Hotel Excelsior

This was our 3rd hotel stay in 5 days, and our
2nd time returning to Excelsior Ipoh after a year. The lobby may look simple, but the courteous staff and the comfortable, spacious, clean, and well-maintained rooms—complete with a pleasant fragrance—were just as consistent as my last visit. Our group appreciated the well-lit accommodation.
Our twin double room came with a well-furnished bathroom featuring a bathtub, stand shower, and rain shower. The buffet breakfast was simple but delicious, complemented by a well-set dining area and attentive staff. The buffet area was constantly maintained, kept neat and pleasant, and the staff were courteous and quick to clear tables.
A comfortable stay with good gastronomical delights—truly an experience worth returning for, and the best of my 5-day trip.

Rooms are old and dirty, musky smell, common area has intoxicating freshener

Although this hotel is a bit old, it offers great location to nearby attractions

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Wonderful First Stay at Hotel Excelsior Ipoh!

This was our first time visiting Ipoh, and Hotel Excelsior truly made it a memorable and pleasant experience for us!

From the moment we checked in, we were warmly welcomed by the friendly front desk staff (special thanks to the kind Kak who checked us in with a smile!). The highlight of our stay was undoubtedly our dining experience at the Dulang Coffee House, where Ms. Sumanthi Menon, the manager, went above and beyond to ensure we were comfortable and well taken care of. Her attention to detail and gracious hospitality stood out.

We would also like to thank Mr Hashim and another Encik, the lovely team members at the coffee house who served us so kindly and made every meal enjoyable.

The hotel is located in a great spot, within walking distance of many local eateries and shops, which made exploring Ipoh even more convenient.

Thank you once again to the entire team at Hotel Excelsior for making us feel so welcome. We hope to return and stay at this lovely hotel again soon!

Good location, easy check-in and checkout. Property abit outdated but still comfortable.

The food are very good. two person doesn't need rm50. The best service. Everyone should come and have fun with family. Amazing experience. We all can have a clean place during holidays and have a happy hour over here❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

The room was clean and had a cozy feel to it. The beds and pillow were comfortable. the check in and check process was smooth. The staff were accommodating and helpful especially one of the front office staff (supervisor or manager) who went out of her way to assist. There was a nice spread for breakfast.

I have stayed at this hotel several times over the years, mainly because of its excellent location right in the heart of Ipoh. It is within walking distance of many famous eateries, shops and local attractions, making it an easy choice when convenience is a priority. However, this most recent stay was unfortunately my most disappointing one to date.

Let me start with the check-in experience which was a major letdown. The process was incredibly slow and frustrating. Despite several staff members being present, none seemed to take initiative to assist the guests who were clearly queuing and waiting. Instead, they appeared to be walking around aimlessly without addressing the long line. The check-in system itself is very outdated and overly manual which contributes to the delay. It is 2025 and most hotels now have digital or semi-digital check-in processes that are far more efficient. I genuinely hope the management considers upgrading their system and provides proper training to the front desk staff to improve both speed and customer service awareness.

Another consistent issue I have faced over multiple stays is room assignment, specifically regarding bed preference. I always book a king-bedded room but not once have I actually received one. Every time I ask about it, the response is always the same as that king-bedded rooms are reserved for tour group members. This is not only unreasonable but also unfair to other paying guests. It gives the impression that unless you are part of a tour, your preferences will not be honored which I find both ironic and disappointing.

For this stay, I was given a superior room with two single beds instead. The room itself was of adequate size and came with the expected basic amenities. However, there were still several noticeable shortcomings. The air-conditioning unit was a major issue as it was far too warm and struggled to cool the room properly, even after several hours of being turned on. This made sleeping at night uncomfortable and certainly affected our overall rest and experience.

Additionally, the bathroom, while average in size was missing key items like hand towels and face towels which used to be provided during my previous stays. It is disappointing to see this kind of inconsistency as these are basic items that should come standard in any hotel room.

The TV quality was poor with blurry visuals and very limited channel options which shows a lack of upkeep.

Then there is the parking situation which continues to be a challenge. The access route to the parking area involves a steep and narrow winding driveway that requires serious maneuvering skills. It’s especially tricky for larger vehicles or inexperienced drivers. Parking here is not just inconvenient but it is actually stressful.

Overall, while I have appreciated this hotel’s location in the past, this recent experience has made me seriously reconsider returning. The service levels have declined and the lack of responsiveness and outdated systems are no longer acceptable, especially when better alternatives are becoming available nearby. In fact, I noticed that a newly refurbished large-scale hotel is opening just a five-minute walk away which offers potential guests another option and quite possibly, a better experience.

