Review: Adina Apartment Hotel Melbourne

Assalamualaikum!

Just a short and simple review after long silence.

Cleanliness: Since we took an apartment with kitchen facilities, we really need a spacious house to kick start the day. The housekeeping was good, but still, blame the sardines and whatever stocks that we brought from Malaysia that keeps the house smelly.

Location: Very close to Queen Market but still quite a walking distance. You may take the city tram for free as long as you travel within the vicinity. Very close to malls.

Staff: Staffs are super friendly and helpful! We like the facts that they really tried their best to attend their customers. Just ask the City Map from the counter and they are more than glad to helps you.

Wifi: For this part, it's kinda frustrating that the wifi is limited for daily usage. They gave you certain amount for daily usage despite the quantity of devices. But trust me, we fought just to save the data.

Comfort: 5 out of 5. Yeay. Full marks! Everything works well.

Facilities: It's a 4.5 star so they do provide basic facilities for free. Just search for the name if you are curious.

Value for money: Definitely. For the amount that we paid, they better treat their customers well. Recommended. Nice city view and spacious apartment.

Address: 189 Queen Street, Melbourne CBD, 3000 Melbourne, Australia

 

View from the balcony

Complimentary coffee and tea bags

Working desk

Kitchen Counter Top. We brought these from Malaysia, bukan complimentary from hotel. Haha.

Apartment interior view.

Second bedroom

Master bedroom

Just look at the walk-in closet guyssss! It was so huge that I want it all to myself. Can I have this at home please? Anyone? 

Room connected to the closet

Laundry area

Kitchen area

Hall

Kitchen area

View from balcony

We went to Melbourne few years back so I can't recall the year. Anyway, I would recommend this apartment hotel should you travel in a large group and I am not gonna lie, the stay is quite pricey but we are willing to splurge for this. 

I miss travelling, we all do. Let's pray for a better tomorrow and for the world is free from Covid.

Stay safe everyone. Have a blessed Ramadhan.

"You came to my world, not knowing that you will leave a scar on me. 

You walk away, knowing that you leave me in pain and hopeless."

Review: Benito Hotel, Hong Kong

Assalamualaikum!

Sorry for the long silence, been carried away with life matters. Somehow, I guess I've lost the passion to write and where has all the passion gone? Whatever it is, let's continue with the not-so-fabulous-review-writing.

HOTEL BENITO (Click me!)

Okay, what's up with this hotel? First thing first, Hong Kong is known for its high-rises city and accommodation is one of the biggest expense to consider when travelling to Hong Kong. And, we, without doing further study about Hong Kong, bought a flight ticket for 5 days during the most busy and peak season while only few months left before the trip..luckily we don't go for more days since most of the hotel are fully booked. Apartments are done, hotels were mostly full and where should we stay?

Alhamdulillah, Benito has come to the rescue where they still have vacant rooms for 5 to 6 people and seeing from its price-wise and location-wise, we definitely gonna go for it. We would strongly recommend for you to book directly from their website since the price are wayyy cheaper than those offered by the agents. To spice things up, Benito offers more facilities to guests whom went through their website such as free breakfast, unlimited wifi and access to their lounge - completes with tidbits, juices and free refill of instant coffee and tea. Doesn't that makes you happy? As a Muslim, we can't just simply dine anywhere and having a free flow of hot chocolate drink after a tiring day really help us.  

Let me tell you something, their wifi were superbly fast and the location is good. I would say, if you're coming from the airport, both MTR (Tsim Sha Tsui station, Exit B2) and airport bus (A21) are convenient since the MTR station and bus station are just miles away from the hotel. You can ask for special arrangement with the hotel but it is advisable for you to just take a train or bus since it's cheaper.

Please do not expect something lavish when you book this hotel as this is not a 4 star or even 3 star hotel. For us, as long as it pays the price and worthy, we are more than satisfied. We book a room for 6 people and we get a 3 queen size bed with a partition that separate the beds and we called it a space for privacy, together with a separate shower and toilet. It is really comfy, spacious and clean too. Oh, we met other Malaysian staying at this hotel so do expect to meet fellow Malaysian in this hotel.

I'm bad at taking good toilet photos.. 

