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Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu is a four-star hotel in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. Located only 5 minutes away from Kota Kinabalu International Airport (KKIA) and 15 minutes drive to Kota Kinabalu City Centre, the hotel offers today's traveler a comfortable place to call home while travelling for business or on vacation.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Modern
Mid-range
Languages Spoken
English, Chinese
Location
Lorong Putat 3 One Place Mall, Putatan 88200 Malaysia
Good old hotel, nice budget and family friendly. Parking RM5 per entry, not per stay. The only downside, old gym equipment maybe as old as 10 years and not soundproofing room, can hear and hallway echoed. Please update the equipment, thank you. 😊
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Date of stay: April 2024Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Parking is RM5 per entry. Not per stay
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Booked a pool view room. Overall, i had a wonderful stay at the hotel. the staff was very friendly and helpful. The room & pool was wonderful & clean.. Would definately come again next time. Thank you.
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Date of stay: April 2023
Value
Location
Service
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Allister Albert, Marketing at Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu (Airport Hotel)
Responded 25 Apr 2023
Dear maggiehT5625YL, Greetings from Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu! Thank you for taking out time to rate us at 4-star for your experience. All of us are delighted that we could ensure an excellent service during your visit and we would gladly welcome you with open arms for your next visit. Thank you once again for your feedback and we look forward to welcoming you back to Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu. Warm Regards, Management of Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
I stayed at pan borneo from the 7th till the 11th to attend a wedding having occupied the executive suite and the adjoining room for my 3 kids. The rooms were nice and the staff friendly and helpful. However i am disappointed with the house keeping facilities. I say this because although the sheets are made up daily the rooms are never vacuumed and the toiletries replenished. I remember the biscuit crumps remaining on the carpets as it was on returning to the rooms on many occasions. As the carpets are not vacuumed and as carpets are known to collect dust in our tropical weather my daughter fell sick on our return to Kuala Lumpur. The hotel is packed by tourists from china and korea and this probably is the reason why the house keeping staff are always in a hurry. On one occasion my rooms were never cleaned right till the evening.
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Date of stay: December 2019Trip type: Travelled with family
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Always a pleasure to stay here. Best staff possible to find anywhere, good sized rooms with the facilities you'd expect in a 4 star hotel and a call down to reception will bring more tea or coffee with a smile. You can enjoy cocktails by the swimming pool too if you just wany a rest. Great position for airport, free secure parking and also reliable shuttlebus to airport. On top of that the food's great and there's a shopping mall attached to the hotel.
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Date of stay: April 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Allister Albert, Marketing at Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu (Airport Hotel)
Responded 25 Apr 2023
Dear Arcticfoxman, Greetings from Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu! Thank you for taking out time to rate us at 5-star for your experience. All of us are delighted that we could ensure an excellent service during your visit and we would gladly welcome you with open arms for your next visit. Thank you once again for your feedback and we look forward to welcoming you back to Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu. Warm Regards, Management of Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
Amazing Hotel with Outstanding Hospitality! We stayed at this hotel from 13th to 16th September 2024 and were incredibly satisfied with our experience. A special thank you to Mr. Allister for his excellent hospitality. The food provided by the hotel was not only delicious but also plentiful. The bus transportation arranged by the hotel was perfect as well. Our group traveled through Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Sabah, and out of all the hotels we stayed at, this one was unanimously the best and most perfect. I will definitely recommend this hotel to my family and friends. Wishing the hotel continued success and prosperity! From : Lily
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Date of stay: September 2024Trip type: Travelled on business
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The hotel messed up my family room reservation n instead decided to upgrade my room to a junior suite with 2 extra beds. However they did not provide the 2 extra beds as promised. Instead, 2 of us had to sleep on the sofa chair without bedsheet or blanket provided. The sofa bed was not so clean n felt itchy during our sleep. Bed mites??? Also communication between reception n hse keeping were extremely poor. I complain tne next morning but instead they just showed their lackadaisical attitude.
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Date of stay: August 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Avoid this hotel unless u have no choice
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Generally, Pan Borneo is still at the phase of revival. A Hotel where is connected to Putatan Mall, and also can be called an Airport Hotel. The main point of the hotel is their Swimming Pool Area which is located at Level 3M*. For me, Pan Borneo still have the chance to further into the tourism market in Sabah. Good Job Pan Borneo KK!!
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Date of stay: March 2023Trip type: Travelled on business
Room Tip:Parking area has a lot of spaces. Make sure to plan ahead in travelling especially where to go,...
