35-Year-Old Hilton Kuching Revitalised With Refurbished Facilities, Meeting Rooms, and Grand Ballroom

Rojak Daily was invited to Hilton Kuching to experience its revamped facilities and enjoy the festivities at their relaunched Grand Ballroom and high tech meeting facilities. One thing we gleaned from the event was that the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhbition (MICE) industry is booming and that there are industries built solely on running MICE events.

There's one floor dedicated solely for meetings at Hilton Kuching— all of which feature a gorgeous view of the Sarawak River. Each meeting room is equipped with an 85-inch touchscreen TV with wireless connectivity and screen mirroring. The most premium room even comes with its own private his and hers bathroom.

Each meeting event can be customised with a dedicated menu, dish presentation, and individual plating for VIP guests. We asked who the most common customers are to Hilton's meeting rooms and they mentioned that government officials regularly used the meeting space.

The meeting rooms also double as offices for one day rentals with or without food so you can use it as a fancy office for a day. Another popular option is of course to include a stay at the hotel as well, which moves us right along to our experience.

We got the river view room and while we didn't come for a hotel review per se, our initial impressions of the revamp is that it has received an amazing glow up. From the huge 55-inch TV to the tastefully appointed bathroom, the new look injects new life into the aging hotel.

We loved the rain shower in particular, that was more akin to a waterfall. The water pressure was gorgeous paired with toiletries from Crabtree & Evelyn. The rooms have many eco-consicous touches with use of glass instead of bottled water and electricity that is turned off when you leave the room.

That said, we noticed some things that were a little disappointing like the lack of a coffee maker, lack of labels on the switches, and limited toiletries. This may be part of their eco conscious effort, but one tiny plastic bottle of body wash just wasn't enough for us.

Renovations are actually still on going for the higher floors at the time of writing and the 35-year-old elevators are due for replacement too. We look forward to visiting again once the Executive Floor is finished and the rooms are ready. We hope to see at least a Nespresso machine in those rooms (hint, hint).

During our stay, we managed to sample the ingenuity of the kitchen at Hilton Kuching and witnessed its commitment to using local produce. From fish like raw umai fish salad to sampling local Kuching-brewed beer, Executive Chef Alex Wong has made it his mission to champion local food.

We had one of the best Sarawak Laksa here and the kitchen's Kolok Mee was good as well (if only it was prepared with pork). We previously tried the sustainable buffet at Doubletree Kuala Lumpur and the same sustainble practices were applied here as well.

Local fruits and vegetables were used in the dishes and meats like beef were also sourced locally. Even for Malaysians like us, there were plenty of delights that we hadn't even heard of which made every meal feel exotic.

To an outsider like us, the waterfront seems poised for redevelopment and Hilton Kuching is primed to meet that change. With some work we can see the waterfront turned into a jogging track during the day and a romantic riverfront walk like in Paris during the night.

While we imagine that ideal future, head to Hilton Kuching to experience future comforts now. For the same price, KL-ites can enjoy a suite at Hilton Kuching and for businesses looking to incentivise their teams, Hilton Kuching has the equipment you need.