Jakarta - Hotels

Thanks for your good suggestion of the Westin, and LeMeridien. I have noted all of my choices by using the Marriott app. (Westin was substantially more than some others). Still need to make my res, and in February I definitely will report.

[QUOTE=NattyBumpo;2202313]Yes, you have to begin shopping for hotels well in advance of your trip. Here are the lowest rates that I have booked in the last 12 months:

Grand Hyatt $135 (hotel site),
Fairmont $127 (Agoda),
Shangri-la $155 with bfst (Agoda),
Ayana MidPlaza (former InterContinental) $101 (Expedia), and
the Mulia Senayan $276 (Agoda).

I never pay the rack rate which can be up to 3 times the rates I have posted above.[/QUOTE]I recently booked an executive room at Century Park (next to Fairmont) for USD 85 per night, including breakfast for two.

[QUOTE=KoperenKlaas;2252014]I recently booked an executive room at Century Park (next to Fairmont) for USD 85 per night, including breakfast for two.[/QUOTE]That's a good older hotel for a good price. Even cheaper older hotels like that one that are still nice are Borobudur and Aryaduta. The Grove Suites in Kuningan is the same price as Century and I much prefer that one since it's fairly new and the rooms are huge. But I have friends who do prefer Century simply due to it being near Senayan. It's a shame the Fairmont isn't 85 a night, that would be awesome.

Just to confirm that Hotel Harris Suite in FX Sudirman mall is totally girl friendly. De Leila club is on 8th floor of this mall and good to try (few Moroccan, Uzbek and many Indo girls). Mainly for Arabian audience or people like big bum Indo girls.

[QUOTE=Smoothy;2252260]It's a shame the Fairmont isn't 85 a night, that would be awesome.[/QUOTE]My 2018 Jakarta Hotel Review (kind of)

I stayed at 4 very different 5-star hotels during my 18-day visit to Jakarta this last October. Specifially, I stayed at the Fairmont Jakarta for 4 nights. It is an amazing hotel, but more on it later in this post. First a little history: recently Fairmont and Raffles Hotels have become a part of the Accor Hotel Empire. Personally, I think this merger acquisition is fraught with potential problems and I fear that the high quality of these 2 Lines may be eroded over time.

In any case I had been a Fairmont Club member for many years and had the Fairmont Chase Visa card so I had accumulated a lot of points, dining vouchers, free room upgrades, and free voucher nights that were all set to expire in 6 months if not used. So, I made a reservation at the Fairmont Jakarta for 3 nights at $185/ night. Then I applied a free voucher night for the 4th night. Then I requested a free club upgrade to their 1-bedroom suite and upon my arrival at the hotel they gave me an upgrade on the upgrade ie a corner 1-bedroom suite on the top floor. Next, I converted my soon to be expiring hotel club points into a $100 Fairmont gift card which I applied to my final bill upon checkout. I also used up my account dining certificates at their glossy Spectrum restaurant for free breakfasts during my stay. The net result was I paid 113.75 / night for 4 nights in the 1-bedroom corner suite and buffet breakfasts were on the house. Sweet! I will miss my Fairmont Club access.

Now to my Fairmont review: Wow! This IS a true 5-star hotel. It is also very large, about 5 times as large as the Fairmont Makati. The 1-bedroom suite was the size of two deluxe rooms with a living room / dining room, the bedroom and 1. 5 bathrooms. Everything was modern, new and top quality. One night I brought back a CJ's 22-year-old (a young one ha ha) FL and we had a good time making out and stripping in the living room on the sofa. At one point she knelt down in front of the couch and gave me a BJ. Then we adjourned to the bedroom for sexual congress.

I think the hotel has 5 restaurants; Spectrum which is almost identical to the one in Fairmont Makati, an Indonesian restaurant where I had an excellent gourmet Indonesian late lunch one day, an informal Italian deli / coffee shop, a Chinese Restaurant and a Japanese one too. The pool was really nice, nicer and larger than Fairmont Makati although of very similar design. Personally, I like the garden / pools at the Ritz Carlton, Grand Hyatt, and Shangri La better, but this one was nice too.

