey old wing is complemented by a new 15-storey tower, offering a total of 300 rooms and suites.
 
The property’s colonial roots are celebrated at every turn, from the hearty planter’s nosh and retro cocktails served at the Colonial Cafe to a team of obliging porters, nattily turned out in shorts and pith helmets.
 
The rooms in the new wing are art deco influenced; the old wing is classic colonial decked with white window shutters, dark timber floors and plush drapes. The king bed is dressed in crisp white linen trimmed with a jaunty navy stripe. The black and white tiled bathroom features a claw foot tub and separate rain shower.
 
All 47 suites in the old, or Majestic, wing are very spacious and offer the services of a 24-hour butler, private driver, free mini-bar and in-room breakfast.
 
The hotel’s colonial-themed facilities extend to an old-fashioned smoking room (with tailored jackets at the ready), a card room and a proper gentlemen’s barber shop run by London’s famous Truefitt & Hill.
 
Mod cons include a state-of-the-art gym, pool, small private cinema and extensive meeting facilities.
 
WHERE TO EAT
The Colonial Cafe recreates the food enjoyed by the planters of old Malaya with the kitchen’s Hainanese chefs reinterpreting British staples, all under the watchful eye of The Majestic Wing’s matriarch, Ah Mai. Think: fish cakes, mulligatawny soup, delicious faggots served with wild mushroom mash and spotted dick puddings.
 
In the new wing, the contemporary Contango restaurant features a vertical collection of Opus One wines put together by Baron Philippe de Rothschild and Robert Mondavi.

Out and about, Precious Old China in the Central Market serves a good beef rendang and tasty Pie-Tee (crispy rice flour cones stuffed with minced chicken, sweet turnip and carrot).
 
DON’T MISS
A retro cocktail in the hotel bar with the dapper Johnnie Yap twirling the shakers. Try the Straits Sling which, according to bar lore, was the precursor to the famous Singapore Sling, or the delicious Campari and rum-based Jungle Bird, created in KL’s Aviary Bar in the 70s.
 
STAND OUT FEATURE
The art nouveau day spa, inspired by Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s famous Willow Tearooms in Glasgow, is not only beautiful but it nails that between-wars sense of glamour. Think crooners, not whale music, and Pimm’s instead of ginger tea. The signature “afternoon tea” treatment is utterly divine and will have you smelling of berries, lavender and rose.
 
CONCIERGE’S TIP
Call ahead to book afternoon tea in the ravishing Orchid Room, a light-drenched conservatory stuffed with more than 1000 moth orchids. Towering tea trays come arrayed with dainty sandwiches, chicken tikka vol-au-vents and delicious pandan cupcakes.

BEST RATE
There is 30 per cent off all suites until January 31, 2014, with prices starting at RM588++ (about $195). More: Leading Hotels of the World; www.lhw.com.

More: [phone]; www.majestickl.com.