Sutasoma Hotel — Hotel in Jakarta

Traumatizing Experience – A Serious Warning for Solo Female Travelers

As a mother and global traveler, I am writing this review with a heavy heart after my 20-year-old daughter endured a deeply traumatizing experience during her stay with our family at Sutasoma Hotel on 21 June 2025.

This is not a simple complaint - it is a grave safety incident involving unacceptable staff behavior, disturbing inconsistencies in the hotel’s explanation, and a clear breach of trust and international hospitality standards:

Unlawful Room Entry While Guest Was Inside: While my daughter was alone, unwell, and resting in bed, three men entered her room. Two entered without consent after briefly shouting "room service" and then changed their story to "security." They did not leave immediately, lingered inside her room (2 men inside and 1 man guarding outside), and offered a vague comment: “Maybe it’s just dust. We clean tomorrow.”

No Emergency Warning, No Equipment, No Alarm: The hotel claims there was a fire detector issue, yet no alarm sounded, no smell, no smoke or hazard was present, and no tools or protocols were followed. No call was made to her room. The men did not bring any forms of emergency equipment as claimed by them and General Manager's responses that there was an emergency and did not even mention to my daughter they were there due to an emergency. The incident felt more like a cover-up than a legitimate emergency.

Inappropriate Conduct and Questioning: Prior to the room intrusion, one of the three men delivered a "turn down service" cakes asked my daughter inappropriate and personal questions such as, “Who are you with?” and “Where are your family members staying?” This kind of questioning is highly unprofessional and unacceptable under any international hospitality standards.

Only two out of our three rooms received this "service," which suggests selective and questionable behavior that must be addressed.

Psychological Impact: My daughter returned home visibly shaken and emotionally distressed. She was terrified in her own room, afraid to move, and completely unprepared for strangers male staff members to enter unannounced. She had to hide behind the hotel door, not fully dressed without a bra as she was about to sleep, and has since spoken about feeling unsafe, vulnerable, and deeply violated. This has affected her studies being a student, supposed to be enjoying her holidays, yet traumatized by the hotel staff (3 men:1 girl in the room). What if she is naked in the bathroom, didn't hear the door opened???

Management’s Inadequate and Evasive Response: To make matters worse, the hotel’s responses have been dismissive, factually inconsistent, and evasive. They failed to take accountability or even acknowledge the emotional harm caused.

Conclusion: This was not a hospitality error - it was a serious violation of safety, privacy, and professional conduct. Until Sutasoma Hotel publicly acknowledges this incident, investigates their staff’s actions, and revises their emergency and privacy protocols, I urge all travelers especially women and families to think twice before booking this hotel. No guest should ever have to feel unsafe, and no woman should be made to feel so vulnerable in what should be a secure space.

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DO NOT stay here if you care about your family’s safety or your right to privacy. We are a family and what we experienced at this hotel left us disturbed, unsettled, and deeply concerned not just for us, but for other future hotel guests. We booked three rooms and stayed for a night on 21 June 2025. Our family booked three rooms next to each other. My niece was resting in one of them when three men entered under a false smoke alarm excuse. On our first evening, a male housekeeping staff hand-delivered cake only to me and my niece, but not to my brother, even though he was in the room directly next to hers. Before giving the cake to my niece, he asked her inappropriate personal questions like who she was with and what room she was staying in. That already felt like a red flag. We brushed it off until something MUCH worst happened that same evening. While the rest of us went out for dinner, my 20-year-old niece stayed behind to rest because she was feeling unwell. During that time, 3 adult men claiming to be hotel staff and engineers knocked, and then proceeded to enter her room without permission, even after realising she was inside. This included the same housekeeping staff who had earlier delivered the cake and asked her personal questions. They claimed the smoke detector had gone off, but: • There was no alarm • No smoke, no smell, no flashing light • No phone call to the room, despite me filling out my phone number at the front desk • No tools, no inspection, no cleaning • Once they saw my niece, their story suddenly changed: “Oh… maybe it’s just dust. We’ll clean it tomorrow.” But they didn’t clean anything. They just left. The hotel never followed up, never inspected anything, and never gave us a proper explanation. This entry was not accidental and certainly not standard protocol. It happened minutes after our family left the hotel, and it was clear that they knew who was in each room and who wasn't. That made it feel coordinated, predatory, and honestly, like we were being monitored and an abuse of power, authority and privacy. Whether these men were hotel staff or affiliated with another agency does not matter. What matters is this: A young woman was alone in her room. Three unknown men entered using a false excuse, with no emergency, no consent, and no accountability. That is not okay. We have stayed in hotels all over the world. This was the first time we felt watched, unsafe, and unprotected despite staying at a supposedly reputable hotel with many good reviews. The hotel has still not taken full responsibility. We are sharing this so no other guests, especially families with children, solo female travellers, or elderly guests has to experience this kind of fear, uncertainty, and violation of trust. Until this is properly investigated and addressed, I strongly advise others to...

DO NOT stay here if you care about your family’s safety or your right to privacy. We are a family from Singapore, and what we experienced at this hotel left us disturbed, unsettled, and deeply concerned not just for us, but for other future hotel guests.We booked three rooms and stayed for a night on 21 June 2025:• 217 (my brother, his wife, and children)• 218 (my elderly mom and niece)• 219 (myself)On our first evening, a male housekeeping staff hand-delivered cake only to me and my niece, but not to my brother, even though he was in the room directly next to hers. Before giving the cake to my niece, he asked her inappropriate personal questions like who she was with and what room she was staying in. That already felt like a red flag.We brushed it off until something MUCH worst happened that same evening.While the rest of us went out for dinner, my 20-year-old niece stayed behind to rest because she was feeling unwell. During that time, 3 adult men claiming to be hotel staff and engineers knocked, and then proceeded to enter her room without permission, even after realising she was inside.This included the same housekeeping staff who had earlier delivered the cake and asked her personal questions.They claimed the smoke detector had gone off, but:• There was no alarm• No smoke, no smell, no flashing light• No phone call to the room, despite me filling out my phone number at the front desk• No tools, no inspection, no cleaning• Once they saw my niece, their story suddenly changed: “Oh… maybe it’s just dust. We’ll clean it tomorrow.”But they didn’t clean anything. They just left. The hotel never followed up, never inspected anything, and never gave us a proper explanation.This entry was not accidental and certainly not standard protocol. It happened minutes after our family left the hotel, and it was clear that they knew who was in each room and who wasn't. That made it feel coordinated, predatory, and honestly, like we were being monitored and an abuse of power, authority and privacy.Whether these men were hotel staff or affiliated with another agency does not matter. What matters is this:A young woman was alone in her room. Three unknown men entered using a false excuse, with no emergency, no consent, and no accountability. That is not okay.We have stayed in hotels all over the world. This was the first time we felt watched, unsafe, and unprotected despite staying at a supposedly reputable hotel with many good reviews.The hotel has still not taken full responsibility.We’re sharing this so no other guests, especially families with children, solo female travellers, or elderly guests has to experience this kind of fear, uncertainty, and violation of trust.Until this is properly investigated and addressed, I strongly advise others to...