The hotel is connected by way of an underground walkway to Senayan Plaza mall which was very convenient. There is a roof top bar, no FL's, but a nice place to have a nightcap if you happen to return to the hotel before 1 am. The bar has fantastic city views. I went up there on a very rainy night near clsing time and enjoyed sitting out under protective shelter, smoking a Cuban cigar, as nature let loose. The staff was super friendly and very helpful. The manager came by and gave me a free Grey Goose on ice. Then they left me alone after the bar closed to just sit back, enjoy the view, and my smoke.

So, all told I really like the Fairmont Jakarta and would definitely stay here again if the price were right. $185 seems a little bit pricey to me for a 5-star Jakarta hotel even for this high level of quality. BTW its location is not as bad as I thought it might be. It is located very close to the Mulia (CJ's) and due to easy access to JL Jend. Sudirman, it does not take much longer to taxi down to the brothels (Malio etc.) than staying at the Shangri La.

So, of the 5-star Jakarta hotels that I stayed at this last trip I rate the Fairmont right at the top. The Ritz Carlton is really good too and a real bargain at $122 /night with very large 63 sq meter 1st class deluxe rooms, a great garden / pool and equally good hotel restaurant, but its location is actually not as good as the Fairmont IMHO. The Grand Hyatt is still very hard to beat all things considered. I paid $135/ night. The Grand Hyatt rooms are not as large or quite as nice as the Ritz Carlton or the Fairmont, but the garden / pool is one of the best in town (and hardly any guests hang out there) and the Hyatt has the best location of all the 5-star Jakarta hotels I know being attached to the Plaza Indonesia, surrounded by host of great local cuisine & any cuisine restaurants, and a sraight shot north to all my favorite bordellos.

The Shangri La is good too and it does house Bats which is very convenient. Ha Ha. On my last night in town after having my farewell session with an 18-year-old Malioboro dancer, I returned to the Shangri La and ran into an attractive, dark skinned Indo FL with a killer body and sexy smile just as we were both descending the stairwell down to the bar. We chatted a bit and then I took her up to my room for my last fling in Jakarta 2018. What a last night and a 2 fer too boot. And in addition to all that the Shang garden pool area is tied with the Hyatt as the best in Jakarta as far as I am concerned. But the Shangri La is an older hotel and it's rooms while still very nice and 1st class are a bit on the small side especially when compared to the other 5 stars in this review. Lastly the Shangri La location is not great. Access to a shopping mall or a supermarket is either a long walk or a taxi away. So, although I still like this hotel and am open to staying here again, I feel that the Shang is a little too pricey for what you get. Thus I would not stay at this hotel again unless it were priced accordingly at the same level as the Grand Hyatt or the Ritz Carlton, but I would pay a little more than Grand Hyatt prices to stay at the Fairmont again.

[QUOTE=NattyBumpo;2260292] The Grand Hyatt is still very hard to beat all things considered. I paid $135/ night.[/QUOTE]I only quoted a small part of your report, but the report was excellent. When I first arrived in Jakarta in the late 90's, the Grand Hyatt used to have one of the best pickup bars in town. I think it died out around 2002 or 2003. Shame.

[QUOTE=NattyBumpo;2260292]One night I brought back a CJ's 22-year-old (a young one ha ha) FL and we had a good time making out and stripping in the living room on the sofa. At one point she knelt down in front of the couch and gave me a BJ. Then we adjourned to the bedroom for sexual congress.

I returned to the Shangri La and ran into an attractive, dark skinned Indo FL with a killer body and sexy smile just as we were both descending the stairwell down to the bar. We chatted a bit and then I took her up to my room for my last fling in Jakarta 2018. [/QUOTE]Fantastic hotel review NB. I am partial to the Shangri La, and perhaps the Ritz Carlton. But with your review of the Fairmont, I am tempted to try. The price tag does not make it any easier. 5555.

