Baba House Melaka — Hotel in Malacca

We are from London and on a 2 week holiday in Singapore and Malacca. It is a lovely clean boutique hotel and situated very close to all the historical sites in Malacca. Very convenient. We stayed here about 15 years ago when it was run by the previous owner. It was then a very small hotel. Unfortunately it’s lost some of its old traditional charm. It’s very modern now. We still enjoyed our stay there regardless.We got coach from Singapore and was dropped off quite away and had to walk in the afternoon heat to get to Babas with our 4 trolley bags and hand luggage. When my daughter and myself arrived and was checking in, a kind gentleman offered to arrange our bags to be taken to our rooms in a trolley. It was a nice touch and we appreciated it. He may have been the Duty Mgr on that day. Thank you. You are a true gentleman.The breakfast spread was excellent everyday with variety. Some pots of yoghurt would be good at a breakfast bar. The staff at breakfast were all excellent and had very good customer service skills. We would have given 5 stars for service but here are some of our views on how it could be improved and some of our bad experiences. 1. Was let down by one of your staff at reception on our last day. We packed and just before 12 rung reception to request if someone could help us with our luggage. We were told that the hotel does not provide luggage services. I was shocked as this was entirely the opposite experience we had on day one. We managed between us to drag our bags to the lift with very much difficulty. When we came to the reception to drop the keys the Chinese gentleman who spoke to me over the phone ignored us and carried on staring at his screen. The young cheerful Malay girl acknowledged us and took the keys from us. When I asked her why we were helped with our luggage on day one and not now. All she could say was, we don’t have luggage services. Our coach was due at 2.30 so we sat at the lobby. While waiting we could see at least 4 trolleys sitting behind the luggage reception. The staff were not busy at all and had all the time in the world to have a joke and a chitchat at reception, but could not help us with our luggage. I lived in Malaysia before and I could understand every word they were saying in Malay. We were disgusted.2. Double standards - While waiting at reception noticed The same Chinese gentleman who ignored us previously, seemed to have all the time for a white family who turned up. Very polite and giving all the attention to them. We came to stay at Babas as it has good reviews but didn’t realise some of your staff had double standards when dealing with people. He showed old school colonial mentality which we did not appreciate. In fact he could have possibly been the Duty Mgr that day. He needs some training on people skills and how to respect every customer irrespective of the colour of their skin, especially this year Visit Malacca 2024. You should be showcasing your Malaysian charm to make visitors feel welcome in Babas/ Malacca. Unfortunately this experience on our last day put us off Baba Hotel. 3. Group bookings / Breakfast We noticed priority is being given to group bookings where their bags are all taken and kept at the luggage area. At breakfast we could not even find a seat that we had to come in late every day to be able to find a seat. We may not but he part of a group booking but we still paid for our accommodation and breakfast . Perhaps you should allocate an area for group bookings so that other clients can have peaceful breakfast as well.When we came late after 9 to avoid the group bookings crowd, the egg/ omelette area is shut. I had to request for it to be opened We are not interested in Trip coins but prefer an explanation / apology / and the learnings from our experience as we wouldn’t want someone else to have the have the negative experiences we had Mrs Elizabeth PereiraDr...

spoiler alert: 這家飯店會在台灣旅客的收據上註記 Taiwan, province of China. (台灣，中國的一省) 如果你會介意，別來。Heeren街上的對面的Puri飯店也一樣好，而且更便宜。

而且這家飯店會在訂房網上放上不同的房間相片來銷售，但是你到飯店以後，會給你不同的房間。我們非常不喜歡沒有對外窗的房間，所以特別選了一個圖上有對外窗的房型，但是實際上，房間沒有對外窗。

This is a beautifully renovated shophouse that sits on a rather quiet area at the center of this historical town. Ample of public space, filled with many beautiful collections is one of the things I like about it. There are plenty of places for beautiful pictures. The rooftop bar is also very nice, but the bar is open until 10PM. You can continue using it until 1AM, but you won't be able to get drinks there.

I think the hotel is already acquired by some hotel management group in Singapore but they still hire a lot of locals, which is a good thing.

Upon checking in, the staff will give you a drink voucher (token). You can redeem it on the rooftop bar (the staff didn't inform us, and I only found this out on the packet of the token) so you get to enjoy it on the rooftop. Reminder: rooftop bar is for juice only; for kopi or teh, you need to go to the lobby.