See? Separate shower and toilet

1st queen bed with partition. Extra privacy, isn't it?

2 queen beds on another partition side

Call it lounge, call it cafe, call it anything you like

Business center on each lounge corner

Last but not least, you'll get best price if you book early and fret not, their receptionist able to speak just the perfect amount of English. Oh, not to forget, to my fellow Muslims, you can perform your prayer at the Kowloon Mosque or dine anywhere nearby as Tsim Sha Tsui are famous for its halal restaurants. 

Attraction places are just around the corner but still, expect some tiring walking to these places:

• Nathan Road
• Kowloon Mosque
• Kowloon Park
• Jordan Road
• Avenue of Stars
• Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade
• Symphony of Light
• Park Lane Boulevard
• Mira Hotel (in case if you're looking for a hotel)
• Imperial Hotel (in case if you're looking for a hotel)
• BP International Hotel (in case if you're looking for a hotel)

Got to go! Thanks for staying with us! Happy reading and happy holiday!

p/s: Reminder to those staying at this hotel. Benito Hotel's entrance located at the junction of Cameron Lane. You might miss their entrance, so please look for pharmacy or Tissot Watch Shop if I'm not mistaken. Peace!

Will this time be different? Change your attitude but don't lose yourselves.

Review: Abjar Grand Hotel, Dubai

Assalamualaikum!

Sekarang tiba-tiba ada mood nak post as many entry as possible. Now, I'll introduce you to Abjar Grand Hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Anything in Dubai is ridiculously expensive, just name it. From hotels to metro, everything costs you a dollar.

Abjar Hotel is a 4 star hotel located in Deira, just 5 to 10 minutes drive from Dubai International Airport. The nearest metro station is Abu Hail Station which only few miles away from the hotel. Keluar saja dari hotel, sudah boleh nampak Abu Hail station. Location, I would say just okay since it's nearby to metro station but quite far away from the local market. Please read local market as souq or shopping mall. The area are quite busy during the night but fret not, it's easier to get taxi or bus around the area. This is how Abjar Hotel looks like from far, so expect some noise during the day or night if you're facing the main road. 

We stayed here for 3 nights with breakfast and lunch provided. Foods are okay as they serve local cuisines and simple Western dishes but the seating area in the restaurant seems limited during the breakfast time on peak season. Wifi is chargeable on daily basis and no free wifi even at their lobby - which we hate this part so much! We really need free wifi access everytime we are away from home so this is one of the bad side.

Rooms are dark but spacious, and their interior looks classy with a gist of Arabic and modern Western design. They only provide free shuttle to Mamzar beach so don't expect any shuttle to shopping mall. One thing for sure, upon your check-in, receptionist would request for your passport and hold it until you clear up the Tourist Tax. Yes! Starting 2014, all visitors staying at any hotels in UAE are expected to pay Tourist Tax in conjunction with their upcoming Expo 2020. Save some money on this before you splurge em'. 15 dirham per night per room, so we had to pay 45 dirham for one room for 3 nights. 

Abjar Grand Hotel

Toilet

Entrance

Room interior for Superior Twin Room

Rest area

Twin Sharing Room

Looks classy and neat

Gelap kan?

Abu Hail metro station

If you plan to stay here, do visit their rooftop swimming pool. You can get amazing view of the Dubai city at night. There will be a non-stop flight departing from Dubai Airport and you can chill out on the rooftop while seeing the flights went off the runway. Till soon! Happy reading and happy holiday!

"Travel the world, it is your choice to live the moment"

Review: City Hotel 35 Luu Van Lang St

Assalamualaikum

Entry yang dah lama sangat tertangguh. Walaupun hanya ke Ho Chi Minh,  Vietnam pada awal Mac 2014, namun, dengan bilangan ahli jemaah travel yang ramai memang menjadikan family trip kali ini sangat meriah. Alhamdulillah, ada rezeki kami sekeluarga untuk pergi bercuti beramai-ramai. Nasib masih ada bilik kerana kami book bilik pada tempoh yang agak lewat memandangkan jumlah jemaah ahli yang agak ramai.