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The Room n cleanliness is good but the Service Delivery very disappointed. I hve 2 request, 1st req for cleaning room for 3 times until I'm come from swimming still not bin clean. 2nd req for xtra bedsheet for 3 times until I'm sleeping but still not deliver.
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Date of stay: August 2023
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:The Pool to crowded, the staff not friendly only certain staff from Housekeeping
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
This is a new hotel, just beside my home. At first, I was so excited to have such a nice hotel at nearby. It will make my life much more colourful.
October 2015, I have joint the membership of the hotel. Then, everyday, few hours I will spend in the Hotel. The facilities of the hotel that I am mainly using, are swimming pool, gym and F&B. This is a new hotel; lots of things still need to improve and the collaboration between employees not well polished yet. However, the employees are polite, hard working and already doing their best; though sometime there is something wrong, I still can close one eye to pretend did not notice. They just need more time to improve.
However, today (23 Oct 2015) about 11:30am I have experienced a worst service disaster in this hotel. As usual, I go to the hotel to have lunch. They have lunch sets in the very affordable price, and I am on the half way of the trying out of the entire menu. When the moment I arrived at the restaurant, I saw they are preparing for a big event. I did not want to ruin their tables' setting, so I went to an empty seat at poolside to sit at the open air. Under the tropical heat, I just wanted to have a quick order, eat, pay and go. After waited for a while, eventually I had the eye contact with someone. I used hand sign to show the people inside the room that I need a menu. One of the staffs (not the one I had the eye contact with) brought their menu to me. I noticed that menu is not the lunch set menu; I told him that I wanted the lunch set menu. The guy went back to the room and brought another menu to me that is the RM38 set menu (for lunch and dinner). I have planned to try the more expensive sets when I am seating inside the room, maybe another day. So, I told him what I want is the lunch set, RM10 menu.
THEN, unbelievably, the guy started to BLAME me, "YOU SHOULD SAY IT EARLIER, IT IS RM10 MENU."
First, as a waiter, when a customer asked menu from you, I believe it is the international standard to bring the entire available menu to the customer. He only brought the expensive menu to me, I have enough reason to believe what he did was fraud.
Second, to make a waiter's job easier, definitely is not customers' job! I cannot understand why me, as a customer should be blamed.
While I was questioning the above two issues (literally, while I was talking), the guy running away and back to the air-conditioning room. I followed him into the room, try to discuss the situation. He even educated me that the menu I wanted was RM10 set, not lunch set. While I am asking whether I can have RM10 set at dinner time? He replied cannot, but they do not have lunch set, the one I wanted is RM10 set. I cannot see the point why as a customer I have to be so clear about whether RM10 set equal to lunch set, such an academic level hypothesis!
Since I felt to have difficulty to talk to him, I asked to meet the supervisor. The guy said he is the supervisor, then I asked to meet manager, he said that he is the manager. Then, I request to meet their GM, he said GM is not available; I can take his name to make a complaint. Considering, he is that powerful in this hotel (manager), and the GM is not easily available to meet, so I have nowhere to report this issue. Instead of solving the difficulty that I was facing, he was more interested to ask me to leave from the restaurant.
He even said "I AM BUSY HERE. DO NOT RUIN MY DAY." I said, "My day is already ruined." He continues, "THEN, YOU DO NOT RUIN MINE."
Since the situation already entered the dead-end. I am no longer wanted to be as the member of the hotel. It is only less than one month since I joint the membership. I went to the front desk asking for resigning from the membership. The front desk made few phone-calls, and came back to me said that according to the terms and conditions, I could resign the membership, but no refund. If that is the case, I decided to keep my membership, then I made them clear that if I keep the membership, I will make the complaint until I satisfy with. Those are my rights.
The front desk cannot make the decision; they asked me to come back again on Monday to meet the GM. I cannot see the point. The situation instantly turned to this bad, all because one of their employees' (a manager) fault. Why I have to find another time to come here to meet the GM, since I do not have any employment contract with them? The situation went to another dead-end.
At this moment, since they did not agree to refund me yet, so I am still the member of the hotel. I was planning to make a writing complaint later. Just at the moment I was about leaving, I saw the "manager" at the front of the restaurant; I wanted to personally warn him that I am sending a letter to complaint about his attitude. I do not know what happen to him, he just ignore me and walk into a conference room. I just followed him at the guest area (which is my rights to be there, according to their terms and conditions), trying to warn him. Suddenly, he started to pound the conference room's door and throw mineral water bottles to the floor. I feel scared. Even he running towards to me and his colleagues stopped him. In one moment I wanted to make an emergency call. After a moment, he kneeled down in front of me, trying to say something. I do not know how this could happen, from beginning until the end, the manager seems has no profession at all. I can do nothing at this situation, I believe my further movement may cause some misunderstanding.
