Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel Review - Kota Kinabalu

Lobby of Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel - Kota Kinabalu

Our first night in Kota Kinabalu! From the airport, we went straight to our hotel. It was a 20-minute drive  because it was drizzling and there was a bit of rush hour traffic. Traffic was moving but the volume was just as bad as Manila that night. It was also humid. The transfer service I got from the Ace Travel Agency sent this comfortable van with captain seats that the traffic didn't matter as we enjoyed the ride.


Upon reaching the hotel, we checked-in first before we got ready for our first dinner adventure just around the block.

We booked via Booking.com

Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel - Review
We booked via Booking.com. What I like with them is, I get to have cancellation options with fully refundable, no hidden charges hassle. I got us 2 rooms in Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel. It costs 110 RM per night but with an additional of 6% percent tax and 10% service charge as noted in the booking.com website. It amounted to around 127.60 RM. In pesos, that's just 1,786.40 per room. We got 2 rooms and an extra bed for 60 RM a night. All those comes with buffet breakfast.

Checking-In
We had a hard time checking-in because their credit card machine is not reading our credit cards well! We tried all our cards and it was just when she transferred to another credit card terminal did our payment go through. Receptionist was friendly anyway. There's free wifi on the lobby.

Extra bed -- No more room to walk

The Room @ Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel
I booked the Standard Twin room and we were given rooms on the first level. I think we got Wi-Fi signal in our room because of our proximity to the lobby. There's a downside when sleeping on the first level though... It is a smoking level so expect a bit of the cigarette residue smell in your room and along the hallways. Also, the sound from the bar below can be rather annoying at night. The walls are thin that you can hear the conversation in the hallways and vice versa (they can hear you).

According to the receptionist, we were upgraded to the Superior Twin room. I don't know if that was true because the space was still small because we requested for an extra bed. To solve the walkway issue because of the extra bed, we moved the TV rack and the writing table so that the extra bed can be placed beside the wall. It worked so, problem solved! Bed was okay, cleanliness of the room is 6/10 and cleanliness of the bathroom is 9/10. Why is the room 6/10? Because when we moved the television table to accommodate the extra bed, there were all sorts of dirt below it -- hairs, dust bunnies, chips and other unidentifiable stuff! Also, we saw one small cockroach roaming around the room. Room brightness was okay.

For the bathroom, there are some rust stains at the edge of the toilet bowl. Also, there's no door separating the shower and the other areas of the bathroom and because of that, water will tend to splash all over and it can be messy at times. I like the tiled floors of the room though. It feels a lot cleaner than carpet. Television has a few channels only but as long as there are English shows and news, I'm okay. We watched National Geographic Channel most of the time.

Breakfast
Breakfast buffet at Hunter's cafe (it converts to a pub/ bar at night) is already included in the room rate. They serve several kinds of food here. Everyday, there is rice, noodles, pancakes, eggs, bread and congee. They change a dish or two daily, like the ham, sausage and some fish viands. In our 5 day stay there, they repeated the sausage and ham. Sausage here is good enough to make me full.

For the drinks, you can choose from milk, water or that yellow juice as seen in the photo above. Everyday, we notice that the name plate changes yet the taste remains the same.

Overall, breakfast was so-so. It's enough to make you full but don't expect it to be delicious. It can also get pretty crowded at times as there are only a few tables available. It opens around 7am.

Location and Surrounding Areas
> Just outside the hotel to the left, there's an Indian restaurant that sells good Roti Canai. Right besides the Indian restaurant, there's a 7-11.

> To the right across the block, there's 2 Bah Kut Teh restaurants and another convenience store called Orange.

> Across the hotel (Back exit), there's a watch shop and a money changer. (Photo above)

> Across the hotel (Front exit), there's a mall called Wisma Merdeka. This is how most of the mall looks here with an exception to the Suriya Sabah, which looks like a higher end mall.

> Suriya Sabah is also a couple of blocks down (3 to 4) to the right of the front exit from the hotel.

> There's also an Old Town Coffee shop 2-3 blocks away to the right (Back exit)

> Every Sunday, the Gaya Sunday street market is also located 2 blocks away from Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel! (Back exit)

> In search of fast food? Nearest is McDonalds, KFC and Burger King.

If you are travelling from the nearby malls to or fro your hotel, it will cost around RM 10 because it's near. You can actually just walk!

Is it recommended?
Yes! If you want value for money and you just plan to use this hotel as a place to sleep and rest, this is perfect for you! With a very very good location in the middle of Kota Kinabalu, it has everything you need sitting right beside you. Another selling point is the free Wi-Fi! You can also rent the PC at the lobby for a small fee. If I were to go to KK again for another city-exploring adventure, I'd stay here again.

If you're target is to relax, enjoy your rest and explore the city a bit, I'd recommend Shangri-La Rasa Ria Resort.

Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel
Address: Lot 3 & 4, Block 9 Jalan Pantai, 88000 Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia
Telephone: (6088) 240 000
Fax Number: (6088) 263 909
Email Address: info@kkdayahotel.com
Website: www.kkdayahotel.com

Trip Advisor rating: #28 out of 79 hotels in Kota Kinabalu

--> All about Kota Kinabalu:
Shangri-La Rasa Ria Nature Reserve
Proboscis Monkey and Firefly tour
Island Hopping: Manukan Island and Mamutik Island
Little Italy Restaurant - Kota Kinabalu
Kota Kinabalu Shopping Malls and Market
Kinabalu Park and Wild Boar Experience
Poring Hot Springs
Best Western Kinabalu Daya Hotel
Pekan Nabalu Lookout Point

Cheftonio
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