iO Hotel

Stayed here for 7 nights. I arrived late in the night after landing in KL airport. It was near midnight when I checked in, but it was no trouble at all and the staff were very cheery even though it was so late. The check-in process involved a description of the iO Hotels and how the facilities and pods worked. The staff even have picture cards as they talk through the information. I thought this was very professional and clearly the iO Hotel has put some thought into making a good first impression on the guests. The reception area is very welcoming. There’s some comfortable chairs between the entrance and reception, with a living room style area next to that with couches, a big screen TV and a bookcase with an eclectic mix of books. It almost looks like a home away from home. The café area also has various board games for entertainment. All the dorms rooms are on the upper floors with a lift available. As my dorm was only 1 floor up, I just walked and can’t comment on the lift. Once on the first floor, guests are not supposed to walk around with their outside shoes in the dorms. The iO Hotel provides a shoe rack to place your shoes and plenty of slippers for the guests to use. The dorm room I stayed in had 12 pods arranged against two walls with a space in the center for walking. The pods actually look pretty cool and look like sci-fi. The pods are stacked 2 high, I got one of the lower level pods and climbing in involves sliding open the pod door, which also shuts once inside for complete privacy. The pod is about 1 meter wide, 2 meters lengthwise and about 1 meter high. The mattress is quite thin, but comfortable enough. The dorm is air-conditioned and inside the pod is also quite cool, but it does have its own air inlets, which are controllable. You have a thin blanket, which worked fine for me and a lower temperature works better for me anyway. The facilities inside the pod are pretty good. There’s a TV (the iO Hotel provides headphones as part of your welcome pack). I only tried the TV once and the channels are a mix of local Malay and international (English) programs. The pod has several lighting options, including reading lights, night lights and a mirror light. 2 USB charging ports are available, but I found these to be very slow charging, slower than even a standard USB B port, but if you’re charging overnight it should not be a problem. There is also a (I think) universal electrical socket and the power output from that is fine. The shared bathroom and toilets are outside the room on the floor. There are two sets of bathrooms, one for boys and another for girls. The boys bathroom had 3 showers, 2 urinals and 2 toilet cubicles. Both are tiled and very clean. The hot water is adjustable on the water heater, but works great with no trouble getting hot water any time of the day. Each of the showers also has dispensers for soap. The bathroom area also has a long “dressing” table with mirror, ironing board and a hair dryer. Each pod also comes with a locker located by the bathrooms. The lockers have a similar design to the pods and are also numbered the same as your pod. If I had one criticism, it’s the size of the locker. I only have a medium-sized backpack and it was a tight fit. I did notice many of the guests had to keep their luggage in the hall or dorm because it was impossible to fit inside the locker. The two staffs at reception are just amazing, they really make an effort to be friendly, are thoughtful and help make your stay an enjoyable one. The two also run the onsite café where I often got my morning and lunchtime coffees. The café also has other drinks at the café, instant noodles and other light snacks. Location wise, there isn’t much around the Pudu area. The Pudu LRT station is about 15 minutes walk away. From there it’s maybe 15 minutes to most of the tourist attractions in the city. There are also lots of local style eateries within a 10-minute walking radius.of the iO Hotel. Although you’ll have to speak Malay to communicate effectively in these restaurants or be prepared for a lot of gesticulating. Overall, I had an excellent stay at IO Hotel. The facilities are excellent and the iO Hotel has clearly put a lot of thought into making stays comfortable and enjoyable. All the staff are great and their friendliness went a long way to contributing to a pleasant stay. Even though it’s not in the heart of tourist KL, it’s a great base for exploring the city at a great prices for excellent facilities.