The pros aside, there are a couple of things that I am rather disappointed with: The central part of the building has a patio under construction, blocking a beautiful wall. With all the scaffolding there, it looks like a public hazard. I would want to be informed of all the ongoing interior renovation work beforehand. As a result of the construction, you have to detour to get to your room, but there were no clear sign for that. The house is like a huge maze so you just have to walk all the corridors just to find your room. And the route contains stairs that you must climb to get to your room, so if you have accessibility needs, this is something to keep in mind. It does feel like the hotel itself is extremely short-staffed, and there are endless hours for the staff to make up some room somewhere. From around 8am you will hear the loud BANG of the doors closing, and from what I saw, it's actually from the cleaners sometimes. I understand they are doing their job, but a decent hotel should have enough manpower to finish all room-making within the 12pm to 3pm window. Not good for light sleepers. They put Taiwan, Province of China on my receipt, which I personally feel offended. We booked a room for 3 pax. Interestingly, there were only 2 chairs, 2 sets of cups/coffee/bottled water and toiletries in the room. As if the only thing that 3rd person need is the bed. It's no big deal and they will immediately cater to your request if you ask for one more, but I do feel this isn't something I have to REMIND a boutique hotel to take care of. When we entered the room, it stinks. And the aircon is leaking water and dripping down (see video). Maybe it's because some of the rooms don't have outward facing window, so it smells like a toilet + toilet fragrance. One of the spoons was also dirty - looks as if someone was eating Kuih Salat with it and didn't bother to wash. Again, these are no big issues, but if they brand themselves to be such an ATAS hotel, probably this could be avoided. The room also appears to have some other faulty parts - loosen hangers, cracked furniture etc. At this price range, I do feel this shouldn't happen. This hotel will put misleading pictures on booking site. My family doesn't like rooms without outward facing window, so we booked a room where the picture shows an outward facing window. But when we arrived at the hotel, the room has non outward facing window. To me, this might be legal, as per the T&C of the booking site, but this is definitely made clear their intention to cheat.

As far as I know, the Puri hotel across the street and the Courtyard hotel down the street is equally nice in the interior,...

2025.1.21 (2 nights)

I love anything that is properly gentrified and the owners of Baba House has done an absolute excellent job, using a traditional Peranakan house, combining with the rows of shophouses (left and right) and converting it into a viable chic hotel. Trust me, do not judge the book by it’s cover. The interior decor is way better than the exterior.

LOCATION Excellent location. It’s right next to the touristy Jonker Street minus the noise and fanfare. ✔️Walking distance to good food and traditional culture. ✔️Walking distance to the Melaka river ✔️Walking distance to Christ Church.

HOTEL BUILDING The external design is simple and tastefully furnished. The lobby exudes modern Peranakan warmth. Kudos to Jeremiah who professionally checked us into our Deluxe room. We decided to treat the front desk Putu Piring 🤣

The hotel also filmed outdoor movies every night … but we got bitten by mosquitoes… forcing us to retreat to our room to watch instead.

BEDROOM - Bikek Hibiscus (Deluxe Plus) We were on the 3rd floor. The decor was timeless but very well-maintained. Everything feels modern cozy. Love the long wooden ledge ! ✔️Flooring: Wood laminate. Love it. I find this cleaner than carpets. ✔️View: None. It’s windowless. The architect’s hands are tied designing a heritage property but cleverly managed to create natural light into the room through skylights and a side glass panel by the door. ✔️Bed: Very very comfortable! ✔️Sheets: clean white Cotton sheets ✔️Pillows: Soft & fluffy. 2per pax (with extra, in cupboard). ✔️Television : Large Flat screen. Wide selection of international channels with Netflix ! ✔️Lighting: Adequate ✔️Phone: By the beside but not the bathroom. ✔️Plugs: international built in plugs but with usb plugs. Adequate ✔️Safe Deposit box: Yes ✔️Fridge: Unstocked mini fridge. ✔️Wardrobe: Yes. Adequate wooden hangers. ✔️Electric Jug: Yes. ✔️Beverage: Teabags and Coffee powder ✔️Housekeeping: Clean. ✔️Bathrobes: No. ✔️Slippers: Yes. Disposable. ✔️Stationery: small note pad & pencil ✔️Complimentary mineral water: Yes, 2 bottles ✔️Iron & Ironing Board: No ✔️Shoe Horn: yes ! ✔️Shoe Shining service: No ✔️Soundproofing: Excellent. We were in a quiet part, away from the main lift.

BATHROOM ✔️Decor: Simple with wood trimmings, befitting of a 4-star hotel. Large Shower compartment. ✔️Phone: None ✔️Shower: Decent water pressure. Hot water is consistent. Option of rain shower available ✔️Bathtub: None. ✔️Clothes drying line: No. ✔️Hairdryer : 1800w ✔️Toiletries: Toothbrushes, shower cap, soap, body wash, body lotion, shampoo. (Note: no facial cotton), sewing kit. The ziplock bag for unused hand soap was very thoughtful! ✔️Towels : fluffy white ✔️Wash-basin & Taps : well-maintained. ✔️WC: Flushes well. I just wish it a proper bidet,like the Japanese type.

WIFi Complimentary. Very stable and reliable.

BREAKFAST The hotel has a wide spread of Peranakan buffet breakfast. We skipped because we really wanted to try to local coffee shops. I highly recommend CSDR@Jonker (opens 7:30am) and Jonker 88.

SWIMMING POOL None. We checked out rooftop for the tanning pools but didn’t find any.

GYM None

HOTEL SPA None

CONCLUSION My overseas friend (first time to Melaka) was impressed with the Peranakan tiles. So was I. I even spotted the Royal typewriter (which I learnt typing on) lovingly preserved. Of all the times I visited Melaka (unfortunately I find Malacca overly touristy now), this is my first time staying in the historic town. I will never stay anywhere else in my subsequent visits. This is not only the perfect spot but the perfect hotel. I hope it will be well maintained for my future stays. I’d love to hibernate...