Lilla Hilltop Retreat Janda Baik — Hotel in Pahang

We spent one night at Lilla Hilltop Retreat, Janda Baik — a very affordable and interesting place, especially suited for team-building activities or big group gatherings. The retreat has a humble, kampung-style charm and is surrounded by nature, offering a peaceful environment away from the city.

We booked two units during our stay. The first was an apartment with 3 single beds, located right beside the forest. It was quiet and cool, with fresh air and a calming atmosphere. However, it gets extremely dark at night due to minimal lighting, and unfortunately, there was a strong garbage smell nearby. It might be suitable for larger groups who need space and don’t mind basic conditions.

The second unit was a 2-bedroom villa near the clubhouse. Though it had a strong odour from the artificial wood-like rubber flooring, we preferred this villa overall. The beds and pillows were clean and surprisingly comfortable, and the chilly night weather made it perfect for restful, deep sleep. However, there were several issues:

Toiletries and bottled water had been used by previous guests and weren’t replaced. Shower head was broken, hot water was inconsistent, and the glass door lock didn’t work. No fridge or hairdryer was provided. The villa is built in a traditional wooden (rumah papan) style, so you can hear noise easily from nearby areas, especially the clubhouse. We loved the back balcony view, though the wear and tear was obvious. One funny highlight — the noon shower was so cold that it chilled our canned drinks!

A word of caution: the road leading to the retreat is steep and in poor condition. It becomes pitch dark at night, so we recommend arriving before sundown. This location is not ideal for electric vehicles, and once you’re parked, you won’t feel like driving out again.

Tips: Bring all personal essentials, snacks, and anything else you may need, as the area is quite remote.

Overall, it’s a rustic and peaceful place with a lot of potential. With better upkeep and some attention to cleanliness and maintenance, it could be a great nature escape. Ideal for group retreats, but be prepared for very basic facilities and limited convenience. AND THANK GOD THAT...

Booked a Deluxe Studio chalet of 1queen4singles. They can also provide you 6singles instead. Its a chalet with 2 rooms 2 bath 1 living hall & a balcony. Requested for wheelchair friendly space/area, but lucky enough to get a unit closest to the main walkways not far from our vehicles parked. The wooden Chalet is nice and clean giving you a kampung vibes abit. No refrigerator ya. Outside of the unit is a bbq pit with sink right in front of each chalet. Love the morning breeze here. Quiet and serene. May take a drive along the road to pack some outside foods from cafes or foodstalls not far from the place too. One of our family members needed to check out later than 12, contacted admin and Mr Raymond, within seconds its sorted. Yes they are very attentive to their whatsapp and other medium of communication. Contact them 3,2 days prior to your arrival just to double check and confirmation process. Not necessarily to do so, its just me, i will do that every time. Overally, we enjoyed our stay there. The only thing that cut the fun part is the no-fridge-thing, we are with babies and kids, so they have full cream milk and stuff that we bring along. But thats okay. We managed, we actually brought...

The atmosphere is beautiful & okay but very disappointed with the management from the time I checked in on 8 June 2024 & it was not commensurate with the payment of almost RM300. There was no water at all in our two rooms during our stay there for 2 days and 1 night. The staff kept saying that there would be water until we checked out and there was still no water. the water supply in our room had to survive on its own to find a source of water. It's a pity for my nephew because the water in the swimming pool is quite dirty so that there can be 2 dead frogs for the children's pool and there are also dry leaves. The bbq place is also a bit neglected, the facilities while there are some places where the source of the water is not coming out. Hopefully the management cares to overcome it. When we want to check out on 9 June 2024 only foreign staff are stationed. We waited for more than 25 minutes to state the problem to manager but they didn't even come, we only got a call & no follow-up was made while we were there .Hopefully service will be taken care of for customers who come to pay for comfort, healing but other than what we get. Please...