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c h i k k a
b u z z
PHOTOS
LESTER LEDESMA
One fromthe
Majestic’s history
books
July 1975
Alan Dean Foster, author of
Star
Trek
,
while on this honeymoon in
The Majestic, was so impressed by
the headwaiter that he based one of
the characters in his 1980 bestseller
Cachalot
after him.
SOMETIMES, THE DESTINATION
is the
journey and that’s always true for storied
grand hotels. You will find one in many
cosmopolitan Asian cities, that one spot
to which the most important and colorful
characters of decades past gravitated, where
they spent afternoons with tea and cakes
in plush, sunlit parlors, where they dined
with fine-bone china and polished silver, and
where they spent evenings with friends, all
smartly dressed in suits and evening frocks,
sipping wine and signature cocktails in the
yellow glow of the hotel bar, jazz music in the
background. The Oriental in Bangkok. Manila
Hotel in Manila. The Peninsula in Hong Kong.
Raffles Hotel in Singapore.
In Kuala Lumpur, The Majestic Hotel, on 5
Jalan Hishamuddin, was the hotel of choice
for the city’s elite — from movie stars, to
celebrated writers and composers, to heads
of state — for many years after it opened
in 1932. The stories it had seen throughout
the decades could fill volumes, and when
it finally closed its doors in 1983, all those
stories passed to legend.
Now The Majestic is back on the scene,
thanks to careful restoration by YTL Hotels,
the same hotel group responsible for similarly
luxurious digs in the Cameroon Highlands and
Malacca, among other prized locations. And
it’s back to impress — with over 300 rooms
and suites between the new and modern
15-
storey Tower Wing and the Majestic
Wing, the original preserved structure built in
colonial architecture and now fully restored to
its old glory. The property includes a massive
ballroom that can seat 1,200 people (perfect
for big weddings), dining outlets, a gym and a
swimming pool.
Our favorite spot in the hotel? We’re torn
between The Smoke Room, which has bar
and screening room, and The Colonial Café,
where a quartet of Malaysian-born Filipino
siblings bring guests back to the golden age of
jazz. But that’s another story.
com
What , s
old is new
Oh, the stories a grand hotel can tell. The newly reopened
Majestic Hotel in Kuala Lumpur may be spruced up and
polished to the times, but its halls speak of a glorious past
set for a comeback
Clockwise from this photo: Enjoy
relaxing afternoons at the Tea Lounge;
you can listen to jazzy tunes at The
Bar; the stunning Orchid Conservatory