Untuk ahli jemaah travel seramai 25 orang - 19 dewasa dan 6 kanak-kanak dan bayi, kami book 2 family room dan 6 superior room. Tapi, gambar-gambar di bawah hanya untuk family room sebab kami stay di family room. Family room di hotel ini memang highly recommended sebab sangat luas, selesa dan affordable untuk mereka yang melancong bersama ahli keluarga yang ramai. Untuk bilik superior juga, bagi kami masih selesa tetapi tandasnya tak disediakan bath tub. 

Hotel ini juga terletak berdekatan dengan tempat-tempat tarikan pelancongan di kota Ho Chi Minh. Untuk mereka yang datang just nak shopping, memang kami recommend hotel ni sebab selesa dan affordable. Ruang dalam bilik pun masih membolehkan anda untuk bersolat dengan selesa. Untuk mereka yang tak berapa sukakan bunyi bising, memang sesuai menginap di hotel ini sebab ianya tak terletak di jalan utama. Tak adalah bunyi bising sangat time nak tidur, lagi-lagi bila siang penuh dengan aktiviti shopping. Itupun, berapa kali ulang alik hotel - kedai sambil bawa barang dagangan yang tak pernah surut.

Kami book hotel melalui Agoda, itupun lepas dah puas baca review dan cari hotel dengan lokasi yang paling dekat dengan Ben Thanh Market memandangkan trip kali ini, ada ramai juga sedara-mara, kanak-kanak dan mereka yang berumur join sekali. Jadi, hotel ini antara option yang terbaik bagi kami even time nak check-in macam kelam kabut sikit. Hotel tak besar dan lobby pun kecil je. Lif pun kena tunggu and take turns time nak check-in tapi overall, still okay lagi bagi kami. Receptionist boleh speaking, so, jangan risau ye! :)

First double bed room

Second double bed room

Room with city view

Complimentary Vietnam coffee and green tea set

Toilet

With bath tub

Banyak je hotel kat Ho Chi Minh city ni, jadi terpulang pada anda nak book hotel yang mana. Untuk rm50+- semalam seorang includes breakfast, memang sangat berpatutan bagi kami yang datang ramai-ramai ni.

learn to give than to receive, not to receive without giving as the more you give, the more you'll get

InshaAllah :)

Tips: Musafir Travel Cooker

Assalamualaikum

Since ada yang bertanya, maka terjadilah entry ini. Sebenarnya, dah lama nak buat entry pasal travel cooker ni tapi selalu tertangguh...tertangguh ye bukan saja bertangguh. Oleh kerana, kebetulan semua laptop rosak, jadi, perfect timing untuk come out with new entry selalunya terganggu. Alhamdulillah, curi masa sikit nak post another entry. Kami bukan dapat sponsor pun untuk entry ini, just nak tolong travellers yang tengah sibuk mencari travel cooker untuk kegunaan semasa melancong. 

Bagi kami, travel cooker ini memang sangat convenient and reliable. Very compact and space saving. Actually, dapat tahu pasal travel cooker ni pun bila dalam misi food hunting with family. Kebetulan, bila nak bayar dekat cashier, nampak travel cooker kat display table mereka. Apa lagi, macam pucuk dicita ulam mendatang la. Haha. Boleh guna ke ayat ni? Tak kisahlah. Bila sesi soal jawab di cashier berlansung, rupanya mereka memang menjual travel cooker ni. Seriously, this travel cooker is highly recommended for travellers! Even kalau bukan travellers pun, travel cooker ni still convenient kepada mereka yang selalu outstation.

Front View

Side View - Sorry, most of the pictures are blurry!

Another side view - Travel cooker set

This is how it looks!

Maaf kerana gambar tak berapa nak clear sebab penulis blog gelabah nak cepat, konon-konon busy. Though the pictures was taken by slr, the outcomes wasn't that good. Siapa cakap pakai dslr, gambar mesti jadi cantik? Skill dan teknik juga penting kalau nak gambar jadi cantik. Tiada gambar close-up kerana "what you see is what you get". Gambaran yang diberi kat side view packaging travel cooker ini memang sama dengan apa yang anda akan terima. 

