Hilton Kuching REVIEW: the best hotel in Kuching for families

Life in Kuching revolves around the Sarawak River so it makes sense to base yourself as close to the water as possible. And there’s no better option than the Hilton Kuching, which has sat in its landmark location overlooking the river for almost forty years.

It’s an ideal place for families visiting Borneo with kids as it combines the convenience and comfort of a modern city-centre hotel, with thoughtful and family-friendly touches that combine to make it a relaxing place to retreat to. If you’re visiting Malaysia with kids and are on the lookout for a destination to slow down and relax for a few days, Kuching and the Hilton Hotel are both great options.

Disclaimer: We were provided with a complimentary stay in return for promotion across our social media channels and this blog you’re reading. As always, we don’t shy away from an honest review and keep it real for our readers so you know exactly what to expect.

Location, location, location

When the Hilton Kuching was first built in 1988, it wasn’t just the first five-star building in the city, it was also one of the grandest and most significant buildings to appear in the city for decades. The prestige of a Hilton hotel in the city allowed it to take centre-stage on the riverfront, and it has now reached iconic and landmark status in the city. It really is in the ideal location to explore and experience this beautiful place.

The riverfront is easily accessed via a walkway at the front of the hotel, from where you’re in easy walking distance of the Kuching Waterfront, Darul Hana Bridge, Old Court House, India Street, and all the other tourist sights on the south bank of the river. It’s also only a short hop across the river from Fort Margherita, State Assembly Building and Astana.

Arriving to Hilton Kuching

It’s a simple fifteen minute Grab ride from Kuching Airport so it’s not long from the runway to a warm Hilton welcome. You can expect all the usual professional greetings from the friendly staff, with a sweeping driveway and large reception/lobby area. It’s clearly the place to stay for business travellers, but they’re also adept at handling travelling families arriving with backpacks rather than briefcases.

The staff made an effort to welcome the boys and we all found the lobby area a gentle place to relax while the formalities were taken care of.

The real excitement came when we arrived to our connecting rooms to find treats waiting for us, including a very cute baby orangutan (toy rather than real, don’t worry), chocolates and small cakes. It was a lovely, thoughtful welcome from the staff and set the tone perfectly for our stay.

Connecting rooms for families

As the boys get slightly older, we all appreciate a bit more space and comfort when we stay in a hotel. Gone are the days when we’d all squeeze into one double-bed and make the best of it. Where possible, we always try to book adjoining rooms so the boys have some semblance of freedom and us parents can take a break from the constant Fortnite strategy meetings.

The Hilton offers adjoining twin and king rooms which are ideal for those families visiting Kuching. We never actually locked or closed the connecting doors but it created a nice sense of space for us all.

Our rooms came with river views which, while not a prerequisite, are still a major bonus in Kuching. The sweeping views of the river, mountains, Fort Margherita and State Assembly Building are incredible to view at any time, but especially so first thing in the morning and then in the early evening when the sun began to set.

You even get a front row seat for the nightly light-shows just in from the State Assembly Building. If your budget can stretch to it, and they have availability, the riverside rooms are the icing on the cake.

As you’d expect from a modern five-star hotel, the room amenities are top-notch, with comfortable beds and pillows, powerful air-conditioning, satellite-TV, seating areas and a desk to work on (handy if, like us, you can never quite switch off from work). Our only slight criticism is the lack of hooks and wardrobe space, much less than we were expecting in a King room (and we had packed lightly, honestly).

Swimming pool and gym

The signs warning of crocodiles might put you off a dip in the river, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of the large, outdoor pool at the Hilton Kuching. Considered one of the best in the city, the pool is a popular place to hang out in the afternoon heat, with plenty of sunbeds to relax on, plus a swim-up bar area (although all drinks and snacks are delivered from the main restaurant, so service can be slow at times).

As long as you watch out for the steep height drops in the pool, it’s an easy place to spend a few hours with the kids. There is a separate kids pool adjacent to the main pool, but it was closed for maintenance at the time of our visit.

We spent a large amount of time in the gym (same level as the pool) and it’s probably the best-stocked gym we’ve ever seen in a hotel. It’s so impressive that we didn’t actually realise there was a whole other room until the second day, and we only found the sauna on our final day. It’s packed full of weight machines, rowing machines, treadmills (including the option to choose running locations around the world that are displayed on the screen as you run), cross-trainers and even a body fat analyser machine (although you’d be forgiven for skipping this if you’re here on holiday).

Technically, the gym is only for guest aged over-18, but we checked with staff and they were happy for the boys to use the gym under our supervision. It’s unsupervised at all times (open 24 hours a day, access via room key card) so, as long as you monitor the kids and manage their access to heavier weight machines, there’ll be no problems.

Breakfast at Hilton Kuching

Buffet breakfasts at large, business-orientated hotels feel like big business, with some trying to ‘out-breakfast’ their competitors with evermore elaborate displays and food choices. It can become a bit much at times but the Hilton Kuching has found the right balance between sufficient choice and over-consumption.

There’s a selection of Indian, Malay, Chinese and Western options, with tea, coffee, juices and deserts included. The staff are friendly and open to making specific meals if you ask nicely. It can get busy at times and the trays were occasionally empty, but they were quickly filled up when asked.

Although there are a couple of restaurants at Hilton Kuching for dinner, we didn’t actually try them. Kuching has a fantastic local dining scene and just around the corner from the hotel is Topspot Food Court. This is situated above a car park, but offers a superb array of local dishes (despite all the restaurant names boasting just seafood). We loved it so much, that we ate there three times!

Getting around from Hilton Kuching

Hilton Kuching is quite the landmark in the city and everyone knows where it is. It’s amazing how often it pops up on the horizon and it appeared in more photos than we did. Grab drivers can pick you up and drop you right outside the entrance and we never had to wait more than a few minutes to be picked up.

As you’re in such a central location, many of the sights are within walking range and the hotel offers easy access to the waterfront.

How to book Hilton Kuching

As always, booking online is the easiest way to book your accommodation in Southeast Asia.

Click here to check rates and availability.

There are family rooms available, but if you would like more space, we recommend getting interconnecting rooms like us (1x King Room and 1x Twin Room).

Please note that room rates are subject to an additional Tourism Tax of RM10 per room per night Malaysian citizens and permanent residents holding MyPR cards are exempted from the Tourism Tax.

Why we loved our family stay at Hilton Kuching

If you’re looking for the best place to stay in Kuching with kids, then the Hilton gets our vote. We knew as soon as we set eyes on the Hilton Kuching that we were going to love our stay. There’s something extra special about staying in a landmark hotel, especially one that offers amazing views from your room. Waking up to the riverfront and Fort Margherita was always a special moment.

The rooms are clean, cool and comfortable, very welcome after a long day trekking in the jungle or visiting the orangutans. It always works well having interconnecting rooms and the boys appreciated having their own space to decompress in, and it meant us parents could switch off for a few minutes.

Kuching is an amazing city to visit and staying at the Hilton feels like the perfect accompaniment, giving you the chance to soak in the river views from this true Kuching institution.