Else Kuala Lumpur

Else Kuala Lumpur

Else Kuala Lumpur occupies the conserved Lee Rubber Building in downtown Kuala Lumpur, a fixture of the Chinatown streets around Petaling Street and Central Market, with the Sri Mahamariamman Temple and Jamek Mosque both a walk away. It keeps to 49 rooms across seven floors, a scale that lets the boutique-and-design label mean something rather than sit on a brochure. Rooms carry a minibar, television and slippers as standard, while the Terrace Suite on the fifth floor opens onto a 34-square-metre corner terrace with wraparound windows framing Chinatown, and the Else Suite claims the building's highest guest floor with a private balcony running from bedroom to living area. Two restaurants anchor the ground level, Raw for its Asian menu and Yellow Fin Horse beside it, plus a bar for evenings that do not need to end early. A pool, a gym, a library and a sun deck round out the amenities without turning the place into a resort. Guests are asked for a 200 MYR per-day damage deposit at check-in, and hotel policy requires unmarried couples sharing a room to carry a marriage certificate or risk being asked to book two rooms, worth knowing before arrival. What Else has that its neighbours mostly do not is the conserved building's original bones, repurposed as a Design Hotels member with floatation pods and Aesop toiletries in place of standard hotel polish. It suits a traveller who wants Chinatown's noise within reach and a quiet room to retreat to. It is not the choice for anyone chasing a resort pool or a lobby built for scale. Else Kuala Lumpur occupies the conserved Lee Rubber Building in Chinatown, a 49-room Design Hotels member with a pool, gym, two restaurants and suites built around private terraces. It suits travellers who want heritage streets outside the door, not those after resort scale.