Dreamtel — Hotel in Borneo

Nightmare at Dreamtel: A Parking Predicament and Customer Disservice

I recently had the displeasure of staying at Dreamtel in Kota Kinabalu, and my experience can only be described as a nightmare. The hotel's stunning lack of consideration for its guests, combined with the apathetic attitude of the staff, left me questioning why anyone would willingly subject themselves to such an ordeal.

The first red flag arose when we were instructed to park our car outside the hotel. No signs, no warnings, just a seemingly innocent directive that resulted in a parking ticket. The front desk staff failed miserably in informing us about the need for a parking permit. When my wife approached them seeking clarification, their response was nothing short of infuriating. Not only were they smirking, but they were also muttering things in Malay, as if mocking guests parking predicaments was a regular source of amusement for them.

One would expect a basic level of courtesy from hotel staff, especially when it comes to guiding guests on something as critical as parking. The sheer negligence displayed by Dreamtel in this regard is astounding. There was no attempt to preemptively inform us about the parking regulations, and the lackadaisical attitude persisted even after our unfortunate encounter with a parking ticket.

Repeated inquiries about alternative parking options were met with vague responses. The young man at the front desk (whose name I won’t mention here), who claimed not to be in charge but was the only representative present, seemed utterly clueless and unhelpful. It was apparent that dealing with upset guests was not part of his job description, and he lacked both the authority and motivation to address our concerns.

The absurdity reached its peak when, after being informed by the man that a parking pass could be obtained from City Hall during the day (who doesn’t want to queue at a public building on their holidays?!) or a nearby KFC. So we went to the KFC where we discovered that they only sold them between 9 am and 5 pm. We returned back wanting to know where guests were supposed to park and to talk to the hotel manager about the poor service.

So where should we park our car for the night? The lack of accountability continued when we sought to speak to the manager. According to the front desk "worker," the manager had gone home for the day. Attempting to reason with man (and the security guard now standing beside him) proved futile as they insisted there was no one in charge, conveniently evading responsibility for their negligence. A large hotel full with guests and no one is in charge? When asked who was in charge, the same employee claimed that no one held that position, asserting that he was "just a worker." This absurd denial of responsibility left me dumbfounded.

The pinnacle of incompetence was reached when the only solution offered was to wake up before 7 am and move the car to avoid getting another ticket. He could not specify where it should be moved to! The fact that the staff couldn't suggest a suitable parking location highlighted the complete disregard for guest welfare. I asked the young man behind the desk what time the manager got in the next morning, “9am”, how lucky that he got to have a lie in! We had checked out by then.

In conclusion, my stay at Dreamtel in Kota Kinabalu was marred by the hotel's blatant disregard for basic customer service and a parking nightmare that could have been easily avoided with proper communication and foresight. I strongly advise potential guests to think twice before subjecting themselves to such a disheartening and frustrating experience. Dreamtel, your dream of providing quality hospitality is nothing short of a nightmare for...

Alot more maintenance and upgrading required for the hotel. Hotel is bit old and rooms look run down. There is no hot shower. Maintenance checks and tells me to leave the shower open for a long period before shower, which I did and all that happened was flooding the toilet. Still no hot water shower. Same issue the next day, no hot shower. Complained and this time, no maintenance cared to check. No choice, showered and and left a complain at reception. Said dont worry we wil get it done. Return to hotel at 10.30, nothing was done. Amazing.

Also house keeping cleans the room, without removing the in house dining plates. So I decided to leave them at the corridor, instead. Simply impressive, till the day I check out, Mon the plates are still at the corridor. Sat night till Mon. They work wonderfully.

Called for maintenance upon returning to room, asking if the issue settled. Oh we didnt attend to it. Wait will come now. This time the maintenance, can tell me this floor is like that. So close that floor for business, what's the point of operating the floor. Total rubbish. It took him an hour to settle. So I shower midnight. Morning back to square one.

Receptionist not alert in job. Called twice to check on breakfast timing. Confidently told me it ends at 10.30am. When i arrived at 10am, as told to leave as breakfast time ended. How amazing. Not recommended at all for business and family travellers.

Never have I wrote such long bad review but this time, everything has gotten to my nerve. The attitude to solve the problem is not there at all. Whatever the previous reviews...

I spent around 5 nights here in September 2018 staying in a double room by myself. It is a basic hotel but I found it extremely comfortable and the staff were very attentive. The beds were comfortable and the air con was effective but not so loud as to keep you awake at night. The bathroom was spacious and the shower had good pressure and heat although it did leak a bit out of the bottom of the doors. I stayed on the 10th floor and had a good view of KK and Gaya island. There's a 7/11 2 minutes away if you need to pick up water/nibbles etc and the main attractions of the city are within 10-15 minute walk. I was scuba diving from Jessleton harbour a few days and had no bother walking up to the harbour in the morning. The cleaning team did a beautiful job every day; I always came back to a freshly made bed and folded towels. Breakfast was a mix of Malaysian and western cuisine and there always seemed to be enough choice, even when I arrived down 10 minutes before breakfast was due to finish. The only thing I would ask is for a plug socket to be installed nearer the bed so I didn't have to leave my phone on the other side of the room to charge overnight..... although it did mean I got out of bed on time when my alarm went off! If you're planning on spending a lot of time in a hotel while you're on holiday this probably wouldn't be the place for you but as a base and a comfortable place to sleep...