Unless the management takes these issues seriously in upgrading their check-in system, respecting bed preferences, ensuring comfortable room conditions, maintaining amenities and training staff to be more customer-focused, otherwise they risk losing repeat guests like me.

nice

Near the famous Dim Sum restaurant -Foh San

I had to go through a lot of hoops to get the room I reserved. They said they could not find my reservation and then said they will upgrade me to a room with one king bed when I specifically requested for two beds. After one hour of waiting and arguing, I got a room with two beds. Then the toilet water was running. The maintenance guys came but did not fix the problem so we ended sleeping with the sound of running water.

My family and I stayed at this hotel during our trip Ipoh from 28.01.2025 - 30.01.2025, a 2-night stay. We initially intended to extend our trip until 31.01.2025. However, on our second day, the cleaning service was so deplorable that it tainted our second night. On the third day, we were forced to leave because of this. To start with, there were 2 cleaners that entered the room on the 2nd day. One of them was a fair-skinned, Northern Indian boy. This boy was the reason we had to leave. On our first night, my family and I prepared tea and left the cups on the counter. The two cleaners who came in the next day, very reluctantly washed only one of the three used cups. The person who washed the cup was not even this Northern Indian boy. My mother observed this boy shout at the other cleaner for washing this single cup. At the time that this transpired, she did not even realise that only one cup was washed. Around 2pm on our second day in Ipoh, my sister decided to make cups of tea for the three of us. When she removed the cups from the counter, soiled tea bags from two cups fell on to the mat and into my luggage bag, on my clean clothes. It was then that we realised, the Northern Indian cleaner had maliciously put the cups with the soiled tea bags (upside down, to give an appearance of having washed it) as they were, without having washed or replaced them. At this time, I made a call to Housekeeping to alert them of this incident. When the boy returned to help clean the mess that the CLEANERS MADE FOR REASONS UNKNOWN TO US, given that this is a hotel and clean cups SHOULD NOT BE A COMMODITY, HE AGGRESSIVELY BANGED THE DOOR IN AN ATTEMPT TO INTIMIDATE US FOR MAKING A COMPLAINT. Please note that my family and I were all female and this intimidation tactic scared us. Upon entering the room, he rudely and with a heightened tone asked "What happened?", again with words to intimidate. He eventually, very reluctantly vacuumed the spot. We requested that the spot with tea be mopped but he refused, saying that IT NEEDS TO BE DRY FIRST. This is just one of two incidents. The second, and more important note here is that the BATHROOM WAS NOT WASHED. The cleaners simply vacuumed the spot. In my entire life, I have never experienced a hotel this disgusting in terms of hygiene values. As we had already made payment for two nights, we had to stay the night, with the soiled unmopped carpet and the horrendous odour from the bathroom (BECAUSE THE SHOWER DRAIN WAS CLOGGED FROM NOT BEING WASHED). I am now also forced to send all my clothes to laundry because there are tea stains on my brand new washed clothes. On our third day, when we made a complaint to Mr Erwin, he did nothing. When we made our complaint, he was apologetic but later, his tone changed. He became hostile. I am starting to wonder if this hotel is run by thugs. Everyone here takes on a tone of aggression and acts hostile. Perhaps it is because we were a group of women. The air of misogyny was oppressive to say the least.

Easy parking

Located in the town center, the hotel is convenient for walking access to most of the popular eateries and shops in the Ipoh town center.

I will recommend to friends.

very good must stay

Staff are friendly and polite. Hotel near shopping and eateries.

Great staff and complied to my hotel request and the room condition is acceptable for short stay, TV channel connection is terrible and the noise outside the room is not at my acceptable level especially when someone walk passed and talk or closing the hotel room door is pretty loud. Overall is still a pleasant hotel for short stay.

The hotel exactly around the main Ipoh. Can walk to Gerbang Malam, Concubine Lane and food court. Not so high expectation on the market. Cheap shoes and cloths only.

This is our second stay at this popular (sometimes extremely busy) hotel. The staff members are attentive, and the rooms are fine, although ours could have done with a lick of paint. Front facing rooms are subject to street noise, and a restaurant across the road has live music that doesn't sound that great. The fare in the hotel restaurant is what you'd expect, but there are plenty of kopitiams and cafes a short walk away. In that respect, the location is excellent. The hotel's laundry service is excellent, too. It's an affordable, comfortable stay in the heart of Ipoh.