Bila beli travel cooker ni, anda tak perlu nak risau whether travel cooker ni boleh diguna atau tidak di negara yang berlainan voltage sebab travel cooker ini dilengkapi dengan dual voltage. Boleh adjust voltage sama ada 240V atau 110V, or more or less macam itulah. Travel cooker ni juga dilengkapi dengan adorable spoon-fork - hanya satu sahaja dan bukan set. Jadi, kalau nak guna travel cooker ni, it is advisable to bring your own spoon-fork set. Lagi senang dan tak leceh time nak makan sebab provided spoon-fork adalah sangat kecil. 

Berminat? Kami tak jual tapi boleh click SINI dan dapatkan satu untuk anda! Oh, kami dah beli 2 untuk koleksi family sebab travel cooker ni memang convenient. Sambil masak nasi, sambil panaskan lauk. Iyelah, time travel kan nak kejar masa. Bila dah penat sehari suntuk berjalan, mesti perut dah lapar. Tapi, kalau ada satu je, nak kena tunggu nasi masak dulu baru boleh reheat lauk. Boleh buat gaduh nak tunggu makanan ready ni. Haha.

Kalau anda stay area Selangor or Kuala Lumpur, maybe boleh pergi directly kat restoran Hj Sharin Low (012-373 1999) atau hubungi nombor yang tertera kat kotak Musafir Travel Cooker (03-5121 7719). Kami just pergi kat restoran je sebab alang-alang nak beli travel cooker, bolehlah alas perut sekali. Tiga iklan dalam satu entry. Haha :)

p/s: Alhamdulillah, dah ramai mula dapatkan khidmat consultant kami. Bagi mereka yang berminat untuk kursus-kursus perkhidmatan seperti MPKFM, terutama kepada jabatan-jabatan dan agensi kerajaan, bolehlah hubungi kami di sarismatc@yahoo.com :)

Tak salah berkongsi rezeki kerana dalam setiap bahagian rezeki kita 

terselit rezeki hamba Allah yang lain

Review: Osaka Floral Inn Namba

Assalamualaikum

Alhamdulillah, we safely arrived! We managed to survived in Kansai without getting any tour guide assistance, and yes, still within the estimated budget. As usual, accommodation would be the highest priority for anyone travelling away from their home country. Dan macam biasa, apartment memang jadi keutamaan kami bila travel negara yang memang susah nak cari makan...lagi - lagi bila pergi dengan parent yang memang perlukan nasi. Bagi mereka yang memang fasih nak bercakap dalam Nihongo, memang nak cari makan kat Jepun ni bukanlah masalah besar bagi mereka. Okay, back to the topic.

Since kami book hotel agak lewat - walaupun still few months earlier, tapi, most apartment are fully booked. Mungkin tiada rezeki kami nak stay kat apartment di Kansai ni. Though we managed to covered few places in Kansai, we still had our 4 nights stay in Osaka. Maka, disebabkan apartment dah fully booked, kami pun terpaksalah beralih ke hotel. Nak cari hotel with the finest spot and close proximity to subway station pun dah jadi satu problem lagi since kami memang focus untuk cari any hotel within the Namba district, sebab Namba itself is an attraction spot in Osaka. Lagipun, bila pergi dengan parent yang tak berapa sihat, keutamaan untuk cari hotel yang betul-betul dekat dengan subway station memang on top of the list. Mula-mula memang dah jumpa satu hotel yang affordable and Muslims-friendly, unfortunately, that hotel (Dotonbori Hotel) was fully booked. Please take note that we made the reservation few months earlier, as if 8 to 9 months earlier. Maknanya, memang laku hotel-hotel kat Osaka ni. Time-time tak dapat hotel ni la start nervous sebab pelik kenapa cepat sangat dah fully booked walaupun tengah winter season. Luckily, Alhamdulillah, dapat satu hotel yang quite close to subway station and located exactly in Namba area and Dotonbori street. Yeay, boleh shopping malam-malam.

