ELONG Hotel Jakarta PIK

I came here as a last-minute booking due to an airport closure caused by a volcanic eruption. I was trying to make the best of a bad situation. With the hassle of flight cancellations, all the hotels at or near the airport were quickly snapped up. Elong Hotel was the best available one, located about a 20-minute ride from the airport. The room was gorgeous, new, and absolutely clean. I loved the view from my room. Breakfast was quite a disaster as there was no halal food. I totally understood, as it is a Chinese-owned hotel. At check-in, I was told that the halal and non-halal breakfast items would be placed separately, but they were not. I stayed for one night only and moved to another hotel after my flight was cancelled again. Would I come back to stay here when in Jakarta? For the room, an absolute yes. For the breakfast and its location, it is a straight no.

I am currently staying at Elong Hotel over the weekend into the following week. While out for lunch, I requested the housekeeper to clean the room. The job done was very poor — he merely folded the used towels and put them back in place without replacing them. When I later wanted to use a towel, I discovered it was still wet and dirty. Only after I confronted the housekeeper did he finally change the towels. This is basic housekeeping that should have been done properly the first time. On top of that, the hotel has a serious mosquito problem. There are quite a lot of mosquitoes in the room and around the property, which makes the stay uncomfortable. Housekeeping standards and pest control need significant improvement. I expected better for a hotel of this standard.

I still have some feedback to say for the hotel's improvement, but I want to give the full 5 stars anyway to tell them that they have the potential. First of all, the location and the interior of the room were great! I booked the De Luxe but we were upgraded to a much bigger one. The room is really a 4-star hotel! On the other hand, I can see that after a year of operation, facilities are starting to show signs of wear and tear. They have continuous renovations but I don't think everybody is doing their best to clean or maintain the cleanliness (especially the toilet) and to assist the guests. When you request something, it will take a long time before they deliver even if they already have the robot (which is actually amazing). The bathroom is fantastic but I see that they can still improve on cleaning to remove the stains in corners and toilet bowl. These are important simple things I believe to maintain the aesthetic of your hotel. They have a space for Work or meetings and the laundry room and gym are just so amazing. Don't get me wrong, despite my negative comments, I have to say that Elong hotel is a great hotel in PIK (worth the price). I will definitely book again, why not? More power to you, Elong hotel!