The Westin Perdana
The main swimming pool with the hotel lobby in the background.
The The Westin (it was a Sheraton when I stayed there) Perdana was a very pleasant surprise. Located just about five minute's walk from the busy ferry terminal, we were expecting a more 'citified' hotel. But the Westin was a world unto itself, separated from the rest of Kuah - which is not exactly a bustling town in any case - by a small hill. The hotel sits in a small cove with the rocky point protecting the yacht club on one end and a sort of cliff on the other end.
The 'ocean pool' with artificial boulders and water jets.
Because of its location on the side of a hill, you enter the apparently low-rise hotel on what turns out to be the fourth floor. Rooms in the hotel's two wings encircle the pools (there are three in all) and either look onto the pools or out into the extensive gardens and forests surrounding the hotel. Hint: pay the little extra for an ocean/pool view room. Some of the 'garden' view rooms, while very nice, don't have much of a view.
The classic tropical beach in front of the Westin Perdana.
The hotel has a total of three pools. The largest is a free-form but otherwise conventional pool. Near this is a smaller splash pool intended for children. Down closer to the beach, the third 'Ocean' pool is designed on two levels with large boulders and waterfalls between the two levels. The fountains spouting from a couple of boulders makes this a very cool and comfortable place to spend an afternoon.
The beach is rather short, even at low tide, as well as a little rocky. A large number of shells wash up on the morning high tide, but they don't ever seem to be large or especially spectacular.
Rooms are large and comfortable, with huge bathrooms and balconies which are relatively private. The hotel's coffee shop is located just below the lobby, with clear views of the pools and ocean. A small 'Mediterranean' restaurant in down near the beach and the Ocean pool.
The biggest surprise was the amount and variety of wildlife in and around the hotel. A large monitor lizard was a regular sight every afternoon as he made his way from the beach to someplace closer to the hotel. Monkeys were a common sight on the walk into town, and one evening a flock of hornbills was spotted having dinner in the palms around the hotel.
Rooms at the Westin Perdana can be booked through several of our hotel partners.