Then, some big people from the hotel, not the GM, but addressed himself as ???? manager, which I do not really understand, came in front of me. He did not know whether he can solve my problem or not, but he wanted me to explain the situation again. Since I am not a voice recorder, and nobody in the hotel (including him), are able to solve the problem. What is the point for me to take effort to talk the entire case again? Maybe they just want to make me tired and then leave.
Later he started to shout to me "YOU TALK TOO LOUD! LEAVE MY HOTEL, DO NOT DISTURBING ME TO MAKE MONEY!" Then he asked his security to ask me going out.
His staff's horrifying rudeness made me angry at the first place. While people feel angry, of cause would rise up voice naturally. I was helpless at that situation, and nobody from the hotel can solve the problem. Speaking loud was the only way to show my disappointment at that moment.
The thing is, his voice was louder than mine, and during talk, he used his finger to point towards to me and I had no more place to back, because my back was a glass window. Eventually, his finger contacted my chest.
What is wrong with this hotel? From beginning until the end, except while I was taking picture of the manager's name and handling my membership card to the front desk, the upper part of my both arms always attached with my chest. What they did was pounding the door, throwing the water bottles, kneeling down and literally finger pointing my chest.
Then, the big boss left, and ordered few securities to ask me going out.
The thing is, if I was going out from the hotel, the amount of time that I have wasted, there is no refund (my membership is one year). The securities also do not know how to solve this "new" issue. Eventually, I pity the normal staffs of the hotel; they are very professional and did nothing wrong. So I went back to the poolside and ordered lunch from another staff, then paid the bill and left the hotel behind with the unsolved issues.
I have to say that I really disappointed with the hotel (especially that manager), such a tiny problem, they can make it developed under such unbelievable path.
Instead of writing a complaint to the hotel, I rather want to report my case to here. Because wasting time to write complaint letter to the hotel is never the customers' job. As a hotel, you should not expect your customer had such horrifying experience, then, able to make a "nice" complaint at your convenience.
**************** I have few concerns about this hotel. 1) They like to hind all the discount information to the customers. Such as they do not want to bring the RM10 sets menu. Last time, I went there for dinner; at first, they did not want to bring RM38 dinner sets as well. hour for drinks, you have to ask, they would not tell you the time.
2) They like to play around with their system. I was applying my membership, the price I paid was ONE YEAR. However, after I fully paid, I could not have the privilege immediately; I needed to wait for two working days for them to process your member card. Then, when I got the card, I noticed that how they count one year was 12 month, not 365 days. Such as I submitted my application was on 2 Oct, and picked up the card 6 Oct, but my membership ends at 1 Oct 2016, not the 5 Oct. 5 days wasted. Apparently, their one year is not one calendar year. Nobody from the hotel will tell you this.
3) If you have some complaint, what I learnt was, they hire mighty managers to make you nowhere to complain. Unless, you want to take time to explain your case to someone whom you do not really know again, again, again and again. Or make the case big. But still, no solution.
4) The bosses of the hotel might be thinking, whoever once entered that plant, are under their management. If you go there with a big group, for money's sick, they probably will be nicer to you. If individual travelers, make sure only go there while they are free. If you can learn some of their jargon, that's the best.
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Date of stay: October 2015
Rooms
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled solo
Room Tip:pool side the view is nicer but less privacy.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from RM_SoluxeHotelKK, General Manager at Pan Borneo Hotel Kota Kinabalu (Airport Hotel)
Responded 27 Oct 2015
Dear Nasreddin_Haytham As the manager of Soluxe Hotel I am saddened by what happened and I want to offer my sincerest apologies for the way you feel you were treated. I have had a review of the incident with the food and beverage team and have stressed the importance of delivering a level of service that meets our guest expectations. I was not made aware of the seriousness of the situation on the day as I was outside the hotel and was only informed that a guest wanted to cancel their membership. I will be in-touch to speak to you in person. Again my apologies.
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This hotel caters to the masses from China. The crowds at checkin and check out can be huge. The rooms are terrible and the noise is shocking. It is located a long way from anything and we left after one night. We gave up three nights accommodation to get out of here. There was a huge commotion at about 3am when they all arrived home from somewhere and we had to take matters into our own hands to shut them up!! Brekkie is not for westerners at all
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Date of stay: March 2017
Value
Service
Sleep Quality
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:dont go to this hotel - best tip i can give
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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