Glorious morning view of Malaysia’s capital from the kiddie’s wading pool at 22nd floor of Somerset.
“Uncle, can you take us to Somerset, Ampang KL?” I asked the Chinese-Malaysian taxi cab driver from where I stand in front of Pudu Sentral Bus Station. When I received a nod, I immediately hailed another taxi cab for my mom and my aunt and for our luggages in tow. And before I think of any possibilities, we’re on our way to our very first-serviced-residence-experience!
Located along the prestigious Embassy row and just 5-minute-walk-away from Ampang Park LRT station, Somerset Ampang Kuala Lumpur is conveniently accessible.
We hopped on the taxi cabs under the brightest Malaysian sun, then out of nowhere, came a heavy downpour just before we alighted to the lobby of Somerset Ampang KL. Weather’s Bipolar but I couldn’t be grateful enough!
Staff at the facade were ready with helping hands to carry our luggages to the reception area; it’s not uncommon but I always consider it as a sign of an early impressive hospitality. Checked in was done in a breeze and remarkably, we were welcomed warmly by Ms. Siti Artha, the Guest Service Assistant Manager. We appreciated the gestures, it made us feel at home right away!
Fraction of the laid back lobby.
We were led to 16th floor et voila! My worries and uncertainties about things that matter to me instantly melted away! The sight was that welcoming! Despite I feel so fatigued from our overnight-bus-trip from Penang to Kuala Lumpur, not to mention our packing of 3 weeks in Penang prior my homecoming, it was somewhat rejuvenating to see such beautiful black inlaid marble floors, handsome wooden doors and a hallway that will make you wish you could stay longer.
Rich wooden doors, luxurious marble floors. Minimalist. Classic!
Welcome to Room 1612, our 90sqm-Two-Bedroom-Premier that served as our home for few days.
Tuloy po kayo!
Our home for three days and two nights. Knock, knock!
Always loved fresh fruits! Welcome note’s an icing on the cake!
It’s my pleasure, Mr. Gary Loke! Thank you very much, Somerset Ampang KL by Ascott!
Inside our 2-bedroom-Premier unit, I realized the huge difference of a hotel accomodation from that of a serviced residence. Somerset Ampang, KL Serviced Residence provides the comfort and convenience of a home and the quality service of a hotel. This attractively furnished unit offered a very relaxed ambiance perfect for families, friends, more so for business and leisure travelers and tourists.
Our home for few days has separate living and dining areas, master’s bedroom with en-suite toilet and bath, a twin-bedroom with en-suite toilet and shower, well-equipped kitchen and a laundry tub with dryer that are certainly absent in any hotel suite, home entertainment system, telephone, and most important to me, a fast and free wireless internet access.
Might appear ordinary wooden dining table but my mom kept on praising its quality.
Where my mom and aunt slept for two nights.
The twin-bedroom’s en-suite toilet and shower. Spacious and spotless!
And this makes the difference…
Well equipped kitchen, laundry & dryer tub. Admittedly, hotels don’t have these!
A cooker hub & hood, coffee and tea making facilities, an electric oven, electric kettle, glassware including wine glasses, crockery, utensils, microwave oven, a fridge, toaster, a laundry and dryer tub in one. Amazing, isn’t it? Almost complete! It’s really home away from home! But if it’s not too much to ask and if there’s one thing that I’d wish they would add to complete everything in the kitchen : a fruit blender.
My photo doesn’t do it justice. The simplicity & elegance fused in the interiors are just wonderful!
At the spacious and gorgeous living room with high ceiling, the home entertainment system includes CD/DVD player with iPod docking, LCD TV at the living room and master’s bedroom complete with satellite and cable channels.
Homey and relaxed atmosphere is echoed at the living room.
Happy to see my mom happy with her teddy bear! hehehe! 🙂
Another guest-friendly feature of our unit in Somerset is the central air-conditioning with individually controlled thermostats. For a family like us who came with relatives in their senior years, who prefer a warmer temperature unlike me, setting the AC to our selected temperature was never a problem. Furthermore, the living room has a ceiling fan that absolutely cost-saving for Somerset and gives its guest an Earth-friendly option.
My mom and my aunt were generous enough to allow me to enjoy the master’s bedroom.
Where I had uninterrupted sleeps for 2 nights. Loved this bed to bits!
