The Place The Westin Langkawi Resort & Spa is located near the Kuah town of the island, a good 25 minutes by taxi (fixed price at MYR51) from the Langkawi International. While not a new property, was looking forward to visiting the resort again after my initial stay here some six years back; which I had very fond memories of.

The Rooms Well, the rooms had little changes since then though. The consolation is the seemingly good upkeep and maintenance of the property, with my main gripe of the room being the aged toilet. The heavenly beds definitely did wonders, pampering me into two deep-sleep nights during my stay here.

The Facilities The infinity pool, 24-hour gym, tennis courts and the perpetually fully booked heavenly spa will keep everyone occupied here. Or you can just chill at the comfort of your room, with all rooms enjoying a balcony, facing either the pool or gardens and if you are lucky, a view of the Float (i.e. The Jetty).

Thumbs up to the pools here, with the sun beds dotting either of three pools at Westin; allowing all guests to comfortably enjoy soaking in the sun, or hiding under that green umbrellas, armed with their read of the day.

For gym-goers, be warned that the fitness centre is a short walk away from the main compound. Although the gym rats shouldn’t be complaining since you didn’t expect an easy time at the gym, or did you? #firstworldproblems

Another thing to rejoice about, or should I start expecting this as a norm in all hotels now anyway, free Wifi is available throughout the resort, from the lobby, to your rooms, to the pool side, the gym and yes, the restaurants too.

The Restaurants If I may, this is where I was left disappointed with at Westin Langkawi. The daily breakfast at Seasonal Taste was average at best, while the fresh fruit juices and wide selections were good, the spreads were not least appetizing.

Our lunch at Tide, the beachfront restaurant of the resort, was equally (if not, more so) disappointing. Even the local selections here, including their Nasi Ayam, were poorly executed with over-cooked rice and cold meats. Slow service and lethargic attempts to answer service calls left diners fuming under the hot tropic sun.

The Rants Being one of the first major hotels to start hosting guests on the island, Westin Langkawi has been a popular choice since. This will change soon though, with fellow Starwood chain St Regis opening right beside Westin and The Andaman (The Luxury Collection) at the far northwestern end of the island; and with the other hotel chains including Four Seasons, Meritus, Berjaya and Taj all having properties dotting the island, Westin will probably need to do more to make this a truly “heavenly experience”.

For now, let me wander into my next wanderlust destination.

Westin Langkawi Resort & Spa
Jalan Pantai Dato Syed Omar
07000 Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia
Tel: +60 4 9608888

For more information, do check out the official Website.

Ranted by The Rantee