Shangri-La's Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa

Booked for two nights, 5-7 November. Greeted with spacious and classic vibes lobby. Assigned to a room on 18th level. The bell boy helped to carry the suitcases upstairs. Received a complimentary welcome cake. Love the sea view, in the evening you can see some people parasailing at the ocean. Breakfast didn’t disappoint, variety of foods ranging from salads, english breakfast to sushi and dimsum, local tastes such as kuetiau soup, as well as breads, waffles & pastries. Went for a swim at the pool, there’s a signboard telling to not interfere with wildlife animals & while I was in the kids pool there’s a biawak freely swimming across 😂 The pool was large. Very aesthetic to take pictures. Found the wet floor caution board to be so cute, the shape of a banana. Though the room is a bit dated, but it is well maintained. Enjoyed my stay here. Staffs are attentive & polite. You can stroll around in the evening next to the beach, or just enjoy a relaxing time on the reclining chairs next to the pool. If you’re looking for activities for kids, the next Shangri-La Golden Sands offers Kids Club activities. You can get there by buggy or simply walking (but you’ll get tired enough before reaching there xD).

Went here on holiday with my husband and daughter. Had a great time! the room was superb as usual. That staff were very helpful, and friendly. Our favourite is definitely the breakfast buffet and the seating. When the pool was being cleaned, the staff recommended us to take a buggy to Golden Sands and we were happy to find out that there was a waterpark like pool there! We took a walk back through the serene walkway from Golden Sands back to Rasa Sayang. Love the herb garden too!

Room: When we first entered the room, it was absolutely pleasant. The room was clean, comfortable, and well-maintained. The bed was large and very comfortable, and there was also a spacious sofa. The balcony had a lovely sea view overlooking the pools, which were really cantikkkk! Breakfast: The breakfast spread was quite varied. I noticed they made an effort to cater to Malaysian tastes, with Malay, Chinese, and Indian options, + the Japanese and English dishes. I especially loved the hot drinks station, the teh tarik and teh halia were excellent. Overall, I would rate the dining experience 4/5. Public Toilets: The public toilets were comfortable, pleasant, and nicely designed. The ladies’ toilet even had a powder table for makeup, and everything was very clean. Parking: Parking was quite plentiful and outdoor, which was convenient. Seaside: I really loved the seaside area. It was relaxing to lie down, nap, and enjoy the sea breeze… such a peaceful experience.

Disappointing stay” You would think with the room rates, you would be getting more exclusivity, luxury and better facilities. It has been a lifelong dream for me to stay at Rasa Sayang ever since I was a child when my mum would bring us to have cheesecake at the coffee house from way back in the 80s. Now making my own living, I decided to make my dream come true and stay a few nights at Rasa Sayang during our short trip home to Penang. Unfortunately, I am deeply disappointed. The rooms feel old, the furniture outdated. The TV reception is so bad that I could not understand a single word from the movie channels; not even from lip reading. There is no privacy at the balconies because the walls are so low. There were ants crawling anywhere we left food or used glasses. On the day we were checking out (thank goodness), next door to us had just checked in with 4-5 young kids screaming and talking loudly. They even hung their clothes on the balcony to dry when there is a perfectly good clothes hanger provided at the balcony area. One would expect a hotel such as Rasa Sayang to have a bit more discretion with guests and to be more concerned with the environment, atmosphere and comfort of other guests. Or maybe my expectations of Rasa Sayang from childhood has been greatly inflated. On a positive note, the breakfast selection mouth-watering. Feringgi Grill lived up to its reputation, although my husband’s risotto was a bit bland but everything else was scrumptious!!! We note that a lot of the employees are foreign workers and they were all so polite and well-mannered, in fact, more friendly than the locals, who were less forthcoming with their smiles and greetings. The pool and the grounds were beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed walking through the gardens and lounging by the pool. I loved that the huge canopy trees I grew up swinging on the tyre swings are still standing strong and that the hotel has maintained all the greenery which has always been what I loved about spending the afternoons here with my mum and cousins. It was truly a treat for all of us! All in all, I am sorry but I will not back and neither would I spend the same amount of money to stay here again. I do not think I got my money’s worth and this is definitely not the standard for a luxury hotel. Rasa Sayang does not live up to its name and its legacy. For the same amount one would pay for a hotel accommodation in Kuala Lumpur or Singapore, what has been provided and experienced, is sorely lacking. A real disappointment for a Penangite who grew up setting Rasa Sayang as THE benchmark luxury hotel.

The overall quality was far below the standard I have come to expect from a five-star establishment and other comparable luxury hotels. During breakfast, several items served were regrettably not fresh, which is unacceptable for a hotel of this caliber. The general variety of options was also limited compared to expectations. The service team appeared disorganized and struggled with the basic task of efficiently attending to guests' needs. The outdoor local coffee kiosk was particularly disappointing in terms of taste and quality. I strongly suggest that your local staff sample the coffee themselves to understand its shortcomings. It was particularly disheartening given the premium price I paid. At this price, one expects a superior experience. However, I have received significantly better value and quality of service at more affordably priced hotels. The adjacent beach is currently undergoing significant erosion. The visual condition was poor, and there was no visible effort to address or mitigate this environmental issue during my visit. Crucially, no information regarding the state of the beach was proactively provided by the reception or hotel staff either at check-in or prior to arrival. This lack of transparency meant our expectations for a beach-front stay were not met.