A dalam map di atas refer to Osaka Floral Inn Namba. Lokasi business hotel ini memang strategik dan betul-betul terletak di antara Namba Walk exit B24 dan B26. The hotel were very close to Nipponbashi Station, Den-Den Town, Namba City, Dotonbori street, Kuromon Market, Ebisubashi-Suji and Shinsaibashi-Suji. If you're planning to go to Nara and Kobe, you can just take the train from Kintetsu-Nipponbashi Station. It's a very short walk to Nipponbashi Station and also Namba Station. Taking the Nankai Line from the airport to Namba? Definitely a Yes! since you can cut-off the waiting time and experiencing hassle free with no traffic congestion. Just take the Nankai Line from the airport to Nankai - Namba Station and follow the underground passageway to Namba Walk where it is easier for travellers with massive baggage. Mungkin bila tiba di Nankai-Namba Station, anda akan sesat tapi just follow the direction given. Dah sampai di Namba Walk, anda akan jumpa banyak exit, so sila cari exit B26 untuk ke Osaka Floral Inn Namba. Macam kami, bila banyak sangat buat research pasal laluan subway ni, ada orang cakap Nankai Line ni agak jauh dari Namba Station (padahal boleh ikut laluan underground straight sampai Namba Walk), so kami pun naik Nankai Line dari airport ke Nankai-Tengachaya Station dan transfer ke laluan subway Sakai-suji Line (Tengachaya Station) menuju ke Nipponbashi Station. Mana-mana laluan pun okay sebenarnya sebab bila turun di Nipponbashi Station, memang lagi dekat untuk pergi ke hotel.

Rate hotel boleh tahan untuk servis yang diberikan sebab hotel-hotel kat Jepun ni memang mahal-mahal pun. Tapi, diingatkan yang lobby hotel terletak di Level 2 jadi anda perlu naik eskalator menuju ke Lobby. The bad news about the hotel is, there will be only a one way escalator that will running downward till afternoon and they will change it to upward from afternoon till the next morning. So, jika anda tiba di hotel ini pada waktu pagi dengan luggage yang banyak, sila naik ke Lobby dan jumpa dengan Receptionist untuk request angkat luggage ke hotel. Nasib baiklah kami tanya dulu sebelum angkat luggage berat-berat tu naik tangga. Lega bila dapat tahu ada hidden lift untuk staff sahaja. Disebabkan time check-in hotel pada pukul 3 petang, so kami just tinggalkan je luggage dekat Lobby sementara tunggu waktu untuk check-in. Check-out time pula pada pukul 10 pagi.

Since kami pergi bercuti 1 family, terpaksa la book dua bilik and gladly, we got both rooms on the same floor. Phewww. Lega sebab nanti bila nak makan dan bersiap untuk berjalan, just lari pergi bilik sebelah je. Kalau anda bernasib baik, anda akan dapat room view facing bangunan-bangunan di Dotonbori dan jika anda tak kisah bunyi bising, kebanyakan bilik akan menghadap jalan besar yang agak sibuk tak kira malam atau siang. For Muslims, nanti boleh refer another blog post for halal food info's, InsyaAllah halal dimakan sebab kami pun dapat info dari kawan yang belajar di Jepun. Berdekatan dengan hotel juga terdapat banyak kedai-kedai makan dan shopping street sesuai untuk mereka yang non-Muslims untuk food hunting. Even kat bawah hotel pun ada Family Mart - lebih kurang macam 7E untuk memudahkan anda yang menginap di hotel ini untuk beli barang-barang keperluan. Kalau nak beli barang mentah dan barang basah seperti taugeh dan lain-lain, boleh la cari di Kuromon Market. Overall, the stay was okay for us and we met Malaysians staying at the hotel as well. But, if you're looking for a wider room space, you might consider another hotel around the Namba city. Pictures may not do the justice, so, please browse along the hotel reviews before sealing the deals with them.

Above pictures are double bed room which can occupy only 2 pax in one room. Bear in mind that, most hotels in Japan has strict policy on the number of person staying in a room. So, if you need to accommodate more people, it's either you pay more or just find another hotel. Bilik untuk bertiga tak sempat nak snap sebab dah totally exhausted bila check-in bilik malam tu. Bilik untuk tiga orang agak sempit kalau nak dibandingkan dengan bilik berdua. Tapi, kalau setakat nak rehat dan tidur, tak ada masalah even bilik sempit sebab price and service provided agak memuaskan. Rugi la kalau pergi negara orang tapi stay dalam bilik je kan. The best thing about the hotel, definitely, the location. Despite of the room condition, I would give extra marks for the strategic location and would love to stay here again. 7/10 :)

'Biasakan yang betul dan betulkan yang biasa'