The room has high ceiling which I really liked, not too small, nor too big; just enough space for me to roam around. It has the best view by the window, and by the bath tub at its en-suite bathroom.
Wardrobe complete with essentials, nice!
Just what my weary mind needs : a tub with a view! Thank you so much, Somerset Ampang KL! I had one of my most relaxing soak in years! Fantastic!
The tub with a view!
At 4PM, I had the pleasure of meeting Somerset Ampang Kuala Lumpur’s Assistant Residence Manager, Mr. Gary Loke. The introduction was set by Ms. Jacqueline Shu who happens to be the Marketing Executive, but was unable to join us that afternoon due to another function at other Ascott property.
I met Gary at the lobby, and the moment he mentioned he was assigned to Ascott Makati in my country, The Philippines for 6 months, some years back, we had a more engaging and casual conversations. People of Somerset were really amazing!
Gary first brought me to the 22nd level of Somerset Ampang KL where the Residents’ Lounge, rooftop infinity pool & jacuzzi, fully-equipped gymnasium, and a children’s wading pool. Apparently, everyone has something to look forward to whenever they come home to their residence at Somerset after a long day at work, school, shopping or traveling around the metropolis! That said, it spells work-life balance to me!
Relaxing mood at the infinity pool with a great vista of Petronas Twin Towers & the rest of KL skyline.
Crunches and stationary walk and jog overlooking the pool and beautiful view of KL skyline.
For families with kids, young adults, yuppies and even the senior ones, the Residents’ Lounge’s too perfect to spend a lazy weekend morning or a late afternoon bonding, or just a quality time with oneself and a good paperback.
Gary and I went down to the lobby and strolled our way to the next-door’s restaurant, Souled Out. He casually explained that breakfast buffet from 6:30AM to 10AM is served there daily for residents of Somerset. We continued our interesting talk about Malaysia, The Philippines, particularly his previous stint in Makati and the things he learned from my country, as well as his recommendations within Kuala Lumpur, things about Ascott, Somerset and Citadines, over glasses of freshly blended Dragon Fruit Juice and a plate of crunchy Calamares at Souled Out.
Dragon Fruit Juice and Calamares (not in photo) : Surprisingly, winner combo! 🙂
Gary’s so nice to even walk me to the adjacent lobby of HSC Medical Centre (a medical institution that caters to heart surgeries, stroke and cancer with few Alternative Medicine too). I told him, I consider it another plus factor for choosing Somerset Ampang KL particularly when staying longer, as the proximity of such medical services could make one feel so secured and safe.
Service and friendliness of staff indeed tops everything in hospitality industry.
With only two nights of stay and still recovering from our muscle aches and fatigue of packing my life literally of 3 years in Penang, I decided to just buy a takeway dinner and lunch for the three of us from Ampang Shopping Center which is about a 10-minute-walk away from Somerset.
Here’s what I bought as one of our take-away-meals that we enjoyed in Somerset. Take note of the modest yet quality plates and utensils. My mom was even happier that there’s a sponge and a liquid soap provided for washing dishes. We really enjoyed the comforts of home while in Somerset!
Veggies galore! My takeaway dinner from the nearby Ampang Shopping Center.
The next morning, we claimed our breakfast coupons from the front desk and walked our way to Souled Out. Bear in mind that Souled Out is an outsourced restaurant so the quality of service with Somerset is a bit different.
Fresh juices, milk, tea & coffee. Take your pick!
Of salads, fruits, yoghurt and cold cuts.
Breads and spreads.
The view from where we dined. I liked the alfresco theme with those lush green at the backdrop.
Chicken sausages, spicy sardines, egg omelet, baked beans, and nasi goreng (fried rice).
Tropical fruits, green apple salad, yoghurt, orange juice & coffee to cap the meal.
Honestly, there was nothing to rave about the outsourced restaurant, Souled Out’s breakfast buffet; it was nothing extraordinary. Surprisingly, there was minimal volume of tropical fruits and dishes from the spread. I hope they could enhance their offering in the near future. I need to visit back to compare this! *paging Mr. Garly Loke! Kidding!*
Because my mom and aunt opted to sleep and rest and watch TV at our room the whole day (they really got tired from hauling and packing my stuffs in Penang and for that I’ll be forever thankful to them), I was alone in going to KLCC-Shopping Center.
