A man who travelled from Singapore to Malaysia’s Genting Highlands with his elderly parents was shocked to discover brown, murky tap water in one of their rooms at First World Hotel.
Image courtesy of Mr B
He also alleged that their second room had not been cleaned after the previous occupants, while attempts to seek assistance involved lengthy waits at the hotel’s customer service counters.
The guest, who wished to be known as Mr B, told MS News that he had booked two Y5 Deluxe Rooms at First World Hotel in Resorts World Genting (RWG) about a month before his stay from 5 to 6 July.
Standard check-in was at 3pm, but Mr B said guests could pay an additional RM5 (around S$1.50) to check in between 12pm and 3pm.
However, when the family tried to check in early, a TV screen indicated that there were no Y5 Deluxe Rooms available at the time.
Image courtesy of Mr B
According to Mr B, guests could either take a queue number and wait to speak to a staff member or keep trying their luck at the self-service kiosks.
He opted for the latter, repeatedly queueing to scan his passport and enter his booking number in the hope that rooms would become available.
At around 12.30pm, the family eventually managed to secure two separate rooms, one on the 14th floor and another on the 18th floor.
Upon checking the rooms, Mr B said the one on the 18th floor appeared to have been cleaned, with the bed neatly made.
However, the room on the 14th floor was allegedly still untidy from its previous occupants, with the bedding and pillows left in a mess and empty mineral water bottles still inside.
Image courtesy of Mr B
He headed back downstairs to raise the issue and showed hotel staff a photo of the room.
Mr B said he was directed to take a queue number to speak to a customer service officer. With 52 people ahead of him, he said he waited for around two hours before reaching the counter.
When the family finally spoke to a staff member about the room, Mr B alleged that she raised her voice and asked: “What you want me to do?”
He said they were told to wait another four hours for housekeeping as no other rooms were available at the time.
The family subsequently went out for a meal before returning to the 18th-floor room.
At around 6pm, Mr B said they went to use the bathroom and discovered brown, murky water coming from both washbasins.
“We were shocked to find out both big and small basin in the toilet gave out brown, murky water. I was so paranoid and pissed off,” he said.
Image courtesy of Mr B
Mr B returned to the lobby at around 6.20pm to request a room change, but said he was once again told to take a queue number.
This time, there were around 120 people ahead of him.
He estimated that it would take another four to six hours before he could speak to a customer service officer, meaning the family might only receive assistance between around 10pm and midnight.
Image courtesy of Mr B
“In the end, we gave up,” he said, explaining that the family was exhausted and had to check out early the following morning to catch their flight back to Singapore.
Just don’t wash face, don’t brush teeth, don’t shower for one night.
Mr B added that they bought mouthwash to use instead.
He said he had stayed at First World Hotel several times before and recalled his previous stay a few years ago as “clean and decent”.
In response to enquiries from MS News, RWG said on 6 July that it takes guest feedback seriously and was reviewing the concerns raised.
On 30 July, RWG added that it had reached out to Mr B and was addressing the matter directly with him.
“In view of guest privacy and confidentiality considerations, we are unable to comment further or disclose details relating to the matter.”
Mr B confirmed to MS News that First World Hotel’s public relations department had contacted him on 23 July.
According to the response he shared, the hotel said a follow-up inspection “did not reveal any water discolouration occurring” and that the water was found to be in “normal condition”.
However, it reportedly added that it had taken his feedback seriously and would continue monitoring the matter.
Addressing the lengthy waiting times, First World Hotel said it had been operating at full occupancy on the day of Mr B’s arrival and was handling an exceptionally high volume of guest arrivals and service requests.
The hotel also offered Mr B a refund and a complimentary one-night stay as a gesture of goodwill.
Mr B said he later received a refund through booking platform Traveloka.
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Featured image courtesy of Mr B.