When checking into a hotel, we always want it to be hassle free. Its fast, and its friendly. We want a smiling face behind the counter. That ensures that we are comfortable the whole stay through knowing we have been welcomed so warmly upon initial check-in.
Our initial encounter always tells us about the type of place we are checking in to; friendly counter staffs are very important, Check-in should be smooth and fast, of course, and we expect a couple of basic courtesies, such as ‘thank you’ and ‘enjoy your stay’. At least.
The Luma Hotel, sited at Sutera Avenue in Kota Kinabalu, is one such hotel that makes you feel welcomed as soon as you step into the lobby. The staff are not overly friendly but they are helpful and courteous, which usually is a mark of a luxury hotel.
Luma which means ‘rumah’ or house is actually established on shoplots, created into this establishment with an elegant front, that can be seen from afar. The motifs are of nature, sea, plants and trees as well as flowers intricately depicted on the walls and the carpet among others.
According to Gloria Wong, the Sales Manager, there are 115 rooms to pick from. There are seven types of rooms in all.
There is the Fern Cosy room which is true to its name, as it is cosy and boast a King size bed, The other room is the Grass Standard Room with a double bed. The third room is the Emerald original room followed by the Palm Marvellous Room. They are well pointed bedrooms, with state-of-the-art designs unique to the establishment. The fifth room type is Eden Deluxe Bedroom and sixth type is the Green Luxury Bedroom. They also boast a Family Extraordinary Bedroom, with space for children to relax and play.
Gloria shares that they aware of their environmental responsibility and thus encouraged their guests to reuse their towels as much as they can to conserve water.
“We also want to protect the environment and promote eco-culture among our guests and people as a whole. Instead of using plastic waste paper baskets we use paper bins made of straws. These straws are artfully and creatively made into bins.”
The other artistic presentation is in the soap dishes. The hotel collected these soap dishes from a local artist. The ocean inspired soap dishes are quite pretty and are additional decoration to the rooms’ bathroom.
For hardcore coffee fans, they can enjoy their drinks at the Luma Café. It opens from 7am to 7pm, so one can take time to enjoy coffee with the cosy ambiance of the coffee corner. There are an assortment of pastry and cakes available as snacks.
Gloria shares that they are ready to welcome guests both international and domestic, with the superb facilities in the hotel and the genuine warmth and welcoming attitude of all staff.
Overall, The Luma Hotel is commendable for leisure travellers and families who wish to stay in a spacious cosy room and enjoy the quiet of a day or working on a laptop. It is also a place where you can just relax after an evening of business activities in an around Kota Kinabalu city centre. The banks are nearby, there are many and various restaurants at walking distance and the airport is just
The Luma Hotel is like an oasis of comfort in an otherwise commercial area and its worth checking in to as a home away from home. -Anna Vivienne