Amazing hotel, we go every year. Recommend rasa wing so you can use the nice pool. Muru who works by the pool is so lovely, when I arrived he remembered my standard drink order from a whole year before. The staff are all incredible. The nature is stunning. Only bad thing is the food by the beach/that you order by the rasa wing pool. They make Malaysian food well but other cuisines they can’t really do so well. Takes an hour drive to town with traffic. Love this place

We booked a 3 night stay for our Penang stopover & got a 4th floor room in the garden wing. The hotel grounds are lovely and expansive, its pools are delightful and its location on the water edge is superb for enjoying the views and a bit of beach. However the hotel itself looks dated and certain aspects of the resort look to be in disrepair. Food is good 6/10. Breakfast is very good & a has a very nice variety & gets a 8/10. Service is not consistently great despite the hotel’s 5star rating and we found some staff to be sloppy and inattentive. As an example, on our last night, we were tired of eating spicy food and were craving a simple snack of toast and tea… instead we received 4 slices of bread, a toaster (to do it ourselves) and a pot of tea with no milk (after being asked our preference for hot or cold milk). There are definitely great staff members who go the extra mile to deliver great service but regrettably, the experience is not consistent. We were glad we didn’t book a longer stay here & it’s not a hotel we’d rush back to.

Clearly the hotel didn't have enough people to manage a huge structure like that. Pool management is week. Sunbeds and umbrella are totally not enough for the size of that hotel. Be ready to wake up at 5am to secure a spot for you and your children. Don't go there if you prefer to lay down on a beach there is none, but plenty of noisy and smelly water jets! Anyway the sea is not even close to other nearby tropical places. Don't worry about the check in time, your room will not be ready, maybe better to pay one night more and arrive the day after your booked check in. Only the price is 5 stars. For that money there are much better options. Totally unsatisfied by a brand such as Shangri-la, it is true that now a day people talk about brand forgetting about products. I'll think twice before booking a room in this hotel chain (it is nothing but that) next time.

This is a quiet and relaxing resort for a break from our hectic vacation :-). We spent 2 nights here and enjoyed it thoroughly. We missed the cooking demonstration - so if that is your thing, ask for it upon checking in so you can plan around your schedule. The restaurants were good for lunch and dinner. The breakfast were awesome. The seafood buffet, only available on the weekends, was a must try. If you gauge this place with US dollar standard, then it is a great value - but very expensive for local standard.

I agree with other reviewer that this hotel is pretty expensive according to local standards, but if you compare it to the US hotel prices, this hotel is an extremely good bang for your buck. Not only are there so many good amenities, but the hotel itself is just overall very luxurious and overlooks the penang oceanfront. There is complementary breakfast, afternoon, tea, and dinner, which is amazing that afternoon tea is so high quality and comes complementary with a hotel stay. They also deliver fresh fruit to your room. The only thing that I didn't like was how the ocean front wasn't very well-maintained. I understand that this is pretty much out of control for the hotel, but if you're coming here, don't expect a luxurious beach experience. I wasn't too upset because I came mainly for the resort, but, the beach itself is very dirty and polluted. I think the government needs to do better regulation, because a lot of the boating and rental jetties are causing a lot of oil, pollution by the bayfront, and sometimes the ocean will smell very bad from all of the JetSki's zooming right next to the shore. This is also very dangerous for swimmers. The pool is OK, some weird people, but overall OK.

One of the most memorable things about our trip to Penang was not the food as oftentimes talked about. It was the spa experience at Shangri-La Rasa Sayang. You really cant ask for much more in life than an hour long of pampering in the spa. The hotel grounds is beautiful with its own beach access. The couples bungalow is luxurious with its own indoors and outdoors bathing facilities. The masseurs are very friendly and courteous. Depending on your selected package, the scrubs and wraps are truly amazing. The massages are heavenly. Highly recommended.

Overlooking a scenic stretch of Batu Feringgi Beach at the Pinang Restaurant and Bar, we had a very nice relaxing lunch here during our visit to Penang. Trees provided nice shade and breeze from the ocean created heavenly atmosphere. I started my lunch with See Breeze, it was just what I needed to quench my thirst from walking around as a tourist. I had vegetable curry and my partner had Chicken Curry "Kapitan". Both were spicy and flavorful. Right amount of portion size was just what we needed to leave room for dinner (as it was late lunch). Service we received was excellent. We arrived shortly after lunch rush (I think), and they were not crowded at all. Server gave us enough space for us to enjoy our time together yet he stayed close enough to come back to take additional orders for more drinks when we wanted. Although we did not stay at this hotel but we surely enjoyed Shangri-La's high quality service during our short visit during lunch.

Tried the lunch menu at spice market restaurant. The restaurant is popular with the buffet at night. Lunch menu included local hawker foods like penang Laksa, char kuey teow which is a bit pricey and not really worth it. So instead of hawker foods, I prefer indian cuisine with different naan bread serve with the lentil and curry dip. It was alright..my favourite dishes is butter chicken and the mixed vegetables fried rice. This restaurant specialises in buffet dinner, it is advisable to check if there any offer prices before you booked as it is not cheap. If you are buffet fans, this is the place for you.