Somerset Ampang KL provides free shuttle van service on various schedule for those residents who would like to go to selected shopping areas within the city and a separate schedule for those residents going to their respective offices at work. I reserved a 10:30AM slot to go to KLCC-Suria Shopping Complex.
At exactly on the dot, I hopped on this free shuttle van with another resident and a family. They dropped me after a 5 minute-straight-drive to KLCC. It’s so convenient!
Shuttle van service to the prime shopping centers in Kuala Lumpur.
I needed to see Malaysia’s magnificence again prior going home to my country. All memories flashed back, good and bad ones. Saying farewell to the country that served as my second home for 3 years was not that easy than I thought. It felt a part of me was surgically removed. I wrote in my facebook that phantom limb pain remains in a few days, weeks, perhaps months until I find another refuge. That moment’s indeed dramatic and nostalgic. Cest la vie!
At the foot of those iconic Petronas Twin Towers.
Imagine, I managed to bring my mom and aunt to a wonderful and memorable stay at a 2-bedroom-Premier unit in Somerset Ampang Kuala Lumpur after a month-long stay in Penang and a weekend in Singapore, God is really soooo good despite and in spite of everything. I’ll constantly remind myself to count blessings rather than give importance to the challenges and negative elements.
I believe in what Ascott properties stand for, that “LIFE is all about living.” I salute them for being guided with “LIFE” :
- L -Local touch and local culture
- I – Individuality, varied lifestyles
- F -Feeling at home, those little touches in the room makes us feel homey
- E -Exceeding expectations. I personally experienced it! 🙂
Somerset Ampang Kuala Lumpur exceeded my great expectations! We had a incredibly wonderful stay!
>><<
SOMERSET AMPANG KUALA LUMPUR | 187 Jalan Ampang, 50450 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | For more details and reservations, kindly visit their website at : http://www.somerset.com/en/malaysia/kuala_lumpur/somerset_ampang.html
To the people of Somerset Ampang Kuala Lumpur, Mr. Gary Loke, Ms. Jacqueline Shu, Ms. Siti Artha and the staff, thank you so much! Special thanks goes out to Ms. Min of Ascott Singapore for the invitation! We had an amazing time! I could only wish the stay could be longer but who knows? There might be a next time somewhere. Again, many thanks!
beyond toxicity @ docgelo.com 
Hmm, very nice. KL is certainly a great place to unwind despite being a buzzing city. Have you thought of taking your mum and aunt to Kuching? (my plans for my own mother). Please keep well and definitely keep posting:)
hi yvette! very nice, indeed. we loved our stay in somerset ampang kuala lumpur!
i wish i could go to kuching in sarawak! perhaps, someday when i get a chance again to go back to malaysia. who knows?
i moved back to manila, btw.
thanks again, yvette! 🙂
I’m hoping happiness has followed you. As I mentioned once before, your blogs opened up a whole new window of wonderful experiences for us in Malaysia. When I saw your own mother and aunt all smiles and enjoying themselves, we thought it was time to do the same. 🙂
thanks for your kind words, yvette! i need all prayers and well wished nowadays. 🙂
and thank you, if my my humble blog have inspired you to bring your family somewhere else too to enjoy life as it is.
What’s the rate for this luxurious accomodation. Mayroon pang washer and dryer! Do they charge for parking if you have a car? That’s the norm now with most hotels unfortunately. I just booked for a two day stay in a Vancouver, BC hotel and there was a $40/day extra fee for parking. Robbery in broad daylight I’ll say.
hi bert, firstly, somerset ampang kuala lumpur managed by ascott limited isn’t a hotel but a serviced residence (that explains the presence of the washer & dryer). on their current super saver promotion (on going until 31 october 2013), the two-bedroom premier that we stayed in costs RM 660+ or US$210 ++ inclusive of daily buffet breakfast, wifi access, and as for parking according to their promotional flyer handed to me, they provide complimentary parking per apartment for 3 bedroom-premier (i just failed to ask if it applies to other rooms they have such as studio premier, one-bedroom deluxe, one-bedroom premier, and the one we stayed in, the 2-bedroom premier). nonetheless, they provide free shuttle service on schedules for residents who go to to work, and for those who go shopping.
thanks, bert! 🙂
I was going to ask about the rates too. that’s not bad at all.
agree! for almost everything that’s provided, the rates are so reasonable!