Citadines Connect Georgetown Penang — Hotel in George Town

I stayed at the Citadines Connect Georgetown Penang in mid January. Overall, it was a pleasant experience, except for the room type I chose. The staff are courteous and welcoming, so a big plus there.

LOCATION: a. The hotel has a new wing, which is a short distance along the same street. So if you are staying at the new wing, as I did, do note it is at 138 Lebuh Noordin. As this new address has not been linked with the hotel's name on Grab, I used 138c Lebun Noordin, which is Pinang Spa House next door. b. The hotel is near and conveniently located, in close proximity to the various Georgetown attractions. c. There were roadworks at one end of the street during the time I stayed so vehicles were unable to enter sporadically. When I checked out on a weekday afternoon for the airport, my Grab transport was unable to enter the street so I had to lug my baggage to one end of the street to meet the driver. Would have been great if the hotel staff has highlighted this to guests when road-works affect vehicular access.

ROOM DESIGN: I stayed at the Two-Bedroom Deluxe Loft, and included some photos here along with my feedback. Room is clean as it is newly built. This room configuration has twin bed on the lower floor & a king size bed on the upper floor, so 4 guests can stay here. While the cutlery were provided, we were provided only 2 mugs and 2 water tumblers. I had to request for extra from housekeeping. Interestingly, I have 4 wine glasses there 😊

It has windows that overlook an internal airwell so there are essentially no views for this room. Both the bedrooms, which are further inside, are windowless.

Considering this is meant for families, there were issues with the design: Kettle is too small for the expected capacity and could have been upsized. The toilet is too tight, versus the rest of the space in the loft. The vanity counter only has a small sliver of space beside the sink for you to put your toothbrushes etc, while the toilet paper holder is installed too close to the toilet bowl. Hooks & hanging space for the towels were inadequate. The shower area has no extra space for your own toiletries so I have to put mine on the window ledge. (PS: Their shower gel appears diluted when I dispense it, hence I didn’t use that) Since the toilet has already been built, some extra shelving would be an immediate quick-fix.

Other small issues but can be easily fixed for future guests: If you look at the upper room with a King bed. The two wall pictures were clustered at one side and looks imbalanced. The room has a open wardrobe concept which is nice. The hangers were clustered at both ends of the main rod, so they tend to drop easily. I believed it should have been installed in the middle of the rod where they won’t fall off. Great if they can provide more hangers i.e. for the bath towels. They should swop the tables between the lower & upper room. The lower floor is where people will congregate and hence should have the larger table. 2 dustbins on lower floor and none on the upper floor. Both bedrooms have door closers which doesn’t lock in place at 90degree like the main door. This made it a hassle as we move in/out from the bedrooms to the living area quite frequently. We bought our own doorstopper instead. Most of the feedback are specific to this particular room type which I stayed. It appears the other room types in the old wing has...

From my check in to check out, there were only a few good moments through my stay.

Checking in, I came behind a large party and was ignored by the bellmen at the door. No acknowledgment despite me wheezing and clearly being unwell. By the time they offered help I was already managing things myself.

Check in, I arrived after check in time and I was told my room wasn't ready? I understand if i came early but it was about an hour after check in time, and I was still made to wait ? Not off to a good start.

If you are a female traveler travelling alone, they do not take it into account and just announce your room number aloud. . Do you not realise that’s a safety issue ? Even smaller hotels take that into account.

I dropped my stuff off and left and returned an hour later to the room about to finally relax after a long drive. Housekeeping or something just opens my door? There was no knock. Nothing. Just because the dnd sign is not on, does not mean you just go into a room??? What if I hadn't been decent ?

The room itself was average at best. Pillow had blue ink stain what ?? Floors looked dirty before I even walked into it. The room is basically two twin beds pushed together so theres an uncomfortable dip in the middle. Pillows are uncomfortable. After 2 nights, my neck hurts so much had to sort it at the physio.

Breakfast is a small selection. Not worth adding to your bill. Nasi lemak chicken are tiny bits with barely any meat and its hard. I came when breakfast started and most food felt cold and stale. Cereal also felt like it masuk angin. It starts at 7, they dont finish set up til closer to 8. If you sit indoors, be careful there are so many mosquitoes. its really ridiculous.

Housekeeping on my second day. I left to do some errands came back and they just finished my room, thanked them. They came knocking this time (Thankfully) Only to find out...they left their access card...in my luggage ??? I know I left it open but there are many other places to put it. That’s disgusting idk if he touched my belongings. I didnt feel safe at all.

After my stay I had forgotten a power bank. I called them to check if I left it there. Was told they’d call me back. Received no call. I followed up next day and it began the excuses they tried calling me but I received nothing. Told them I’d come evening and when I came they couldn’t find it. So I was left waiting for over 15 minutes for it to be in some drawer near them. So ridiculous. From check in to check out it was horrible. No apology or anything from any of the staff for that delay.

Highlights of my stay :

Gym was the biggest upside though its small there were many options so bonus for that. -Plus side, front desk could point me into the direction of a good clinic. I appreciate that. -Parking is behind. (Pros : nearby, cons : the rate they give you is probably not the rate you will end up paying) Good walkable location around. Literally the biggest upside of it.

Overall I dont recommend this hotel to anyone especially if you're travelling alone. Save your money there are better options...

Very disappointed in Ascott/Somerset hotels now, this was the second time in this brand of hotels after the Somerset in Bangkok. This was probably the worst hotel stay I have ever had, I really can't recall anywhere worse. Don't be fooled by the name or the nice exterior areas, clearly all the investment goes into the marketing and common areas and not the rooms.

I stayed in Block B. Once you get into the room areas, you'll notice the public carpet is falling apart and held together by tape. The room itself might seem okay at first glance, but then you realise the rooms are facing each other, about 1 meter apart, so basically the view is brick wall and there is hardly any natural light coming into the rooms.

The room itself is just too small, and I was just one person in a room with a double bed. If you are too people it will be a squeeze when you move around in the room and especially with 2 sets of luggage and items. The lighting in the room is strange and not practical, strange lighting along the tops of the bed that you can't turn off without turning off all the light!

The shower only has one of those overhead rain showers, so you can't really shower without getting your hair wet. There is actually a handheld shower but that is inexplicably attached to the wall at waist high. So I suppose you could hold it and shower that way which is just not comfortable at all. Who designed the showers this way?! It's this sort of thinking that seems to permeate the designs of the rooms in general. Who ever is in charge of these things needs to live in one of the rooms for a week to find out what design features are a problem....

I also had a strong allergic skin reaction to something while in the room, for only one night. Can't say what it was exactly.

The whole feel of the place is like a prison - small, dark and cramped, not nice at all. It's not well insulated either, you will hear doors closing very easily and people talking in the corridors. Lucky I was only there for 1 night. Highly recommend you...