Just curious, what did you pay these lasses from CJ's and BATS for their illustrious company? PM if you would rather keep it low profile.

[QUOTE=NattyBumpo;2260292]My 2018 Jakarta Hotel Review (kind of)

{Massive Snip}[/QUOTE]Natty - Your reports and insight are much appreciated. Thanks for taking the time. - Styk.

My experience with the Hotels in Jakarta has always been good.

Kempinski. Its very much central and must be equal distance to Malio, CJ's, Bats and be square. Emporivum. Reason being I stayed at Mulias and had to pass Kmpinski on my way to these places. Has a very big mall and skybar but need to venture out of the hotel for wg's.

Marriott- Friendly but I found it aloof from the pubs and I believe Basque is the closest one.

Shangri La and Mulias. If you have very less time and need to spend the night with a WG try these two out with Bats and Cj's attached. No entry fee and you'll have ample time to check the girls out.

[QUOTE=Smoothy;2260317]I only quoted a small part of your report, but the report was excellent. When I first arrived in Jakarta in the late 90's, the Grand Hyatt used to have one of the best pickup bars in town. I think it died out around 2002 or 2003. Shame.[/QUOTE]I just checked the price out of curiosity. For a stay in early Feb the Hyatt member rate is only $108. It's $102 for advanced purchase, but I never book those because they are not refundable within 14 days of the booking. Pretty good value. It's still my hotel of choice even though the bar isn't as busy as it used to be.

This, as others have noted, is a 'business hotel', so the facilities reflect this.

Its a new modern design and build, so everything works (including good Internet). The rooms are OK, just above that 'pre vandalised' design you get with some modern lower cost hotels (Ibis.).

No wardrobe to speak off, so unpack your cloths using the floor. For a business hotel, no proper desk area to work at, which rates this place down in my view.

Otherwise, modern decor & bathroom (shower) and comfortable bed & pillows.

The pool (22 m) is good. I choose hotels for their pool as I like to exercise daily. (Pool temp surprisingly cool for a tropical city.).

For those that want to stock up with supplies (juice, fruit etc), there is a Carrefour across the road and a mall a short ways up past the Malio opposite the Mercure. It's a "B" mall, though.

Also, there is supermarket just next door, just beyond the Starbucks. The hotel building as a small mall, with some Chinese and sushi places as well as a local coffer shop chain.

All walkable.

I cannot say if it's Girl Friendly, as this was off my agenda on this trip.

Maybe not good for a 'vacation', if you know what I mean, but really good for a brief business visit that is close to clubs and brothels.

Anyone has experience staying in Redtop Hotel? Is the room better than Classic? Is there any full service in house? TQ in advance.

[QUOTE=Roy2920;2268336]Anyone has experience staying in Redtop Hotel? Is the room better than Classic? [/QUOTE]The rooms are better than Classic. It's one of the best options if you want to go to places in that area like Hotel Classic and Emporivm. You can walk to Classic from there.

[QUOTE=Smoothy;2268353]The rooms are better than Classic. It's one of the best options if you want to go to places in that area like Hotel Classic and Emporivm. You can walk to Classic from there.[/QUOTE]TQ Smoothy. Yes, the location seems to be strategic. I have stayed at Classic before and found their room is pathetic. Will book there then.

[QUOTE=Roy2920;2268744]TQ Smoothy. Yes, the location seems to be strategic. I have stayed at Classic before and found their room is pathetic. Will book there then.[/QUOTE]I don't think you will regret that choice. Please post a field report reviewing that RED TOP hotel after your stay if you have time.

I know a guy who likes that hotel who tries to get bumped up to a suite when he stays there. He will tell them it's his birthday or that there is something wrong with his standard room to see if they will bump him up. He's been pretty lucky getting moved to a suite pretty often.