If you have been following my recent guide/review post, you would have found out that I recently went to Melaka (also known as Malacca) last weekend with both my mum and my girlfriend for a 2D1N trip.

I stayed at The Pines Melaka.

The hotel is a 4 star hotel conveniently located close to the main attractions (approximately 1.5km away from the city centre). The hotel had great reviews on Expedia  (4.2/5) and appears to have won a fair number of awards:

The room rates on Expedia were surprisingly affordable for a four star hotel at S$80 a night (despite the last minute booking I made). A post trip check revealed that the prices can be as low as S$54 a night.

As I was travelling with in a group of three, I was deciding between getting two separate rooms or just splurging on a suite. It turned out that there was nothing for me to ponder over as a suite would cost the same as two separate rooms. So throwing any hesitation out of the window, I booked for the first time in my life a hotel suite.

Checking-in at The Pines Melaka

The lobby is spacious with 4 check-in counters. 

Service was prompt with the counter staff inviting me to go to the available counter. The entire process took no more than 5 minutes with the staff verifying my passport details and also settling the necessary room deposit and the new Malaysian Tourist Tax which is based on the number of nights stayed and the number of rooms booked. These added up to MYR112 (MYR100 as deposit, MYR2 for the local government tax and another MYR10 for the new tax).

The lobby’s decor was simple but pleasant to the eye. It gave a new modern vibe with artistic undertones. I think one major area is the waiting area at the lobby as it sets the mood every time you go in or out of the hotel. The waiting area looked inviting with the big comfortable sofa set and those huge pillows.

Every corner you turn you will likely be greeted with some decorative art. This is even so for the floor numbers at the lift lobby on each floor; the hotel had used the opportunity to beautify what would normally have been a plain display:

Executive Suite at the Pines Melaka

Living Room

Spacious. Inviting. Comfortable. These are some words that I will use to describe the suite I got.

As you enter the room, you are greeted by a well lit living room that opens up to your own personal balcony with a coffee table. There is also a dining bar area where you can prepare your own cup of coffee or tea or laze around with your mates and have a drink late into the night. The room comes with complimentary packets of tea and coffee and 4 bottles of mineral water. A sink is installed by the bar area making it convenient to wash up or get water for your boiling kettle.

Around the corner are the bedrooms.

Master bedroom

There’s a master bedroom with its own ensuite washroom, dressing area, television and its own private balcony with two deck chairs:

Second bedroom

There’s also a secondary bedroom serviced by a separate washroom:

While the toiletries (generic hotel toiletries) are nothing to boast about compared with those I had in Kaohsiung,Taiwan and/or Hilton, Shekou , the room itself was value for money. Being much cheaper and also bigger than those I stayed in before.

Transport around Melaka

If you are in Melaka (or in Malaysia generally), I suggest using Uber or Grab to get around town.

The prices are very affordable. I never paid more than MYR6 per trip during my entire stay there and normally averaged around MYR4 to MYR5 per trip either to or from the hotel.

The waiting times are also short and I normally get picked up in 3 to 5 minutes. Just make sure when booking at busy locations to specify in the notes to driver section where you are waiting and hopefully with some reference to a particular landmark.

Sleep

If you ever tried waking up early to catch a morning bus to Melaka and then clearing an afternoon’s worth of itinerary before hitting a night market, you will comprehend the meaning of “exhaustion”. We were dead tired when we retired for the night.

Having showered, we made ourselves cups of tea before lazing on the sofa in the living room and watching TV. I vaguely remembered watching “Keeping Up with the Joneses” with Gal Gadot being part of the cast. Yes, I was so tired that I don’t really remember the plot. The sofa felt great though.

Once the movie was over, I went back to my room. The bed called out to me. It was firm but not hard and the sheets soft. Perfect!

For those light sleepers, the rooms have rather thick curtains. You don’t have to worry about being awaken by the morning sun if you wish to sleep in.

Breakfast Buffet

The room came with a complimentary breakfast buffet at the cafeteria on the ground floor. The cafeteria is well sized such that we did not have to wait long for tables to be ready despite it being a busy Sunday morning.

The buffet spread was good and featured both local and international cuisine:

One interesting thing about this Buffet Breakfast was that the waffle counter was open and so was the ice cream freezer. Ice cream for breakfast!!! Every kids’ (including myself) dream come true.

Are you going to stay at The Pines for your next trip?

Why not check it and other hotels out on Expedia.

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