Cathayana Hotel is the newest hotel in Kuantan. It is located on Lorong Tun Ismail 5 and is close by UTC, East Coast Mall and Berjaya Megamall. It opened its doors for business on Friday 17th October. It is awaiting an anticipated 3-star status and stands for now as a budget hotel in the town centre of Kuantan. We were the very first guests to try out the Service Apartment, of which there are 3 units in Cathayana Hotel.
Room rates have not been finalised yet but will be by the end of November. They are anticipated to range roughly between RM100-300.
Cathayana Hotel has 4 room types inclusive of: Superior Deluxe, Triple Deluxe, Family, and Service Apartment. The Hotel Manager, a Mr. Razali Rahman, showed us around the rooms. He has previously worked at Grand Continental Hotel Kuantan, and most recently at Rompin Beach Resort.
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| The Superior deluxe room at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan features one king size bed and is ideally suited to couples |
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| A king size bed and a single bed are included in the Triple Deluxe rooms at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| Cathayana Hotel Kuantan's Family room includes a king and two single beds, ideal for a family of 4 or 5 |
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| The Superior Deluxe, Triple Deluxe and Family rooms at Cathayana Hotel come with attached bathrooms with storage space similar to this |
And now on to our room for the night which was a Service Apartment. The first impression was very good. Spacious, simple, light, and windows - lots of them. We couldn't believe this was a budget hotel.
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| We stayed in room 402, one of three Service Apartments at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| Service Apartment at Cathayana Hotel in Kuantan |
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| Kitchen area, Service Apartment, Cathayana Hotel, Kuantan |
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| Living area, Service Apartment, Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
It was exciting looking around the apartment, discovering room layouts, storage areas, the bathroom etc. We were fully aware that as this was a brand new hotel, there would most likely be some small teething problems, but they were minimal. Apart from an odour from the bathroom drainage which disappeared after a few hours, everything was fine. In fact, that seems to be a common hurdle with most hotels as we experienced the same thing at The Zenith Hotel Kuantan when we were among the very first guests there too.
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| First bedroom view at Service Apartment, Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| Storage area beside the bathroom, Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| Cathayana Hotel Kuantan's bathroom in the Service Apartment |
Mr. Razali informed us that we were the very first guests in the Service Apartment and he was slightly worried how things would go for us!
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| Second bedroom at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan's Service Apartment |
We got our girls to sleep together in the second bedroom, which includes two single beds side by side and lovely views of Kuantan. The partition acts as both a storage via two shelves, and on the other side, a make-up area with chair and mirror, and open wardrobe.
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| Second bedroom view at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan, Service Apartment |
In the afternoon, I did my customary exploration of the hotel and nearby surroundings. Cathayana Hotel has an interesting exterior design that resembles a stack of building blocks.
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| Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| Outside Cathayana Hotel Kuantan at Ground Level |
The lobby, while not fully complete (there will be a restaurant opening soon to cater to function rooms on the 9th floor), is extremely spacious, which is an immediate plus point for me. Also, I was drawn in to the marvellous paintings on the wall behind the Front Desk. They are very attractive and create a positive first impression.
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| The spacious lobby at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| A waiting area of the lobby at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| Front Desk in the lobby at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| Family photo in the Service Apartment, Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
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| And here we are at the main entrance to Cathayana Hotel Kuantan |
Overall we really enjoyed our stay at Cathayana Hotel in Kuantan. It is centrally located and is just a few minutes away from East Coast Mall and Berjaya Megamall, literally just across the road from UTC, and there is a Mydin store 50 yards down the road, along with other shops and restaurants. So everything you need is all just a stone's throw away, making life very simple if you are staying here. There is also private parking on the 1st and 2nd floors.
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| 1st floor parking bay at Cathayana Hotel Kuantan. Parking can be accessed at the back of the hotel. To the right is the climb to the 2nd floor parking. The elevator bay is through the door straight ahead |
Thank you to Cathayana Hotel Manager, Mr. Razali Rahman, for making our stay possible and showing us around the hotel. We would definitely recommend Cathayana Hotel to travellers, whether couples or families.
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| Posing for a photo alonside Mr. Razali Rahman, Cathayana Hotel Manager |
