Temple Tree
Style Multi-culti Malay villas
Setting Minutes from the beach
One-of-a-kind boutique hotel Temple Tree on Langkawi island is a palm-fringed retirement home for an eclectic collection of eight Malaysian heritage villas. Elegantly appointed interiors have been gussied up with a bold mix of antique and contemporary pieces, spanning Chinese, Malay, Indian and Eurasian styles. And just like its fabulous sister property Bon Ton Restaurant & Resort nearby, it also serves delicious food.
Need to know
- Rooms Eight Malaysian heritage houses, including 14 rooms, of which six are suites.
-
Rates
Double rooms from $206.05 (MYR650).
Prices have been converted from the hotel's local currency (MYR650), via XE.com, using today's exchange rate.
- More details Rates include Continental breakfast, placed in your room fridge the night before (home-made cakes up the treat factor).
- Facilities Pool table, library of books, magazines and DVDs, free WiFi throughout, computer/printer for guest use. In rooms: flatscreen TV, DVD/CD player, iPod dock, toaster, fridge, Thann toiletries.
- Poolside There are two: the smaller one (57-feet long), shaded by palms, is best for a cooling dip. Sandwiched between a magnificent century-old Chinese mansion and a stout banyan tree with a small temple at its base, that gives the resort its name, the larger pool (110- feet long) is ideal for laps. Sunloungers provide blissful views of the surrounding mountains and coconut groves.
- Check-out Noon, but flexible subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 2pm.
- Children Welcome: cots and baths for babies can be provided for free, as can extra beds for under-12s. Babysitting can be arranged for RM10 a child an hour, if booked one day in advance. More...
- Eco-friendly Apart from recycling heritage properties, Temple Tree’s owner Narelle McMurtrie also runs the private animal shelter next door; she uses profits from her businesses to fund work at the centre.
- Also Small pets are welcome in five of the villas. Smoking is allowed throughout.
Food and drink at Temple Tree
-
Hotel restaurant
The Straits Club Restaurant & Bar occupies the Straits Club House, a 1920s mansion built for a Penang Eurasian family. Seating 22, including outdoor tables by the pool, the restaurant builds on neighbouring Bon Ton’s gourmet reputation. The emphasis here is on straight-up western and fusion dishes, epitomised by the ‘big breakfast’, a feast of fried eggs, lamb roll, beef patty, pan-fried potatoes, caramelised onions and spinach, with chilli jam. For dinner things get even more creative, with offerings such as five-spice roasted chicken with kaffir lime and cashew rice, hot and sour mango salad and a sweet-salty caramelised peanut dressing. Leave room for scrumptious home-made desserts such as gula melaka (brown sugar) ice-cream or apple and guava crumble. On Friday nights the chef rolls out a three-course menu with paired wines.
- Dress code Laid-back loungewear.
- Top table As a former home, the dining room here offers an intimate ambience, ideal for admiring the lovely carvings in the walls that allow air to circulate. There are also several tables beside the pool.
- Last orders Straits Club offers brunch/lunch from 10.30am to 5pm, snacks until 7pm and dinner until 10.30pm when the bar also closes. The bar at Nam, in neighbouring Bon Ton Resort & Restaurant, stays open until after midnight.
- Room service You can order the Straits Club menu in-room until 10.30pm.
- Hotel bar Straits Club has a compact wooden bar where the tenders can knock out a liqueur-laced coffee to wrap up your meal or cocktails to enjoy in the library or on the veranda. Don't miss the Happy Hours from 5pm–7pm.
Also worth knowing
- Weddings This property is suitable for weddings. More...
Temple Tree Pantai Cenang, Langkawi, 07000
Join us – it's free!
Sign up now for exclusive hotel offers, money back on every booking, and Smith extras (like the one below) whenever you book with us. more
Smith extra at Temple Tree
A welcome lime margarita each
In the know
Our favourite rooms
Each of the eight colonial villas is unique, lovingly restored and enhanced with contemporary touches. The two-storey, 100-year-old Chinese House, transported all the way from Batu Pahat in Johor, at the southern tip of the Malay peninsula, is an opulent red, green and black painted beauty that you’d hardly guess was once a farmhouse. It’s been converted into two spacious suites with broad verandas on three sides. Another eye-catcher is the 1940s-built Black & White House. Stained glass and wooden fretwork add interest to its monochrome exterior, while inside there’s a covered porch, a four-poster bed, wooden tub, giant bathroom and a small multi-gym.
Packing tips
Bring binoculars for star-gazing from your lounger; active types should pack an underwater camera for snorkelling and diving.
Also
Set in a former coconut plantation by a lotus-strewn lagoon, Temple Tree is a few minutes’ drive from Pantai Cenang, one of the nicest beaches on the island.
