I stayed at the Kowloon Hotel for 4 night, 5 days (on the 12th floor in a Harbour View room) at the end of my trip down from the North to the South of China. The Kowloon Hotel was supposed to be the ultimate, how bitterly disappointed I was. Although the location was very good you are at the rear of the very grand and beautiful Peninsula hotel, they have a lot of deliveries.
The room…. you get 2 complimentary bottles of water then you are on your own. The bedroom is tiny for 2 people. (Their photos are misleading), there is no room for luggage, a harbour view room is a couple of inches of water, you can’t tell its a harbour. The wardrobe is only 15" wide and yes, I did measure it. Although it stated a double room, you would presume that it means there is room for 2 when it actually means its a double bed. There are only 2 drawers and these are in the bedside table, you have to leave your luggage up on end and use them. The cleaning of the room - they missed a dirty glass which was left for 3 days and I found the bath to be grimy. Be careful when coming out of the shower as the water is slow to go down and you could easily slip....The rooms also has an adjoining door , the couple next door had coughs, lets just say I felt their pain!!!
Check in was rushed and impersonal, I asked to upgrade to a room with more room and was told flatly no (I wasnt after a freebie) - no reason was given. As I had already paid for the room, I had no choice but to stay there. I asked if I could have internet in my room and yes I could for 130 HKD for 24 hours straight, however, I was also told that if I came off the internet then I would have to start a fresh 130HKD, the internet is free in the harbour anyway, this meant that you could not put your ipad/laptop in the safe..
The cafe, which is not a restaurant, was rushed, from the paper serviettes to the paper place mats everything is disposable, even the customers, its not a relaxing environment.
We were told we had to checkout at 12 noon even though our flight was not until Midnight, we asked if there was a room where we could shower (its 34 degrees and humid at night and your clothes just stick to you, a shower is vital before a 12 hour 30 minute flight), I was told that this was not an option and that I could use the YMCA for 15HKD...this just about sums it up.
I opted to use the toilets for a quick wash and spoke to an Australian lady who told me that friends of hers had had a late check out - this was not available to us!!! Perhaps they should all sing from the same hymn sheet.
Its a shame really, I spent a fortune on this trip and will not remember how wonderful Hong Kong was but will remember how bad the Kowloon Hotel is. This was supposed to be a four star hotel, I have no idea how they got this rating.